Solemnity of the Epiphany of the Lord
Readings: Isaiah 60:1-6; Psalm 71 (72):1-2, 7-8, 10-13; Ephesians 3:2-3, 5-6; Matthew 2:1-12
Picture: By Jordan Whitt on Unsplash
My dear friends, what is it like to look at things upside-down? This may be the question I was trying to answer, in an old highly unflattering photograph of me taken when I was a little toddler. In the photo I’m bent over, with my head between my legs. A posture I’ll find very difficult to replicate today. I like to think that, back when that photo was taken, I was exploring a fresh perspective on the world. As any child filled with wonder might be expected to do. But I must confess that, as I grow older, it seems more challenging to do this. Not just to adopt the physical posture, but to seek out and to welcome fresh perspectives. To resist the temptation to become like my phone, which refuses to let me to look at the pictures on it in any position other than right-side-up. Yet, don’t we sometimes have to turn our homes and our lives upside-down, to search for some valuable thing we’ve lost? Such as a wedding ring, a passport, or even our own identity?
It’s helpful to keep this in mind today. For if there’s one thing the Epiphany of the Lord invites us to ponder, it’s how the Light of Christ turns things upside-down. In our scriptures today, at least three things are turned upside-down. The most obvious being the division between Jew and Gentile, between citizen and foreigner, insider and outsider. As we know, it was believed that gentiles, or pagans––non-Jews like us––were excluded from the promises made by God to Abraham and his descendants. Gentiles were also considered ritually unclean. Yet who are the heroes in our gospel today, if not a group of gentiles? Those wise men… from the east, who let their lives be turned upside-down, in order to go in search of the newborn king of the Jews. Not only are the magi the heroes of the story, we are invited to see their arrival as the fulfilment of a promise made long ago, in the first reading. Which speaks of foreigners streaming to Jerusalem, bringing gold and incense and singing the praise of the Lord.
The second reading goes even further. It reminds us that, like the magi, we who used to be outsiders now share the same inheritance, that (we) are parts of the same body, and that the same promise has been made to (us), in Jesus Christ, through the gospel. This is the mystery that has now been revealed through the Spirit. The same mystery we celebrate at every Mass. Contrary to the emphasis our world places on race and class, as well as nationality and place of birth, the Light of Christ shows us something far more important: The willingness to allow one’s life to be turned upside down, so as to find and remain in the Lord. Just as the Eternal Word of God let himself be turned upside-down, to come in search of us. This is how outsiders like the magi become heroes. Which is, for us, at once a consolation and a challenge. A consolation to realise how blessed we are to be given a place in Christ. As well as a challenge to keep doing our best, both to remain in Christ, and to reach out to other outsiders. Bearing in mind that one doesn’t have to be a foreigner to be an outsider. Locals can often be made to feel like outsiders too.
Also, in addition to our usual bias toward insiders, there are at least two other things that are turned upside-down: The value we give to physical proximity, and to information. Why is it that properties located close to popular schools cost more? Isn’t it because we value proximity? And yet, what use is it to live near a school, if I have no heart to study? Similarly, in the gospel, even though Jerusalem is only about ten kilometres away from Bethlehem, Herod and company are initially oblivious to the birth of Jesus. It’s only when he is questioned by the magi, that Herod becomes perturbed. The Epiphany shows us that, far more important than physical proximity, is the heart or determination to search.
We all know, of course, how highly our world values information. Living as we do in an information age. But what good is information, without the humility to learn from it? In the gospel, although Herod has access to the information needed to locate Jesus, it doesn’t help him draw any closer to the Lord. On the contrary, he seeks more data for the same selfish reasons that a scammer does: To benefit himself at the expense of others. He wants to know the exact date on which the star had appeared, only so that he can figure out how many babies he has to kill, if the magi don’t come back! The Epiphany shows us that, far more important than information, is the humility both to recognise the limits of what we know, and to learn from those who may know better.
The heroism, heart, and humility of the magi, in contrast to our world’s bias toward insiders, proximity and information respectively. Three ways in which the Epiphany of the Lord turns our world upside-down. Sisters and brothers, even if we may not be able to place our head between our legs, how else might the Light of Christ be revealing to us fresh perspectives on our lives and on our world this Christmas?
