January 08 ( The Epiphany of the Lord )

The Epiphany of the Lord
Lectionary: 20

Reading 1Is 60:1-6

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.
Nations shall walk by your light,
and kings by your shining radiance.
Raise your eyes and look about;
they all gather and come to you:
your sons come from afar,
and your daughters in the arms of their nurses.

Then you shall be radiant at what you see,
your heart shall throb and overflow,
for the riches of the sea shall be emptied out before you,
the wealth of nations shall be brought to you.
Caravans of camels shall fill you,
dromedaries from Midian and Ephah;
all from Sheba shall come
bearing gold and frankincense,
and proclaiming the praises of the LORD.

Responsorial PsalmPs 72:1-2, 7-8, 10-11, 12-13.

R. (cf. 11) Lord, every nation on earth will adore you.
O God, with your judgment endow the king,
and with your justice, the king's son;
He shall govern your people with justice
and your afflicted ones with judgment.
R. Lord, every nation on earth will adore you.
Justice shall flower in his days,
and profound peace, till the moon be no more.
May he rule from sea to sea,
and from the River to the ends of the earth.
R. Lord, every nation on earth will adore you.
The kings of Tarshish and the Isles shall offer gifts;
the kings of Arabia and Seba shall bring tribute.
All kings shall pay him homage,
all nations shall serve him.
R. Lord, every nation on earth will adore you.
For he shall rescue the poor when he cries out,
and the afflicted when he has no one to help him.
He shall have pity for the lowly and the poor;
the lives of the poor he shall save.
R. Lord, every nation on earth will adore you.

Reading 2Eph 3:2-3a, 5-6

Brothers and sisters:
You have heard of the stewardship of God's grace 
that was given to me for your benefit, 
namely, that the mystery was made known to me by revelation.
It was not made known to people in other generations 
as it has now been revealed
to his holy apostles and prophets by the Spirit: 
that the Gentiles are coheirs, members of the same body,
and copartners in the promise in Christ Jesus through the gospel.

GospelMt 2:1-12

When Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea,
in the days of King Herod, 
behold, magi from the east arrived in Jerusalem, saying, 
"Where is the newborn king of the Jews?
We saw his star at its rising
and have come to do him homage."
When King Herod heard this,
he was greatly troubled, 
and all Jerusalem with him.
Assembling all the chief priests and the scribes of the people, 
He inquired of them where the Christ was to be born.
They said to him, "In Bethlehem of Judea, 
for thus it has been written through the prophet:
And you, Bethlehem, land of Judah,
are by no means least among the rulers of Judah;
since from you shall come a ruler,
who is to shepherd my people Israel."
Then Herod called the magi secretly 
and ascertained from them the time of the star's appearance.
He sent them to Bethlehem and said, 
"Go and search diligently for the child.
When you have found him, bring me word, 
that I too may go and do him homage."
After their audience with the king they set out.
And behold, the star that they had seen at its rising preceded them, 
until it came and stopped over the place where the child was.
They were overjoyed at seeing the star, 
and on entering the house
they saw the child with Mary his mother.
They prostrated themselves and did him homage.
Then they opened their treasures 
and offered him gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh.
And having been warned in a dream not to return to Herod, 
they departed for their country by another way.

Scripture Study

January 8, 2012 Epiphany of the Lord

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While most of the Church celebrates the Epiphany of the Lord on Jan. 6, we in the United States celebrate it this Sunday. The feast of the Epiphany was one of the original forms in which the Christian people celebrated the incarnation of Christ. It has been celebrated much longer than Christmas and in many parts of the world it is still a bigger celebration than Christmas. Epiphany means manifestation or showing forth. In this action of the Lord showing himself to the Gentiles, the church sees an invitation to all the nations and peoples of the earth to come out of the darkness of sin and fear in which they have been and to step into the wonderful light of Christ. There, in company with the wise men of old, all the nations of the earth will praise the love and glory of the Father through Jesus Christ our Lord.

NOTES on First Reading:

The Church sees the symbols of her universality in these verses.

* 60:1-3 These three verses form a song of introduction to the procession of all parts of the world to Zion for the rebuilding of the city of Jerusalem. The song opens with a double imperative. The song concentrates on God's radiating dazzling presence within the city. The word, "glory", as a noun or adjective is used nine times in this chapter.

* 60:4-9 In this section all of the nations come to Jerusalem not simply to receive instruction at the Lord's Temple as in Isa 2:2-4; Mic 4:1-3 but to rebuild the city. Isa 49:18;22 are quoted almost verbatim.

* 60:6 Nations from the Arabian peninsula associated with Abraham and the earliest ancestral days of Israel now will return to participate in the rebuilding. One day all nations will become God's children through faith. Matt 2:1-12 weaves these themes into his narrative of the visit by the wise men. See: Gen 25:1-4; 13-15; 28:9;36:3; Jer 6:20; Ezek 27:21; Rom 4:17.

