The texts from the Roman Catholic Lectionary for the Feast of the Epiphany invite us to contemplate a possible new realization about the nature or meaning of something in our relationship to God.
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| Some sweet bread for Epiphany |
And in Cuba..
The author in the Book of Isaiah paints a picture of the glory that will come from God to the people returning to Jerusalem from the exile in Babylon.
* [60:1–9] The light the prophet proclaims to Zion symbolizes the blessing to come to her: the glory of the Lord, the return of her children, the wealth of nations who themselves will walk by her light. The passage is famous from its use in the Latin liturgy for the feast of Epiphany.1
Psalm 72 prays for Guidance and Support for the King of Israel who will use the gifts from God to bring justice to the people.
* [Psalm 72] A royal Psalm in which the Israelite king, as the representative of God, is the instrument of divine justice (Ps 72:1–4, 12–14) and blessing (Ps 72:5–7, 15–17) for the whole world. The king is human, giving only what he has received from God. Hence intercession must be made for him. The extravagant language is typical of oriental royal courts.2
Paul declares to the Ephesians his mission to herald a new relationship between Jew and Gentile as promised by Christ.
* [3:1–13] Paul reflects on his mission to the Gentiles. He alludes to his call and appointment to the apostolic office (Eph 3:2–3) and how his insight through revelation, as well as that of the other apostles and charismatic prophets in the church (Eph 3:4–5), has deepened understanding of God’s plan of salvation in Christ. Paul is the special herald (Eph 3:7) of a new promise to the Gentiles (Eph 3:6): that the divine plan includes them in the spiritual benefits promised to Israel. Not only is this unique apostolic role his; Paul also has been given the task of explaining to all the divine plan of salvation (Eph 3:8–9), once hidden. Through the church, God’s plan to save through Christ is becoming manifest to angelic beings (Eph 3:10; cf. Eph 1:21), in accord with God’s purpose (Eph 3:11). The fulfillment of the plan in Christ gives the whole church more confidence through faith in God (Eph 3:12). The readers of this letter are also thereby encouraged to greater confidence despite Paul’s imprisonment (Eph 3:13).3
The Gospel of Matthew shares the revelation of Jesus to Gentile wise men and the rejection of His reign by King Herod.
* [2:1–12] The future rejection of Jesus by Israel and his acceptance by the Gentiles are retrojected into this scene of the narrative.4
Molly Mattingly asks Where do we see a glimmer of light this Christmas season? Are we courageous enough to believe in the hope it brings? What gifts do we bring into that hope?
Don Schwager quotes “The glory of Christ's divinity is revealed,” by Chromatius (died 406 AD).
"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).'" (excerpt from TRACTATE ON MATTHEW 5:1)5
The Word Among Us Meditation on Matthew 2:1-12 shares that an epiphany is a sudden realization about the nature or meaning of something. The birth of a child can be an epiphany that suddenly makes us understand love and responsibility in a new way.
Finally, the Magi were changed by what they saw. We know they changed routes to avoid Herod. But even more, imagine how hard it was for them to go home and return to “normal.” They had seen the glory of God, and nothing would be the same again!
Your life can be changed by this very pattern: seeing and worshipping Jesus and receiving a new insight from the Spirit will always improve the way you think, act, and relate to other people.6
Rev. Caleb Tabor, Vicar of St. Cyprian’s Episcopal Church, comments that the story of the Magi and the Epiphany is a message of warning to those who are trying to stop the flow of God’s gracious and liberating work in the world.
you can do whatever you want, pull any strings you want, commit any atrocity you want, but you will not win. More importantly, it is a story of comfort to those who are on spiritual journeys or who find themselves feeling strange or outside of the regular come-and-go of life in either their church or broader communities. Whether the light of the Epiphany enables us to get a taste of our old home as we make a different life in new lands, or encourages us to be more welcoming of those who are traveling across borders, or shows the cruelty of rulers who abuse children in the name of politics, or brings our minds and souls into a singular commitment to God, or helps us own our place adoring and following a Christ who accepts our queerness without shame, or helps us to be more appreciative and understanding of those with different religious traditions than our own, or some other profound message that is no doubt embedded in the rich, but surprisingly brief, story, it is a light we need in our time. May it shine all the more brightly on all of those who encounter it.7
Friar Jude Winkler sets the words of Isaiah, Micah and Matthew in an historical context that demonstrates the Spirit as aid to the interpretation of the Scripture. A syzygy stars and the planets Jupiter Saturn and Mars in Pisces may be the astrological event that called the magi. Friar Jude note the universality as Ephesians reveals gentiles as co heirs with the Chosen people and Matthew, a very Jewish Gospel, includes Gentiles from the beginning.
Fr. Richard Rohr, OFM, asks what are we supposed to do with the Bible? The burning of heretics, the Crusades, slavery, apartheid, homophobia, and the genocide and oppression of native peoples were all justified through the selective use of Scripture quotes.
My general approach is to change the seer and not to change the text. Only transformed people can be entrusted with inspired writings. They can operate in a symbiotic (“shared life”) relationship with words and are unlikely to use the Bible to exclude and shame others or as a rationale for their bad behavior.
The Christian’s goal is to be transformed by the renewing of our mind into the mind of Christ (see Romans 12:2; 1 Corinthians 2:16; and Philippians 2:5). That is why I try to read the Bible the way Jesus did, following Jesus’ hermeneutic (a method of interpreting sacred texts). Just as we are trying to do with this year’s Daily Meditations, Jesus was a master of winnowing the chaff from the grain (see Matthew 3:12 and Luke 3:17) and “bringing out of the storeroom new treasures as well as old” (Matthew 13:52)8
Epiphany is encountering new a life changing experience. The challenge we accept to change is included in the celebrations that culture offers as we wind down the season of Christmas.
References
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(n.d.). Isaiah, chapter 60 - United States Conference of Catholic Bishops. Retrieved January 6, 2019, from http://www.usccb.org/bible/isaiah/60
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(n.d.). Psalms chapter 72 - United States Conference of Catholic Bishops. Retrieved January 6, 2019, from http://www.usccb.org/bible/psalms/72
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(n.d.). Ephesians, chapter 3 - United States Conference of Catholic Bishops. Retrieved January 6, 2019, from http://www.usccb.org/bible/ephesians/3
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(n.d.). Matthew chapter 2 - United States Conference of Catholic Bishops. Retrieved January 6, 2019, from http://www.usccb.org/bible/matthew/2
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(n.d.). Daily Scripture Readings and Meditations. Retrieved January 6, 2019, from https://dailyscripture.servantsoftheword.org/
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(2019, January 6). The Epiphany of the Lord - Mass Readings and .... Retrieved January 6, 2019, from https://wau.org/meditations/2019/01/06/
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(2018, December 24). The Epiphany (C): The Light of God's Liberation – Modern μετανοια. Retrieved January 6, 2019, from https://modernmetanoia.org/2018/12/24/the-epiphany-c-the-light-of-gods-liberation/
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(2019, January 4). Daily Meditations Archive: January 2019 - Center for Action and .... Retrieved January 6, 2019, from https://cac.org/category/daily-meditations/2019/01/
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