The light of salvation

Father Kerry Prendiviile
Homily from the Televised Mass, NewsCenter1
The Epiphany of the Lord, January 8, 2023

In about 2002 when I went on sabbatical to Rome, just before I left, a man told me about his son who didn’t like to read. He said we gave him a book about Harry Potter and he read it cover to cover and he wants the next book as soon as we can get it. When I went to Rome, I checked their library, and the Harry Potter books were there, and I read them cover to cover. I had discovered why that child, who didn’t like to read, read it and was waiting for the next. There’s always a new turn to the story. There’s always something happening.

In these days of Christmas, we celebrate the Epiphany. We celebrate a visually beautiful thing of the kings, the magi, coming to worship the Lord. The beauty of it is that while they have been waiting for some sign, they found it in the star. The people of God had been waiting for over 500 years, fulfillment of the words of Isaiah that all nations shall be led in Jerusalem to the light of salvation. And this confluence of people from another country, of different faith, and this desire of the Jewish people, came together in the person of Jesus Christ. The wise men from the non-Jewish world came to represent the nations and to give honor and the glory to the one who had been recently born. This shows that God keeps promises. He is a god of the promise. And the incarnation, birth of Jesus, is one sign of God’s faithfulness to us. It’s a reminder to us that he desires his people to live in the light and the joy of faith in him.

Our holy father John Paul the second, Saint John Paul, told a story to some bishops, who came from afar to make their every five-year visit. One of them commiserated with him, this towards the last year of his life, said “I’m very sad holy father that I will probably never see you again.”

The holy father responded, “oh, I’m sorry. I didn’t even know you were ill.”

In the midst of his suffering he had a joy about the ultimate goal of his life and of every Christian. That is to see the revelation of God face to face in heaven. Be one Jesus with in heaven. To have a light before your very eyes.

Today, the epiphany is only one element of that story. It’s an important one because there are people in this world who’ve lost hope and have lost the desire to look for light. To look for the enlightenment of faith. And for those people, they need to have their heart move by the witness of others who have received with Christ gave us in Bethlehem. His very presence. He came to dwell among us. He pitched his tent among us. And every human heart is not only longing for the next part of the story, but their longing to believe their starving for someone to trust and Jesus Christ is the one they may truly trust.

So, brothers and sisters, in his faithfulness, Jesus desires that each one of us help those from the nations, from the non-believers, from those who’ve grown weary in our church. For those who walked away because of their own sense of sadness at the state of the world and of the church. Bring them back to see that light, the light that enlightens our hearts.

The great St. Teresa of Avila prayed this about trust in God: Let nothing trouble you. Let nothing frighten you. Everything passes. God never changes. Patience obtains all. Whoever has God wants for nothing. God alone is enough.

This was the witness Jesus gave to the magi, to the church, and to the world.