Today is the Solemnity of the Epiphany of the Lord, in which we celebrate “the manifestation of Jesus as Messiah of Israel, Son of God and Savior of the world” (CCC 528). We celebrate the Child who was born for us on Christmas Day as the fullest possible revelation of God for us.
The first reading speaks of the darkness that covers the earth and the thick clouds that cover the peoples. This describes the condition of our fallen human nature. With our intellects clouded by original sin, on our own we have no hope of seeing clearly enough to discover the answers to our most pressing questions: Why am I here? What is my life about? What will happen to me when I die?
However, Isaiah reminds us that the Lord in his mercy has not left us in this darkness. God’s revelation brings light for those who receive it: “Upon you the LORD shines, / and over you appears his glory.” This is what we are celebrating in the Christmas Season – the glorious Light of God coming down into our darkness and revealing to us who God is and who we are in him. As St. Paul tells us in the second reading, we now know the mystery of the plan of salvation which God has been working out for thousands of years. We share in the promise which God made to his people – to bring us all into one Body with him in Christ for eternal happiness in Heaven. As we are enlightened by this revelation, we become “radiant at what [we] see,” and our hearts “throb and overflow” with joy.
Or perhaps not. Perhaps these readings have become so familiar to us that we are no longer moved by them. Perhaps we have celebrated many Christmases, and the Season has become for us little more than a worldly holiday in which to spend time with family and enjoy fine food and drinks. We already know the Christmas story; we have heard it over and over. We are glad that God came to us in Jesus two thousand years ago, and we enjoy seeing images of the baby in the manger, but we find that our hearts are not deeply touched. The Season comes and goes and we go about our business as usual.
How can we avoid this trap of allowing our familiarity with the events of Christmas to rob us of their power in our lives? Today in the Liturgy, in the celebration of the Sacraments, those mysteries become present and effective for us. To quote St. Leo the Great: “All that the Son of God did and taught for the world’s reconciliation is not for us simply a matter of past history. Here and now we experience his power at work among us” (Sermon 12 on the Passion; cf. Liturgy of the Hours, Office of Readings, Wednesday, 2nd Week of Easter, p. 660).
In other words, we are not only celebrating events which happened long ago. As we celebrate, we are experiencing the effects of those events now. The birth of Jesus Christ, the Word made flesh, two thousand years ago, gives us hope for salvation today, just as the death of Christ and his Resurrection long ago save us from sin and death today, in our lives right now. The discovery of the Magi is our discovery today; the One whom they encountered in Bethlehem is the same Lord we encounter today.
As we continue to ponder the mystery of the Incarnation, we begin to understand that we do not celebrate Christmas simply as we celebrate a national holiday, commemorating great events which took place in the past. We are not spectators or historians here. These are not stories about other people – these are our stories! They tell us about what God is doing in our lives, here and now, today! What is being manifested to us in the Epiphany is the answer to our questions: we are here because God created us to share in his life, and to be transformed into the image and likeness of Christ, united with him in the fullness of joy for all eternity.
In the Incarnation, God has “prostrated” himself before us in the form of a newborn babe in Bethlehem and has showered us with infinite gifts of grace and mercy. The Gospel shows us two opposite ways in which we can respond to him. We can imitate the Magi, who wisely and humbly prostrate themselves before him, opening their hearts in love and gratitude and giving him the most precious gifts they have. Or we can imitate Herod, who is so caught up in his own self-centeredness that he is “greatly troubled” by the news of Jesus’ birth, and he schemes and lies in an effort to oppose God’s plans and preserve his own little kingdom.
Surely, we want to imitate the Magi! We are all called to be “wise men,” to follow the new way of life that the star of faith opens for us, and to find Jesus with Mary his mother. And together with her, we continue to rejoice and to ponder God’s revelation of his wonderful plan: Yes, Lord! What an amazing thing it is that you are doing in me! Let it be done to me according to your word!
When have I experienced the mercy of God overcoming the darkness in me? How can I prevent my familiarity with the Christmas story from robbing me of its true meaning? What do I learn from the experience of the Magi? How am I being invited to “become radiant” with the light of Christ and reflect his presence to others?
Excerpt from The Anawim Way, Volume 22, no. 1. More information about The Anawim Way may be found here.