Epiphany 2016

From Fr. Tony Kadavil: 

1) Artaban the fourth of the magi: In 1895, Henry van Dyke wrote the "Story of the Other Wise Man," a fourth wise man called Artaban. Our hero is not mentioned in the Gospel because he missed the caravan. He got to Bethlehem too late to see the baby Jesus. But Artaban did make it in time to save one of the Holy Innocents by bribing a soldier. For 33 years Artaban searched for Jesus. He did not find him. But all the while the Fourth wise man fed the hungry, helped the poor.
Then one day in Jerusalem Artaban saw the "King of the Jews" being crucified. He started to offer a pearl as ransom. But then he saw a girl being sold into slavery to pay family debts. Artaban gave his pearl to buy freedom for the girl. Suddenly the earth quaked as Jesus died on the cross and a stone struck Artaban. Dying, he heard a voice saying: "When you helped the least of my children, you helped me. Meet me in heaven!" Artaban, the fourth of the magi, had been making God present in his community for years by helping others. God asks each of us on the feast of Epiphany to be the fourth of the Magi by becoming God’s epiphanies, making His love present in the world around us by our acts of love and kindness.

2) Be the Star of Bethlehem as was Tony Melendez: In its June 1989 issue, Reader’s Digest carried the story of Tony Melendez of California, describing his life as an epiphany story. A "thalidomide baby," Tony was born without arms because his mother was prescribed thalidomide, a drug used to help calm morning sickness, during her pregnancy. He was brought to the Los Angeles area from Nicaragua to be fitted with artificial arms. He wore them until he was ten, when he disposed of them. "I didn't feel comfortable," he explains, "I could use my feet so much more." His proficiency with his feet extended to more areas than just day-to-day care. He remembers that "at first, I started playing push-button organ. Then in high school I began playing around with the guitar and harmonica." He also began writing his own songs. It was also in high school that he became deeply involved in the Catholic Church and he persevered in his church activities, using his talents as a guitarist and composer for Masses and church related events. Demand for him increased to the point where he was directing and singing in music groups at up to five masses on a given Sunday. It was an unforgettable moment when, on September 15, 1987, he was invited to play his guitar for Pope John Paul II in Los Angeles. Born without arms, he performed a touching song entitled “Never Be the Same.” When the Pope approached him from the stage to kiss him in appreciation, it seemed to reflect the sentiments of the entire country.

Since then Tony has traveled across the United States and twenty-seven foreign countries, making countless television appearances. He has also performed at The World Series, where he sang the National Anthem for the fifth game of the 1989 series. Tony has had the opportunity to give four additional performances for the Pope, twice in the Vatican, then in the Pope's homeland of Poland, and then in Denver, Colorado for World Youth Day, 1993. Along with television and major personal appearances, newspaper and magazine articles have appeared on him through out the world. Tony’s best-selling autobiography, A Gift of Hope, was published in 1989 by Harper & Row. As a highly talented composer and musician, Tony recorded his first album in 1989, followed by three other very popular albums, all carrying Christian themes of hope and encouragement to millions, especially the crippled and the disabled. Thus, Tony has become the star of Bethlehem, by directing others to a loving and providing God through his own strong faith in God’s providence. Jesus manifests himself through his crippled disciple. Currently, Tony resides with his wife Lynn and children in Branson, Missouri, which is best known for its small-town hospitality and world-class entertainment. There you can see Tony and his family and an all-star cast in an award-winning variety show, The Tony Melendez Show: "A Gift of Hope" at the IMAX Entertainment Complex.

 Additional Anecdotes:

1) The tale of the star: Eusebius, a scholarly church historian of the early fourth century, evidently made a considerable study of the literature available to him, and came to this conclusion about the star: "The star was new and a stranger among the usual lights of heaven, a strange star, not one of the many known stars, but being new and fresh." A recent writer, Robert McIver, has spent 3 decades researching this subject. In his book, Star of Bethlehem - Star of Messiah, published 1998, he cites star records from ancient Chinese and Korean astronomers who both noted such an unusual new star about the time of Christ’s birth. He also discusses paintings in the Roman catacombs, as well as coins from various countries which depict an unusual star about this time. He even notes possible interpretations, but it is at least an interesting coincidence, if nothing else, that such indications of an unusual new star at about the time of Christ’s birth can be found all over the world. (SOURCE: "When They Saw The Star" by Henry M. Morris).

2) Flight attendant with a golden pin: Every December, Mrs. Diane Bartosik wears a little golden pin on her United Airlines uniform. It’s a beautiful pin depicting the three Wise Men following the star to Bethlehem. In her work as a flight attendant, people will sometimes comment on the beauty of the pin. She uses those situations as opportunities to be a witness for Christ. She wore that little pin on her flight to Los Angeles this past week. She came to one seat, where there were two young girls, seven and ten years old. The seven year old said, "That’s a pretty pin." Diane responded, "Do you know what the pin means?" They both looked carefully at the three men on camels following a star . . . . and then said, "No." They didn’t know what it signified. Then Diane explained, "It’s the three Wise Men following the star to Bethlehem to see the baby Jesus." "Do you know that story?" They both said, "No". They had never heard it before. Over the next few hours as they flew across the Pacific, many people commented on the beautiful pin; but to Diane’s amazement, not a single one seemed to understand or at least did not acknowledge that they understood what it symbolized. Throughout the flight, people were attracted to the glitter of the pin --- but in every case, the people Diane met were either indifferent to its meaning, or did not understand its meaning, or in one case a mother did not want her little six-year-old son to even hear the story of the birth of our Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, and the coming of the Wise men.

