God who reveals Himself

FR. TOM'S HOMILY FOR THE SOLEMNITY OF THE EPIPHANY OF THE LORD, January 5, 2020:

One morning three fruit farmers were engaged in a debate about the best way to know God – in prayer, in deed, or in Scripture. Samuel sat quietly listening to the debate. The others to him and asked, “Decide for us, Samuel. Which way is the best?” Samuel said thoughtfully, “Well, there are three ways to get from here to the marketplace when you bring your fruit to sell. You can go right over the hill. That is shorter but it is a steep climb. You can go around the hill on the right side. That is not too far, but the road is rough and full of potholes. Or you can go around the hill on the left side. That is the longest way, but it is also the easiest.” He paused and then added, “But you know, when you get there with your fruit, the people don’t ask you how you came. All they ask is, ‘How good is your fruit?’”

We continue our celebration of Christmas today with the familiar story of the visit of the three wise men to the child Jesus. We call this the feast of the Epiphany. But, really each day of our Christmas celebration is a feast of epiphany. The word epiphany comes from the Greek meaning “manifestation.” In an epiphany, God’s divine nature is manifested and perhaps more importantly recognized. Just think of the many epiphanies we’ve celebrated throughout this season. When the baby leaped in the womb of Elizabeth at the arrival of the pregnant Mary, that was an epiphany, a manifestation and recognition of God’s presence. When the shepherds receive the message from the angels and rush to the manger to see the Lord, that was an epiphany. As we heard today, even Herod has searched the Scripture, consulted the scribes, and recognized the manifestation of the Lord’s presence.

Today’s Epiphany to the Magi ranks high among our recognition of Jesus’ divinity because the visit of the Magi is an eye-opener. Unlike the shepherds who learned of the birth of Jesus through a revelation from angels, or Herod’s scribes who learned through Scripture, the Magi learned of the birth of Jesus by observing a star – a star that did not say anything to them. They had to interpret this natural sign of the star to know what it meant and where it led. The Magi show us that God manifests Himself to us in numerous ways, all the time. The challenge put before us is: Do we see these signs of God around us? Are our eyes attuned to the divine or has our vision of God clouded?

The Christmas season asks us to do much more than recall this story of faith from long ago – it challenges us to see this story being realized again and again in our daily lives. We don’t look at Elizabeth, Mary, Joseph, the shepherds, the wise men and the rest and say, “Good for them.” We’re called to look at them and say, “Wait! I’ve had a similar experience of God’s manifestation in my life too!” Our epiphanies may not be that of angels speaking on a silent night or divining the message of a miraculous star. But, God is revealing Himself in our lives. To each one of us. Do we have the eyes, ears, hearts, minds and souls to recognize that Epiphany, that true presence of God speaking into the depths of your heart, your life?

The great tragedy of King Herod and so many others at the time of Jesus is that they received a great epiphany – God was in their midst. But their hearts were cold and their eyes were closed and they missed the very visitation of God before them. Let us pray that is never the case for you and for me.

Today we are reminded that God is not limited to any form of communication; God does not limit who He will reveal Himself to. God wants to manifest Himself to each of us. Notice how the people in our stories came to know that the Son of God was born. The shepherds came to know through a direct vision of angels. The Magi knew through a reading of the stars. And King Herod’s scribes came to know through searching the scriptures. Visions, stars, scriptures -- different ways of arriving at the same Truth. Like the fruit farmers in the story, when you get to heaven, God won’t ask how you got there, but instead will ask, “How well have you lived? How well have you followed my commands? How have you shared My love with the world?” – in other words, “How good is your fruit?”

This Christmastime – and all the time – God is manifesting His divinity to us. God is inviting us into renewed and deeper relationship with Him through His Son. God is revealing Himself to us in Word, in our hearts – and so powerfully in the Eucharist.

Today, in this Holy Mass, we have already been witnesses to epiphany – God has already revealed Himself to us in His Word proclaimed and in just a few moments, there will be an Epiphany of the Lord on this very altar. God will reveal Himself to us in the Body and Blood of His Son. Will we at that moment “come and do him homage?” And He has also revealed Himself to us through the person on your left and on your right – “Wherever two or more are gathered in My name, I am there in the midst of them?”

Pope Francis has also reminded us that Jesus reveals Himself in those who are marginalized in our world and we can encounter that manifestation, that epiphany, when we “carry out works of mercy, giving to the body of your wounded brother or sister, because they are hungry, because they are thirsty, because they are naked because and humiliated, because they are in jail, or in the hospital.” God is revealing Himself always.

Are our eyes open to this amazing presence of God that surrounds us and binds us into the luminous beings He has created us to be? Let us all pray that we have hearts that can recognize the very revelation of God that surrounds us, and the strength to follow where He will lead us.

“Where is the newborn king of the Jews? We saw his star at its rising and have come to do him homage.” My friends, open your eyes, He is right here in your midst.

​May the Lord give you peace.

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