Sunday 6 January
2013
The Epiphany of the Lord. C
Isaiah 60:1-6, Psalm 71:1-2.7-8, 10-13
Rv.11Ephesians3:2-3, 5-6.Matt 2:1-12.
Arise for your
light has come.
Before him, all
kings will fall prostrate.
The same promise
has been made to pagans in Christ Jesus through the Gospel.
They saw the
child with his mother Mary.
First reading
Isaiah
60:1-6
Arise, shine out, Jerusalem, for your
light has come,
the glory of the Lord is rising on you,
though night still covers the earth
and darkness the peoples.
Above you the Lord now rises
and above you his glory appears.
The nations come to your light
and kings to your dawning brightness.
Lift up your eyes and look round:
all are assembling and coming towards
you,
your sons from far away
and your daughters being tenderly
carried.
At this sight you will grow radiant,
your heart throbbing and full;
since the riches of the sea will flow to
you,
the wealth of the nations come to you;
camels in throngs will cover you,
and dromedaries of Midian and Ephah;
everyone in Sheba will come,
bringing gold and incense
and singing the praise of the Lord.
The prophet is writing for the
Jews who have returned from Babylon to a Jerusalem in ruins. They are
depressed. He wants to encourage them to build the Temple and their city. He
promises them that God will bless then and make Jerusalem a light for all the
gentiles. People will flock in faith to Jerusalem. We see how this prophecy is fulfilled in
Jesus. He is the light for all nations. He is born of the family of David and
is the glory of Israel and the light to the nations, as Simeon proclaimed.
Jesus alone is the fulfilment of the Old Testament. To walk with Jesus is to
walk in love. This is to walk in the light. Are you in the light or the darkness?
Psalm
Psalm
71:1-2,7-8,10-13
All nations shall fall prostrate before
you, O Lord.
O God, give your judgement to the king,
to a king’s son your justice,
that he may judge your people in justice
and your poor in right judgement.
All nations shall fall prostrate before
you, O Lord.
In his days justice shall flourish
and peace till the moon fails.
He shall rule from sea to sea,
from the Great River to earth’s bounds.
All nations shall fall prostrate before
you, O Lord.
The kings of Tarshish and the sea coasts
shall pay him tribute.
The kings of Sheba and Seba
shall bring him gifts.
Before him all kings shall fall
prostrate,
all nations shall serve him.
All nations shall fall prostrate before
you, O Lord.
For he shall save the poor when they cry
and the needy who are helpless.
He will have pity on the weak
and save the lives of the poor.
All nations shall fall prostrate before
you, O Lord.
We apply this psalm to Jesus. All
nations will bow the knee before him (Philippians 3:11). He is the
compassionate High Priest who listens to those who cry to him, (Hebrews 4:15).
Second reading
Ephesians
3:2-3,5-6
You have probably heard how I have been
entrusted by God with the grace he meant for you, and that it was by a
revelation that I was given the knowledge of the mystery. This mystery that has
now been revealed through the Spirit to his holy apostles and prophets was
unknown to any men in past generations; it means that pagans now share the same
inheritance, that they are parts of the same body, and that the same promise
has been made to them, in Jesus Christ, through the gospel.
The Jews considered that they
only were the chosen people. However, we now know that God has no favourites.
Anyone of any nation or caste is welcome. He loves us all and knows nothing of caste
distinctions. He embraces all of whatever caste or social position, if they
approach with simplicity, humility and sincerity. Do you love everyone as God
loves them? Do you practice caste discrimination?
Gospel
Acclamation
Mt2:2
Alleluia, alleluia!
We saw his star as it rose
and have come to do the Lord homage.
Alleluia!
____________________
Gospel
Matthew
2:1-12
After Jesus had been born at Bethlehem
in Judaea during the reign of King Herod, some wise men came to Jerusalem from
the east. ‘Where is the infant king of the Jews?’ they asked. ‘We saw his star
as it rose and have come to do him homage.’ When King Herod heard this he was
perturbed, and so was the whole of Jerusalem. He called together all the chief
priests and the scribes of the people, and enquired of them where the Christ
was to be born. ‘At Bethlehem in Judaea,’ they told him ‘for this is what the
prophet wrote:
And you, Bethlehem, in the land of
Judah,
you are by no means least among the
leaders of Judah,
for out of you will come a leader
who will shepherd my people Israel.’
Then Herod summoned the wise men to see
him privately. He asked them the exact date on which the star had appeared, and
sent them on to Bethlehem. ‘Go and find out all about the child,’ he said ‘and
when you have found him, let me know, so that I too may go and do him homage.’
Having listened to what the king had to say, they set out. And there in front
of them was the star they had seen rising; it went forward, and halted over the
place where the child was. The sight of the star filled them with delight, and
going into the house they saw the child with his mother Mary, and falling to
their knees they did him homage. Then, opening their treasures, they offered
him gifts of gold and frankincense and myrrh. But they were warned in a dream
not to go back to Herod, and returned to their own country by a different way.
Where is
Jesus today?
The real
question is can we find Jesus today? I mean the real Jesus, the same Jesus who
walked the roads of Galilee, healed the sick, cleansed the lepers, raised the
dead, and said, “Come to me all you who labour and are overburdened.” Can we
meet the same Jesus who was scourged, pierced for our transgressions, and
crushed for our iniquities, the same Jesus who rose from the dead and said,
“All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me”?
Can I learn
from him how to live in the light and not wander aimlessly in darkness?
Of course, we
have learned that Jesus is present in many ways – you can find him where two or
three gather in his name. You can find him in the oppressed and distressed – I
was hungry, I was thirsty, I was homeless and the list is
endless. You can find him reading and preaching in church – this is the Word of
the Lord; this is the Gospel of the Lord. You can find him in the Holy
Eucharist – this is my Body.
However, you
will not find him there. You will miss him like the magi today when they
went to Jerusalem looking for him in the palace of Herod
The Holy
Spirit has revealed this mystery to his holy apostles and prophets. What is the
mystery? “The glorious riches of this mystery is ‘Christ in you, the hope of
glory’ (Colossians 1:27). Until we find Jesus in the cave of our own heart, we
will never find him anywhere else.
However, how
can you find him there? The magi set out and travelled through the desert until
they came to Bethlehem .
It took them time. To find Jesus takes
TIME. Without giving time to this supreme task, we will never achieve it. You
give time dally to eating, sleeping, working, watching television. Likewise,
you must give time DAILY to search for Jesus within yourself.
You need to be
silent, to be on your own, to reflect, and ponder in your heart like Mary. You
need to prayerfully read the Word of God and listen to him speaking to you.
Perseverance in silence and in reading the Word of God and in listening to him
speaking to you is the way. No one finds Jesus unless he or she gives time
daily to this task. Then and only then will you discover him. Then you will
taste and see that He is good. The journey will be over and then you will find
him more and more everywhere. Your life will be filled with Jesus and your joy
will be complete.
Father give me the discipline to put aside time each day to search for
your Son.
No comments:
Post a Comment