3) The true epiphany: A rabbi put the following question to his disciples, "How can we determine the hour of dawn, when the night ends and the day begins?" One student replied, "When from a distance you can distinguish between a sheep and a dog." "No," said the rabbi. Another student quickly offered, "When you can tell a fig tree from a grapevine." "No," repeated the rabbi. "Then tell us, please," asked the students. Replied the rabbi, "Darkness ends and day begins when you can look into the faces of all other human beings and you have enough light in you to recognize them as your brothers and sisters."

4) Epiphany under water: There was once a holy monk who lived in Egypt. One day a young man came to visit him. The young man asked: "Oh, holy man, I want to know how to find God." The monk was muscular and burly. He said: "Do you really want to find God?" The young man answered: "Oh, but I do." So the monk took the young man down to the river. Suddenly, the monk grabbed the young man by the neck and held his head under water. At first the young man thought the monk was giving him a special baptism. But when after one minute the monk didn’t let go, the young man began struggling. Still the monk wouldn’t release him. Second by second, the young man fought harder and harder. After three minutes, the monk pulled the young man out of the water and said: "When you desire God as much as you desired air, you will have the epiphany of God."

5) “I can give Him my heart”: There is a 19th century English Christmas Carol, which sums up the nature of "giving to the Christ child.”

What can I give him, poor as I am?

If I were a shepherd, I could give a Lamb.

If I were a wise man, I could do my part.

What I can I give Him? Give Him my heart!

6) “Because you never know what’s going to happen next.” Little Amy was looking through the family album and found a picture of a man sitting behind a cow. All that was visible was the man’s legs and feet. When her photographer uncle who owns a photo studio came to visit her mother Amy told him, “This is the only picture of my grandfather that we have. So please remove the cow so that I may see what he looked like." It is the same curiosity which led the magi to follow the star of Bethlehem. A survey was made among school children asking the question why they enjoyed reading Harry Potter novels and watching Harry Potter movies. The most common answer was, “Because you never know what’s going to happen next.” The same element of suspense marked the journey of the Magi, who never knew what road the Spirit was going to take them down next. Today’s readings invite us to have the curiosity of Amy and the school students so that we may experience the ‘epiphany’ of our God in everyone and every event, everywhere.

7) An epiphany in the airport. We spot what looks like a mom, a dad, and three teenage daughters. The girls and their mom are each holding a bouquet of roses. We are wondering what the story is. Whom are they expecting? The dad keeps looking at his watch. The mom keeps turning her head to make sure she hears each airport announcement. Finally the door opens. First come the "rushers"--men and women in suits with briefcases and bags over their shoulders, rushing towards phones, bathrooms, and their cars or rent-a-cars. We're still wondering and watching to learn whom this family we've been studying is there to meet. Then out come a young Marine, his wife, and their obviously brand-new baby. The three girls run to the couple and the baby. Then Mom. Dad. Hugs. Kisses. Embraces. "OOPS! The flowers!" But the baby is the center of attention. Each member of the family gets closer and closer to the mother and each opens the bundle in pink to have a first peek at this new life on the planet. We're seeing it from a distance. It's better than the evening news. Then we notice several other smiling people also watching the same scene. There are many other hugging scenes, people meeting people, but this is the big one. We're smiling too. A tear of joy. What wonderful moment we are photographing into our memory. We're thinking, "Family! Children! Grandchildren!" This is what life is all about. We're experiencing an epiphany. Life is filled with them. Praise God!

8) O. Henry’s story of real love through sacrificial sharing: “Gift of the Magi”: (A summarized version): It was Christmas Eve, during the days of the depression of the 1930's. Della and James, a newly married couple, were very poor. They loved each other dearly, but money was hard come by. In fact, as Christmas approached, they were unhappy because they had no money to buy presents for each other. They had two possessions that they valued deeply: James had a gold watch which had belonged to his father, and Della had long and beautiful brown hair. Della knew that James’ watch had no matching chain -- only a worn-out leather strap. A matching chain would be an ideal gift for her husband, but she lacked the money to buy it.

As she stood before the mirror, her eyes fell on her long brown tresses. She was very proud of her beautiful hair, but she knew what she had to do. She faltered a moment, but nothing could stand in the way of love. She hastened to the “hair-dealers,” sold her hair for twenty dollars, and went round shop after shop, hunting for the ideal gift. At last she found it: a platinum chain for her husband’s watch. She was very happy and proud of the gift. She knew James would love it, the fruit of her sacrifice.

James came in, beaming with love, proud of the gift he had bought for Della. He knew she would be very happy with the gift. But when he saw her, his face fell. She thought he was angry at what she had done. She tried to console him by saying that her hair would grow fast, and soon it would be as beautiful as before. That is when he gave her his gift. It was an expensive set of combs, with gem-studded rims. She had always wanted them for her hair! She was very happy, but with a tinge of sadness. She knew it would be some time before she could use the precious gift.

Then, with tears in her eyes, she presented him with the gift she had bought. As he looked at the beautiful chain, he said with a sigh: “I guess our gifts will have to wait for some time. The combs were very expensive; I had to sell my watch to buy the combs!” These were the perfect gifts: gifts of sacrificial love. Both James and Della were very happy for, like the Magi, they had discovered LOVE through self-sacrifice.

