Dear Parishioners,

Greetings to all in this holy time of Christmas. Today’s feast of Epiphany is one of several solemnities that is woven throughout the Christmas season. In the Eastern Church, this feast was celebrated even before December 25th was observed as the Lord’s Nativity. If we step back and view the entire Advent/Christmas cycle (which includes Epiphany) from beginning to end, we see that it possesses a dynamic movement that unifies those unique biblical events that we read about in the liturgies of this season. This movement can be summarized in four phrases.

The first of these is WAKE UP. From the very beginning of Advent the scripture readings call us to wake from our spiritual slumber. These texts call us to rouse ourselves from sleep because the night is far spent and the day of the Lord draws near. For this reason we are told to cast off the works of darkness and to put on the armor of light. In so doing we are better prepared to welcome Christ when he comes in glory at the end of time.

The second phrase in this movement is HURRY UP. Once we are awakened in the spiritual life we are confronted with a great sense urgency because God is acting on our behalf and we are called to be fully present to this action. This need to hurry is so that we do not fall back into our spiritual slumber and miss the opportunity (ies) that God is offering us. The scripture readings reflect this urgency is several ways. First we read about the comings and goings of various biblical characters including angels who repeatedly come from heaven to earth with profound greetings and news of great joy. The angel Gabriel announces to both Zechariah and Mary the unexpected birth of their sons. Angels appear to shepherds and invite them to go to Bethlehem to see the “sign” that God is giving to the world, i.e., the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes and lying in a manger. An angel will speak to Joseph in a dream telling him to take Mary and the child to the safety of Egypt because the political powers are seeking to destroy him. Then, when the child’s life is no longer in danger, an angel will once again appear to Joseph in a dream assuring him that it is safe to return to their home in Nazareth. Besides the alacrity of the angels, we also read about Mary who travels “in haste to the hill country of Judea” to visit her cousin Elizabeth who is also with child. Later on, an angel will summon shepherds to “go in haste” to Bethlehem to see this newborn babe. Even King Herod acts swiftly when he hears the news of this child-king whom he perceives as a threat to his imperial power. Thus in these early gospel chapters of Luke and Matthew there is a palpable dynamism that carries us along with it.

The third calling of Advent & Christmas is to LOOK UP. The shepherds must look up to see the multitude of angels glorifying God. The Magi, who are astrologers, are accustomed to looking up into the night skies. On this occasion, they observe a brilliant star directing them to the place where they can encounter the newborn king of the Jews. But the looking up in these gospel passages is much more than gazing heavenward to see cosmic phenomenon. The looking up being called for is perhaps better described as a looking within. It is a contemplative activity of seeing with eyes of faith into the depths of these events that may, at first glance, seem rather ordinary, like the birth of a child. This looking up is captured by the recurring command to “Behold” which is a symbolically rich idiom that invites people to become alert to some unique activity of God. We also see this looking up in what Luke says about Mary several times, i.e., that “she treasured these things in her heart.” Mary becomes the model of what it truly means to look up and recognize the divine grace that has come down to earth in Jesus who makes God visible to the world.

The fourth phrase we can draw from this season is GO BACK. Going back usually refers to going back home or their place of origin. We read that when the angels have fulfilled their mission, they return to heaven. After seeing the newborn Jesus, the shepherds return home to their sheep. Mary and Joseph return to their home in Nazareth. After paying homage to Jesus, some two years after his birth, the Magi return home “by another route” so as to avoid another meeting with murderous King Herod. In all of these returns, the characters must surely go back to what they knew as changed individuals. All of them have encountered divinity in a raw, unexpected manner. One cannot help but be transformed by such experiences. We can rightfully assume that as they return to that which was once very ordinary, they bring something of the extraordinary power that they just experienced back to their worlds so that others may share in these awe-filled moments.

† In this New Year of 2024, might I suggest that we consider incorporating this fourfold spiritual pattern into the weeks and months that lie ahead for us?

† We can WAKE UP and become eager to experience the unexpected miracles that God can do in our lives and in the life of our world.

† We can HURRY UP with a readiness to, not only experience these blessings, but also assimilate them while they are at hand, for we do not know how long they will linger in our lives.

† Then will we must also LOOK UP and behold the creative hand of God reaching down into the fabric of our world bringing heaven and earth into a unified covenant of love.

And finally, once these grace-filled moments have branded us their searing fire, we GO BACK to those usual patterns and routines in our lives to rejuvenate them with the fresh perspectives we received from our encounter with God.

If this fourfold pattern could be transformative of Mary, Joseph, angels, shepherds and the Magi, I believe it can certainly be so for us as well.

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