MEDALS

Solemnity of Epiphany of the Lord

 

MEDALS

 

“Rise up splendor! Your light has come, the glory of the Lord shines upon you” – Isaiah 60:1

 

March 2008 was a special month for our family. Our two kids took home a couple of medals for being outstanding students. I asked them not to remove their medals so everyone could see their achievement. They wore the medals from the school to the restaurant where we celebrated, until we got home. I also posted their pictures on the Internet for relatives and friends to appreciate. The recognition they received made me even prouder about my kids.

Similarly, our heavenly Father is also proud of you. The only difference is, He doesn’t need to see a medal hanging on your neck to be pleased. Doing simple acts of love and goodness is more than enough for Himto say, “Look, this is My child whom I love and care for.”Alvin Fabella (alvinfabella@yahoo.com)

 

REFLECTION:

Medals or none, God’s love for you remains the same.

 

Lord, may I be a mirror that reflects Your glory. May others feel Your love through the acts of love I share with them. Amen.

 

MAKING GOD KNOWN TO ALL

 

The Solemnity of the Epiphany of our Lord is a feast that celebrates our duty to reveal the truth of God’s presence to His people. Jesus reveals this truth and so many others about God to us.

The revelation of who God is that accompanies the incarnation, life, death and resurrection of Jesus is such that anyone who receives it can never be the same again. To know the truth about God is to enter into the gift of salvation. This is why it is such an awesome privilege to be called to proclaim the Gospel to others. It is also why living the Gospel to its fullest is so important as a means by which people can be introduced to the Gospel in a simple and non-threatening way.

The Epiphany is recorded in the Scriptures under the guise of a spectacular event that occurs on top of a mountain, one of the classic places for revelations in the Old Testament. We should realize from this that understanding the nature of this event in Jesus’ life is going to rely upon a Jewish understanding of Old Testament revelations. As Christians, we believe that the revelation that comes through Jesus is final and definitive. It is only our understanding that will increase in the years to come, not the content of our knowledge about God.

The Scriptures are designed to reveal God to us, and the various epiphanies of Jesus are intense moments in this revelation. Even today, God continues to reveal Himself to us in prayer and these events can properly be called epiphanies. But I prefer to play down revelations received by individuals so as to avoid any public hysteria all too often associated with such events. It is too easy for people to get distracted by such revelations, usually meant for the individual alone, and ultimately spend their efforts promoting an individual’s interpretation of the Gospel rather than the Gospel itself.Fr. Steve Tynan, MGL

 

Reflection Question:

Am I often distracted when I hear about individuals who seem to have special or unique experiences of revelation from God?

 

Holy Spirit, help me to be faithful in living the Gospel to the full, and thus serve as an epiphany or revelation of the truth of the Gospel, to all whom I meet.

 

St. Bertilia, pray for us.