Wise Men Still Seek Him

By: Ivonne J. Hernandez

Have you ever been “racking your brain”, trying to figure out how to solve a problem when all of a sudden, there it is! The solution that eluded you for so long shines clear as day in your mind and you wonder how did you not see it before? These “aha! moments”, or epiphanies, seems to come from nowhere, but they would not have come had you not been seeking, searching for something.

“The Epiphany is the manifestation of Jesus as Messiah of Israel, Son of God and Savior of the world. The great feast of Epiphany celebrates the adoration of Jesus by the wise men (magi) from the East, together with his baptism in the Jordan and the wedding feast at Cana in Galilee” (CCC 528). In looking at these three epiphanies, or moments of revelation, we can see that they were each preceded by expectation.

1. “After their audience with the king they set out. And behold, the star that they had seen at its rising preceded them, until it came and stopped over the place where the child was” (Mt 2:9-10).

2. “The people were filled with expectation, and all were asking in their hearts whether John might be the Christ” (Lk 3:15).

3. “His mother said to the servers, “Do whatever he tells you”” (Jn 2:5).

In the first two instances, the revelation came to the ones who were seeking, but in the last one it is Mary the one who is seeking, expecting, but not for herself. This great “aha! moment” that begins the public ministry of Jesus is for the benefit of the disciples…of us. “Jesus did this as the beginning of his signs in Cana in Galilee and so revealed his glory, and his disciples began to believe in him” (Jn 2:11). The disciples were likely having a great time at the wedding and had no idea they were missing something. They were busy, distracted, entertained, all the while the Son of God was in their midst, “but the world did not know Him” (Jn1:10).

I’m sure we’ve all had our own epiphanies in our lives. God has revealed Himself to us. We have recognized Him in the breaking of the Bread. We have experienced His love and mercy in the Sacrament of Penance. We have seen, and we have heard, yet we forget. We get busy with our lives, with our temporal needs and desires, and we fail to recognize that something, or rather someone is missing. We feel the emptiness, but we seek in vain to fill the void with things that pass rather than seeking the One who can truly satisfy our hearts.
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As we prepare to wrap up another Christmas Season, let us remain close to Mary, our Mother, whose perfect state of expectation from the moment of the Annunciation is available tous throughout our journey. Let us hold on to her hand as we continue to live in the hope of Heaven, and may we seek each day a new epiphany of God’s love. “For everyone who asks, receives; and the one who seeks, finds; and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened” (Mt 7:8).