Following the Star

Feast of the Epiphany Matthew 2, 1-12 We don’t know all that much about the magi. We know that they came from the East and that they bore gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh. On the basis of this we have created a whole story about the magi, first we have decided that there were three of them. We know that there was more than one because magi is plural so there could have been 2-20. We sometimes call them Kings, but we know they weren’t kings, Magi means a wise person. We presume that they were men, but they could have been a group that included both men and women. The magi have been given names: Melchoir, Gaspar and Balthasar and, a long standing tradition has also decided that one of them was African, even though Africa is obviously west not east of Bethlehem. The truth is we really don’t know their names or where they came from or how many there were. But there is something more important that we do know about them. They were people who even though they were living in darkness they were able to respond to the light that called them to faith. They are people who because they saw something decided to leave the comfortable and move towards the unknown. They are believers who, through their actions, invite us to listen to every call that urges us to walk faithfully towards Christ. They invite us to follow them. We all live complicated lives. Jobs, contacts, problems, encounters, various occupations, take us and they bring us, and life goes by filling every moment with something we have to do, say, see or plan. This past year has made this even more clear to us. We have lived in fear of a virus that we cannot see. At times we have kept our distance from those we love. This virus has even served to divide our community. This past year we have run the risk of losing our own identity, becoming one more thing among others and living without knowing in which direction to walk. Is there a light capable of guiding our existence? Is there an answer to our deepest longings and aspirations? Yes, as Catholic Christians we know that the answer exists. That light already shines. Just as it led the Magi to Jesus, it continues to lead us today to the Child born in Bethlehem. The important thing is to become aware that we live in darkness, that at times we have forgotten the meaning of life. When we recognize this, we are not far from starting the search for the right path. What is our darkness? Be sure of this, darkness is always sin but maybe our darkness doesn’t come from the usual list of the seven deadly sins: lust, gluttony, greed, sloth, wrath, envy or pride. It might be a sin of omission. A sin of living with pre-conceived notions of other people. Our sin might be the inability to forgive. Whatever it is we need to admit that there is darkness in our life. But we don’t have to live in darkness. The darkness isn’t like being in a dark basement fumbling around trying to find a light switch, we don’t need to light a candle or get batteries for our flashlight. No, regardless of the darkness there is always light, and the light is always Christ. So, we began this new year with the firm decision to move towards the light of Christ. Where do we see the light of Christ? I see the light of Christ in all of you. In our parish St. Mary’s. As imperfect as we are the light of Christ burns brightly in the world today. For this means two things. First we need community to see the light. We need one another to point out the light of Christ, in order to be able to see Jesus in the midst of the darkness. Secondly, we need to be a part of the community to be the light of the Christ. No one person here contains the light of Christ. But together we grow close to being that light in the world. Would that St Mary of the Assumption be a light shining in the darkness. Would that St Mary be a beacon of hope and light in the world but most especially in our neighborhood. In this new year let us recommit ourselves to be the light of Christ. In the midst of our daily living may we never lose the ability to see and to be the light that can illuminate our existence, to the call that can give depth to our life.