Two-Year Patristic Lectionary for the Divine Office ONLINE

COMMENT:  
Epiphany bonus.
Thank you, thank you.
In Epiphany days, this morning I happily scan and downloaded the Augustine 2nd Reading , Tuesday after  Epiphany Year II.
Not more the labour on the Patristic Readings.
Again to the amazing Google surfing encounter the long  searched for the Reading of the night office.
Below is the fascinating story surfacing the Patristic Readings available.
A delightful discovery and express our gratitude. Thank you.
The Downloading has been successful.

Far from Pluscarden

Selections from the Two-Year Patristic Lectionary for the Divine Office originally edited by Stephen Mark Holmes, University of Edinburgh School of Divinity, for Pluscarden Abbey, Scotland. The Lectionary is available as a free resource at the Durham University Centre for Catholic Studies. Postings by Michael Demers in Phoenix, Arizona.

2014/01/02 http://mike-demers.blogspot.co.uk/2014/01/2nd-reading-tuesday-after-epiphany-year.html

1. Far from Pluscarden: 2nd reading, Tuesday after Epiphany Year II

   mike-demers.blogspot.com/.../2nd-reading-tuesday-after-epiphany-year....‎
   

   
   

   5 days ago - A READING FROM A SERMON BY ST AUGUSTINE OF HIPPO The Redeemer ... They venerated in him what was still to come; we venerate its fulfilment. ... StAugustine, Sermo 203 (PL 38, 1035-1037), from Word in Season 2.
   

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A Two Year Patristic Lectionary for the Divine Office

Edited by Stephen Mark Holmes

University of Edinburgh School of Divinity

For Pluscarden Abbey, Scotland

Download the entire Patristic Lectionary here.

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The History of the Patristic Lectionary

A 'patristic lectionary' is a series of readings from the fathers (in Latin patres) of the Church. Scripture has always been read in the Church in the context of tradition. With the development of the Divine Office (services of prayer celebrated at different times of each day) the daily cycle of Scripture reading came to be accompanied by commentaries from the fathers of the Church, as St Benedict wrote in the middle of the sixth century, 'Let the inspired books of both the Old and the New Testaments be read at Vigils, as also commentaries on them by the most eminent orthodox and catholic fathers' (Rule of Benedict, IX).  

INTEREST: The Catholic Herald has updated its Internet Edition on, the Pope meeting the Union of Superiors

INTEREST: The Catholic Herald has updated its Internet Edition on, the Pope meeting the Union of Superiors

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Epiphany, 'They venerated in him what was still to come; we venerate its fulfilment'. Augustine

Monastic Office of Vigils,

Comment on the side - Link to
The exchange with Pope Francis and the Union of Superiors General

Saturday, 04 January 2014 11:27  

Pope Francis & Union of Superiors General

   The exchange with Pope Francis and the Union of Superiors General of Men which took place Nov. 29 last year was published for the first time in the latest edition of La Civiltà Cattolica.

Father Antonio Spadaro, editor-in-chief of the Society of Jesus-owned periodical, was with the 120 superiors general attending the meeting. His 15 page article recounts the free and spontaneous conversation that covered a wide range of issues. (Rome, January 03, 2014 - Zenit.org )

http://www.laciviltacattolica.it/articoli_download/extra/Wake_up_the_world.pdf

 ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

From Epiphany to the Baptism of the Lord

TUESDAY Year II

First Reading

Isaiah    55:1-13

Responsorv          Is 55:4-5; Tb 13:14

I have set him as a witness to the peoples, as leader and teacher of all nations. + You shall summon a nation unknown to you, and nations that did not know you shall run to you.

V. The nations will come to you from afar. They will come bearing gifts to worship the Lord. + You shall summon ...

Second Reading

From a sermon by Saint Augustine of Hippo
(Sermo 203: PL 38, 1035-1037)

We venerate the fulfilment

The Redeemer of all nations was manifested, and so he has made a feast day for all nations. As this is the day on which he is believed to have been worshiped by the Magi, it seemed only right, was indeed right and just, that the nations should dedicate it to Christ the Lord with a solemn service of thanksgiving. Those Magi, the first Gentiles to recognizes Christ the Lord, had not yet been moved by any word of his, but they followed the star that appeared to them and that spoke visibly, like a heavenly tongue, on behalf of the infant inarticulate Word.