9) "If I lose that, I am lost." A great artist once painted a picture in which a solitary figure is seen rowing a small boat across the dark waters of a lonely lake. A high wind is churning up the waters causing white-crested billows to rage ominously around the tiny skiff. As he rows on, the boatman's eyes are fixed on the one lone star shining through the darkness. Under the picture, the artist has inscribed these words: "If I lose that, I am lost." In the manner of that dauntless boatman, our mission is to keep our eyes fixed on a certain star as we travel along life's way. This very day, we join with the Wise Men from the East as the Star of Bethlehem guides us along the way to the place of the Savior's birth. But, having paid homage to the newborn Babe, our eyes must remain fixed on Jesus' star. In order that Jesus may number us among those who love Him and will carry on His work, we must follow His star to the foot of the cross. It is only from the cross that that guiding star can lead us to the empty tomb. It is there, at the place of Resurrection. (Millennium Edition of Preaching CD).

10) Star lights: In the year 7 B.C. the planets Jupiter and Saturn appeared very close together in the night sky, casting a bright glow similar to that of a single large star. The following year, Mars, Jupiter and Saturn were also closely aligned. Some scholars believe one of these two events produced the bright light in the sky the wise men followed when they came to Bethlehem two thousand years ago. You know the story. What fascinates me is this: hundreds of thousands of other people living in that part of the world saw the same bright light in the sky, but they did not leave their homes to go find the newborn king. What was different about these magi? Vision.

11) Unmanned jet called the Global Hawk: So many people are taking destructive journeys in our world today, following so many false stars. A few years back our Air Force built a sophisticated unmanned jet called the Global Hawk. With no pilot aboard, this plane can fly for more than a day, scouring terrain and relaying video to a ground station 3000 miles away. A few years back one of these planes was lost in a freak accident. No, it didn’t crash into a mountain. It didn’t run out of fuel or have one of its parts malfunction. Rather, it committed suicide. It shut its engines down, erased classified material from its computer, set its flaps in a death spiral and smashed at 400 mph into the desert. Here’s what happened. More than 100 miles away, a team of Air Force personnel was testing a second Global Hawk aircraft. At some time in this test, this team told this second plane to terminate its flight. Unfortunately, the first plane “overheard” this signal from more than 100 miles away and “thought” it was being ordered to terminate its flight, and it did just that. A forty-five million dollar plane was lost because it “listened to” the wrong voice. There are many journeys we can take in today’s world, many voices we can listen to, many stars that we can follow. But only one leads us into the path of abundant life.

11) Following a star: There is an interesting story about a director of Standard Oil Company who was reading his Bible one day and came upon Exodus 2:3. This is the story of the mother of Moses seeking to hide her child from the Egyptians. She makes a little basket made of bulrushes, you'll remember. This is how the writer of Exodus describes the process, "...and [she]daubed it with slime and with pitch." The Standard Oil director knew that where there is pitch there is usually oil. So he sent his engineers to work. Today they are pumping vast quantities of oil out of the ground near Moses' home town in Egypt.

There are two lessons here, I suppose. One is about reading your Bible. The other is about dropping everything and acting on what you read. Gazing at a star isn't nearly as rewarding as following one.

12) “’I went home.’ And that's a good place to be." There are many people who are by nature impulsive. They may jump at any star -- only to regret it later. Some of you are old enough to recognize the name Carl Perkins. Perkins was a popular rockabilly singer from the 50s and the author of the classic song "Blue Suede Shoes" which was one of Elvis Presley's first big hits. As a guitarist, Perkins influenced many of the next generation of rock 'n' rollers, most prominently, George Harrison of the Beatles. Perkins never quite attained the fame of some of his more notorious colleagues. He once explained it like this: "I never envied Elvis his mansion and all that. All those boys – Elvis, Jerry Lee Lewis, Roy Orbison--they all lost their wives, their families. People say, 'What happened to you, Carl? All of them went on to superstardom. Where'd you go?' I say, 'I went home.' And that's a good place to be." (Carl Perkins made a choice not to follow the star of fame with the same intensity as some of his contemporaries. He felt that his star was at home. Sometimes that is a wise choice to make. Still, if we all chose to stay at home, the world would come to a grinding halt. The three Magi were men of action.)

12) "Yes, I will" Mary Kay Ash, who built Mary Kay cosmetics into a corporate giant, once said this: "If we ever decide to compare knees, you're going to find that I have more scars than anyone else in the room. That's because I've fallen down and gotten up so many times in my life." [Deborah Ford with Edie Hand, The Grits (Girls Raised in the South) Guide to Life (New York: Plume, 2003), p. 230.] Those are the people who are successful in the world. People who refuse to give up. People who follow their star regardless of the obstacles.

13) Motivational speaker Earl Nightingale once told the story of an American team of mountain climbers who set out to conquer Mount Everest. Before the team left the U.S. a psychiatrist interviewed them. Each was asked individually, privately, "Will you get to the top of Everest?" There was a wide assortment of answers. "Well, Doc, I'll do my best." "I'm sure going to try." Each knew how formidable was the challenge. But one of them, a slightly built team member, gave a totally different answer. When the psychiatrist asked him the question, he thought for a moment and then quietly answered, "Yes, I will." Not surprisingly, he was the first to make it to the peak of Mt. Everest. Nightingale comments: "Yes, I will--three of the most potent words in our language. Whether spoken quietly, loudly, or silently, those three words have propelled more people to success and have been responsible for more human achievement than all other words in the English language combined." (Dan Mangler: http://www.smlc-elca.org/Sunday_sermons/january_16_2005_sermon.html ) The Magi were men of action, men of determination. They were "Yes, I will" people. But more than anything else, the three Magi were men of faith.

