Readings:
• Is 60:1-6
• Ps 72:1-2, 7-8, 10-11, 12-13
• Eph 3:2-3a, 5-6
• Mt 2:1-12
“Worship”, observed Fr. Gerald Vann, O.P., “is not a part of the Christian life: it is the Christian life.” Fr. Hans Urs von Balthasar, in a sermon given on the Solemnity of the Epiphany of the Lord, wrote that God, in his epiphany, “has lost nothing of his incomprehensibility. Only now do we begin to suspect how far divine omnipotence reaches into reality. Thus there can be no more profound worship than Christian worship, which is authentic.”
This Solemnity is a celebration of the epiphaneia—the revelation and manifestation—of God in the form of a man, Jesus the Christ. Throughout the centuries, beginning in the East and the later in the West, this feast focused on three different but closely related events: the visitation of the Magi, the baptism of Jesus in the Jordan, and the turning of water into wine at the wedding feast of Cana. Each reveals the radical, transforming truth of the Incarnation. And each, in turn, opens up further the mystery of God and calls man to worship and adore him.
The mystery of the Incarnation and the call to worship are central in the Gospel for the Solemnity, which recounts the well-known story of the magi from the east seeking “the newborn king of the Jews.” The magi are among the most mysterious figures in the Gospel; we don’t even know how many journeyed to find Jesus, although the total of three has become the popular number. In the ancient Near East, a magus could have been one of several things: a magician, a Persian priest, or even a man practicing occultic arts. But these men were most likely Persian astrologers, with a reputation for being skilled at studying and interpreting the movements of the stars and planets.
St. Matthew’s Gospel often refers to Old Testament prophecies that were fulfilled in and through the coming of Christ (Mt. 2:17, 23; 4:14; 13:14; 27:9). In writing of the magi, he pointed his readers to Isaiah 60, today’s reading from the Old Testament. There the prophet Isaiah wrote of a coming time when the glory of Jerusalem would fill and bless the entire word: “Nations shall walk by your light, and kings by your shining radiance.” The wealth of nations—including gifts of “gold and frankincense—would be brought by foreign kings, who would worship God in the holy city, “proclaiming the praises of the Lord.”
And today’s responsorial Psalm also emphasizes this theme of worship: “May the kings of Tarshish and the islands bring tribute, the kings of Arabia and Seba offer gifts. May all kings bow before him, all nations serve him” (Ps. 72:10-11).
This highlights a truth often proclaimed by Jesus: that the Kingdom of God is offered to and will include peoples from all nations. And the magi represent the first of a vast number of Gentiles brought into the family of God through the Christ-child, who is the King of the Jews and the King of kings. Even in his quiet and hidden birth, Jesus began to draw all men to himself. “In the magi,” the Catechism states, “representatives of the neighbouring pagan religions, the Gospel sees the first-fruits of the nations, who welcome the good news of salvation through the Incarnation” (par. 528). In the New Covenant, the radiant glory of the Lord will shine upon all people, dispelling the darkness of sin and despair.
The actions and responses of the magi reveal how the divine light destroys the darkness and leads to worship of the true God. First, they saw the star and recognized that it was unique.
Secondly, upon having this epiphany (itself a divine gift of grace), they traveled in order “to do him homage”. They had no fear of seeking the newborn King of the Jews because they were filled with joy and anticipation.
Third, they entered into the presence of Jesus and “prostrated themselves and did him homage.” Having worshiped him, they offered gifts. We, too, are called to worship, for worship is the Christian life.
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About the “Persian astrologers”…in those days astrology and astronomy were not differentiated, not until the 17th century. But, now, in our era of the Hubble Telescope and the Big Bang, what’s this thing about a Christmas Star hung up in the sky at exactly the right place and at “the fullness of time”?
