Sunday Gospel Reflection, January 6, 2019: We saw his star at its rising...

We saw his star at its rising…

What is God trying to reveal to you?

   Have you ever had an epiphany?  In Biblical terms, the word epiphany is synonymous with revelation, a moment when God calls us to a new vision, a new way of seeing what God has revealed. 

   Imagine you are sitting in darkness and a light is suddenly turned on.  What happens?  This is what it is like for the people of Israel in the Book of Isaiah:  your light has come, God tells them.  In the darkness that surrounds them, only upon Jerusalem does God’s light shine.  Their return from exile will cause them to be radiant, emanating light by which kings will flock to the city, bringing tribute, as in Psalm 72. But first, the people of Israel must open their own eyes, so they can see what God is revealing both to them and through them, which is no less than the glory of the Lord itself.

   In Matthew's Gospel, Jesus will be revealed to the magi from the east by means of a star; though the magi are not Jews, they are overjoyed at seeing the star, and their new vision prompts them to journey to Bethlehem by the light of that very star to do homage to the newborn king of the Jews. St. Paul will speak of a similar revelation in his Letter to the Ephesians, calling it the mystery that was made known to me by revelation, namely, that God has brought light to the hearts of all humankind, Gentiles and Jews alike.  All will have the same vision to live from, the same vision in Christ who dwells within them all… so long as all open their hearts to God, so long as all open their eyes to the revelation that is theirs.

   We don’t embrace new visions easily.  Often, our eyes are shut even when a light is on – so we can’t see properly.  Are we aware of what barriers or divisions we hold onto that keep us from embracing the world?   God’s kingdom is built on the connection of all people, not on division.  So long as division exists, so long as we cannot let go of the darkness, how can we proclaim Christ as a light to dispel the darkness within us?  God wants nothing more than that his love be revealed; we need to embrace God’s vision, that we might be that revelation to the world.

This post is based on Fr. Pat’s homily for the Feast of the Epiphany in 2016.

Image source:  www.wordclouds.com

Sunday Gospel Reflection, January 7, 2018: You shall be radiant...

 You shall be radiant… 

Does Christ’s light dwell in you? 

   Perhaps the most remarkable thing about the visit of the magi from the east to see the newborn king of the Jews described in Matthew's Gospel is that the magi are not themselves Jewish.  To the contrary, they are astrologers from foreign lands who have had an intimation of the revelation God intends for all peoples, a glimpse of the divine light that is Jesus, calling all nations of the world to him.  Their response is fitting:  they prostrate themselves and do Jesus homage, knowing that the divine light that brought them to him can only have been revealed by God.  It is easy to imagine that they would, upon departing for their country, carry some glimmer of that light dwelling within them, shining for all the world to see.

   The magi, like the kings of Tarshish and the Isles, the kings of Arabia and Seba mentioned in Psalm 72, come to pay Christ homage -- for all nations shall serve the son of God.  Why?  Because Jesus, the king of our hearts, comes bearing a love that is for all, a love of justice and peace; Jesus is God’s grace incarnate.  We, in turn, as Paul tells the Ephesians, must be aware that we bear the responsibility of the stewardship of that grace thanks to the revelation that was made know to Paul, and communicated by Paul to us.  Moreover, as stewards, we are called to bear that grace to the whole world – we are meant, in the darkness of non-belief, to be a light shining for all, a guide to faith in Christ.  As foretold by the prophet Isaiah, thanks to the birth of Jesus Christ, our light has come, the glory of the Lord shines upon us, and indeed even from deep within us:  thanks to God’s grace, we shall be radiant, blessed by the indwelling of the light of Christ, and the love of God in our hearts. 

   So let us allow that mystery to unfold!  Let the light that filled those who precede us come to dwell in us as well, that we might be what we are called to be, a revelation of God’s grace, an experience of the living Christ for all the world to see!

This post was based on Fr. Pat’s Scripture class.

Image source:  Wordle (http://www.wordle.net)

Sunday Gospel Reflection, January 8, 2017: Then you shall be radiant...

 Then you shall be radiant… 

 Who walks by your light? 

   Epiphany is a feast associated with light.  When the people of Jerusalem are brought back from exile, Isaiah tells them that their light has come:  God has seen fit to eradicate the darkness covering the earth so that the people may be restored to their original splendor.  For Jerusalem is to be a beacon to all nations, radiant from within, and thereby drawing all people to her revelation of God’s glory:  nations shall walk by your light, and kings by your shining radiance, Isaiah announces.  Then, as Psalm 72 proclaims, Lord, every nation on earth will adore you.  Indeed, magnates shall come from all the ends of the earth, from Tarshish to Arabia and Sheba, to pay homage to the king who reveals God’s justice in his attention to the needs of all people.

   In the time of Jesus, darkness is embodied by King Herod himself.  In Matthew's Gospel, troubled by the news of a star that reveals the newborn king of the Jews, Herod does all in his power to quench that light.  He is not interested in God’s plan or in God’s justice.  But like St. Paul in the Letter to the Ephesians, the mystery has been made known to us by revelation; we too can be recipients of the stewardship of God’s grace, if we so choose. Like the great city of Jerusalem or the star at its rising or St. Paul himself, we are all called to reveal God’s presence, to manifest God’s grace, the experienced presence of God, in all that we are, all that we live, all that we do… If we do so, then nations may walk by our light, and kings by our shining radiance, and all will truly be coheirs, members of the same body, revealing Christ to the world.

This post is based on Fr. Pat’s Scripture class. 

Image source: Wordle