Tuesday, January 10, 2012

Today’s text

From a sermon by St. Leo the Great (pope, 391/400-461)

The Lord has made known his salvation; in the sight of the nations he has revealed his justice. This came to be fulfilled, as we know, from the time when the star beckoned the three wise men out of their distant country and led them to recognize and adore the King of heaven and earth. The obedience of the star calls us to imitate its humble service: to be servants, as best we can, of the grace that invites all men to serve Christ.

Reflection

It is easy to imagine the wise men, three … or however many there may have been, trekking across dry, rugged landscape on their camels. The figures are well known from children’s books and engraved figures that sit on our tables or beside the Christmas tree.

They are symbols, surely, of the human heart’s hunger for home, for the soul’s desire to taste and see something transcendent. The wise men travel in search of something that awakens the heart. They want, they need to feel the illumination of being in touch with life’s center.

They journey in search of the center of their hearts, hoping to see and touch something that awakens greatest depth of warmth and love, something that will penetrate that untouchable central point in their souls so they might feel truly alive and well, fully whole and loved.

They go step by step, slowly, not jumping quickly to end. Each little step on the rocky road of the journey must be seen and considered, lived, loved and attended to with such care as they have.

Each one must be lived and not avoided. And they never know which step will be the one that brings them to their journey’s goal, to the manager, where the heart finds it has arrived home at the feet of the Love that called them on this journey in the first place.

Neither do we. So we, when wise like they, attend to each step, hoping the next step or three will bring us again to our goal, to the manager, where the heart’s need and the heart of God meet.


Pr. David L. Miller