Our first CLUE, perhaps, comes from one Michael A. Molnar, astronomy and former manager of the Physics Instructional Labs at Rutgers University (“The Star of Bethlehem: The Legacy of the Magi,” Rutgers University Press, 2000). With computer simulation he reconstructs, backwards, the night sky in B.C. 6. The CONJUNCTION of Jupiter, Saturn and Aires! And, because of earth’s annual path around the sun, the “star” appears to terrestrial eyes twice, six months apart, also seeming to move west where it seemed, again, to be stationary (now over Bethlehem). And, allowing six months for the magi to consult, decide upon, and caravan 1,000 miles, making inquiries along the way.
Might we suppose that the ARTIST CREATOR arranged everything (!), from the very beginning (!), such that this noticed celestial event—among trillions of other stars—would coincide with the Incarnation (!) into the physical universe? So as to be seen by Gentiles who long before had heard about a Messiah, from Hebrews scattered away from the Northern Kingdom of Israel seven centuries earlier (B.C. 721), by the Assyrians?
Lacking within ourselves, it seems, is an adequate RELIGIOUS IMAGINATION. Because in our scientific myopia, we find insufficient 100 billion galaxies each featuring an average of 100 billion stars. So, our second CLUE—the poetic insight of Khalil Gibran, naturalistic in temperament but also an Eastern Rite Maronite Catholic:
“If there were only one star in the firmament…
one flower forever in white bloom,
and one tree arising from the plain;
And if the snow should fall but once
in every hundred years,
Then we would know the generosity of the Infinite.”
Scripture says that the star came to rest over the house where they were. We do not know if at this time they were in Bethlehem still. The house would suggest that they had moved at least from the stalls. The flight into Egypt somewhat follows the visit of the Magi and it would indicate that the circumcision (eighth day) and the purification in the Temple had both already been completed. Which would tend to rule out Bethlehem as the place where that house was.
Joseph is from the line or house of David. It does not mean he is from Bethlehem himself -as some have been arguing (I think it’s Akin). I mentioned in CWR the possibility of Joseph being from Jerusalem. Another possibility is Hebron.
In Horeb they could already have been kept out of harm’s way but the angel wanted them to go to Egypt nonetheless; and this route would have been easy for Joseph and very familiar to him. The journey would be a cause of some excitement for the BVM, to be traversing the roads Joseph had used on his various trips and experiencing the great metropolis, all in the company of her Child and her husband, the Child’s father.
Thanks for the edit. Last paragraph should be Hebron too!
Herod set upon killing children 2 years old or younger, “calculating” off the time since he met the Magi. We can assume that John the Baptist was outside this survey and risk from Herod. The 2-year margin would mean that the house that the Holy Family were in was a place they had settled into for quite some time already.
…the Child’s “foster father”. And, below, a conjunction would appear as a bright “star”.
As to foster father, it is true and you are right. On the other hand, I feel I can say “father” for the reason that the BVM herself, speaking to Jesus, referred to Joseph, as, “your father”, when they found him the time he was “lost” for 3 days. I am moved to speak about it too, this way, for the reason that at some point the BVM herself had to set upon the proper title for Joseph, that she would use when speaking to Jesus about him; and she was inspired with “father” and actually decided on it.
When was that point? I am of the view that it was in the earliest moments shortly after the angel had dispelled the puzzlements for Joseph and it became clear Joseph was going ahead in their plans. She would have kept this in her heart until the time when she could manifest it best.
To the star. I am inclined to believe it was a star and the Magi from their vast and accurate knowledge of the skies, could distinguish it from everything else that had been mapped. Something new and quite set apart from the established order and not belonging of relatable axial groups. This new item “proceeded and stopped” over the place where the Child was.
We now know that the Solar System travels through the Milky Way and attempting to locate this star means looking back at the skies where the Solar Syatem was roughly 2,031 years ago. The processing of the Magi is spread over some length of time during which the star was clearly identifiable.
Incidentally, Zechariah had foretold of the Daystar leading the way of peace. The household of Herod would have been able to look at it. If we suppose that the star appeared at Jesus’ birth; and further that the Magi had found the Holy Family quite some months after the Nativity, we could see that the period of time for the star’s displays, likely extends more than six months -even a year.
