Homily

“Lift up your eyes and look around; they all gather together, they come to you; your sons shall come from far away, and your daughters shall be carried on their nurses’ arms.” These words of the prophet open the celebration of the Epiphany. The Liturgy wants to show the path of people towards the Lord. There is an anxiety of universality and of urgency that goes through this day: it is the deep desire of the Church that the peoples and countries do not have to wait too long in order to meet Jesus. He was just born; still he is not able to speak and all the peoples can already meet him; they can see, welcome and worship him. “For we observed his star at its rising, and have come to pay him homage,” the Kings said to Herod as soon as they reached Jerusalem. They were men from distant lands, they were rich and intellectual and they started walking from the East towards the land of Israel to worship the king who was just born. The Church has always seen in them the whole of humanity, and with the celebration of Epiphany, she wants to guide every man and woman of this world towards the recently born Child. On Christmas’ night Jesus manifested himself to the shepherds, to the men of Israel, even if they were among those who were most despised. They were the first to bring some warmth in that cold stable in Bethlehem. Now the Kings come from the Far East and they can see the Child as well.
The shepherds and the Magi, although very different from each other, have one thing in common: the heavens. The shepherds left everything not because they were good, but because they looked up at the sky, saw the angels, listened to their voice, and acted on what they had heard. The same is true of the Magi. They did not leave their land to embark on some new adventure or to satisfy an odd desire. They were, however, longing for a better, more just world. That is why they were scanning the heavens. They discovered a “star” and faithfully followed it. Both the shepherds and the Magi suggest that in order to meet Jesus we need to lift up our eyes from ourselves to study the words and signs the Lord places along out path. Not everything was immediately clear for the shepherds or for the Magi. The evangelist intentionally notes that at a certain moment the star disappeared from the sight of the Magi. Those pilgrims, however, did not lose heart. Their desire for salvation was deep, and the star had truly touched their hearts. Once in Jerusalem, they presented themselves before Herod and asked for information. They listened to the king attentively and then immediately continued along their way. We could say that Scripture had substituted the star. The Lord never fails to offer us signs, and indeed, as the Magi left Jerusalem, the star reappeared and the evangelist says, “They were overwhelmed with joy.” We, who often condemn ourselves to being our own guides and to feeling like independent adults at any cost, are often robbed of the joy of having a “star.” There is indeed a sense of relief in seeing a star, in feeling that we are guided and not abandoned to ourselves and our destiny.
The Magi urge us to rediscover the joy of depending on a star that is the Gospel, the Word of the Lord, as the psalmist sings in Psalm 119, “Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path.” This light leads us to the Child. Without listening to and reading the Gospel, it is impossible for us to meet Jesus. It is by following the star that the Magi reached the place where Jesus was and there they “saw the child with his mother Mary, they knelt down and worshipped him.” It might have been the first time they had ever knelt down; but they had learned to look beyond themselves and had recognized the Saviour in the child. Their gesture was the truest one. Along with Mary, Joseph, and the shepherds, the Magi understood that salvation meant welcoming the weak and defenceless Child.
The reactions of Herod and the inhabitants of Jerusalem were entirely different. They did not share in the joy of the Magi and shepherds when they learned of the child. Rather, they were upset, and Herod even chose to decide the infant’s death. The Magi now are the ones to save the Child and protect him from the cruelty of Herod. The wise men returned home by another road, the evangelist writes. When we carry the Lord in our hearts, we cannot go along the same roads as before. Today, the Magi are with us, or perhaps just a bit ahead of us, to help us raise our eyes up from ourselves and direct it toward the star. They are close by, accompanying us to the many mangers of this world where small and weak children lie. Blessed are we, if in the company of the shepherds and Magi we become pilgrims on a journey toward the Child and affectionately take care of him. In truth, it will be he who will take care of us.