This is something I wrote for RCIA back in 2012. As I read it now, I'm a bit embarrassed at some of the wooden language. I have another angle on the Epiphany that I might get out this week, but here this is, anyway.
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Opening Prayer
Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel,
for he has come to his people and brought about their redemption.
He has raised up the sign of salvation
in the house of his servant David,
as he promised through the mouth of the holy ones,
his prophets through the ages:
to rescue us from our enemies
and all who hate us,
to take pity on our fathers,
to remember his holy covenant
and the oath he swore to Abraham our father,
that he would give himself to us,
that we could serve him without fear
– freed from the hands of our enemies –
in uprightness and holiness before him,
for all of our days.
Gospel: Matthew 2:1-12.
When Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea, in the days of King Herod, behold, magi from the east arrived in Jerusalem, saying, "Where is the newborn king of the Jews? We saw his star at its rising and have come to do him homage." When King Herod heard this, he was greatly troubled, and all Jerusalem with him.
Assembling all the chief priests and the scribes of the people, He inquired of them where the Christ was to be born. They said to him, "In Bethlehem of Judea, for thus it has been written through the prophet: And you, Bethlehem, land of Judah, are by no means least among the rulers of Judah; since from you shall come a ruler, who is to shepherd my people Israel."
Then Herod called the magi secretly and ascertained from them the time of the star's appearance. He sent them to Bethlehem and said, "Go and search diligently for the child. When you have found him, bring me word, that I too may go and do him homage."
After their audience with the king they set out. And behold, the star that they had seen at its rising preceded them, until it came and stopped over the place where the child was. They were overjoyed at seeing the star, and on entering the house they saw the child with Mary his mother. They prostrated themselves and did him homage. Then they opened their treasures and offered him gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh. And having been warned in a dream not to return to Herod, they departed for their country by another way.
In the Gospel, there seem to be three different reactions to Jesus’ birth. Herod was suspicious of Jesus and antagonistic towards Him, the rest of Jerusalem was indifferent and the Magi were open to Jesus.
Herod the Great was a bad guy. Note he and his grandson, Herod Agrippa I, were called “King of the Jews” because they ruled over Judea on behalf of the Romans (as “client kings”). He jealously clung to power, to the extent of killing three of his own children and a number of his wives who he saw as overly ambitious. Herod’s vainglory was such that when he was near death, he was concerned that no one would mourn his death, so he called a number of famous and respected people to Jerusalem and ordered that when he died, these also should be killed, so that his death would bring sorrow to the land, one way or another. He most certainly would have been alarmed about the arrival of a new “King of the Jews”.
Now what about the rest of Jerusalem. The Gospel says that the rest of Jerusalem was “troubled” about the arrival of the Magi. There is a possibility that they were worried for the safety of Jesus, given Herod’s volatile nature, but that doesn’t seem likely. The Gospel is incomplete so we don’t know if the chief priests and elders were aware of the star that the Magi were following, if it was visible to them, if they saw it but didn’t notice it, or if they saw it and considered what it might mean but dismissed it as unimportant. However, the Gospel strongly implies that chief priests and elders were dull to the possibility of the birth of the Messiah because it’s apparent that they didn’t travel with the Magi to search for His birthplace. Herod instructed the Magi to bring back the location of the child, which he wouldn’t have needed to do if some of his own people had gone with them. Bethlehem is about 5 miles away from Jerusalem. They couldn’t be bothered to go? To see if the Messiah is really there, or if the Magi were crazy?
So why would the rest of Jerusalem be “troubled” over the coming of the Messiah? John Chrysostom (one of the Fathers of the Church) says that they were worried about what kind of world the new king would usher in. He quotes a verse from the Septuagint version of Isaiah 9:5-6 They would be glad, if they had been burnt with fire; for unto us a Child is born, unto us a Son is given .
Perhaps the political situation in Jerusalem was favorable and the Jewish elders were not too keen to have things thrown into chaos again. The Sadducees and Pharisees enjoyed a certain status in Jewish life, though they didn’t much care for each other. Each group probably thought that God was on their side, and would have been happy for the Messiah to come and smite the other side. But until that time, they seemed to have reached a detente with each other and enjoyed the favor of society and the establishment. Herod, for all this faults, was politically astute and took care of the Jewish people. He rebuilt the temple and some of his wives and sons even converted to Judaism. But for whatever reason, it seems that Jerusalem was not ready for Jesus.
The Magi, on the other hand were open to God’s call. They saw a sign and followed it to see where it lead, and it lead them to God. The gifts of the Magi are often commented on: gold, for a king; incense for a God; myrrh for a man, who will die. Perhaps they understood the mission of Jesus. Perhaps they knew about Herod and suspected that Herod would seek to eliminate a rival to his thrown.
Saint Josemaria Escriva makes a good point about the Magi: God sent them a sign while they were doing what they do. The Magi watched the stars, so God sent them a star. Similarly, he called Peter, James and John while they were fishing and Matthew while he was collecting taxes. He even called Paul while he was persecuting Christians!
It may be helpful to consider at this point the prologue to John’s Gospel (John 1:10-11). “He was in the world... and the world knew Him not. He came unto His own, and His own received Him not.”
So this is the life of Jesus. At Jesus’ birth and at His death we have people who don’t see God and people who do. We have Roman officialdom (represented by Herod at the birth and Pilate at the Passion) who are thinking only in earthly terms. They can’t be said to reject Jesus’ Divinity: it doesn’t even register with them. It’s not even part of their world view. It is completely alien to them, to the point that their minds can’t even recognize that it’s there. On the other hand we have the Jewish authorities of the day, who are expecting something, but not this. They expect a king, not a pauper. They don’t expect His arrival to be noticed first by Gentiles. They don’t expect his apparent powerlessness. They are similar to, but not quite the same as the Romans. Jesus is so different from what they expect that they are unable to see Him. Even the miracles that Jesus performs are not enough to overcome this. We all know of circumstances where we’re looking closely for something, but in the wrong place. What we’re looking for may be in plain sight, but it’s invisible to us because we’re looking someplace else. Finally, the gentiles, the outsiders, are portrayed as responding to God. Not having any expectations about God, they are able to receive God as He is.
Note something else about the Magi: they first sought a King in the capital city: the normal place that you’d expect to find a king. And they find their King, but only after consulting with the Jewish leaders. Jewish leaders who apparently weren’t too interested in finding the King themselves. When God chose Abraham and his descendants to be the chosen people He did so so that the Jewish people would lead all nations to God, as is mentioned in the Psalm today. And here’s an example of the Jewish people leading gentiles to God, however unwittingly. There’s a popular interpretation in the writings of the Fathers of the Church that the star disappeared from the Magi when they got to Jerusalem, forcing them to consult with the leaders there. It was God’s will that people should be lead to God by other people. Today we have the Church filling that role: bringing God to the people and people to God.
Closing prayer
Almighty, ever-living God,
when Christ was baptized in the river Jordan
the Holy Spirit came upon him
and your voice proclaimed from heaven, ‘This is my beloved Son.’
Grant that we,
who by water and the Holy Spirit are your adopted children,
may continue steadfast in your love.
[We make our prayer] through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,
who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
God for ever and ever.
Amen.
