Three Great Feasts

Recognizing the identity of Jesus

01/08/2023

Mt 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.” Then Herod called the magi secretly and ascertained from them the time of the star’s appearance. He sent them to Bethlehem and said, “Go and search diligently for the child. When you have found him, bring me word, that I too may go and do him homage.” 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. 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.

Today’s great feast of the Epiphany is really the convergence of three great feasts, that is, besides Epiphany, it also commemorates the Baptism of the Lord, as well as Jesus' first miracle at the wedding at Cana in Galilee. What do all these feasts share in common? Each one reveals Jesus’ identity as the Son of God in a unique and unmistakable way. Let me mention the significance of each of these feasts, and then draw out some very exciting applications for us today.

The first feast of course is Epiphany itself, which means God’s self-revelation to all the nations. And all the nations are symbolically present in the three kings or magi, who offer the Christ Child gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh. These gifts were more than merely polite trinkets of honor. They were highly charged with symbolism. The gold represented divinity, the frankincense meant worship and priesthood, and the myrrh prophesied a saving death.

In other words, these gifts meant these kings recognized that Jesus had a divine nature, he possessed priestly power, and they foresaw, however inchoately and obscurely, his future saving death on the Cross, by which he would save us. In St. Luke’s gospel more than in any other gospel, we see how the pagan nations often recognize who Jesus is better than the Chosen People of Israel, like King Herod.

When I was ordained a priest, Bishop Andrew McDonald mentioned how my parents were like the three wise men coming from the East (India). They brought with them three gifts, which were their three children, and one of them became a priest! Think of all the foreign priests who have come from afar to bring us their three gifts of faith, hope, and love, and have faithfully served us as priests.

Priests from India like Fr. Bala, priests from Nigeria like Fr. Pius, and priests from Mexico like Fr. Daniel. I know sometimes it can be hard to understand their foreign accent. But don’t let that distract you from the gifts they bring to us. Like in St. Luke’s gospel, sometimes it is the foreigners who are able to recognize Jesus better than the natives can. Don't be like Herod and miss the gifts that foreigners bring.

The second feast that reveals Jesus’ identity is his Baptism in the Jordan. Of course, we all recall how the heavens opened above the Jordan River that day and a dove descended upon on Jesus. Meanwhile a booming voice declared that Jesus was God’s beloved Son. That Baptism was a perfect picture of the Holy Trinity: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, symbolized by the dove. By the way, there is even a church in Rome that claims to have a feather that fell from the dove at the Baptism of Jesus. No joke.

The practical upshot of Jesus’ Baptism and our baptism is too easily overlooked. What do I mean? Put simply, we receive the gift of faith at our baptism. Even though we are but babies and cannot understand what is happening to us, we receive an indelible mark, and our soul is forever marked as a child of God. It’s like that Jonas Brothers’ song called “Sucker,” where they sing: “You are the tattoo inside my brain.” Baptism, in other words, makes a Christian a sucker for Christ because the gift of faith is imparted to us at our Baptism, which helps us recognize Jesus as our Savior.

And the third great event commemorated today is the wedding at Cana in Galilee. Now, Jesus’ identity is not revealed simply by changing water into more wine. Rather, Jesus makes the water into the very best wine. So, let me ask you: what is the very best wine in the world? Is it the most expensive cabernet sauvignon money can buy? No. It is the wine that Jesus transubstantiates at the Eucharist that is the very best wine. Indeed, it is so precious, all the money in the world would not be enough to buy it, so Jesus has to give it to us freely. You cannot afford the Eucharist no matter how rich you are.

And Jesus gave us this precious Wine at a wedding and thereby revealed a new dimension of his identity, namely, he is not only Savior but also our Spouse. Incidentally, this identity of Jesus as Spouse (and the Church as his Bride) is the root reason for all the tough teachings of the Catholic Church about marriage and sex. That is, when you measure your marriage by the standard of Jesus’ marriage to the Church, you see why we do not approve of contraception, or divorce, or same-sex marriage, or premarital sex, or polygamy, or all the rest.

All these aberrations of marital love would be an offense against the spousal love of Jesus poured out as the best Wine at a wedding. That same wine is what we taste at the Eucharist so that we might love like Jesus loves us. And that is also why it is so hard for our sex-soaked society to recognize Jesus’ as the Messiah. