Kyrie Eleison

Today was the feast of the Epiphany - where we celebrate the magi bringing gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh. I hope your Epiphany was enlightening. Father Joe gave a wonderful homily today. I’d like to share the themes he touched. Not that the ideas are new, but he showed a connection I had missed before.

He was discussing the magi and how their attention to nature and their wisdom (i.e., reason) they were able to get very close to Christ…but not all the way. Wisdom and nature are wonderful tools, but insufficient by themselves. The magi needed to consult scripture (i.e., revelation) to go all the way. Reason and nature can get you going in the right direction, but God must reach out and guide us as well - we cannot do it on our own. That is what God does through Scripture - reveal Himself to us.

Father had a second point I caught. It was the magi and not Herod or the scribes that visited Christ. Even though the scribes had the answer, they were unwilling to do anything about it. Belief is insufficient. Action is required. Non-Christians who seek God, though they have not revelation may get closer to Christ than Christians who have faith but do not act. We must live our faith, take action, and follow where God leads.