14) “Is He here?” Perhaps you remember the old Russian legend about a woman named Babushka. Like too many of us, Babushka was always busy, too busy. She was a tidy housekeeper, always occupied with the many chores that needed her attention. One evening as she is cleaning her house she hears a commotion out on the street. Looking out her window she sees her neighbors pointing to a star high in the heavens. Off in the distance she sees a caravan approaching.

Babushka is startled to hear a knock at her door. She opens it to find three richly dressed kings. They ask her if they can lodge there overnight. After all, she has the finest house in the whole village. That night they tell Babushka that they are following a star. They invite her to go with them in search of the newborn king. Babushka makes excuses. First she tells them she doesn't have a proper gift. Besides she has to clean up her house before she does anything. As the three kings are leaving she promises to join them the next day after her work is complete. But the kings leave without her. The next day Babushka cleans her house and finds a proper gift. All of a sudden she has the urgent desire to catch up with these men. They are a full day's journey ahead of her but, she hopes to catch them. Everywhere she asks if people have seen the three kings. Finally she tracks them to the village of Bethlehem. But she is too late. The kings have come and gone. And the baby they were searching for is gone too. Babushka missed the kings and the King of Kings. According to legend she continues her search year after year. In fact many believe that she can still be seen in villages at Christmas time, looking for the Christ Child. "Is He here?" she asks the villagers, "Is He here?" Follow the star. That's good advice for this first Sunday of a New Year. Carpe Diem -- “seize the day.” Get into action. Don't let life pass you by. [Wendy M. Wright, The Vigil, (Nashville: Upper Room Books, 1992), pp. 166-167.]

15) “Thanks for helping me find the ‘eyes of my heart.’ Leo Buscaglia once told a story that happened while he was a professor at the University of Southern California. He had a student who was brilliant and filled with potential. Joel, however, had lost his meaning and purpose for living. Joel had been brought up in the Jewish faith, but like many young people he had wandered away. God had become a meaningless symbol. He had no motivation to live another day, and no one could convince him otherwise. So he prepared to take his own life. On his way, he stopped by Leo’s office. Fortunately, the good doctor was in. The student told Leo that he had lots of money, clothes and cars. He had been accepted at several of the top engineering schools to work on his Master’s degree. He had everything going for him, even good looks. Women circled around him like sharks. Yet he had nothing inside. There was no fire or passion in his belly. He had no vision, no joy, no enthusiasm, no peace, no harmony. Leo said, “Before you take your life, I want you to visit some old people at the Hebrew Home which is adjacent to our campus.” “What for?” the young man countered. Leo said, “You need to understand life through the eyes of your heart.” “The eyes of my heart?” the young man asked. “Yes, you need to experience what it is like to give to those who have lost their connection to a meaningful life. Go to the desk and ask if there are people there who have not been visited for a long time by anyone. You visit them.” “And say what?” the young man asked. “I don’t know,” Leo said, “Tell them anything that will give them hope.” Notice Leo’s strategy--we get back what we give. Leo did not see the student for months. In fact, he largely forgot about him. Then one day during the fall, he saw him coming from a bus with a group of seniors, some of whom were in wheel chairs. Joel had organized a trip to the baseball game with a group of his new senior friends who had not been to a game in years. Leo and Joel chatted for a moment. Just before parting Joel said, “Thanks for helping me find the ‘eyes of my heart.’” Leo nodded and smiled. There it is. Epiphany. Seeing life with new eyes. Vision. Seeing in the world new possibilities. That is what I wish for each of us this day. The magi came searching. Their search took them on a journey of faith. When they found the newborn king, they offered him gifts, gifts that represented the best that was in them. This is the kind of vision we need as we begin this new year--a vision to build new lives and a new world. (Rev. Richard E. Stetler)

16) “My education led me to the stars; my faith led me beyond." Let me tell you about another wise man, a wise man of our day, who, like the wise men of old, was led by the stars and then led home by Another Road. From a young age, Hugh Ross was consumed by the study of physics and astronomy. He devoured scientific texts, and found in them a knowledge that excited him. His studies of science and the order of the universe led Hugh to the belief that there had to be a Creator somewhere that set the whole thing in motion. As a young man, he began studying the texts of the world's major religions. He measured each one against the known facts of science and history. If there was a Creator, Hugh felt, and if this Creator went to such great lengths to make an orderly universe that could be understood, then such a Creator would want to communicate with His creation in an orderly and truthful manner. Hugh Ross' study of the stars and the planets led him to believe that there was such a God. Hugh Ross found that God in the Bible. But it would be another few months of wrestling with his will before Hugh was ready to humble himself and ask Jesus to be Lord of his life. Today, Dr. Hugh Ross has earned degrees in physics and astronomy from the University of British Columbia and the University of Toronto. He is the director of Reasons to Believe, an organization that publicizes the historical and scientific truths of the Bible. Dr. Ross comments, "As an astronomer, I have achieved my ultimate quest: My education led me to the stars; my faith led me beyond." Dr. Ross searched for knowledge; what he found was Truth and it sent him home by Another Road. This morning we're invited to come to Bethlehem, "the house of bread" and to leave by Another Road. [Dr. Hugh Ross in The Day I Met God, compiled and edited by Jim & Karen Covell and Victorya Michaels Rogers (Sisters, OR: Multnomah Publishers, 2001), pp. 47-51.]

