The Great Reveal
The game of divine hide-and-seek…
One of my favorite Christmas carols is Bethlehem Down by Peter Warlock (I highly recommend Chanticleer’s recording). It’s definitely not your typical, bouncy, feel-good Christmas piece, but the lyrics paint a beautiful picture for the listener. The first verse begins with the words: “When He is King, we will give him the King’s gifts, Myrrh for its sweetness, and gold for a crown…” Further in, the third verse gives a stark juxtaposition: “When He is King, they will clothe Him in grave-sheets, Myrrh for embalming, and wood for a crown…” These lyrics take us through the whole life of Christ, reminding us that He has entered our world for a purpose: to redeem us.
Our Christmas celebration continues today with the great feast of the Epiphany, when the Magi come to find this mysterious king that they’ve divined from the stars. They come bearing traditional gifts for a king: gold, frankincense, and myrrh. Traveling quite the distance, they find the Holy Family, and they present the child Jesus with their gifts and homage.
How curious it is how the beginnings of our Lord’s life on earth unfolded! The angels announce it to lowly shepherds, and these three noblemen of a foreign country make it their mission to find Him without even knowing who He is. In one of his homilies, Saint Augustine reflects upon this scene, pointing out that the shepherds were the poor and unlearned, and the Magi were from an idolatrous, pagan people. But these are the ones who found Jesus first. This is why we call it “the Epiphany” – it’s the great reveal. And yet, it’s in the stillness of the middle of nowhere, to unlikely people.
God often reveals Himself to us in unexpected, even hidden ways. When you stop and consider how He has appeared in your life, what comes to mind? Where and how did you find Him? How has Jesus entered, not just into the world, but into your world?
It’s a beautiful gift that our Catholic faith doesn’t confine Christmas to just one day, even if the rest of the world does. For us, it’s a whole season, and we still have another week left. I hope that you’ll continue to celebrate the gift of the Nativity: Christ’s humble entrance into the world and into your own life. Give Him the gift of a place of honor in your home, as Bethlehem Down concludes: “Here He has peace and a short while for dreaming; close-huddled oxen to keep Him from cold; Mary for love, and for lullaby, music; songs of a shepherd by Bethlehem fold.”
-Br. Andrew