The shepherds, of course, were the firstfruits of the Jews as re­gards faith in Christ and his revelation. Coming from close at hand, they saw him on the very day of his birth. They received the news from angels, whereas the Magi received it from a star. The shepherds heard the words: Glory to God in the highest; for the Magi, the prophecy: The heavens declare the glory of God, was ful­filled. The two of them were like the beginnings of two walls coming from opposite directions, one of the circumcision, the other of  the uncircumcision, and running toward the cornerstone so that he might be their peace, and make the two one.

The shepherds, then, came from nearby to see, and the Magi came from a great distance to worship. This is the humility for which the wild olive deserved to be grafted into the cultivated one and to produce olives contrary to its nature, since grace enabled it to change its nature. For like the wild olive the whole world had grown wild and bitter, but by the grace of ingrafting it became fertile. People come from the ends of the earth saying in the words of Jeremiah: Truly our ancestors to worshiped lies. And they come not just from one part of the world but, as the gospel according to Luke says, from east and west, north and south to sit at table with Abraham and Isaac and Jacob in the kingdom of heaven.

The Magi, the firstfruits of the Gentiles, came to see and worship Christ, and were found worthy not only to receive their own salvation but also to be a sign of the salvation of all nations. Let us then celebrate this day with the greatest devotion, worshiping the Lord Jesus in his heavenly dwelling, who was worshiped by those firstfruits of ours as he lay in an inn. They venerated in him what was still to come; we venerate its fulfilment. The firstfruits of the nations worshiped him at his mother's breast; now the nations worship him seated at the right hand of God the Father.

Responsory

This is a glorious day on which the Saviour of the world appeared, whom the prophets foretold, and the angels adored. + When they saw his star the wise men rejoiced and offered him gifts.

V. God's holy day has dawned for us: Let all nations come and worship the Lord. + When they saw.

  

Water and the Spirit, Sermon on the Epiphany attributed to Saint Hippolytus

Baptism of Christ 

iBreviary

Tuesday, January 7, 2014

Weekdays - Time: christmas

Office of Readings

SECOND READING

From a sermon on the Epiphany attributed to Saint Hippolytus, priest and martyr
(Nn. 2.6-8, 10: PG 10, 854. 858-859. 862)

Water and the Spirit

That Jesus should come and be baptized by John is surely cause for amazement. To think of the infinite river that gladdens the city of God being bathed in a poor little stream of the eternal, the unfathomable fountainhead that gives life to all men being immersed in the shallow waters of this transient world! He who fills all creation, leaving no place devoid of his presence, he who is incomprehensible to the angels and hidden from the sight of man, came to be baptized because it was his will. And behold, the heavens opened and a voice said: “This is my beloved Son in whom I am well pleased.”

The beloved Father begets love, and spiritual light generates light inaccessible. In his divine nature he is my only Son, though he was known as the son of Joseph. This is my beloved Son. Though hungry himself, he feeds thousands; though weary, he refreshes those who labor. He has no place to lay his head yet holds all creation in his hand. By his passion [inflicted on him by others], he frees us from the passions [unleashed by our disobedience]; by receiving a blow on the cheek he gives the world its liberty; by being pierced in the side he heals the wound of Adam.

I ask you now to pay close attention, for I want to return to that fountain of life and contemplate its healing waters at their source.

The Father of immortality sent his immortal Son and Word into the world; he came to us men to cleanse us with water and the Spirit. To give us a new birth that would make our bodies and souls immortal, he breathed into us the spirit of life and armed us with incorruptibility. Now if we become immortal, we shall also be divine; and if we become divine after rebirth in baptism through water and the Holy Spirit, we shall also be coheirs with Christ after the resurrection of the dead.

Therefore, in a herald’s voice I cry: Let peoples of every nation come and receive the immortality that flows from baptism. This is the water that is linked to the Spirit, the water that irrigates Paradise, makes the earth fertile, gives growth to plants, and brings forth living creatures. In short, this is the water by which a man receives new birth and life, the water in which even Christ was baptized, the water into which the Holy Spirit descended in the form of a dove.

Whoever goes down into these waters of rebirth with faith renounces the devil and pledges himself to Christ. He repudiates the enemy and confesses that Christ is God, throws off his servitude, and is raised to filial status. He comes up from baptism resplendent as the sun, radiant in his purity, but above all, he comes as a son of God and a coheir with Christ. To him and to his most holy and life-giving Spirit be glory and power now and for ever. Amen.