17) Gleaners supermarket: In 1982 a woman named Celeste Tate was shocked by how much good food supermarkets throw away. She persuaded a store manager to donate his expired items to help the less fortunate. She and David McKinley set up shop in a garage. Soon they had built the first Gleaners supermarket for the needy in Las Vegas. The name Gleaners comes from the Old Testament practice of leaving some grain in the fields after harvesting so that the poor may gather it. Today the Las Vegas store serves about 20,000 people a month. There are now 194 stores based on the Gleaners model in the United States, Great Britain, Australia, Holland and China. These not-for-profit shops receive food and other perishable goods from supermarkets and big businesses, repackage them and either give them away to the needy or sell them at dramatically reduced prices for those whose budgets are limited. The Department of Health and Human Services has called Gleaners the most outstanding food program in the United States. And it began because one woman was shocked at the waste in our supermarkets. [Patricia Aburdene and John Naisbitt, Megatrends for Women (New York: Villard Books, 1992), p. 276.] Nothing happens in this world until someone sees a star and follows it. That is what Celeste Tate did. ( L/2012)

Jokes

1) An 8-year-old asked, "How come the kings brought perfume to Jesus? What kind of gift is that for a baby?" His 9-year-old sister answered, "Haven't you ever smelled a barn? With dirty animals around, Mary needed something to freshen the air."

2) Epiphany of God to Noah: Noah was engaged in a conversation with God and asked, "Is it true that to You a million of our years is like a second?" God then responded, "Yes, Noah. Why do you ask?" Whereupon Noah said, "Since a million is such a small insignificant figure to You, may I have a million dollars to help me with the ship-building project?" God replied, "Of course, Noah, just a second!" That response should have told Noah two things. First, he was going to get his million dollars. The second thing Noah should have been aware of is: one million years may transpire between the time of God's promise and its physical manifestation.

3) Epiphany of a pilot: A helicopter was flying around above Seattle yesterday when an electrical malfunction disabled all of the aircraft's electronic navigation and communications equipment. Due to the clouds and haze, the pilot could not determine the helicopter's position and course to steer it to the airport. The pilot saw a tall building, flew toward it, circled, drew a handwritten sign, and held it in the helicopter's window. The pilot's sign said "Where am I?" in large letters. People in the tall building quickly responded to the aircraft, drew a large sign, and held it in a building window. Their sign said "You are in a helicopter." The pilot smiled, waved, looked at his map, determined the course to steer to Sea-Tac airport, and landed safely. After they were on the ground, the co-pilot asked the pilot how the "You are in a helicopter" sign helped determine their position. The pilot responded "I knew that had to be the Microsoft building because, similar to their help-lines, they gave me a technically correct but completely useless answer."

4) The little boy turned in his Christmas drawing to the teacher. It showed two camels approaching the inn, over which was painted a huge star. But the third camel and its rider were shown gong away from the inn. "Why is the third man gong in a different direction?" asked the teacher. "Oh," said the boy, "he's just looking for a place to park."

******

From Fr. Jude Botelho:

In the first reading, Ezekiel, gives us a beautiful picture of Himself as the Shepherd. It is a picture of a shepherd walking in the middle of his sheep, going back and forth among them, looking for the lost, carrying the weak and wounded in his arms. It is a picture of a shepherd, which in biblical times always had overtones of kingship, as with David the shepherd king. Just as the shepherd king cared for his flock, God’s love for us is personal, individual, and there is nothing beyond God’s love that we need.

Part of a great movement

Powerful instincts reside within the human heart. One of these instincts produces a yearning to be part of something great, to be involved in a movement that will change history, to become immortal through sharing in a grand enterprise of worldwide proportions. Throughout history unscrupulous men have taken advantage of this strong instinct. Adolf Hitler is a prime example of how an egomaniac who possesses what today is called “charisma” can scoop almost an entire nation into the palm of his hand. From our vantage point in time we may look back and wonder that rational and responsible human beings were so easily duped until we realize how passionate the hunger to be significant can become. Because he understood this passion, Hitler based his oratory on the principle that if the lie you tell is big enough, people will believe it. In effect he demanded that his people turn over to him their being so that the goals of a master race could be achieved. -Christ as our King claims dominion over all creation. He alone deserves to receive a throne within our hearts. Powerful though he is, he does not win our hearts by force of conquest. Rather he invites us to be the people of his eternal and universal kingdom. He does not play upon our instinct to be part of greatness; he fulfills it.

Charles Miller in ‘Sunday Preaching’

Matthew’s Gospel passage gives us a vision of the last judgement, when all nations, without distinction between Jew and gentile, without discrimination between priest and people, are assembled before the king. We should not think that the vision points only to the end of this world, because it reminds us of the kind of community where Jesus sees himself to be recognized, the kind of people where Jesus sees himself to be at home. The reading tells us that first there will be a separation of the sheep from the goats, the good at the right and the bad at the left. What the sole criterion for judgement for worthiness for citizenship in the Kingdom of God, is our exercise of love. Jesus illustrates his criterion with simple things that everybody can do: feeding the hungry, giving thirsty people a drink, making a stranger welcome, providing covering for the ill-clothed, comforting the sick, and visiting those in jail. But even these simple manifestations of love are often neglected by us. These love-criteria can be put into practice literally and have been called the ‘Corporal works of Mercy’, which the Church and her followers have practiced down the ages. We should note that in Matthew’s vision we have a list of human needs and appropriate responses by a caring community. None of these needs is specifically religious. The criterion does not exalt those who spent long hours in prayer, fasting and penance, they rather focus on the needs of the human heart. To these human needs there is the response of the kingdom people. That response is an authentic human response and therefore a profoundly religious one.

