Set Our Eyes

01-02-2022Weekly ReflectionFr. Bing Colasito

The Feast of the Nativity of our Lord reinforces the truth of His real identity; that He is true God and true man, the incarnate Son of God. The Feast of the Epiphany celebrates the revelation of God in Jesus Christ. He is the light of the world, one who gives light to all nations. His light invites us into the radiance of the saving promise of God. The Second Vatican Council calls this radiance: Lumen Gentium, Jesus Christ as the “Light of All Nations.”

God from God, Light from Light, true God from true God. When we recite the Nicene Creed, we profess this truth; and we celebrate the fact that through Jesus’ birth, God’s light shines on all nations. The song Shine Jesus Shine echoes this truth: Lord, the light of your love is shining in the midst of the darkness, shining, Jesus, Light of the world shine upon us. Set us free by the truth you now bring us. Shine on me, shine on me. The true light of Jesus shines on all nations. On all people to overcome the darkness of our lives and bring us His life. The same light that Isaiah echoes in the first reading; Rise in splendor Jerusalem! Your light has come; the glory of the Lord shines upon you. Putting ourselves for Jerusalem, we hear God telling us to rise in the splendor because the light of Jesus Christ now shines on us all.

The Magi from the East are perfect examples of this disposition, rise in splendor. They see the star of the Lord travel in search of the glory of God that shines upon all nations, Jesus Christ, the newborn King of the universe. Their disposition and their action are what every one of us should imitate. They rise and set out following the star, the guiding light of Christ: We saw His star at its rising and have come to do Him homage. Let us strive to follow the STAR of Jesus. Let us have that constant inner desire to encounter the God of love, the light that could dispel all the darkness in our lives.

The Magi arrive in Bethlehem - where the star leads them to the child Jesus, and JOY filled them. The presence of Jesus brings so much joy and peace, the sign of salvation that He brings. They came to do Him homage, an example for all of us; the first thing Christian religion demands is to worship God. Worship of God involves offering, and the Magi exemplify this; opening their gifts, they brought frankincense, myrrh, and gold. The frankincense represents His priesthood, myrrh represents His being a prophet (his passion), and gold represents Kingship. He is the King of all kings. But for us, the greatest gift we can give God is the gift of ourselves. St. Paul says: I urge you, therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God. (Rom. 12:1)

From the very beginning, going back to the days of John the Baptist, his mission is clear. The missionary aspect of our faith is simple. We must share the greatest gift of God with everyone to all the ends of the world. Our Lord transcends time, space, and people. He is not for sole keeping, but for all and for always. The blessings given to us are not for us to keep. We must share our graces and our FAITH. Disciples should not just be Joyful receivers, but more so, Joyful givers!

Think about this: In the Nativity scene, the eyes of Joseph and Mary are on the child Jesus. I think this is the secret of true peace, so that in adoration - be there and fix our eyes on Jesus in the Eucharist. Notice that the eyes of Joseph and Mary are not focused on their poor surroundings, or the Magi or the shepherds, or on the gifts that they bring. Neither are they focused on each other. Let us keep our eyes focused on the Lord and the mission He has given us in this life.