RESPONSORY
John 1:32, 34, 33

I saw the Spirit coming down from heaven like a dove resting upon him.
– I have seen and given witness that he is the Son of God.

He who sent me to baptize said to me:
The one on whom you see the Spirit come down and rest,
this is he who will baptize with the Holy Spirit.
– I have seen and given witness that he is the Son of God.

CONCLUDING PRAYER

Let us pray.

Father,
your Son became like us
when he revealed himself in our nature:
help us to become more like him,
who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit,
one God, for ever and ever.
– Amen.

Epiphany to the Baptism of the Lord, Monastic Office of Vigils,

COMMENT: Sermon in the Chapter House on monastic observance and asceticism.

Caspar, Melchior and Balthasar enter the Crib

 JULIAN OF VEZELAY** (1080 - 1160): ... Julian of Vezelay was a Benedictine monk noted for the sermons he gave in the chapterhouse of his monastery to stimulatemonastic observance and asceticism. ...

FideCogitActio : omnis per gratiam: Wisdom from... [January 14]

veniaminov.blogspot.com/2008/01/wisdom-from-january-14.html‎

After Epiphany to the Baptism of the Lord.

Year II

MONDAY 6^th Jan 2014

First Reading    Isaiah 54:1-17

Responsory   Is 54:8.10; 43:11

With an everlasting love I have had compassion on you, says the Lord your Redeemer. + My mercy will not leave you, and my cove­nant of peace will not be changed.

V. I am the Lord, there is no savior but me, says the Lord. + My mercy will ...

Second Reading

From a sermon by Julian of Vezelay (Sermon 11: SC 192, 80-85)

Imitate the faith of the magi and follow their path

Herod is troubled, the prince of this world is troubled, when they learn that a heaven-appointed king has been born. Herod hides his resentment, however, and pledges his homage. Guided by the star, the magi reach Bethlehem. They enter the house, which they recognize by the pointing star that stands over the place where the child was. They find the child with his mother, but a mother who is a virgin. "His mother": but who is meant by "his"? The one who had neither father nor mother, the one who had both a Father and a mother: where he had a Father, he did not have a mother; where he had a mother; he did not have a father. Here is a marvel for the human beings for whose sake God is born and dies a man!

The magi fell down and worshiped him. Do you do likewise? The magi, experts in divine worship, teach you how you are to worship God. Luke says: They fell down and worshiped him. But that is not how you act: rather, when you enter the house of prayer, the house in which we pray to Jesus, you immediately collapse or sit down, overpowered by your idleness or negligence as by a heavy load; then, carelessly, or even eagerly, you settle yourself not for prayer but for sleep. Not only do you not kneel for prayer, but you yawn and scratch yourself, and you cast your wandering gaze now up, now down. As for the  prayers themselves - if they are to be called prayers - and the psalms, you run through them so quickly that you cut the verses short by half.

Yet Solomon had knelt on both knees when, after the temple had been completed, this unwearying petitioner poured out his lengthy prayer. As for David, even though his knees were weakened through fasting and his flesh was changed because of the oil (oil being the supreme luxury which that temperate king allowed himself!), he says that when he prayed, his soul was humbled to the dust and his belly clung to the earth. He prostrated himself in adoration: Come, he says, let us adore and fall down ... before the Lord.

If it seems to you too difficult to imitate kings, who prayed so devoutly and fervently amid the cares and agitation of the court, then imitate at least the magi, who fell down and worshiped him. That was how the devil had wanted the Lord to worship him, when he said to him, after showing him the glory of the world: All these will I  give you if you will fall down and worship me.

The text goes on to say: Opening their treasures, they offered him gifts. Think of the wonderful faith of the magi: they saw before them an infant wrapped in rags and lying in an unworthy inn that was probably a wretched shack; they saw a mother clothed in the cheap garments of the people, her reputation further blackened because of the work done by her carpenter husband; they saw, finally, the carpenter himself, unkempt from his manual toil and labor as a carpenter, and yet called the father of so mighty a king. The magi saw all this, and yet they did not lose heart nor think that they had journeyed foolishly and in vain; they did not even think to themselves: "Is this poor infant, this child of the people, to become the King of the Jews? Was it for such a child that we have travelled this long road? How shall so poor, humble, and lowly a child rise to royal honours? We regret our toil, we are disgusted with our journey. Let us at least take back with us the gifts we brought."