Whatsoever you do to the least, you do unto me.

Joe’s query was not out of concern for my welfare but rather to highlight his own predicament. He merely asked whether I had eaten a meal that day. He had not and with that frosty evening closing in he was not likely to eat one unless I provided it. One way or another he assured me that he would survive, as there were many days when he did not have a decent meal but it would be greatly appreciated if he could have one now. Like an alert T.D., he quickly added the supplementary question to ask if I had ever gone two days in winter without a meal. The plea was irresistible. When Joe left I was filled with gratitude towards and deep appreciation of thousands of people throughout the land who provide meals on wheels, who care for the aging or sick relatives or neighbours, or who work in the Vincent de Paul Society or the aid agencies. Today’s gospel is a salute to all such workers and helpers. Jesus assures them that every act of kindness done to one in need is done to himself and will be rewarded accordingly. It is a good gospel to keep before our minds in the run up to Christmas.

Tom Clancy in ‘Living the Word’

Doing good

There was a queue of people outside the gates of heaven. Each person was asked the question: ‘Why do you think you should be admitted?’ The first person in the queue, a very religious man, said, ‘I studied the Bible every day.’ ‘Very good,’ said the Lord.’ However, we’ll have to carry out an investigation to see why you studied the Bible. So please step aside for a moment!’ The second was a very pious woman who said, ‘Lord, I said my prayers every day without fail.’ ‘Very good,’ the Lord answered. ‘However, we’ll have to see if your motives were pure, so step aside for a moment.’Then an innkeeper approached. He just said, ‘Lord on earth I wasn’t a very religious man, but my door was always open to the homeless, and I never refused food to anyone who was hungry.’ ‘Very good,’ said the Lord. ‘In your case no investigation is needed, Go right in.’ -It has been said that if you do a good deed, but have an ulterior motive, it would be better not to do it at all. The only exception is charity. Even though it isn’t as good as doing it with a pure motive, it is still a good deed, and benefits the other person, no matter what your motive.
Flor McCarthy in ‘New Sunday and Holy Day Liturgies’

The Beggar King

In his book The Christian Vision, John Powell recalls an old Irish legend. It seems that the reigning king had no children to succeed him on the throne. So he has his messengers post signs in every town and village of his kingdom inviting qualified young man to apply for an interview with the king. This way the king hoped to be able to choose a successor before he died. Two qualifications, especially, were stressed. The person must have a deep love for God and for his neighbour. The young man around whom the legend centres saw one of the signs. He, indeed, had a deep love for God and neighbour. He felt a kind of inner voice telling him to apply for an interview. But the young man was so poor that he didn’t have decent clothes to wear to an interview. He also had no money to buy provisions for the long journey to the king’s castle. He finally decided to beg for the clothes and the provisions he needed. After a month of travel, one day the young man caught sight of the king’s castle. At about the same time, he also caught sight of a poor old beggar sitting by the side of the road. The beggar held out his hands and pleaded for help. “I’m hungry and cold,” he said. “Could you give me something warm to wear and something nourishing to eat?” The young man was moved by the sight of the beggar. He stripped off his warm outer clothes and exchanged them for the tattered old coat of the beggar. He also gave the beggar most of the provisions he had been carrying in his backpack. Then, somewhat uncertainly, he walked on to the castle in tattered clothes and without enough food for his return trip. When the young man arrived at the castle, guards met him and took him to the visitors’ area. After a long wait, the young man was led in to see the king.He bowed low before the throne. When he straightened up, the young man could hardly believe his eyes. He said to the king, “You were the beggar beside the road.” “That’s right,” said the king. “Why’d you do this to me?” asked the young man. “I had to find out,” said the king, “if you really did love God and neighbour.”

Mark Link in ‘Sunday Homilies’

Loyal to the Master

Once a soldier was taken before the Roman magistrate. His crime was that of being a Christian. The magistrate asked him, “Are you a Christian?” The Christian soldier relied, “Yes”. The magistrate enquired, “If so, are you the enemy of Caesar?” The Christian replied, “No.” “Then you must offer incense to the image of Caesar”, said the magistrate. The Christian replied boldly, “I refused to offer any incense to the Caesar. God, and God alone must be adored and worshipped. Jesus alone is my God and I love and worship Him alone.” The magistrate threatened saying, “If you refuse I will sever your head from your body.” The Christian boldly replied, “You may cut off my head from my shoulder, but you cannot separate my heart from my king and God-Jesus Christ.” The Christian was decapitated.

John Rose in ‘John’s Sunday Homilies’

Hidden face of Christ

In the year 1880 in Paris a rather poorly dressed priest showed up at a presbytery looking for a night’s lodgings. He had come all the way from Turin, in Italy, and was trying to raise funds to build a church. The visitor’s name was John Bosco, but this meant nothing to the resident priest, so he put him in the attic. Many years later when John Bosco was declared a saint by the Church, the priest said, ‘had I known it was John Bosco, I would not have put him in the attic; I would have given him the best room in the house.’ We never know exactly who it is we are meeting in the person of our neighbour. But this is not important. What is important is that we see in that person a needy human being, and that we do our best to meet his need. For those with faith, behind the face, no matter how strange, the face of Christ lies hidden.

