Jan. 2, 2022: Epiphany
Jan. 2, 2022: Epiphany
What is the furthest distance you have walked on foot in search of something? Several of our parishioners have completed the month-long, 500 miles pilgrimage walk on the Camino de Santiago in Spain. For what were they searching? Why did they walk tirelessly every day for a whole month? Some pilgrims walked to connect and discover a deeper meaning in life, to spiritually connect with nature or themselves, or walked to find answers to deep questions. One of the best answers is from a priest who wrote, “A pilgrimage is a journey, assigned by God. It brings the pilgrim not only to a physical place, but out of himself, and into the presence of God. All else falls away.” Does that statement resonate with you in some way? I know some of us here feel disconnected from God and wonder why we are sitting in church in the first place. Perhaps you have given up looking for answers to your deep questions. Perhaps you have lowered your expectations after several unanswered prayers. Don’t give up looking! Don’t give up searching! There is a reason why you are here today, just as there was a reason why God inspired three learned men from the orient to embark on a long-distance journey following a star in search of a newborn king.
When they saw a sign in the sky, the three men began a journey with the dream of encountering a king. Guided by their natural and scientific wisdom, equipped with wealth and readiness to accept challenges, the three wise men first traveled to the royal city of Jerusalem. Instead of finding a royal child, they were told that the child may be found in the small town of Bethlehem. The three learned men had the humility to know that they didn’t have all the answers and that they needed help on their search. They listened and accepted the wisdom of the Hebrew scriptures which led them to Bethlehem. To their surprise, they did not find their newborn king among the wealthy, powerful, and elite; instead they found a baby born to a poor peasant family. God fulfilled their dream, and the three men were so astonished that they fell to their knees in worship. As Isaiah prophesied, perhaps they were awe-struck by the Christ Child: “Then you shall be radiant at what you see, your heart shall throb and overflow… ”. In order to honor the child, they offered the newborn gifts which represented their whole self, not just their surplus.
As we ponder in our hearts the graces that these three men received before the Christ Child, do we sense any interior movement? To notice these movements within us, we need to take time for stillness. We are easily captivated by distractions of life—entertainment, success, honors, pleasures. These are like meteorites, they flash and burn. Yet, God’s blessings are hidden like the Bethlehem Star during the day. It’s only at night, that is, when we take time to close our eyes and enter the inner room of our hearts, we recognize the hand of God in all things.
Prophet Isaiah told the Israelites to lift up their hearts, “Rise up in splendor, Jerusalem! Your light has come, the glory of the Lord shines upon you. See, darkness covers the earth, and thick clouds cover the peoples; but upon you the LORD shines, and over you appears his glory.” The mystery of God’s love for the world was revealed in the Christ Child; God was born to be one of us, and God desires to be with us in our joys, sorrows, and in our darkest moments. Do we sense the gaze of the Christ Child who looks upon us with tender love. Do we feel the glory of the Lord shining upon our darkness, emptiness, helplessness, and powerlessness?
What is our response to the Christ Child? What “gifts” can we present to Him as the New Year dawns upon us? Our gifts to Him should fit the dignity of who He is for us: our King and our God. The gold which the Magi gave was a symbol of wealth and splendor. How can we offer Him our time and resources which are most precious to us? Frankincense was a symbol of prayer rising up to heaven. What do we need to let go of to offer Him our undivided attention, however short, in the morning and in the evening, to talk to Him and to thank Him in prayer? Myrrh symbolized the suffering that Christ would undergo. Let us ask Him for the grace to unite our sufferings and challenges we face now and in the future to His Passion. The three men were changed by their encounter with Jesus and then returned home by a different way. May this New Year become for us a pilgrimage in which we strive to recognize and encounter Christ; let this New Year change us like the wise men. -Fr. Yi
