Let Us Offer to Jesus a Home in Our Hearts
The Adoration of the Magi by Pietro Perugino; 1476; Galleria Nazionale dellUmbria, Perugia, Italia;
https://www.wga.hu
Hymn: "O Sola Magnarum Urbium"
Daily during the Octave of Epiphany
Bethlehem! of noblest cities, none can once with thee compare;
Thou alone the Lord from heaven didst for us Incarnate bear.
Fairer than the sun at morning was the star that told His birth;
To the lands their God announcing, hid beneath a form of earth.
By its lambent beauty guided, see, the Eastern Kings appear;
See them bend, their gifts to offer, gifts of incense, gold, and myrrh.
Offerings of mystic meaning; incense doth the God disclose;
Gold a royal child proclaimeth; Myrrh a future tomb foreshows.
Holy Jesus! in Thy brightness to the gentile world displayed!
With the Father and the Spirit, endless praise to Thee be paid! Amen
V. May every land adore and praise Thee!
R. Let it sing praise to Thy Name, O Lord.
Let us Pray
Graciously look upon the gifts of Thy Church, we beseech Thee, Lord, by which gold, frankincense, and myrrh are no longer laid before Thee; but He is sacrificed and received, Who by those same gifts was signified, Jesus Christ Thy Son, Our Lord, Who lives and reigns with Thee, in the Unity of the Holy Spirit, One God, forever unto ages of ages. Amen
Saint Caspar, Saint Melchoir and Saint Balthasar, Pray for us
Saint Caspar, Saint Melchoir and Saint Balthasar, Pray for us
Adoration of the Magi (center panel) by Hieronymus Bosch; 1510; Museo del Prado, Madrid, Spain;
https://www.wga.hu
The Adoration of the Magi
Saint Alphonsus De Liguori
Jesus is born poor in a stable; the angels of heaven indeed acknowledge Him, but men abandon and forsake Him on earth. Only a few shepherds come and pay Him homage. But our Redeemer was desirous of communicating to us the grace of His redemption, and begins therefore to manifest Himself to the Gentiles, Who knew Him least.
Therefore He sends a star to enlighten the Holy Magi, in order that they may come and acknowledge and adore their Saviour. This was the first and sovereign grace bestowed upon us--our vocation to the faith; which was succeeded by our vocation to grace, of which men were deprived.
Behold the wise men, who immediately, without delay, set off upon their journey. The star accompanies them as far as the cavern where the holy Infant lies: on their arrival they enter and [...] feel a joy which they had never felt before; they feel their hearts tied to the dear little Infant which they behold.
The straw, the poverty, the cries of their little Saviour--Oh, what darts of love! Oh, what blessed flames are they to their enlightened hearts! The Infant looks upon them with a joyful countenance, and this is the mark of affection with which He accepts them among the first-fruits of His Redemption.
The holy kings then look at Mary, who does not speak --she remains silent; but with her blessed countenance that breathes the sweetness of paradise she welcomes them, and thanks them for having been the first to come and acknowledge Her son (as indeed He is) for their Sovereign Lord.
See also how, out of reverence, they adore Him in silence, and acknowledge Him for their God, kissing His feet, and offering Him their gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh. Let us also with the holy Magi adore our little King Jesus, and let us offer Him all our hearts.
Darmstadt Altarpiece: The Epiphany, Unknown Master, German; 1440s;
Staatliche Museum, Berlin, Germany;
https://www.wga.hu
Affections and Prayers
O lovable Infant! Though I see Thee in this cavern lying on straw poor and humble, our faith teaches us that Thou art our God, Who earnest down from Heaven for our salvation.
I acknowledge Thee, then, for my sovereign Lord and Saviour; yet I have nothing, alas, to offer Thee.
I have no gold of love, because I have loved creatures more then Thee; I have loved my own caprices, yet I have not loved Thee sufficiently, O lovable infinite One!
I have not the incense of prayer, because I have lived in a regretful state of forgetfulness of Thee.
I have no myrrh of mortification, for I have often displeased Thy infinite goodness that I might not be deprived of my miserable pleasures.
What then shall I offer Thee?
I offer Thee my heart, poor and impure as it is; and ask that Thou accept and change it.
Thou came into the world for this purpose, to wash the hearts of men from their sins by Thy blood, and thus change them from sinners into saints.
Give me, therefore, I pray Thee, this gold, this incense, and this myrrh.
Give me the gold of Thy holy love; give me the spirit of holy prayer, give me the desire and strength to mortify myself by avoiding everything that displeases Thee.
I am resolved to obey Thee and to love Thee; but Thou knowest my weakness, oh, give me the grace to be faithful to Thee!
Most Holy Virgin, thou who did welcome with such affection and did console the Holy Magi, do thou welcome and console me also, who comes to visit thy Son and to offer myself entirely to Him.
O my Mother, I have great confidence in thy intercession! Do thou recommend me to Jesus. To thee do I entrust my soul and my will; bind it forever to the love of my Jesus! Amen
Adoration of the Magi by Francisco de Zurbarn; 1639-1640; Muse des Beaux-Arts, Grenoble, France;
https://www.wga.hu
Reflections on the Epiphany
Epiphany means, in particular, the manifestation of the Savior to the Gentile world, in the person of the Magi.
The way in which the Magi acted shows us the qualities that our faith ought to have.
They were faithful to the inspiration of grace. They did not doubt nor remain in reasoning, but immediately began to carry out their decision.
If we listen faithfully to the call of grace, we shall come to Christ, Who is the Life of our soul.
The Church would have us associate ourselves with the adoration of the Magi and offer the infant God the gold of a life full of love and fidelity, the frankincense of a prayerful faith, the myrrh of our sorrows, tears, and sufferings which we unite to His own.
When God makes the light of the Gospel shine in the sight of the pagans, or permits His Truth to be realized by those living in error, the Epiphany is renewed.
The Epiphany is continued also in the faithful soul when our love of Christ becomes more fervent and steadfast, for then Christ begins to manifest Himself and lives in us by His Divine grace.
While at Christmas we admire the union of Our Lords Divinity with His humanity, at the Epiphany, we honor the spiritual union of our souls with Him.
Celebrating Epiphany - Let Us Offer to Jesus a Home in Our Hearts
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