Flor McCarthy in ‘New Sunday and Holy Day Liturgies’

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1.     Closing the Chasm 

Many years ago, I was walking in the farm that has belonged to my father's family in Kentucky for many generations, and I happened to looked down and I saw this giant anthill. There must have been thousands of these little creatures scurrying back and forth. It was a world unto itself. And as I looked down, I thought to myself, given the capacity of an ant, they have no way of understanding something as big and complex as a human being. If they were aware of me at all, I must have loomed over them as some kind of ominous presence. Then it dawned on me that if I had the power to somehow become an ant and yet take into that new condition as much of the reality of a human being as would be possible - in other words, if I could cross this chasm of otherness from my side - then it would be possible for ants to understand the human in ways that they could never have known before.

 As I walked away, I began to realize that the chasm between an ant and a human being, vast as it is, is nothing to compare between the chasm between a human being and this mysterious, divine reality that gives life. And I realized that we are as incapable of understanding God on our own as an ant would be incapable of understanding us.

John Claypool, God Became What We Are

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2.     Called to Obey Love

 Kierkegaard has a fable of a king who fell in love with a maid. When asked, "How shall I declare my love?" his counselors answered, "Your majesty has only to appear in all the glory of your royal glory before the maid's humble dwelling and she will instantly fall at your feet and be yours."

But it was precisely that which troubled the king. He wanted her glorification, not his. In return for his love he wanted hers, freely given. Finally, the king realized love's truth, that freedom for the beloved demanded equality with the beloved. So late one night, after all the counselors of the palace had retired, he slipped out a side door and appeared before the maid's cottage dressed as a servant.

Clearly, the fable is a Christmas story. We are called to obey not God's power, but God's love. God wants not submission to his power, but in return for his love, our own.

God moved in. He pitches his fleshly tent in silence on straw, in a stable, under a star. The cry from that infant's throat pierced the silence of centuries. God's voice could actually be heard coming from human vocal cords.

That's the joy of it. God has come to be with us! 

James T. Garrett, God's Gift, CSS Publishing Company

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3.     God Is in Everything 

When Christians say, "The Word became flesh and dwelt among us, full of grace and truth," they do not mean that God is everything, but they do mean that God is in everything. "In everything," wrote Paul to the Romans, "God works for good with those who love him ... " (Romans 8:28). The theologian Robert McAfee Brown likes to use in his writing the musical metaphor of themes and variations. There are many musical compositions, Beethoven's Fifth Symphony for example, which begin with a clear, identifiable musical pattern, or theme. What follows in the music is a series of variations on this theme, the theme being repeated in ever more complex combinations. Sometimes the texture of these combinations is so complex that the theme is hidden, seemingly obscured by the competing and interlocking notes. But those who have heard the theme clearly stated at the beginning of the work can still make it out, can feel the music being organized by the theme. In Jesus Christ "the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, full of grace and truth ...." That's the theme of all of life heard clearly by the ears of faith, and those who have heard that distinct theme can hear it being sounded wherever the music of life is being played, no matter how jangled are the false notes surrounding it. 

Thomas G. Long, Something Is about to Happen, CSS Publishing Company

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4.     Witnessing Involves Listening 

While I believe that the gospel is always a proclamation about God's actions, effective witnessing involves a lot of listening. For a proclamation to be "good news" for someone, it has to address their needs, their questions, their concerns. I've often quoted this statement from a course on witnessing: "You don't throw a drowning person a sandwich, no matter how good the sandwich might be." 

Brian Stoffregen, Exegetical Notes

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5.     The Word Became Flesh 

If John's Gospel were the only one we had, this is all that we would know about Jesus' birth: before his name was Jesus, his name was the Word, and he was with God from the very beginning of creation, bringing things into being, making things happen, shining light into the darkness.  

He was God's self, God's soul, God's life force in the world. He was the breath inside all living things. He was the electric spark that charged peoples' hearts. He was the fire inside the sun. He was the space between the stars. He was the axis around which the galaxies spin.  

John goes on to say that not everyone got that message. Many were blinded by this light and preferred the darkness they knew to the light which they did not know. The Word sidled up to them and hummed life into their ears, but they cleared their throats and walked away. So God decided to speak in a new way. God decided to speak body language. "And the Word became flesh and lived among us -- full of grace and truth."

This is John's Christmas story in a nutshell. Like Luke, John is telling us about an encounter with the Holy One. God's Word was translated into a human being. God's self, soul, and life force were concentrated into one mortal life on earth, and as a result, nothing would ever be the same again. Not because everyone listened, because everyone does not, but because the eternal Word of God took human form.

Paul E. Flesner, Sermons for Sundays in Advent, Christmas, and Epiphany, CSS Publishing Company

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6.     Entertaining Angels Unaware 

The Letter to the Hebrews in the New Testament reminds us of that incident, and counsels Christians to make hospitality a Christian virtue. "For you may be entertaining angels unaware." But more than that, you may be doing it to Christ, who said, "If you have done it to the least of these, you have done it to me."

Tom Long teaches at the seminary at Princeton. But for a while he lived in Atlanta, and attended a Presbyterian Church in downtown Atlanta. Like most downtown churches, it has to cope with the problem of the homeless. So they opened up their gymnasium in the winter as a shelter. It was the practice of that church, as it is in this church when we open our buildings as a shelter in the winter months, to have people from the church serve as hosts and hostesses.  

Long volunteered to be a host one night. The night came and since no one else volunteered, he invited a friend to come and join him. His friend was not a member of that church. In fact, he wasn't a member of any church. But periodically, in their conversations about religious matters, this friend would say, "Tom, I'm not a theologian, but it seems to me...," and then he would express his opinion.

