Feast of the Epiphany (Mt 2:1-12) “Do You See What I See?”
Feast of the Epiphany (Mt 2:1-12) “Do You See What I See?”
Whenever a biography is written of a famous person the story of their childhood is written last. Why is that? Because we don’t know if a person is important until they grow into adulthood and fulfill their destiny. When we look at how the Gospels were put together. The stories of Jesus’ birth were written last. The stories were meant to reemphasize what is presented in the rest of the Gospel.
When we look at the story of the Epiphany, we find this to be the case. Who or what is the major actor it the story of the magi coming to see Jesus. Is it Mary? Is it Joseph? No, it is the star. The star is a sign that causes some people to react while others don’t.
We are presented with two groups of people in the gospel. We meet orthodox religious people. We also meet people who we would label seekers. As we consider the star, we are left to ponder where we are in our own faith journey. Have we reached an end point? Or are we looking for something more.
The Magi represented people who were seekers. The Magi didn’t fit neatly in any religious denomination. In the Gospel of Matthew, we see how people come to Jesus who aren’t Jews. Now this doesn’t mean they know nothing of the God of Israel. No, they were people who try to probe the mysteries of life.
In Matthew 8:5, for example, a Roman Centurian comes to Jesus asking him to cure a boy who is a servant in his household. The Centurian follows Roman religious precepts, but he has heard of Jesus. He knows our Lord has healing powers. We remember how much he wants Jesus to heal this beloved servant. His words are enshrined in each Eucharist, “Lord I am not worthy to have you come under my roof. Say but the word and there will be healing.” Jesus declares, “I have never found this much faith in Israel.” Jesus seems to imply that there can be great faith where we would least expect it.
The Magi are people who believed that life was full of surprises. We would say that they were intellectually curious. We notice that they seek knowledge wherever it might be found, in the movement of heavenly bodies, in religious writings, in mystical experiences like dreams. Obviously, they believed that they had to discern their course in life using whatever information came their way. The wisemen saw a constellation of heavenly bodies in the sky. We get the impression it was something that they had never seen before. After reading the prophets, the magi follow the star because they believe that it was a sign that an important person was being born, a person who would change history.
We are told they travel to Jerusalem. Herod is surprised by their visit. The magi are shocked that King Herod hasn’t observed what is going on in the heavens. He is caught up in his own little world. He doesn’t want his life to change. He is satisfied with the way things are. Herod is religious enough to consult the priests and scribes asking them what they think. But it is striking that he is too lazy to get off his thrown to travel the five miles to Bethlehem to see what is happening. He tells the magi to look, to report back.
Epiphany is a word which means manifestation. The concept reflects the idea that God’s revelation unfolds in the world. As religious people we can fall into the trap that King Herod fell into. We can think that we have all the religious information that we need. A person with this mentality feels that Theology is static. Change is threatening because that might mean we have been wrong in what we have believed most of our life. People like this condemned Galileo because he said the earth moved. Rigid religious men defended slavery because it seemed to be accepted by influential Christians like St. Paul. We all can have beliefs we feel are absolute.
Seekers are like the magi. Such people don’t believe that everything has been explained. Seekers are constantly on the watch for new signs. Seekers are open to new wisdom. For them, knowledge is always evolving. God is constantly revealing new mysteries that we are meant to wrestle with. Many of us are disconcerted by this. We want answers not questions. But our world is full of questions. For seekers this is what makes God appealing. For them God doesn’t provide answers, but God is invites us into an evolving relationship.
The Herods of the world are all around us. Most of the time, they give religion a bad name. Some of them defend their ideas by physical as well as verbal violence. St. Matthew would say we need to be seekers who don’t cast off sound Theology but build on it. We must have our eyes open looking for signs, so that we don’t miss what our loving God is revealing every day.
Reflection Questions:
What is a religious belief I would not compromise on? What if it was called into question?
Do I look for new religious knowledge? Why or why not?
Dear Parishioners,
We received sad news recently that the Catholic Post would cease publication in the next month. The Post has been the Catholic newspaper of the diocese of Peoria over the last century. As we know, newspapers are ceasing operation all over the country. Magazines are also stopping publication. I was informed recently that Human Development magazine would not be printed anymore. The notice came with the last issue. There was no real warning.
I can understand why this is happening. The Catholic Post used to have a circulation of 30,000. At the end, it was less than half that. The danger is that communications will suffer within the diocese. How will we know what is happening in other parishes.
Bishop Lou announced that in the immediate future parishioners should go to the Catholic Diocese of Peoria WEB page to keep up on the news in the diocese. There will also be a new communication plan put in place. Of course, that will revolve around internet communication.
Sacred Heart will try to do what we can with the communication tools at our disposal. We have our WEB page, newsletter, bulletin and announcements at Mass. Eventually, you may be asked to provide your email address to the diocese so that they can reach you. Let’s pray that new strategies for communication will work for the Catholics of Central Illinois.
May Our Lady pray for us,
Fr. Mark
P.S. Thanks to our parish staff for preparing the Epiphany Party. I think they did a wonderful job and went above and beyond. This is because we all appreciate our volunteers. I hope everyone enjoyed the food and fellowship.