Dear Friends of Carmel Mission,
I do hope that your Christmas was a happy and a holy time for you and your loved ones.
We now celebrate “Little Christmas “, or the Feast of the Epiphany. We presume that the visit of the Wise Men is an indication to us that the Savior born in Bethlehem is a Savior for all humankind, not only the promised Messiah for the Jews.
We are given very little in the way of detailed factual information about these three visitors. Some call them ‘kings’ , but nowhere in Scripture is the word king used about them.
The most common description of them is the term ‘Magi’. This word implied a wisdom and a high degree of education, an interest in astronomy and astrology. They had discovered the appearance of a new star in the heavens, and set out in the cold of Winter to follow that star. They carried with them precious gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh. ( We’ve got to remember that there were no branches of Toys R Us nearby, to suggest age-appropriate gifts!)
The Magi were advised to avoid a return visit to Herod, and made their way home by a different route.
We can only speculate on the profound impact that their journey had on them. After gazing upon the Christ child, nothing would ever be the same for them. They had much on which to ponder and pray in their palaces. They must have had to cope with much misunderstanding among their own families and friends. Who could believe such a tale?
Each time we gaze at the Christ child, we also are challenged to change, to embrace with His love all those who differ from us in their skin color, in their culture, in their customs.
The best possible New Year resolution is for us to draw closer to that Child born in a manger, our Savior and the Savior of the entire world, Jesus the Christ. May our loving God give us the graces we require to adopt the attitudes of Christ.
May the New Year bring you and your loved ones blessings of good health and great happiness.
Fr. Paul
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