Epiphany — When Christ Is Shown to the Nations

Epiphany tells us something essential about who Jesus is
and something equally essential about how people respond to Him.

It is the moment when Christ is made known
not only to Israel,
but to the world.

And once He is made known,
no one encounters Him without being changed —
for good or for ill.

St Matthew tells us that wise men came from the East.

They were not Jews.
They did not know the Scriptures.
They were outsiders to the promises of Israel.

But they were searching.

They read the signs available to them
and followed the light they had been given.

That matters.

God does not wait for perfect understanding
before He draws people towards Himself.

Yet notice this carefully:
the star does not lead them straight to Bethlehem.

It brings them to Jerusalem —
to the place where God’s word is known.

Grace leads; revelation completes.

Herod knows the prophecy.
The religious leaders know the Scriptures.
Bethlehem is identified clearly.

And yet none of them go.

This is one of the most sobering details in the Gospel.

The Magi travel far to worship.
Herod remains where he is and plots violence.
The experts remain still.

Knowledge alone does not produce faith.
Only obedience does.

Herod’s problem is not ignorance.
It is fear — fear of losing control.

When the Magi finally arrive, the Gospel is very restrained.

“They fell down and worshipped Him.”

No speeches.
No analysis.

They kneel.

And then they offer gifts.

Gold — acknowledging His kingship.
Frankincense — confessing His divinity.
Myrrh — foretelling His death.

Even at His revelation to the nations,
the Cross is already in view.

Christ is shown not only as King,
but as the one who will save by giving His life.

What happens in Bethlehem
is not distant from us.

It is repeated, sacramentally, here.

At every Mass, just before Communion,
the Church uses the same language:

“Behold the Lamb of God.”

The Christ revealed to the Magi
is made present on the altar.

We are not spectators of Epiphany.
We are participants.

Like the Magi, we are brought face to face with Christ
and asked to respond.

St Paul tells us that this mystery has now been revealed:
the Gentiles are fellow heirs, members of the same body.

This is how unity comes about.

Not by erasing difference,
and not by lowering the truth.

But by being drawn into Christ.

One Lord.
One Body.
One worship.

The nations are united
not by agreement among themselves,
but by kneeling before the same King.

The Gospel ends with a simple but decisive detail:

“They went home by another way.”

That is not merely about avoiding Herod.

It tells us what happens
when someone truly encounters Christ.

You do not return unchanged.

The Magi leave differently from how they arrived —
not only geographically,
but inwardly.

An encounter with Christ reorders priorities,
reshapes loyalties,
and alters direction.

Epiphany places a quiet but serious question before us.

When Christ is revealed,
do we draw nearer,
or do we keep our distance?

Do we worship,
or do we remain observers?

Do we allow the light of Christ
to change the direction of our lives,
or do we return home exactly as we came?

The Magi knelt.
Herod resisted.
Others remained still.

Christ is revealed again tonight.

And having encountered Him,
may we go home by another way —
changed in how we live,
and faithful in how we worship.