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Benedict XVI - Homilies |
Homily
"They Were Men 'in Search' of Something More"
Homily on the Epiphany
H.H. Benedict XVI
January 6, 2011
www.zenit.org
Dear Brothers and Sisters,
During the solemnity of the Epiphany the Church continues to contemplate
and to celebrate the mystery of the birth of Jesus the Savior. In
particular, today's feast underlines the destiny and universal meaning
of this birth. Becoming man in the womb of Mary, the Son of God came not
only for the people of Israel, represented by the shepherds of
Bethlehem, but also for the whole of humanity, represented by the Magi.
And it is precisely on the Magi and on their journey in search of the
Messiah (cf. Matthew 2:1-12) that the Church invites us today to
meditate and to pray. In the Gospel we heard that they, arriving in
Jerusalem from the East, asked: "Where is he who is born, the king of
the Jews? We saw his star arise and we have come to adore him" (v. 2).
What kind of persons were they and what kind of star was that? They were
probably wise men who scrutinized the sky but not to try to "read" the
future in the stars, eventually to extract some gain; rather, they were
men "in search" of something more, in search of the true light, which
would be able to indicate the way to follow in life. They were persons
who were certain that in creation there is what we could define as the
"signature" of God, a signature that man can and must try to discover
and decipher. Perhaps the way to know these Magi better and to take up
their desire to let themselves be guided by God's signs is to pause to
consider what they found, on their way, in the great city of Jerusalem.
First of all they found king Herod. He certainly was interested in the
child of whom the Magi spoke; not, however, for the purpose of adoring
him, as he, lying, wished to make understood, but to do away with him.
Herod was a man of power, who in the other sees only a rival to combat.
At bottom, if we reflect well, even God seems a rival to him, in fact a
particularly dangerous rival, who wished to deprive men of the vital
space, of their autonomy, of their power; a rival who indicates the way
to follow in life and thus impedes one's doing whatever one wishes.
Herod hears from his experts in the Sacred Scriptures the words of the
prophet Micah (5:1), but his only thought is the throne. Hence God
himself must be obfuscated and persons must be reduced to being simple
pawns to be moved in the great chess-board of power. Herod is not a
likable personality, someone whom we instinctively judge in a negative
way because of his brutality. But we must ask ourselves: is there
perhaps something of Herod also in us? Perhaps we too at times see God
as a sort of rival? Perhaps we too are blind before his signs, deaf to
his words, because we think he puts limits on our life and does not
allows us to dispose of our existence as we please? Dear bothers and
sisters, when we see God in this way we end up by feeling dissatisfied
and unhappy, because we do not let ourselves be guided by Him who is the
foundation of everything. We must remove from our mind and heart the
idea of rivalry, the idea that to give space to God is to limit
ourselves; we must open ourselves to the certainty that God is the
omnipotent love that does not take anything away, does not threaten,
rather, He is the only One capable of giving us the possibility of
living in fullness, of experiencing true joy.
The Magi then meet with the scholars, the theologians, the experts that
know everything about the Sacred Scriptures, who know the possible
interpretations, who are able to recite by heart every passage and hence
are a precious help to those who wish to follow the way of God. But,
Saint Augustine affirms, they love to be guides for others, showing the
way, but they do not walk, they remain immobile. For them the Scriptures
become a sort of atlas to read with curiosity, an ensemble of words and
concepts to examine and to discuss learnedly. But again we can ask
ourselves: is there not also in us the temptation to hold the Sacred
Scriptures, this very rich and vital treasure for the faith of the
Church, more as an object for study and the discussions of specialists,
than as the Book that indicates to us the way to reach life? I think
that, as I indicated in the apostolic exhortation "Verbum Domini," the
profound disposition must always be reborn in us to see the word of the
Bible, read in the living Tradition of the Church (No. 18), as the truth
that tells us what man is and how he can realize himself fully, the
truth that is the way to follow daily, together with others, if we wish
to build our existence on a rock and not on sand.
And thus we come to the star. What type of star was that which the Magi
saw and followed? Throughout the centuries this question has been the
object of discussions among astronomers. Kepler, for example, held that
it was a "nova" or a "supernova," that is, one of those stars that
normally emanate a weak light, but which can have unexpectedly a violent
internal explosion that produces an exceptional light. Certainly,
interesting things, but which do not lead us to what is essential in
order to understand that star. We must return to the fact that those men
were seeking the traces of God; they were seeking to read his
"signature" in creation; they knew that "the heavens tell the glory of
God" (Psalm 19:2); they were certain, namely, that God can be perceived
in creation. But, from wise men they also knew that it is not with any
telescope but with the profound eyes of reason in search of the ultimate
meaning of reality and with the desire of God moved by faith, that it is
possible to find him, more than that, rendered possible is that God
comes close to us. The universe is not the result of chance, as some
would have us believe. Contemplating it, we are invited to read in it
something profound: the wisdom of the Creator, the inexhaustible
imagination of God, his infinite love for us. We must not let our minds
be limited by theories which come only to a certain point and that -- if
we look well -- are not in fact in concurrence with the faith, but do
not succeed in explaining the ultimate meaning of reality. In the beauty
of the world, in its mystery, in its grandeur and its rationality we
cannot but read the eternal rationality, and we cannot but let ourselves
be guided by it to the one God, creator of heaven and earth. If we have
this look, we will see that He who has created the world is he who is
born in a cave in Bethlehem and continues to dwell in our midst in the
Eucharist, it is the same living God who interpellates us, loves us, and
wishes to lead us to eternal life.
Herod, the experts of Scripture, the star, but we follow the way of the
Magi who arrive in Jerusalem. The star disappears over the great city,
it is no longer seen. What does it mean? Also in this case we must read
the sign in depth. For those men it was logical to seek the new king in
the royal palace, where the wise counselors of the court were found.
But, probably to their astonishment, they would have seen that the
newborn was not found in the places of power and culture, even if in
those places they were given precious information about him. They
realized, instead, that, at times, power, including that of learning,
bars the way to the encounter with that Child. Hence, the star guided
them to Bethlehem, a small city, it guided them among the poor, the
humble, to find the King of the world. God's criteria are different from
those of men; God does not manifest himself in the power of this world,
but in the humility of his love, that love which asks our liberty to be
heard to transform us and make us capable of coming to Him who is Love.
However even for us things are not as diverse as they were for the Magi.
If we were asked our opinion as to how God should have saved the world,
perhaps we would have answered that he should have manifested all his
power to give the world a more just economic system, in which everyone
could have what he wanted. In reality, this would be a sort of violence
to man, because it would deprive him of fundamental elements that
characterize him. In fact, neither our liberty nor our love would have
been called into question. God's power is manifested in an altogether
different way: in Bethlehem, where we find the apparent impotence of his
love. And it is there that we must go, and it is there that we again
find God's star.
Thus a last important element of the event of the Magi appears very
clear to us: the language of creation enables us to follow a good
portion of the way to God, but it does not give us the definitive light.
In the end, for the Magi it was indispensable to hear the voice of the
Sacred Scriptures: they alone could indicate the way to them. It is the
Word of God that is the true star, that, in the uncertainty of human
discourses, offers us the immense splendor of the divine truth. Dear
brothers and sisters, let us allow ourselves to be guided by the star,
which is the Word of God, let us follow it in our life, walking with the
Church, where the Word has pitched its tent. Our way will always be
illumined by a light that no other sign can give us. And we too will be
able to become stars for others, reflection of that light that Christ
made to shine over us. Amen.
[Translation by ZENIT]
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