3 JANUARY: EPIPHANY OF THE LORD (B)

 

3 JANUARY 2021

EPIPHANY OF THE LORD (B)

INTRODUCTION:

Today the mother Church celebrates the feast of the Epiphany of the Lord. The meaning of epiphany is ‘appearance’, ‘revelation’ or ‘manifestation’. It means that God revealed himself, manifested himself to the world.

Jesus manifested himself to the shepherds as a little baby on Christmas day. The shepherds recognized him as Christ who is to save the world from sin. They glorified and praised God for everything they had heard and seen as it was told to them by the angel.

Jesus also manifested himself to the wise men who came searching for him from the east. They were led by a star. When they found him they offered gold, frankincense and myrrh.

Jesus continues to manifest himself to us even today in many varied ways. We need to be attentive to his ways of revealing himself to us.

In all the readings of today we have something that points to this fact of revelation. In the first reading we are told: “for your light has come”. In the second reading St. Paul says: “… how the mystery was made known to me by revelation…” And in the Gospel reading Jesus reveals himself to the shepherds and the three wise men.

LESSONS FROM THE SCRIPTURE

FIRST READING: IS 60:1-6

In today’s first reading prophet Isaiah tells us that our light has come and the glory of the Lord has risen upon his people. The darkness will be dispelled by the brightness of his light. There will be wealth and prosperity in the life of the people because of the coming of the Lord.

RESPONSORIAL PSALM Ps 72

R/ “All nations on earth shall fall prostrate before you, O Lord”

SECOND READING: Eph 3:2-3, 5-6

In today’s second reading St. Paul speaks about the stewardship of God’s grace that was given to him for the people. Through a revelation the mystery was made know to him by the Holy Spirit. The mystery is that the gentiles are to share the same inheritance as the Jews for they are also part of the body of Christ.

GOSPEL READING:  Jn 1:19-28

In today’s Gospel reading we are told about the three wise men who came from the east to Jerusalem. They were seeking for the baby Jesus, who is to be the king of the Jews. They were led by a star. They had come to worship him.

Herod was troubled at this news that a king is going to be born. In fact all Jerusalem was troubled with him. Herod with the help of all the chief priests and scribes of the people set up an inquiry team to find out as to where the king was to be born. They told him that according to the prophets, the king was to be born in Bethlehem of Judea. Herod called the wise men secretly and found out from them the exact time the star had appeared. He told them that he too would like to go and pay homage to him.

When the wise men found Jesus, they fell down and worshiped him. Then they offered him gifts- gold, frankincense and myrrh.

They were warned in a dream not to return to Herod. They departed to their own country by another way.

 

MESSAGES FOR OUR DAILY LIVING

 

1. God reveals himself to us in many varied ways. We need to be attentive to his ways of revealing himself to us. Sometime his revelation to us can come from the least expected person, place, event or time.

2. Jesus Christ is our light. We are the children of light. We need to avoid living in darkness (sin) with the help of Jesus who is the light of the world as we are told in the first reading of today.

3. When Jesus abides in us and in our families, we flourish in our life as Catholics. That is the message we get today from the first reading.

4. All of us are given the stewardship of God’s grace to be shared with others. We are called to be generous in sharing God’s grace with others like St. Paul.

5. Like the wise men of today’s Gospel reading, we need to search for the Lord in our everyday life. We need to spend time in reading the word of God to come to know him better every day of our life. We need to go for spiritual direction; we need to sit in prayer and meditation to come to know Jesus better.

5. God is always ready to lead us as he led the three wise men with the help of a star. In our life too God sends so many ‘stars’ to guide us and lead us in the form of our parents, teachers, and elders and sometime even in the form of some strangers.

6. The wise men worshiped baby Jesus when they found him. We are called to be faithful to our prayer life both personal and family/community prayer. In our prayer we worship him.

7. Herod was not happy when he heard that another king was going to be born, another person is going to take his place. We are to feel happy when good is being done no matter by whom. We need to promote and encourage people who are doing well in the family and society.

8. Herod’s intention of asking the details about the new king (baby Jesus) from the wise men was different. His intention was not to go and worship him but to kill him while the intention of the wise men was to worship him. We need to purify our intentions behind what we do, the decision we take etc.

9. The wise men offered gifts to baby Jesus. We too need to be generous with God. We need to offer him gifts in the form of Sunday offertory, or almsgiving to the poor, or time for prayer (Sunday Mass, family prayer, personal prayer) and reflection and so on and so forth.

10. The wise men were warned not to go back the same way. We too need to be attentive to many warnings that come from God especially when we have to take major decisions in our life, when we face temptation.