NOTES on Second Reading:

* 3:1-6 Here the writer portrays himself as the revealer of the mystery of Christ and reflects on his mission to the Gentiles. Paul's special insight is that Gentiles have a place of full participation in the Church. In verse 1 Paul refers to himself as a prisoner for Christ and then leaves an incomplete sentence in the Greek never getting back to this thought.

* 3:2 Writer assumes that the hearers or readers have already heard that of which he is about to remind them.

* 3:3b-4 The last part of verse 3 and all of verse 4 is omitted from the reading. I left them in for completeness and ease of study.

* 3:5 Here the writer refers to the church being founded on the apostles and prophets.

* 3:6 The use of three nouns combined with the prefix, "SYN", "together", highlights the equality of the Jews and Gentiles in the new people of God, the Church.

NOTES on Gospel:

* 2:1 The birth of Jesus is immediately put into relationship with the wider world and the political and social realities of that world. Israel's future rejection of Jesus and his acceptance by the Gentiles are foreshadowed in this scene.

Herod the Great was a vassal king (rex socius) under the Roman Emperor and reigned at the pleasure of the emperor from 37 to 4 BC. See Luke 1:5. The events related of Herod here in Mat 2 are not attested in other documents but are quite in keeping with what is known of Herod's character.

The word, Magi, was originally a designation for the Persian priestly caste and refers to a class of wise men associated in varying degrees with astrology, interpretation of dreams and with magic. Kings were not generally included in this group. The notion that the wise men were kings was derived in later Christian tradition from the influence of the literal interpretation of Ps 72:10; Isa 49:7; 60:10. The number of wise men is inferred from the three gifts. The wise men have always been seen as representatives of the Gentile world who come to Christ.

* 2:2 Here Jesus is ascribed a royal title. In the ancient world it was a common belief that a new star appeared at the time of a ruler's birth. This also calls to mind the story of Balaam, who had prophesied that "A star shall advance from Jacob," Numbers 24:17. There however the star means the king himself not an astronomical phenomenon.

* 2:3-4 This parallels an extra biblical Jewish legend about the child Moses in which the "sacred scribes" warn Pharaoh about the imminent birth of one who will deliver Israel from Egypt and the king makes plans to destroy him.

* 2:5 The tiny town of Bethlehem, the city of the humble King David is contrasted with the splendor of Jerusalem, the royal capital.

* 2:6 In spite of this prophecy from Micah 5:2 (or 5:3 in some translations) there does not seem to have been any popular expectation that the Messiah was to be born in Bethlehem. See John 7:42. Matthew changes the original quotation from "clans of Judah" to "rulers of Judah" in order to make the messianic point more strongly. He also adds "who will shepherd my people, Israel" from 2 Sam 5:2; 1 Chron 11:2.

* 2:11 The list of gifts is influenced by Isa 60:6, 11,13; and Ps 72:10-11. In later tradition, the gold came to symbolize the kingship of Christ, the incense His Divinity and myrrh His redemptive suffering.

Meditation: "They fell down and worshiped Jesus"

If Jesus truly is who he claims to be, the eternal Son of God and Savior of the world, then why is he not recognized by everyone who hears his word and sees his works? John the Evangelist states that when Jesus came into the world the world knew him not and his own people received him not(John 1:10-11). Jesus was born in obscurity. Only the lowly shepherds recognized him at his birth. Some wise men also found their way to Bethlehem to pay homage to the newborn King of Israel. These men were not Israelites, but foreigners. They likely had read and discussed the Messianic prophecies and were anxious to see when this Messianic King would appear. God led them by means of an extraordinary star across the desert to the little town where Jesus was born.

John Chrysostom (347-407), in his homily on this passage from Matthew 2, explains the significance of the star of Bethlehem:

"Note how fitting was the order of events: the wise men saw the star, were received by the Jews and their king; they heard prophecy to explain what had appeared; the angel instructed them; and then they journeyed from Jerusalem to Bethlehem by the guidance of the star. From all this we learn that this was not an ordinary star, for no other star has this capacity to guide, not merely to move but to beckon, to “go before them,” drawing and guiding them along their way. The star remained after bringing them to the place, in order that the child might also be seen. For there is nothing conspicuous about the place. The inn was ordinary. The mother was not celebrated or notable. The star was needed to manifest and illumine the lowly place, until they had reached their destination at the manger." [The Gospel of Matthew, Homily 7:3]

