06 January 2024 – The Epiphany of the Lord (Sunset Mass)

by Fr Joachim Robert

Dear friends,

The Feast of the Epiphany of the three wise men coming to look and set their eyes on Jesus is a story of God’s manifestation of God’s love. And at Christmas, we saw the birth of our Saviour manifested or made known to the shepherds, shepherds of the field. And today, we see the same manifestation of God in the child Jesus towards the three wise men, foreigners, gentiles and those who perhaps did not believe in the Jewish tradition.

And this celebration of the Epiphany preserve the experience of the three wise men of encountering Jesus in such a profound way.

The first thing that we need to look at is that journey that they take or they took was a journey of wonder.

Secondly, it was a journey that took them to walk in the path that God has set for them.

And thirdly, it was a journey of worshipping, of coming to encounter this God made man.

So as we look at the first ‘W’. Today we have 3 ‘Ws’. The first ‘W’ is Wonder. And as you look at the three wise men setting out on that journey, going to a far away land by just a guidance of a star. But when they set their eyes on that star, they wondered.  And as people who wonder, I am sure that their stargazing was purposeful and meaningful. And same like them, dear friends, all of us wonder about so many things in life 

And as they set their eyes on that star, perhaps something which was ordinary and a star that was seen by so many people, but they were able to take notice of that star and took to themselves to set on that path of seeking and trying to answer questions due to their curiosity. And after they took that journey from a distant land, from the East going towards Bethlehem, that journey that they took was a journey of wanting to seek what was this all about. Something which was ordinary but they were able to see and extraordinary purpose for that star to shine.

And you and I, dear friends, in our journey of life, very often we encounter so many ordinary things of life. We come to encounter so many things that are so simple and so down-to-earth. But when we take a look at the ordinary with the extraordinary grace of God, then we are able to see God’s plan and purposes for us. Their curiosity made them take that step of faith, moving forward towards Jerusalem and then to Bethlehem.

So as the three wise men wondered to look for that star, the question that we need to ask ourself: What are we wondering in our own journey of life? Because when we wonder and we ask those necessary questions of life, those difficult questions of our purpose and meaning of life, then we come to a deeper realisation and we move from the aspect of curiosity to the aspect of faith.

They set their journey in faith, not knowing what to expect but they took that journey with confidence that there is something beautiful, something purposeful was there in that ordinary shining of that star.

The second thing, the second ‘W’ is that a journey of Walk. Walking towards Jerusalem and walking towards Bethlehem. As they set out on that journey of their curiosity, they walked all through the desert, from the East coming to encounter that child Jesus. And again, dear friends, that walk of faith made them go from Jerusalem towards Bethlehem, from a palace towards a manger, towards a place which was insignificant.

And very often in our own journey of life, dear friends, when we want to look for God, we have all this tendency to look for God in all the grandeurs of things of life. But this Feast of the Epiphany reminds us that God comes into the realities of our human life, in the ordinariness of our human life and that is where He is present. And sometimes we need to take that journey from all the busyness of our world into the quietness of our lives, from a palace towards a cowshed, from a place of excitement to a place of consolation and comfort.

And I am sure in our own journey of life, in each and every one of our vocation of life, we tend to find God but we have to realise that that walk of faith with God is important because you and I, dear friends, when we set out on this journey and this vocation of singlehood, married life or even the priesthood, we set out on that journey with curiosity. We set out on that journey wanting to walk together with Jesus, trusting that He knows best. And that walk of faith brings us to so many areas that perhaps we don’t thing about. Things which are unthinkable. 

And the third thing, dear friends, is that when we move from that palace towards that manger, we see that the three wise men comes to kneel down, prostrate themselves and worship God, bringing the offerings of gold, frankincense and myrrh. So you and I, dear friends, when we come to encounter God, when we come to seek this God through our curiosity, through our wonder, through our walking, we must come to Worship God with that sincerity that comes from our hearts. Because only when we are able to humble ourselves before God, and worship Him in adoration, then we can set our eyes on this God who comes to make His dwelling among us.

This whole Feast of the Epiphany, dear friends, make us realise, like the three wise men, that when we come to that adoration of God, we bring our offerings to God, whether it is gold, frankincense and myrrh. But very often we tend to keep those gifts, we tend to keep those offerings for ourselves, rather than offering them to God because we are unable to let go of our own security, to trust that God’s blessings is upon us.

So today as we celebrate this Feast, dear friends, it made me realise as well. As I take this journey into this priesthood some eight years ago, it made me realise of this same experiences of life, like the three wise men who went to see Jesus, and after encountering Jesus setting on a different path altogether. And as I look through my own journey, at the stage I am at the moment, after encountering God here in this parish, that setting of that journey of moving into a different path, finding new ways of doing things, finding new ways of engaging, finding new ways of building the community, makes us come to seek the Lord with sincerity of heart, to wonder with God, to walk with God and to pay homage to this God who loves us.

So let us ask ourselves, dear friends, as we celebrate this Feast of the Epiphany:-

1. What is the Lord asking us to wonder?
2. How is the Lord asking us to walk together with Him and where are the journey that it is taking us?
3. And lastly, how can we pay homage and adoration in worship to this God who comes to dwell in our myths?

Dear friends, as we celebrate the Feast of Epiphany, let us ask the Lord to make use of the ordinary situations of life, difficult, easy, challenging it may be, to allow us to see the manifestation of God in each and every situations so that we are able to have that sight, that vision that god has for us. Just like the three wise men who came from the East to encounter Jesus, you and I are called to take that same path and that journey and after encountering Jesus, we are called to take on a different path.

And what path will we take? Are we going to go back to Herod, to the palace, or are we going to take a different path altogether, trusting like Mary who was uncertain of the future and trusting her whole life to God and allowing God to lead her along the way, to allow God to lead the three wise men along the way?

Let us pray for this grace, dear friends, to have this openness of heart to see and recognise God in every moments of life.

Click below to listen to the homily and watch the video:-

Click to live-stream Mass on 06 January 2024