First reading Isaiah 60:1-6
Above you the glory of the Lord appears
Arise, shine out, Jerusalem, for your light has come,
the glory of the Lord is rising on you,
though night still covers the earth
and darkness the peoples.
Above you the Lord now rises
and above you his glory appears.
The nations come to your light
and kings to your dawning brightness.
Lift up your eyes and look round:
all are assembling and coming towards you,
your sons from far away
and your daughters being tenderly carried.
At this sight you will grow radiant,
your heart throbbing and full;
since the riches of the sea will flow to you,
the wealth of the nations come to you;
camels in throngs will cover you,
and dromedaries of Midian and Ephah;
everyone in Sheba will come,
bringing gold and incense
and singing the praise of the Lord.
Responsorial Psalm 71(72):1-2,7-8,10-13
All nations shall fall prostrate before you, O Lord.
O God, give your judgement to the king,
to a king’s son your justice,
that he may judge your people in justice
and your poor in right judgement.
All nations shall fall prostrate before you, O Lord.
In his days justice shall flourish
and peace till the moon fails.
He shall rule from sea to sea,
from the Great River to earth’s bounds.
All nations shall fall prostrate before you, O Lord.
The kings of Tarshish and the sea coasts
shall pay him tribute.
The kings of Sheba and Seba
shall bring him gifts.
Before him all kings shall fall prostrate,
all nations shall serve him.
All nations shall fall prostrate before you, O Lord.
For he shall save the poor when they cry
and the needy who are helpless.
He will have pity on the weak
and save the lives of the poor.
All nations shall fall prostrate before you, O Lord.
Second reading Ephesians 3:2-3,5-6
It has now been revealed that pagans share the same inheritance
You have probably heard how I have been entrusted by God with the grace he meant for you, and that it was by a revelation that I was given the knowledge of the mystery. This mystery that has now been revealed through the Spirit to his holy apostles and prophets was unknown to any men in past generations; it means that pagans now share the same inheritance, that they are parts of the same body, and that the same promise has been made to them, in Jesus Christ, through the gospel.
Gospel Matthew 2:1-12
The visit of the Magi
After Jesus had been born at Bethlehem in Judaea during the reign of King Herod, some wise men came to Jerusalem from the east. ‘Where is the infant king of the Jews?’ they asked. ‘We saw his star as it rose and have come to do him homage.’ When King Herod heard this he was perturbed, and so was the whole of Jerusalem. He called together all the chief priests and the scribes of the people, and enquired of them where the Christ was to be born. ‘At Bethlehem in Judaea,’ they told him ‘for this is what the prophet wrote:
And you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah,
you are by no means least among the leaders of Judah,
for out of you will come a leader
who will shepherd my people Israel.’
Then Herod summoned the wise men to see him privately. He asked them the exact date on which the star had appeared, and sent them on to Bethlehem. ‘Go and find out all about the child,’ he said ‘and when you have found him, let me know, so that I too may go and do him homage.’ Having listened to what the king had to say, they set out. And there in front of them was the star they had seen rising; it went forward, and halted over the place where the child was. The sight of the star filled them with delight, and going into the house they saw the child with his mother Mary, and falling to their knees they did him homage. Then, opening their treasures, they offered him gifts of gold and frankincense and myrrh. But they were warned in a dream not to go back to Herod, and returned to their own country by a different way.
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The wise men’s journey to Christ
The wise men in today’s gospel were non-Jewish astrologers who studied the movements of the skies. When they saw the bright star shining in the dark sky, they felt drawn to move out of their comfort zones and make the journey to discover its meaning. These men, following the star, arrived in Bethlehem, where they encountered God in the child Jesus. The story of these wise men invites us to be open and recognise the star, the light of God’s presence, even in the dark areas of our lives. God, out of love, continues to draw us to Himself through His Word, through the Eucharist, through friendships and faith community, through nature, etc. He wants to guide us to a deeper relationship of love with Him.
After encountering Christ, the wise men went on a different way. Each encounter with Jesus leads us to go a different way, i.e., one that no longer conforms to the worldly ways but Christ’s. May we follow the star that guides us always to Christ. With Him as our Companion in our life, let us then live a life following His life-giving way.
Question for reflection:
In this New Year, what star am I called to follow?
In this New Year, what star am I called to follow?
Acknowledgment: Reflections are based on “Prayer for Living: The Word of God for Daily Prayer Year C” by Sr. Sandra Seow FMVD.
