"They did him homage"
The Word: https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/010222.cfm
A blessed and holy new year of 2022!
It is safe to say that all those who attend our Sunday Masses in our parish Churches are overwhelmingly Gentiles who are expressing their faith in Jesus the Christ, the Messiah of Israel and our own Lord and Savior. That being said, though maybe obvious but not a conscious awareness necessarily, we are reminded on this Feast of the Epiphany of the Lord that not only about our direct connection with the people of Israel, the Jews but also that the Magi followed a star in the sky in search of a newborn king, they ultimately were in search of the greatest Star himself, the light of the world.
The Second Vatican Council in its Document on
the Churches relationship with non-Christian religions, states that the Old
Testament (Hebrew Scriptures) was revealed to us by the Jews and that we
receive: “nourishment from the good olive
tree onto which the wild olive branches of the Gentiles have been
grafted.” The legend of the Magi,
those from the wider Gentile world beyond the small confines of Israel, who
come to find the light of a star and a new born “king” are a wonderful
representation of ourselves who gather to profess our faith in that same king
honored by the Magi but feared by Herod.
They represent not the simple and ordinary, as the shepherds, but high
learning and science, star gazing and the search for meaning and truth; by
association this time in which we live.
So the seekers this Sunday; the Magi begin a
journey because they know something more was out there and they were determined
to find him. They approached their journey with humility and open hearts and
minds. It began by using what they did best – the observation and
interpretation of stars and planets to which they gave a meaning - a new star,
a new king.
They were in search before they arrived in
Jerusalem: “Where is the newborn king of the Jews? We saw his star at its rising . . .” they
tell Herod. So, our Feast this weekend, the Epiphany reminds us that we Christians,
we Gentiles which fill our Churches, have a direct connection to the ancient
Jews through their traditions, prophecies and the birth of Jesus himself within
the Jewish tradition. The Christ is revealed to the Magi and to us as the
Savior of all.
Therefore, we might say the Epiphany is
probably among the most ecumenical of all Church feasts. In a sense we might even say it is the most
“catholic” of all Christian feasts due to its universal inclusion of the
Gentile world. As the Magi come to symbolize the greater world beyond ancient
Bethlehem and Jerusalem we see ourselves reflected in them. Would that our
personal search for Christ would be so singularly focused as the Magi.
To follow the signs of nature in the bright
star and to interpret a deeper significance in the shining light, the Magi laid
aside all other attractions in their lives and saw in this new young child a
greater King; a person of higher rank than themselves and deserving of honor,
which they offered in a humble spirit. What moved them to see in a baby, or
more likely a little child with his mother, this greatness? A hunger, a desire
to discover, a humble submission to the truth before them. They represent an
open mind and set out on a journey to ultimately find the truth; something and
someone who represented more than what they knew.
So, it’s clear that they were on a search and
staying in Jerusalem was not on their agenda.
Once they were led to Bethlehem by the light of a star they found the
one they searched for and laid down their gifts. They saw not in the powerful
and the learned the fulfillment of their hopes but in a small child with his
mother. Something more was at work in
this event that led them to a deeper awareness that something far more is
outside them. Their faith was changed. Once they returned to their country by
an alternate route for their safety from the fanatical King Herod we can only
imagine what they might have told others about their search.
So, the Epiphany is an opportunity to
recognize those moments in our lives when we have come to a deeper understanding
of our faith and to acknowledge from where we came; from the chosen people on whose
vine we were grafted. It certainly reminds us that life is a journey in search
of the good, the beautiful, and truth itself found only in Christ Jesus.
Isaiah speaks of God’s effort to reveal his
Son and show to humanity our value, our dignity, and his obsessive love for us
all: “Your light has come, the glory of the Lord shines upon you!” No longer do we need to wander aimlessly
trying to fulfill ourselves in limited pleasures and pursuits. All we need is found in this child, this
God-Man in our midst. More than just love we see in Jesus a light which leads
us to the truth of God and cuts through all that isn’t him; everything we go in
search of thinking that will fulfill us. It’s plenty: money, position, power,
fame, technology, the latest and the brightest.
Everything the world says we need to have a meaningful life.
So, though our gift giving may be ended for
this season the ultimate gift is one that God gives us, particularly in the Holy
Eucharist, the gift of himself in his Son and like the Magi we follow the path
to him. We meet him on his terms, not on our own.
The Feast of the Epiphany of the Lord is
filled with the image of light. As we draw life from ancient Israel we are
called to lead others on their search from darkness to a new light. What kind
of light do we bring to others?
Let us pray:
O God, who on this day
revealed your Only Begotten Son to the nations
by the guidance of a star,
grant in your mercy that we,
who know you already by faith,
may be brought to behold the beauty
of your sublime glory.
Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,
who lives and reigns with you
in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
God, for ever and ever.
(Opening Prayer of Mass)
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