The magi entertained none of these thoughts. Instead, made certain by the grace given them of the royal and divine majesty of the child, they fell humbly down and adored, and then opened their treasures and joyfully offered gold, frankincense, and myrrh.           

The Epiphany of the Lord a homily by St. Josemaria Escriva

 The Epiphany of the Lord a homily by St. Josemaria Escriva
COMMENT: interesting.
Thank you, Liam, for Balthasar, Melchior and Gaspar to light the way.

Ravenna S.Apollinaire Nuovo Mag

  Our Blogspot has numberless Website views , downloaded through the Google SEARCH, see example.

The Blogger Server allows only 10 addressed personal contacts.

It is not clear if the 10 'select' clients actually access the Blogspot.

PLEASE let me know if each succeeds.
Confusing lingo; Dashboard, Gadget, Widgets, ...
It would be good to confirm the link, and the possible change to another.

For the moment, this Blogspot has the beautiful Epiphany Homily of St. Josemaria.

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1.     "Epiphany The Magi saw his star and rejoiced to lay their treasures

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 19 hours ago - Epiphany The Magi saw his star and rejoiced to lay their treasures at his feet. The Catechism of the Catholic Church ... The Christmas mystery .

Using only the title of the Blogspot produced the immense collection available.

In particular I picked out the RESULT of

21. The Epiphany of our Lord - Saint Josemaria Escriva

www.josemariaescriva.info/print.php/the-epiphany-of-our-lord‎

 We saw his star 3 at its rising and have come to do him homage. ... Herod called the magi secretly and ascertained from them the time of the star's appearance.

                                                               ...

Saint Josemaria Escriva

The Epiphany of our Lord Tags: Joy, Jesus Christ, Christmas Download the homily: "The Epiphany of our Lord" in pdf format. A homily given by Saint Josemaría Escrivá on 6 January 1956, feast of the Epiphany (Matthew 2, 1-5.7-11) When Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea, in the days of King Herod, behold, magi from the east arrived in Jerusalem, saying, "Where is the newborn king of the Jews? We saw his star 3 at its rising and have come to do him homage." When King Herod heard this, he was greatly troubled, and all Jerusalem with him. Assembling all the chief priests and the scribes of the people, he inquired of them where the Messiah was to be born. They said to him, "In Bethlehem of Judea, for thus it has been written through the prophet. Then Herod called the magi secretly and ascertained from them the time of the star's appearance. He sent them to Bethlehem and said, "Go and search diligently for the child. When you have found him, bring me word, that I too may go and do him homage."  After their audience with the king they set out. And behold, the star that they had seen at its rising preceded them, until it came and stopped over the place where the child was. They were overjoyed at seeing the star, and on entering the house they saw the child with Mary his mother. They prostrated themselves and did him homage. Then they opened their treasures and offered him gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh.  To understand this passage of the holy Gospel “Then opening their treasures, they offered him gifts, of gold, frankincense and myrrh” (Mt 2:11). Let us pause here a while to understand this passage of the holy Gospel. How is it possible that we, who are nothing and worth nothing, can make an offering to God? … Giving is a vital need for those in love But the Lord knows full well that giving is a vital need for those in love, and he himself points out what he desires from us. He does not care for riches, nor for the fruits or the beasts of the earth, nor for the sea or the air, because they all belong to him. He wants something intimate, which we have to give him freely: “My son, give me your heart” (Prov 22:26). Do you see? God is not satisfied with sharing. He wants it all. It’s not our things he wants. It is ourselves. It is only when we give ourselves that we can offer other gifts to our Lord. Gold, What is our treasure? Let us give him gold. The precious gold we receive when in spirit we are detached from money and material goods. Let us not forget that these things are good, for they come from God. But the Lord has laid down that we should use them without allowing our hearts to become attached to them, putting them to good use for the benefit of all mankind. Earthly goods are not bad, but they are debased when man sets them up as idols, when he adores them. They are ennobled when they are converted into instruments for good, for just and charitable Christian undertakings. We cannot seek after material goods as if they were a treasure. Our treasure is here, in a manger. Our treasure is Christ and all our love and desire must be centered on him… Frankincense, human warmth We offer frankincense that rises up to the Lord: our desire to live a noble life which gives off the “aroma of Christ.” To impregnate our words and actions with his aroma is to sow understanding and friendship. We should accompany others so that no one is left, or can feel, abandoned. Our charity has to be affectionate, full of human warmth. What does Jesus Christ teach us? That is what Jesus Christ teaches us. Mankind awaited the coming of the Saviour for centuries. The prophets had announced his coming in a thousand ways. Even in the farthest corners of the earth, where a great part of God’s revelation to men was perhaps lost through sin or ignorance, the longing for God, the desire to be redeemed, had been kept alive. As a baby When the fullness of time comes, no philosophical genius, no Plato or Socrates appears to fulfil the mission of redemption. Nor does a powerful conqueror, another Alexander, take over the earth. Instead a child is born in Bethlehem. He it is who is to redeem the world. But before he speaks he loves with deeds. It is no magic formula he brings, because he knows that the salvation he offers must pass through human hearts. What does he first do? He laughs and cries and sleeps defenceless, as a baby, though he is God incarnate. And he does this so that we may fall in love with him, so that we may learn to take him in our arms…. Myrrh, the spirit of sacrifice Together with the Magi we also offer myrrh, the spirit of sacrifice that can never be lacking in a Christian life. Myrrh reminds us of the passion of our Lord. On the cross he is offered wine mingled with myrrh. And it was with myrrh that his body was anointed for burial. But do not think that to meditate on the need for sacrifice and mortification means to add a note of sadness to this joyful feast we celebrate today. Christ is passing by, 35-37 Mortification is not pessimism or bitterness. Mortification is useless without charity. That is why we must seek mortifications which, while helping us develop a proper dominion over the things of this earth, do not mortify those who live with us…A Christian is a person who knows how to love with deeds and to prove his love on the touchstone of suffering. The star  We read in the Gospel that the Magi, videntes stellam — when they saw the star — were filled with great joy. —They rejoiced, my son, they were immensely glad, because they had done what they were supposed to do; and they rejoiced because they knew for certain they would reach the King, who never abandons those who seek him. The Forge ,239  Where is the king? Could it be that Jesus wants to reign above all in men's hearts, in your heart? That is why he has become a child, for who can help loving a little baby? Where then is the king? Where is the Christ whom the Holy Spirit wants to fashion in our souls? He cannot be present in the pride that separates us from God, nor in the lack of charity which cuts us off from others. Christ cannot be there. In that loveless state man is left alone. As you kneel at the feet of the child Jesus on the day of his Epiphany and see him a king bearing none of the outward signs of royalty, you can tell him: "Lord, take away my pride; crush my self-love, my desire to affirm myself and impose myself on others. Make the foundation of my personality my identification with you." Christ is passing by, 31 http://www.josemariaescriva.info/article/the-epiphany-of-our-lord

