Thank you, Liam, for Balthasar, Melchior and Gaspar to light the way.
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| Ravenna S.Apollinaire Nuovo Mag |
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.
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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nunraw.blogspot.com/.../epiphany-magi-saw-his-star-and-rejoiced.html
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 .
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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.
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Saint Josemaria Escriva
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The Epiphany of
our Lord
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
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