In their thirst for knowledge of God, the wise men from the East willingly left everything, their home and country, in pursuit of that quest. In their diligent search they were led to the source of true knowledge – to Jesus Christ, the Light and Wisdom of God. When they found the newborn King they humbly worshiped him and gave him gifts fitting for a king. How could they recognize this infant as both divine and a human king - born of flesh yet sent from heaven? The early church fathers taught that only divine revelation could open the minds and hearts of people to recognize and receive Christ as their King and Savior. Chromatius (died 406 or 407), a contemporary bishop and friend of Ambrose, Jerome, and John Chrysostom, wrote:

Let us now observe how glorious was the dignity that attended the King after his birth, after the magi in their journey remained obedient to the star. For immediately the magi fell to their knees and adored the one born as Lord. There in his very cradle they venerated him with offerings of gifts, though Jesus was merely a whimpering infant. They perceived one thing with the eyes of their bodies but another with the eyes of the mind. The lowliness of the body he assumed was discerned, but the glory of his divinity is now made manifest. A boy he is, but it is God who is adored. How inexpressible is the mystery of his divine honor! The invisible and eternal nature did not hesitate to take on the weaknesses of the flesh on our behalf. The Son of God, who is God of the universe, is born a human being in the flesh. He permits himself to be placed in a manger, and the heavens are within the manger. He is kept in a cradle, a cradle that the world cannot hold. He is heard in the voice of a crying infant. This is the same one for whose voice the whole world would tremble in the hour of his passion. Thus he is the One, the God of glory and the Lord of majesty, whom as a tiny infant the magi recognize. It is he who while a child was truly God and King eternal. To him Isaiah pointed, saying, “For a boy has been born to you; a son has been given to you, a son whose empire has been forged on his shoulders (Isaiah 9:6).” [Tractate on Matthew, 5:1]

The Lord of the universe who revealed the star of Bethlehem to the Gentiles of the East so they could come and worship Jesus, the Prince of Peace (Isaiah 9:6) and King of Kings (Revelations 19:16), gives each one of us the same light of revelation to recognize and accept Jesus as our Lord and Savior. Faith is an entirely free gift that God makes to us. It is through the help of the Holy Spirit, who moves the heart and opens the eyes of the mind, that we are able to understand, accept, and believe the truth which God has revealed to us through his Son, Jesus Christ. In faith, the human will and intellect cooperate with grace."Believing is an act of the intellect assenting to the divine truth by command of the will moved by God through grace" (Thomas Aquinas).

To know and to encounter Jesus Christ is to know God personally. In the encounter of the wise men with Jesus we see the plan of God to give his only Son as King and Savior, not just for the Jewish people but for all the nations as well. The Lord Jesus came that both Jew and Gentile might find true and lasting peace with God.  Let us pray today that Jew and Gentile alike will find the Lord and Savior on their journey of life. Do you bring the light of Jesus Christ to those you meet through the witness of your life and testimony?

"Lord Jesus Christ, we thank you for bringing salvation to all the nations. May the gospel of salvation be proclaimed to every nation today and to every person on the face of the earth.  Help me to be a good witness of the joy of the gospel to all I meet."

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This reflection is courtesy of Don Schwager, whose website is located at: http://www.rc.net/wcc/readings/

January 8
Blessed Angela of Foligno
(1248-1309)

Some saints show marks of holiness very early. Not Angela! Born of a leading family in Foligno, Italy, she became immersed in the quest for wealth and social position. As a wife and mother, she continued this life of distraction.

Around the age of 40 she recognized the emptiness of her life and sought God’s help in the Sacrament of Penance. Her Franciscan confessor helped Angela to seek God’s pardon for her previous life and to dedicate herself to prayer and the works of charity.
Shortly after her conversion, her husband and children died. Selling most of her possessions, she entered the Secular Franciscan Order. She was alternately absorbed by meditating on the crucified Christ and by serving the poor of Foligno as a nurse and beggar for their needs. Other women joined her in a religious community.
At her confessor’s advice, Angela wrote her Book of Visions and Instructions. In it she recalls some of the temptations she suffered after her conversion; she also expresses her thanks to God for the Incarnation of Jesus. This book and her life earned for Angela the title "Teacher of Theologians." She was beatified in 1693.

Comment:

People who live in the United States today can understand Blessed Angela’s temptation to increase her sense of self-worth by accumulating money, fame or power. Striving to possess more and more, she became more and more self-centered. When she realized she was priceless because she was created and loved by God, she became very penitential and very charitable to the poor. What had seemed foolish early in her life now became very important. The path of self-emptying she followed is the path all holy men and women must follow.

Quote:

Pope John Paul II writes: “Christ the Redeemer of the World is the one who penetrated in a unique, unrepeatable way into the mystery of the human person and entered our ‘hearts.’ Rightly therefore does the Second Vatican Council teach: ‘The truth is that only in the mystery of the Incarnate Word does the mystery of the human person take on light.... Christ the New Adam, in the very revelation of the mystery of the Father and his love, fully reveals human beings to themselves and brings to light their most high calling’” (Redemptor Hominis, 8).