January 2, 2005 - EPIPHANY OF THE LORD

Light Revealed to the Nations

Readings:
Is 60:1-6; Ps 72:1-2, 7-8, 12-13,; Eph 3:2-3,5-6 ; Mt 2:1-12

Commentaries / Gospel Reflections from:
Daily Gospel • Preaching the Word • A Certain Jesus • Sundays Into Silence

Greeting (See second Reading)

May the star of Jesus our Lord shine on you
and on all the nations of the earth.
May you live in his light
and may the Lord Jesus be always with you.
R/ And also with you.

Introduction by the Celebrant

The celebration of Epiphany, meaning "manifestation," is like a second Christmas. It is, in fact, the Christmas of the Eastern Churches. It proclaims that the child Jesus belongs to and is given to the whole world as its Savior. With the magi the world brings to him its variety of gifts: its culture, its many-sidedness, its different identities. And we here, like people from other nations, bring him the gift of ourselves: our faith, our fidelity, our love, as we meet him in prayer and in people, especially in the poorest.

Penitential Act

One of the offerings we bring to Jesus today
is the sorrow for the sins we have committed.
Let us ask him to forgive us.
(PAUSE)
Lord Jesus, you radiate your light
on all the nations of the earth:
All praise to you.
Lord, have mercy. R/ Lord, have mercy.

Jesus Christ, you offer justice and peace
to all willing to accept you:
All praise to you.
Christ, have mercy. R/ Christ, have mercy.

Lord Jesus, you will have pity on the weak
and save the lives of the poor:
All praise to you.
Lord, have mercy. R/ Lord, have mercy.

Lord, may your judgment on us
be a judgment of mercy and love,
for we recognize our poverty.
Lead us to everlasting life. R/ Amen.

Opening Prayer

Let us pray to God our Father
that Christ may be the light of all
(PAUSE)
God of all nations, peoples and cultures,
this is the day you have made bright
with your light and your love
destined for all.
Guide us in the new ways of your Son.
Let your kindly light shine everywhere,
that all peoples may praise you
in their own language
and enrich your Church with their own gifts.
We ask this in the name of Jesus,
our Lord and Savior for ever. R/ Amen.

Liturgy of the Word

First Reading Introduction: Nations will come to your light
      In a vision the prophet sees an immense number of peoples flocking from everywhere to God's light.

First Reading: Isaiah 60:1-6

Arise, Jerusalem, shine, for your light has come.
The Glory of Yahweh rises upon you.

Night still covers the earth and gloomy clouds veil the peoples, but Yahweh now rises and over you his glory appears.

Nations will come to your light and kings to the brightness of your dawn.
Lift up your eyes round about and see: they are all gathered and come to you, your sons from afar, your daughters tenderly carried.

This sight will make your face radiant, your heart throbbing and full; the riches of the sea will be turned to you, the wealth of the nations will come to you.
A flood of camels will cover you, caravans from Midian and Ephah.
Those from Sheba will come, bringing with them gold and incense, all singing in praise of Yahweh.

Responsorial Psalm: Ps 72:1-2, 7-8, 12-13

R. (cf. 7) Justice shall flourish in his time,
and fullness of peace for ever.

O God, with your judgment endow the king,
and with your justice, the king's son;
he shall govern your people with justice
and your afflicted ones with judgment.
R. (cf. 7) Justice shall flourish in his time,
and fullness of peace for ever.

Justice shall flower in his days,
and profound peace, till the moon be no more.
May he rule from sea to sea,
and from the River to the ends of the earth.
R. (cf. 7) Justice shall flourish in his time,
and fullness of peace for ever.

For he shall rescue the poor when he cries out,
and the afflicted when he has no one to help him.
He shall have pity for the lowly and the poor;
the lives of the poor he shall save.
R. (cf. 7) Justice shall flourish in his time,
and fullness of peace for ever.

May his name be blessed forever;
as long as the sun his name shall remain.
In him shall all the tribes of the earth be blessed;
all the nations shall proclaim his happiness.
R. (cf. 7) Justice shall flourish in his time,
and fullness of peace for ever.

Second Reading Introduction: All Nations Called In Christ
       Jesus Christ came to unite all: all peoples, without any discrimination, are called to join God's people.

Second Reading: Ephesians 3:2-3,5-6
The gentiles share the inheritance

Brothers and sisters, you may have heard of the graces God bestowed on me for your sake. By a revelation he gave me the knowledge of his mysterious design, as I have explained in a few words.

This mystery was not made known to past generations but only now, through revelations given to holy apostles and prophets. Now the non-Jewish people share the Inheritance; in Christ Jesus the non-Jews are incorporated and are to enjoy the Promise.

Gospel Introduction: We Followed His Star
       Those who are familiar with God's promises do not seek him; the powerful fear him. But those who come from afar to seek the Savior, find and recognize him. God accepts all with their own gifts and potentials.

Gospel Reading: Matthew 2:1-12
They knelt and worshipped him

When Jesus was born in Bethlehem, in Judea, during the days of King Herod, wise men from the east arrived in Jerusalem. They asked, "Where is the newborn king of the Jews? We saw the rising of his star in the east and have come to honor him." When Herod heard this he was greatly disturbed and with him all Jerusalem. He immediately called a meeting of all high-ranking priests and those who taught the people of God his Law, and asked them where the Messiah was to be born.
"In the town of Bethlehem in Judea," they told him, "for this is what the prophet wrote: And you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah, you are by no means the least among the clans of Judah, for from you will come a leader, the one who is to shepherd my people Israel."

