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Illustration: The Three Magi, Byzantine mosaic, c. 565,
Pope Francis’ Homily for Solemnity of Epiphany
Monday, 6. January 2025
Gospel of The Epiphany Matthew 2;1-12)
After Jesus had been born at Bethlehem in Judaea during the reign of King Herod, some wise men came to Jerusalem from the east. ‘Where is the infant king of the Jews?’ they asked. ‘We saw his star as it rose and have come to do him homage.’ When King Herod heard this he was perturbed, and so was the whole of Jerusalem. He called together all the chief priests and the scribes of the people and enquired of them where the Christ was to be born. ‘At Bethlehem in Judaea,’ they told him ‘for this is what the prophet wrote: And you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah, you are by no means least among the leaders of Judah, for out of you will come a leader who will shepherd my people Israel.
’Then Herod summoned the wise men to see him privately. He asked them the exact date on which the star had appeared and sent them on to Bethlehem. ‘Go and find out all about the child,’ he said ‘and when you have found him, let me know, so that I too may go and do him homage.’ Having listened to what the king had to say, they set out. And there in front of them was the star they had seen rising; it went forward and halted over the place where the child was. The sight of the star filled them with delight, and going into the house they saw the child with his mother Mary and falling to their knees they did him homage. Then, opening their treasures, they offered him gifts of gold and frankincense and myrrh. But they were warned in a dream not to go back to Herod and returned to their own country by a different way.
Pope Francis’ Homily
“We saw his star as it rose and have come to do him homage” (Mt 2:2).
This is the testimony the Magi gave to the inhabitants of Jerusalem, announcing to them that the king of the Jews has been born.
The Magi testified that they set out, turning their lives around, because they saw a new light in the sky.
Let us pause to reflect on this image as we celebrate the Epiphany of the Lord during this Jubilee of Hope.
I would like to highlight three characteristics of the star that the evangelist Matthew tells us about.
It is bright, it is visible to all and it points the way.
First Characteristic, the star is bright.
Many rulers in Jesus’ time called themselves “stars” because they felt important, powerful and famous.
However, it was not their light-that of any of them-that revealed the miracle of Christmas to the Magi. Their artificial and cold splendor, the result of calculations and power plays, was unable to meet the need for novelty and hope of these searching people.
Instead, a different kind of light, symbolized by the star, has done so illuminating and warming by burning and allowing itself to be consumed.
The star speaks to us of that unique light that can show everyone the way to salvation and happiness, namely that of love. This is the only light that can make us happy.
First of all the love of God, who by becoming man gave himself to us by sacrificing his life.
Then, by reflection, that with which we too are called to spend ourselves for one another,
becoming, with his help, a mutual sign of hope, even in the dark nights of life.
Can we think about this? Are we radiant with hope?
Are we able to give hope to others with the light of our faith?
The star’s brightness led the Magi to Bethlehem.
We too, through our love, can lead the people we meet to Jesus, allowing them to see in the Son of God who became man, the beauty of the Father’s face and his way of loving, which is through closeness, compassion and tenderness (cf. Is 60:2 –For behold, darkness shall cover the earth, and thick darkness the peoples; but the Lord will arise upon you, and his glory will be seen upon you.).
Let us never forget this: God is close, compassionate and tender.
That is love: closeness, compassion and tenderness.
Moreover, we can do this without the need for extraordinary means or sophisticated methods, but simply by making our hearts bright with faith, our gazes generous in welcome, our gestures and words full of gentleness and kindness.
Thus, as we think of the Magi, who fixed their eyes on heaven in search of the star, let us ask the Lord that we may be bright lights capable of leading one another to an encounter with him.
Mt 5:14-16 – “You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hid. 15 Nor do men light a lamp and put it under a bushel, but on a stand, and it gives light to all in the house. 16 Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven.).
How sad it is when someone is not a light for others.
2nd Characteristic: the Star is visible to all.
Now we come to the second characteristics: it is visible to all.
The Magi were not following the clues of a secret code, but a star that they saw shining in the sky.
While they observed it, others – like Herod and the scribes – were not even aware of its presence.
But the star is there, accessible to those who lift their eyes to the sky in search of a sign of hope.
Are we a sign of hope for others?