Epiphany The Magi saw his star and rejoiced to lay their treasures at his feet

The Catechism of the Catholic Church ...

The Christmas mystery ... 

The mysteries of Jesus' infancy ... 

528 The Epiphany is the manifestation of Jesus as Messiah of Israel, Son of God and Savior of the world. The great feast of Epiphany celebrates the adoration of Jesus by the wise men (magi) from the East, together with his baptism in the Jordan and the wedding feast at Cana in Galilee.²¹² In the magi, representatives of the neighboring pagan religions, the Gospel sees the first-fruits of the nations, who welcome the good news of salvation through the Incarnation. The magi's coming to Jerusalem in order to pay homage to the king of the Jews shows that they seek in Israel, in the messianic light of the star of David, the one who will be king of the nations.²¹³ Their coming means that pagans can discover Jesus and worship him as Son of God and Savior of the world only by turning towards the Jews and receiving from them the messianic promise as contained in the Old Testament.²¹⁴ The Epiphany shows that "the full number of the nations" now takes its "place in the family of the patriarchs", and acquires Israelitica dignitas²¹⁵ (is made "worthy of the heritage of Israel").

http://www.vatican.va/archive/ccc_css/archive/catechism/p122a3p3.htm

iBreviary
SECOND READING

From a sermon by Saint Leo the Great, pope
(Sermo 3 in Epiphania Domini, 1-3. 5: PL 54, 240-244)

The Lord has made his salvation known to the whole world

The loving providence of God determined that in the last days he would aid the world, set on its course to destruction. He decreed that all nations should be saved in Christ.

A promise had been made to the holy patriarch Abraham in regard to these nations. He was to have a countless progeny, born not from his body but from the seed of faith. His descendants are therefore compared with the array of the stars. The father of all nations was to hope not in an earthly progeny but in a progeny from above.