Then Herod secretly called the wise men and asked them the precise time the star appeared. Then he sent them to Bethlehem with the instruction, "Go and get precise information about the child. As soon as you have found him, report to me, so that I too may go and honor him."

After the meeting with the king, they set out. The star that they had seen in the East went ahead of them and stopped over the place where the child was. The wise men were overjoyed on seeing the star again. They went into the house and when they saw the child with Mary his mother, they knelt and worshiped him. They opened their bags and offered him their gifts of gold, incense and myrrh.
In a dream they were warned not to go back to Herod, so they returned to their home country by another way.

Commentary

EPIPHANY means manifestation or showing forth. Here, outsiders discover the revelation of the mystery of God as a human child born among us. This child belongs to the world and will shepherd his people Israel, but reign over the whole peoples in forgiveness, justice and mercy. Those from afar off strangers see what those who are inside a religious tradition cannot perceive. Sadly even the teachers and priests who know the promises that were meant to sustain the people under oppression live in collusion with their rulers who see these prophets' words as threatening to their own power.

Epiphany is about power and what power we worship. There is the power of the Word of God that sustains. There is the power of Herod and nations that only serves its own ends. There is the power of the Child of the Star who comes to liberate and free. There is the power of worship and pilgrimage in search of the truth. There is the power of dreams that protect others. What powers do we serve?

Read also Sundays Into Silence:
The Ego, Herod and the Wise Men

General Intercessions

On this day when peoples from afar came to worship Jesus the Lord, let our prayer be as wide as the world. Let us say to the Father:
R/ Let the light of Christ shine on all people.

- That the light of Christ may shine on all nations far and near and that the Church may welcome them with the diversity of their cultures, let us pray to the Lord: R/ Let the light of Christ shine on all people.

- That in our day justice may flourish and peace come to all of the world, let us pray:
R/ Let the light of Christ shine on all people.

- That God's people may hear the poor when they cry, have pity on the weak and open their hearts and hands to the needy, let us pray: R/ Let the light of Christ shine on all people.

- That those who persecute the Lord in those who try to follow him
may see his light and be converted, let us pray: R/ Let the light of Christ shine on all people.

- That all who look for a star to guide them may discover the goodness of the Lord in people full of faith and love, let us pray: R/ Let the light of Christ shine on all people.

- That in our Christian communities we may learn, like the wise men, to share the treasures of our goods and hearts, let us pray: R/ Let the light of Christ shine on all people.

Lord our God, we rejoice that you have become near to us in Jesus your Son.
Let him be the light of life now and for ever.
R/ Amen.

Procession for the Preparation of the Gifts

The procession could stress the theme of the light and the gifts by having not only bread and wine brought forward but also lights and incense, the latter not merely in the usual thurible but in a larger incense burner.

Prayer over the Gifts

God our Father,
we have no gold to offer you
but merely the poverty of our hearts
and the incense of our praise and thanks.
Fill us with the presence of Jesus,
and let him be the light
that guides our wavering steps.
And let us be humble lights, too,
that show to those who see it
the way to the light of the world,
Jesus Christ our Lord. R/ Amen.

Introduction to the Eucharistic Prayer

Today Christ shows himself to us as the light and meaning of our lives and as the star of salvation of all peoples. Let us thank the Father with Jesus and pray that one day all may sit at the table of the Lord.

Invitation to the Lord's Prayer

Jesus came to gather all
as children of one Father.
In our Lord's owns words
we pray now to our Father in heaven: R/ Our Father...

Deliver Us

Deliver us, Lord, from the fear
of letting your Son and his gospel
change our hearts and mentality.
Keep us free from sin
and give us the peace that comes
from integrity and justice.
Help us to be in hope and joy
the way that prepares
for the coming among all humanity
of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. R/ For the kingdom...

Prayer for Peace

Lord Jesus Christ,
let the star of your peace rise today
on the body of the Church
and on all who believe in you.
In its light, may we learn
to love and to serve one another
and to share the joy of your peace
with all willing to accept it,
now and for ever. R/ Amen.

Invitation to Communion

This is Jesus, the Son of God
and the guiding star of our lives.
Happy are we to be called
to share his table
and to bring his light to all. R/ Lord, I am not worthy...

Prayer after Communion

Lord God, our Father,
you have shown us your Son today
in the words he spoke to us
and in the bread of life
by which he shared himself with us.
Let his light shine in us
and let our hope and joy reflect this light,
that our communities and all of us
may show forth his goodness and peace
for all to see.
We ask this through the light of our lives,
Jesus Christ our Lord. R/ Amen.

Blessing

We have celebrated together
that Jesus Christ came not only for Christians,
but to be known by every person,
every country, every culture on earth.
For he is the Savior of all.
May we come to know him better
and then make him known to others,
especially by the way we live.

And may almighty God bless you,
the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit. R/ Amen.

Go in peace of Christ
and walk in his light. R/ Thanks be to God.

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Additional Resource Material for this Sunday

Ideal for catechetical and liturgical dramatization of today"s gospel.

A Feast with the Shepherds
(Mt 2:1 - 12)

(taken from the book A Certain Jesus, Vol. 3)
Click here for other Readings --> Index of A Certain Jesus