This too contains an important message. God does not reveal himself to exclusive groups or to a privileged few.
God offers his companionship and guidance to those who seek him with a sincere heart
(Ps 145:18 – The Lord is near to all who call upon him, to all who call upon him in truth.).
Indeed, he often anticipates our own questions and comes to seek us even before we ask
(Rom 10:20 – “I have been found by those who did not seek me; I have shown myself to those who did not ask for me.”;
Is 65:1 – I was ready to be sought by those who did not ask for me; I was ready to be found by those who did not seek me. I said, “Here am I, here am I,” to a nation that did not call on my name.).
For this reason, in the Nativity scenes, we represent the Magi with the features of all ages and races: a young person, an adult, an elderly person, reflecting the different peoples of the earth. We do this in order to remind ourselves that God seeks everyone, always. God seeks everyone, everyone.
We do well to meditate on this today, at a time when individuals and nations are equipped with ever more powerful means of communication and yet seem to have become less willing to understand, accept and encounter others in their diversity!
The star is in the sky and offers its light to all, reminds us that the Son of God came into the world to meet every man and woman on earth, whatever ethnic group, language or people to which they belong, and that he entrusts to us that same universal mission.
(Acts 10:34-35 – And Peter opened his mouth and said: “Truly I perceive that God shows no partiality, 35 but in every nation any one who fears him and does what is right is acceptable to him.;
Rev 5:9 “Worthy art thou to take the scroll and to open its seals, for you were slain and by thy blood didst ransom men for God from every tribe and tongue and people and nation,).
Is 60:3 And nations shall come to your light, and kings to the brightness of your rising.).
In other words, God calls us to reject everything that discriminates, excludes or rejects people, and instead to promote, in our communities and neighborhoods, a strong culture of welcome, in which the narrow places of fear and denunciation are replaced by open spaces of encounter, integration and sharing of life; safe spaces where everyone can find warmth and shelter.
The star is in the sky, then, not in order to remain distant and inaccessible, but so that its light may be visible to all, that it may reach every home and overcome every barrier, bringing hope to the most remote and forgotten corners of the planet.
It is in the sky so with its generous light, it can tell everyone that God rejects and forgets no one.
(Is 49:15 – “Can a woman forget her sucking child, that she should have no compassion on the son of her womb?
Even these may forget, yet I will not forget you.).
Why does he do this? Because he is a Father whose greatest joy is to see his children return home, gathered from all parts of the world
(Is 60:4 – Lift up your eyes round about, and see; they all gather together, they come to you; your sons shall come from far, and your daughters shall be carried in the arms.).
He rejoices to see his children building bridges, clearing paths, searching for those who are lost and carrying on their shoulders those who are struggling to walk, so that no one is left behind and all may share in the joy of the Father’s house.
The star tells us of God’s dream that men and women everywhere, in all their rich diversity, will form one family, living together in harmony, prosperity and peace.
(Is 2:2-5 –It shall come to pass in the latter days that the mountain of the house of the Lord shall be established as the highest of the mountains, and shall be raised above the hills; and all the nations shall flow to it, and many peoples shall come, and say: “Come, let us go up to the mountain of the Lord, to the house of the God of Jacob;
that he may teach us his ways and that we may walk in his paths.”
For out of Zion shall go forth the law, and the word of the Lord from Jerusalem. He shall judge between the nations, and shall decide for many peoples; and they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruning hooks; nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war anymore]).
Third Characteristic: The Star points the way
This brings us to the third characteristics: it points the way.
This too is a helpful insight, especially in the context of the Holy Year that we are celebrating, in which pilgrimage is one of the main features.
The light of the star invites us to undertake an interior journey which, as Saint John Paul II wrote, frees our hearts from all that is not charity, in order to “encounter Christ fully, to confess our faith in him and to receive the abundance of his mercy”
Walking together is “traditionally associated with the human quest for meaning in life”.
Looking at the star, we can also renew our commitment to be women and men of “the Way”,
as Christians were called in the first years of the Church (Acts 9:2).
In tis way, may the Lord make us lights that lead others to himself; may he make us generous, like Mary, in giving of ourselves, welcoming and humbly walking together, so that we may meet him, to recognize him and to homage him.
Renewed by him, may we go out to bring the light of his love into the world.
