Homily Epiphany of the Lord. Year C. 3rd January 2016
On this feast of the Epiphany, we celebrate that God’s glory has been revealed to all the nations, and not just the chosen people of Israel. People from every corner of the earth, of every nation and race. Generations of people. God’s revelation, God’s invitation is for all people of all times and places.
Saint Paul puts it so nicely: “God had a secret plan, formed before all ages. And that plan is now revealed, and it is this; in Christ Jesus, the Gentiles, (people from other religious and cultural backgrounds and nations), are now CO-HEIRS with the Chosen people of Israel, members of one and the same body and sharers in the promise of God, through the proclamation of the good news…” We are one big global human family!
Are we becoming more and more one human family? (A)
This is a hard question to answer. In some ways, the answer is “yes.” Technology, medicine, communications, transport, aid to needy nations, multinationals, globalization (which means good and bad things). We certainly are more and more aware that we are part of something much bigger than the local. Yet, in other areas we see nations breaking up into smaller factions, and we see social and ethnic groups in tension, we witness news of wars, strife, poverty and starvation in poor developing nations. The jury is still out on how far God’s dream for the world is being fulfilled. But, one thing is for sure, it is not for want of God’s desire, God’s work, and God’s calling. God has made it abundantly clear what kind of a world God wants to foster.
I was given a poem to read and it is so very topical to this feast day. It is the poem by TS Eliot, entitled the “Journey of the Magi.” The commentary says of this poem, “This poem is not one of Eliot’s most famous, but it is a very good example of plain and direct language, and very well illustrates the complex and mixed emotions and issues going on for the author prior to his conversion to Christianity …….(B)
In this poem, the Journey of the Magi, he writes..
T. S. Eliot's "Journey of The Magi".
“'A cold coming we had of it,
Just the worst time of the year
For a journey, and such a long journey:
The ways deep and the weather sharp,
The very dead of winter.'
And the camels galled, sore-footed, refractory,
Lying down in the melting snow.
There were times we regretted
The summer palaces on slopes, the terraces,
And the night-fires going out, and the lack of shelters,
And the cities hostile and the towns unfriendly
And the villages dirty and charging high prices:
A hard time we had of it.
At the end we preferred to travel all night,
Sleeping in snatches,
With the voices singing in our ears, saying
That this was all folly.
Then we came to a tavern with vine-leaves over the lintel,
Six hands at an open door dicing for pieces of silver,
And feet kicking the empty wine-skins.
But there was no information, and so we continued
And arrived at evening, not a moment too soon
Finding the place; it was (you may say) satisfactory.
All this was a long time ago, I remember,
And I would do it again, but set down this,
set down this: “were we led all that way for
Birth or Death?” There was a Birth, certainly,
We had evidence and no doubt. I had seen birth and death,
But, had thought they were different;
This Birth was Hard and bitter agony for us, like Death,// our death. //
We returned to our places,// these Kingdoms, //
But no longer at ease here,// in the old dispensation, //
With an alien people clutching their gods.
I should be glad of another death.” (B)
This poet, Eliot, captures something about the journey of the wise men to find the Holy family and particularly the savior lying in a manger. It is our journey too. It is our journey of life as well. It is our religious pilgrimage through life. Our journey to conversion and beyond is the same.
For, our journey of faith is not an easy one. It is filled with challenges, inconveniences, doubts, obstacles and stumbles. And how many important faith journeys have we heard critical, negative voices, and the ‘prophets of doom,’ or people who make fun of the rare path a person needs to walk along. The voices of doubt and negativity need to be ignored, endured, moved beyond!
The journey to conversion, the complete commitment of heart and head towards Jesus good news, is a real odyssey. Like the journey of the Magi, the journey to find Christ is like a death, and a rising to new life. And we, like the Magi, return home to where we came, but by a new way. In the bible, a change of path symbolizes conversion. And after encountering Christ, everything looks different, because Jesus invites us to see it all though his eyes. We now see the world around us more and more through the lens of the Good News. We now see life through the eyes of Christ’s compassionate care for those most in need. We being to have a vision for the inclusion of all.
As the Bible passage mentions: “Bethlehem, by no means the least of all the cities” - Like Bethlehem, which, at first sight seems slight and insignificant, and “lesser” – yet, here is where Jesus is born; humble, vulnerable, poor. So too, the poor and the forgotten may appear insignificant to some, but it is through them that the Lord’s presence is revealed.” (C)
The Wise Men realized this that first Christmas and it changed everything. It changes everything for us too. Come let us worship!
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References:
Fr Paul W. Kelly
One commentary –“365 Days with the Lord” asks rather relevantly.
“80 Great Poems, From Chaucer to Now” - Geoff Page. UNSW PRESS. Sydney, 2006.
From Gustavo Gutierezz, Sharing the word through the Liturgical year.
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