Gifts from the East

Carrying gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh

Matthew 2:1-12 

When Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea, in the days of King Herod,  behold, magi from the east arrived in Jerusalem, saying, "Where is the newborn king of the Jews? We saw his star at its rising and have come to do him homage." 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. They were overjoyed at seeing the star, and on entering the house they saw the child with Mary his mother. They prostrated themselves and did him homage. Then they opened their treasures and offered him gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh. And having been warned in a dream not to return to Herod, they departed for their country by another way.

          I’ll never forget the homily that Bishop Andrew McDonald preached on the day of my ordination. May 25, 1996 was a warm, summer day in Little Rock, Arkansas, where a few hundred people gathered for the ordination Mass at St. Andrew’s Cathedral. I think I might have been a little nervous, but I don’t really remember, because I was scared to death! Most of the ceremony was a blur and I felt like I was walking through a dream; I wasn’t sure it was really happening. At one point the candidate for Holy Orders completely prostrates himself on the cold, marble Cathedral floor, with his face flat on the floor, his arms spread eagle, and his whole bodying forming a huge human cross. It is a moment of complete oblation: a man offers himself entirely to the service of God and of his people. You should try to attend an ordination Mass at least once in your life: God’s grace is so palpable and present in the newly ordained priest, you can almost touch it when you shake his hand. Indeed, it is through that man’s priestly ministry that God will reach out and touch you.

          In his homily that morning, Bishop McDonald compared my parents to the three wise men who came from the East to honor the Baby Jesus. My parents had likewise come from the East, from the far-away land of India. Furthermore, the wise men bore gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh, and so too did my parents bring the three gifts of their three children. After Mass, my brother, sister and I had a lively debate about which one was which gift, but I was clearly the gold (and my brother was the myrrh). Bishop McDonald went on to elaborate how in the years to come my priestly ministry would bless the people of Arkansas through baptisms and weddings and Masses and confessions and funerals. I hope and pray God has blessed others throughout my twenty years as a priest.

          But, you know, I am also keenly aware of my faults and short-comings; that in many instances I was NOT a blessing to others but rather a scandal that made some doubt God’s goodness and mercy. A week after my ordination, I attended the ordination of a classmate in Lafayette, Louisiana. A long line of priests, young and old, stood in line stretching outside the Cathedral doors waiting for the ordination to begin. An older priest standing in front of me suddenly turned around and said to me, “One day you will realize all the mistakes you’ve made as a priest, and you will go to the Tabernacle, open the door, put your head inside, and weep for your sins.” At that time, I thought, “What have you been doing??” and I was so sure I would avoid such mistakes myself. Now, however, every time I pass in front of the tabernacle and genuflect, I recall his wise words, and I remember my haughty arrogance that morning. I haven’t put my head inside the Tabernacle yet, but I’ve come close. Gold, frankincense, myrrh: which one was I, really?

          The three gifts the Wise Men bring on the Feast of Epiphany are highly symbolic, each representing a unique aspect of Jesus’ Messianic ministry. First, the gold means that he is the King of kings, and he wields the royal authority and power of King David, who was “a king after God’s own heart” (Acts 13:22). Second, the frankincense signifies Jesus’ priestly identity, and points to the presence of the Holy. Only Jesus is THE Holy One of God, and by his priesthood, he makes us holy. That’s why we incense the priest at Mass, but the people also stand and are “incensed.” Jesus’ holiness makes us holy, a “priestly people.” St. Peter wrote in his first letter: “You are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people of his own” (1 Peter 2:9). And third, the myrrh was to be saved for Jesus’ saving death and burial. The myrrh means sadness, suffering, loss, pain and grief, which would also mark the life of the Messiah. Gold, frankincense and myrrh denote the deepest identity of Jesus as a king, a priest and as the suffering servant.

          My friends, may I suggest to you that not only do these gifts mark my life, and that of Jesus, but also yours and also the life of everyone you will ever meet? Each person who is born on this earth will possess these three great qualities symbolized by gold, frankincense and myrrh. What do I mean?

          First of all, every person is “gold,” meaning they are endowed with infinite worth and glory. Genesis 1:27 states that “God created Adam and Eve in his image and likeness,” they are God-like. Sometimes we tarnish the gold in others when we only see them as “illegal aliens,” or when we learn they have “same sex attraction,” or if they suffer from mental illness, or simply by the color of their skin. A couple of weeks ago I saw the movie, “Free State of Jones,” set in the South during the Civil War. Matthew McConaughey plays a captain who deserts the Southern Army and fights to free the slaves. At one point he asks a freed slave, “Moses, what are you?” Moses replies, “I’m a free man, Captain.” But he asks further, “Why’s that?” And Moses answers, “Because you cannot own a child of God.” Being a child of God means you are more precious than all the gold in the world.

          Second of all, every person has a priestly character or soul, symbolized by incense. By that I mean anyone can preach the Word of God, not only the ordained clergy. In his first official teaching document, “The Joy of the Gospel,” Pope Francis insisted: “Today, as the Church seeks to experience a profound missionary renewal, there is a kind of preaching that falls to each of us as a daily responsibility…Being a disciple means being constantly ready to bring the love of Jesus to others, and this can happen unexpectedly and in any place: on the street, in a city square, during work, on a journey “(Evangelii gaudium, 127). Last week here at Immaculate Conception School, two sixth grade girls preached the gospel to each other. Hailey Hadley had forgotten her gym shoes, which carries a punishment of losing 40 Buff bucks. Her friend, Kaitlyn Seiter, said, “You can wear my shoes, I don’t mind,” and paid the 40 Buff bucks. Later Hailey paid Kaitlyn back 60 Buff bucks as a gesture of gratitude and respect. (We only teach interest-bearing loans here at our school.) No one is too young to exercise priestly prerogatives, like preaching.

          And third, the myrrh symbolizes suffering and sadness. You will never meet a person whose life is not touched in some way by sadness, and who will touch your life with that sadness. It’s especially important that married couples remember this: you know as “wonderful” as your spouse is, he or she will eventually cause you sadness and suffering.  (Have you noticed??)  People are not perfect; there’s a little myrrh in their pockets. They will hurt you; and you will hurt them. The only thing to do is forgive them, and pray they will forgive you. Sadly, some people search desperately for the perfect spouse – without any myrrh – who will never cause them suffering. But everybody’s pocket’s has a little lint and a lot of myrrh.

          No one on earth is “all gold,” nor “all frankincense,” nor “all myrrh.” There is plenty of each in each of us. “One day you will realize all the mistakes you’ve made, and you will want to go to the Tabernacle, open the door, put your head inside, and weep for your sins.”

          Praised be Jesus Christ!