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| Nativity - Magi, by William Hole |
COMMENT of William J. to Fr Raymond’s Homily
Re: Star light on the Epiphany
On Monday, 5 January 2015, 15:20, William J. wrote:
Dear Wise Men,
If I may, as a pilgrim at-a-distance on a hilltop near Bethlehem, I should
love to comment on Father Raymond's homily, which might bear the title of
"The Seekers", whether they be drawn by angels or drawn by the
star (by the personal intuition given by the Spirit, or through
the pronouncements of the universal Church).
The desire of all of our lives is on display in the Crib scene, and how
great the individual urgency of all comers: "In this wonderful event we are
invited by the Holy Spirit to realize and to appreciate the searching and
seeking that goes on the minds and hearts of all men of good will". Father Raymond will
have met thousands of humble 'shepherds', from the poorest tenements of
the cities, to hundreds of 'wise men' from amongst devoted Catholics
or visiting clerics, arriving at the door of the Guest House, seeking the
presence of the Lord in the poor or lonely stables of their own hearts,
searching for both the event and the meaning of the Nativity in their own
lives.
I have often pondered as to how the shepherds progressed in their
belief of the Messiah; they returned to their hillsides, the hermits of
the Church; and the wise men, taken on a much more worldly journey, the
Pastors of the Church. "The Church IS Epiphany. WE are Epiphany. It
is another way of saying that the Church is missionary". If you (and I perhaps)
are the 'hermits', then our lives of devotion are the all-seeing-eyes
of Faith shared with others in the close encounter of the stable: if they,
the wise men on their outward journey, travelling across the world, theirs is
the voice of the Church, expressed in public worship and witness - yet relying
upon the security of the deposit of faith held in the stable as witnessed by
and through the shepherds.
Faith is never 'limited' to the faithful few - for Our Lord is never
'delimited' within any human confines: "God Himself is with these Gentiles
of all time; his loving providence guiding them and providing signs and clues
to lead them to the truth". It is the part of both shepherds and
wise men (angels especially!) to reveal the "signs and
clues", none greater than the witness provided by the Crib scene...
the desire of all our lives there on display.
I would expand my 'comment' by telling of how I have been caught-up
in a passage describing the "Ethics" of Dietrich Bonhoeffer, a
martyr in Nazi Germany (my Christmas gift from the Osteopaths where I
am training a receptionist to take on their accountancy). In the book an
editorial commentary describes his Christology, given that he was striving
in a world of inhumanity: Bonhoeffer there reverses an ancient theological
dictum (Athanasius and Augustine) that God became human that humans might
become divine: rather. he argues, God became human so that human beings could
become truly human, recovering their lost humanity through the mediation of
Christ - their true dignity to be truly human, as Jesus, who was truly human;
for by God's becoming human in Jesus Christ the world and humanity are
reconciled to God. That is the Crib scene, pure and simple....
And that is seen in the Nativity scene as the wise men arrive! "The searching and
seeking that goes on the minds and hearts of all men of good will" is indeed for the
Presence of God in our lives, but it expands to the fulfilment of
our desire in the lives of others. Whether 'hermits' (shepherds) or 'wise
men' (pastors) or indeed 'angels' (!), we are indeed drawn into the
universality of the message of the Nativity of Our Lord and God.
Thank you - what a wonderful meditation you have granted me, Father
Raymond, and by Bother Seamus' encouragement, and through Father Donald's
Blog!
I think I am content to remain but a shepherd, lingering by the door of
the stable: the star has faded, the wise men have departed, and I am left in
wonderment for the world...
With my love in Christ Our Lord.
William
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