Herod’s calculation on 2 years might suggest a limit when the display had ended. We would be speaking about the period, dawn of 7BC through 5BC.
The Magi adored the infant Christ, adoration a feature of true worship. As a meditative muse in response to Balthasar’s most profound worship, might it be said a more profound revelation of the Father than what preceded? Not to be dismissive would it be more the essence of God that draws to worship rather than his omnipotence? Saint John of the Cross seems to relate to this when he remarks, How could anything so gentle be so powerful?
It speaks to real knowledge of God [does knowledge of God say in the beatific vision cause a degree of loss of God’s incomprehensibility?] rather than awe of his omnipotence. The opinion among saints is that knowledge of God as Love itself doesn’t detract from his incomprehensibility. Perhaps that’s the anomaly Balthasar refers to. When the shepherds saw they believed what was said. An aura of grace? Were not the Magi truly wisemen prepared to worship the true God.
It could be there were a number even plethora of celestial alignments happening simultaneously that confirmed the identity-meaning of the star. It would be better to study comparative astrology to get at the “zodiacs” involved or signs.
Magi said it was a star. No reason to doubt it or construe it some way.
This event of the Magi would have been shared among Herod’s sons and the High Priests especially Annas whose sons were High Priests in succession. All these then themselves aligned in the Sanhedrin, “at last”, to put an end to any talk of the Son of God.
In between Annas’ sons as High Priests, there was Caiaphas, Annas’ son-in-law. His first name is Joseph and he was the one responsible for condoning the vilification of Christ in the High Priest’s compound; unable to master the exact justice he craved.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Annas
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Caiaphas
Grateful for this presentation of Epiphany, Editor CEO. Today’s Feast of the Holy Family reminds we Catholics in our “domestic churches” to emulate the Holy Family of Epiphany. MATT 1. 16 footnote (THBDRV, 1899/2018, NT, p. 3) states that Joseph and Mary- (both chaste virgins)- were so closely akin that ‘the pedigree of one reflects the pedigree of the other’. Joseph’s lineage traced back to King David, requiring his attendance for the census in Bethlehem, Juda [Mich. 5. 2; John 7, 42.] (p. 3). MATT. 2. 6 prophesies “for out of thee [Bethlehem] shall come forth the captain that shall rule my people Israel” (p. 4).
In conservative sermons was stated that the wise men were holy priests, expecting the “King of Kings”, the “Light of the World” [IS. 60] (p. 810). They were reading the Old Testament prophecies, following the physical sign of the extraordinary “star” which lighted their path. After the Magi- providing Baby Jesus gifts of gold [King], frankincense [priest], and myrrh [sacrifice/prophet] departed- MATT. 2. 13 tells God sent an angel to Joseph in his sleep, directing him to flee from Herod with the Holy Mother and the Holy Infant to Egypt, fulfilling prophecy [Osee 11. 1.] (p. 4).
Thanks to heroic foster-father Joseph, Our Savior was carried in the arms of obedient Mother Mary, hastened away, protected from evil. May all parents serve God’s Will for their beloveds so obediently.
To your point, Author/Editor Mr. Olson, that adoration is worship, at the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass, may we Catholics revere Our Lord’s Real Presence, in The Precious Host. Claims Bishop Schneider: in adoration, one must “kneel, [like] angels, to adore Our Lord [in Holy Communion]’, “(with love and fear) . . .” “The gesture of an adult who kneels and opens his mouth so to be fed like a child corresponds in a felicitous and impressive manner to the admonitions of the Fathers of the Church concerning the attitude to have during Holy Communion”, (The Most Rev. Bishop Athanasius Schneider in Dominus Est, 2008, pp. 30-31). He states “St. John Chrysostom exhorts those who approach the Eucharistic Body of the Lord to imitate the Magi from the East in a spirit and gesture of adoration . . .” (p. 31).