On this night as they were hosting the shelter, they met the men as they arrived, saw that they had something to eat, hung out with them for a while. Then as the men began to prepare to retire, Tom's friend said, "Tom, you get some sleep. I will stay with them the first watch, then I'll wake you up, and you can come and stay with them for the rest of the night."  

So the friend stayed up and mingled with the guests, listened to them, asked questions about who they were, what had happened to them in their lives that they were now homeless. At 2:00 a.m. he went in and woke up Tom. He said, "Wake up! Wake up! I want you to come and see this. Granted I am no theologian, but I think that Jesus is down there." 

It was promised. "Those who show hospitality to the least of these," he said, "have done it to me."

Mark Trotter, Collected Sermons, www.Sermons.com

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2.     Every December, Mrs. Diane Bartosik  

wears a little golden pin on her United Airlines uniform. It’s a beautiful pin depicting the three Wise Men following the star to Bethlehem. In her work as a flight attendant, people will sometimes comment on the beauty of the pin. She uses those situations as opportunities to be a witness for Christ. She wore that little pin on her flight to Los Angeles this past week. She came to one seat, where there were two young girls, seven and ten years old. The seven year old said, "That’s a pretty pin." Diane responded, "Do you know what the pin means?" They both looked carefully at the three men on camels following a star . . . . and then said, "No." They didn’t know what it signified. Then Diane explained, "It’s the three Wise Men following the star to Bethlehem to see the baby Jesus." "Do you know that story?" They both said, "No". They had never heard it before. Over the next few hours as they flew across the Pacific, many people commented on the beautiful pin; but to Diane’s amazement, not a single one seemed to understand or at least did not acknowledge that they understood what it symbolized. Throughout the flight, people were attracted to the glitter of the pin --- but in every case, the people Diane met were either indifferent to its meaning, or did not understand its meaning, or in one case a mother did not want her little six-year-old son to even hear the story of the birth of our Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, and the coming of the Wise men. 

3.     Epiphany of a pilot:  

A helicopter was flying around above Seattle yesterday when an electrical malfunction disabled all of the aircraft's electronic navigation and communications equipment. Due to the clouds and haze, the pilot could not determine the helicopter's position and course to steer it to the airport. The pilot saw a tall building, flew toward it, circled, drew a handwritten sign, and held it in the helicopter's window. The pilot's sign said "Where am I?" in large letters. People in the tall building quickly responded to the aircraft, drew a large sign, and held it in a building window. Their sign said "You are in a helicopter." The pilot smiled, waved, looked at his map, determined the course to steer to Sea-Tac airport, and landed safely. After they were on the ground, the co-pilot asked the pilot how the "You are in a helicopter" sign helped determine their position. The pilot responded "I knew that had to be the Microsoft building because, similar to their help-lines, they gave me a technically correct but completely useless answer."

 4.  Artaban the fourth Wise Man:

In 1895, Henry van Dyke wrote the "Story of the Other Wise Man," a fourth wise man called Artaban. Our hero is not mentioned in the Gospel because he missed the caravan. He got to Bethlehem too late to see the baby Jesus. But Artaban did make it in time to save one of the Holy Innocents by bribing a soldier. For 33 years Artaban searched for Jesus. He did not find him. But all the while the Fourth wise man fed the hungry, helped the poor. Then one day in Jerusalem Artaban saw the "King of the Jews" being crucified. He started to offer a pearl as ransom. But then he saw a girl being sold into slavery to pay family debts. Artaban gave his pearl to buy freedom for the girl. Suddenly the earth quaked as Jesus died on the cross and a stone struck Artaban. Dying, he heard a voice saying: "When you helped the least of my children, you helped me. Meet me in heaven!" Artaban, the fourth Wise Man, had been making God present in his community for years by helping others. God asks each of us on the feast of Epiphany to be a fourth Wise Man by becoming God’s epiphanies, making His love present in the world around us by our acts of love and kindness.

5.  “Because you never know what’s going to happen next.”

Little Amy was looking through the family album and found a picture of a man sitting behind a cow. All that was visible was the man’s legs and feet. When her photographer uncle who owned a photo studio came to visit her mother Amy told him, “This is the only picture of my grandfather that we have. So please remove the cow so that I may see what he looked like." It is the same curiosity which led the Magi to follow the star of Bethlehem.  A survey was made among school children asking the question why they enjoyed reading Harry Potter novels and watching Harry Potter movies. The most common answer was, “Because you never know what’s going to happen next.” The same element of suspense marked the journey of the Magi, who never knew what road the Spirit was going to take them down next. Today’s readings invite us to have the curiosity of Amy and the school students so that we may discover the "epiphany" of our God in everyone and every event, everywhere.

6.  Epiphany under water

There was once a holy monk who lived in Egypt. One day a young man came to visit him. The young man asked: "Oh, holy man, I want to know how to find God." The monk was muscular and burly. He said: "Do you really want to find God?" The young man answered: "Oh, but I do." So the monk took the young man down to the river. Suddenly, the monk grabbed the young man by the neck and held his head under water. At first the young man thought the monk was giving him a special baptism. But when after one minute the monk didn’t let go, the young man began struggling. Still the monk wouldn’t release him. Second by second, the young man fought harder and harder. After three minutes, the monk pulled the young man out of the water and said: "When you desire God as much as you desired air, you will have the epiphany of God."