Let the full number of the nations now take their place in the family of the patriarchs. Let the children of the promise now receive the blessing in the seed of Abraham, the blessing renounced by the children of his flesh. In the persons of the Magi let all people adore the Creator of the universe; let God be known, not in Judea only, but in the whole world, so that his name may be great in all Israel.

Dear friends, now that we have received instruction in this revelation of God’s grace, let us celebrate with spiritual joy the day of our first harvesting, of the first calling of the Gentiles. Let us give thanks to the merciful God, who has made us worthy, in the words of the Apostle, to share the position of the saints in light, who has rescued us from the power of darkness, and brought us into the kingdom of his beloved Son. As Isaiah prophesied: the people of the Gentiles, who sat in darkness, have seen a great light, and for those who dwelt in the region of the shadow of death a light has dawned. He spoke of them to the Lord: The Gentiles, who do not know you, will invoke you, and the peoples, who knew you not, will take refuge in you.

This is the day that Abraham saw, and rejoiced to see, when he knew that the sons born of his faith would be blessed in his seed, that is, in Christ. Believing that he would be the father of the nations, he looked into the future, giving glory to God, in full awareness that God is able to do what he has promised.

This is the day that David prophesied in the psalms, when he said: All the nations that you have brought into being will come and fall down in adoration in your presence, Lord, and glorify your name. Again, the Lord has made known his salvation; in the sight of the nations he has revealed his justice.

This came to be fulfilled, as we know, from the time when the star beckoned the three wise men out of their distant country and led them to recognize and adore the King of heaven and earth. The obedience of the star calls us to imitate its humble service: to be servants, as best we can, of the grace that invites all men to find Christ.

Dear friends, you must have the same zeal to be of help to one another; then, in the kingdom of God, to which faith and good works are the way, you will shine as children of the light: through our Lord Jesus Christ, who lives and reigns with God the Father and the Holy Spirit for ever and ever. Amen.

RESPONSORY

This is the glorious day on which Christ himself, the savior of the world, appeared;
the prophets foretold him, the angels worshiped him;
– the Magi saw his star and rejoiced to lay their treasures at his feet.

God’s holy day has dawned for us at last;
come, all you peoples, and adore the Lord. 
– The Magi saw his star and rejoiced to lay their treasures at his feet

Leo the Great: The Mystery of the Magi and of the StarSunday, Jan 6 2013 

Leo the Great and PATRISTIC and POPES Christ, epiphany, faith, interior life,kingdom, light, mind, redemption, seed of Abraham

http://enlargingtheheart.wordpress.com/category/patristic/leo-the-great/page/4/

Taught then, dearly-beloved, by these mysteries of Divine grace, let us with reasonable joy celebrate the day of our first-fruits and the commencement of the nations’ calling:

“giving thanks to” the merciful God “who made us worthy,” as the Apostle says, “to be partakers of the lot of the saints in light:  who delivered us from the power of darkness and translated us into the kingdom of the Son of His love.”

As Isaiah prophesied, “the people of the nations that sat in darkness, have seen a great light, and they that dwelt in the land of the shadow of death, upon them hath the light shined.”

Of whom he also said to the Lord, “nations which knew not thee, shall call on thee:  and peoples which were ignorant of thee, shall run together unto thee.”

This day “Abraham saw and was glad,” when he understood that the sons of his faith would be blessed in his seed that is in Christ, and foresaw that by believing he should be the father of all nations, “giving glory to God and being fully assured that What He had promised, He was able also to perform.”

This day David sang of in the psalms saying:  “all nations that thou hast made shall come and worship before Thee, O Lord:  and they shall glorify Thy name.”

And again:  “The Lord hath made known His salvation:  His righteousness hath He openly showed in the sight of the nations.”

This in good truth we know to have taken place ever since the three wise men aroused in their far-off land were led by a star to recognize and worship the King of heaven and earth.

And surely their worship of Him exhorts us to imitation; that, as far as we can, we should serve our gracious God who invites us all to Christ.

For whosoever lives religiously and chastely in the Church and “sets his mind on the things which are above, not on the things that are upon the earth,” is in some measure like the heavenly light.

And, whilst he himself keeps the brightness of a holy life, he points out to many the way to the Lord like a star.

In which regard, dearly-beloved, ye ought all to help one another in turn, that in the kingdom of God, which is reached by right faith and good works, ye may shine as the sons of light.

Leo the Great (c.400-461): Sermon 33, 5.

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  Epiphany - Star invites all Nations to Find Christ

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