By Bishop Paul S. Loverde
Special to the Herald
(From the issue of 1/12/06)

The following homily was given by Arlington Bishop Paul S. Loverde on the Epiphany of the Lord Sunday at St. Agnes Church in Arlington on Jan. 8.

Three concrete images reveal the meaning and message of Epiphany, the Solemnity which we are celebrating today. These images are found in today’s Gospel according to St. Matthew: (1) the journey of the Magi (2) the star providing guidance and (3) the three gifts offered to the Christ-Child. Let us explore further these three images of journey, star and gifts.

(1) The journey of the Magi is a symbol of searching. The Gospel account proclaimed moments ago portrays the magi searching for "the newborn King of the Jews." These journeyed from their own country to Judea, then from Jerusalem to Bethlehem.

You and I are searching too, are we not? We keep searching for inner peace, for good relationships with others, for a worthwhile life. Fundamentally, our searching is for God, the true source of peace, harmony and life. The God Who is the goal of our searching has chosen to reveal Himself, to manifest Himself, in the clearest way possible through His Only-Begotten Son Whom He sent to be like us in all things except sin. On Christmas, we relived the coming among us of God’s Son "And the Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us." Today, we are in touch with the truth that God Who is revealed in Jesus has come to be the light and life of all peoples, Jews and Gentiles alike. The very word "epiphany" means "revelation" or "manifestation." In today’s second reading from the Letter of St. Paul to the Ephesians, we heard: " … the mystery was made known to me by revelation … : that the Gentiles are coheirs, members of the same body, and copartners in the promise in Christ Jesus through the gospel." So, then, God desires to save all people.

Yes, the God Who is revealed in His Son Christ Jesus is the goal of our searching because in Him, we truly begin to understand not only who God is but also who we are. Do we really know Jesus as our Lord and Savior? As our Divine Companion on the journey? Regardless of how well or poorly we think we know Him, we can grow in our knowing and loving Jesus. The new year just beginning — only eight days old — offers us countless grace-filled opportunities to focus on Jesus more deeply and more fully. For example, through consistent daily prayer, we can grow in our knowledge and love of the Lord. Could we daily spend five or 10 minutes with Jesus in prayer, in addition to our morning and evening prayer? We could reflect each day on some lines from the Gospel according to St. Mark or on the Gospel for each Sunday, asking the Lord to reveal to us the message He intends us to receive and reflecting on how this Word of God applies to our lives here and now. Or, we could study the Catechism of the Catholic Church, especially Part Four whose focus is "Christian Prayer."

The best way to know and to love Jesus is to experience His Real Presence in a unique way by participating in the Eucharistic Sacrifice and by visiting our Blessed Lord in the Blessed Sacrament in the tabernacle. As Catholics, we gather every Sunday and Holy Day of obligation to take part in the Holy Mass. This is not an option or merely a recommendation. Rather, taking part in the Holy Mass on Sunday is fulfilling the Third Commandment: "Keep holy the Lord’s Day" and responding to Jesus’ own words: "Unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you will have no life in you." In fact, not to participate in the Eucharistic Sacrifice on Sunday or Holy Day without a valid reason is a serious sin, if we knowingly and willingly refrain from going to Mass. Yes, in this new year, Jesus must be our focus. If He is, we shall discover how He responds to our searching and fulfills our yearning.

And this yearning takes unexpected twists and turn as it did for the Magi. If we persevere and support one another — that is why God wills that we be gathered together in parishes, like the Magi, we shall more and more find "the Child with Mary his Mother."

(2) If journey is the first image of Epiphany, the star is the second. Our searching as believers is guided by the star of faith. Faith is a virtue, that is, a power or an ability given us at Baptism whereby we surrender ourselves to the Lord. Faith guides us like a light. In fact we often call faith "a light." The star is a symbol of the light of faith. This light will sometimes lead to unexpected places, but if we persevere in following its guidance, it will bring us to Jesus. Again, we see the need for prayer, study and reflection; these help us understand where the light of faith is leading.

(3) The third image of Epiphany is the gifts given by the Magi to the Child Jesus: gold, frankincense and myrrh. Their gifts symbolized the gift of their hearts, their total surrender to the Lord in faith. The best gift we can give to Jesus is the gift of an open heart, a heart willing to continue searching, a heart willing to be guided by the light of faith, a heart willing to let the Lord lead us.

Yes, the three concrete images of Epiphany do help us to understand the meaning and message of today’s solemnity. Our journey guided by the star of faith leads us ever more closely to Jesus to Whom we give the gift of our open willing hearts.

Let us be in fact Epiphany people all through 2006 and beyond, searching for the Lord Jesus by the light of faith until the day we reach the eternal Epiphany: seeing our God face to face forever. Amen! Alleluia!

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