FROM THE PASTOR’S DESK. THE EPIPHANY OF THE LORD. BY FR BENOIT MUKAMBA, C.S.Sp
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THE EPIPHANY OF THE LORD
Scripture: Isaiah 60: 1-6; Ps. 72; Ephesians 3: 2-3a, 5-6; Matthew 2: 1-12
Reflection: The Universality of Salvation
Fr. Benoit Mukamba, C.S.Sp
Today we celebrate the manifestation of the Lord Jesus to the people of the nations represented here by the Magi. But the story of Magi and their gifts can be fascinating even to the children as they admired the nativity scene. An 8-year-old asked, "How come the kings brought perfume to Jesus?” What kind of gift is that for a baby? His 11-year-old sister answered, "Haven't you ever smelled a barn? With dirty animals around, Mary needed something to freshen the air”.
God makes himself known; he leads and guides people on their journey through life. We believe that God continually draws all people to himself and often he does so in the most unobtrusive ways. He chooses to act in all sorts of hidden and subtle ways out of respect for our free will. God invites but he never imposes himself upon us. Many ignore him and others reject his invitation but God does not stop showing us the way. In reflecting on the story of the Epiphany we have to keep in mind that it celebrated the manifestation of Christ to the Gentiles. The Evangelist Matthew wrote to a very specific audience, mostly composed of converts from Judaism but also that included a good number of Gentiles. Matthew saw the presence of non-Jewish Christians as a game-changer and fulfilling the ancient prophecies. Indeed within a few decades, the vast majority of Christians were converted-Gentiles, and naturally, they looked in the Gospels to see how Jesus related to Gentiles. The Gentile- converts found some fine examples in the Gospels such as the Roman Centurion who asked Jesus to cure his servant as well as the group of Greeks who came to see Jesus just before his arrest. They were especially attracted to these Magi from today's Gospel text because they could see their own story reflected in the story of the Epiphany.
The disciples, just like each one of us, saw themselves as drawn by God, often in mysterious ways, to come to recognize Christ, to accept his teaching, and to do him homage. It is therefore easy to see why the feast of Epiphany became such an important Christian celebration quite early on in the life of the Church. God has brought each one of us to faith. We look back on our lives and see God’s hand at work in all sorts of curious incidents and apparent coincidences over the years. And we recognize his influence on our journey of faith.
So the acquiring of our faith is no mere accident of birth but part of the deliberate unfolding of God’s plan. Our children may not all want to receive what we give them, but to water the faith down or to deprive them of it would be a serious failing indeed. God works in the world, he draws everyone to himself; but the principal means he uses are not stars of the sky but you and me. The Magi were drawn to Christ by a star; however, God may use nature, humans, and events in his plan of salvation. It is our mission and task in the world to make Christ manifest to those around us, especially to our own families. It is our task to enable the people around us to come to their own unique Epiphany. It might happen immediately or it might take them a whole lifetime to perceive God’s manifestation. Our hope and prayer are that at a certain point they will come to make the decision to bend their knee in homage to Christ, to the Messiah, to the one, true Savior of the World, JESUS CHRIST.
