JSTL/JSP EL (Expression Language) in a non JSP (standalone) context

Question

Can anyone recommend a framework for templating/formatting messages in a standalone application along the lines of the JSP EL (Expression Language)?

I would expect t

Answer 1

AAh. Whereas with MessageFormat, I can do

Dear {0}. Your order will be dispatched on {1,date,EEE dd MMM yyyy}

where parameter #1 is a Date object and it gets formatted according to the pattern, there is no equivalent in EL.

In JSP, I would have used, perhaps, a format tag. In this standalone example, I am going to have to format the Date as a String in my code prior to evaluating the expression.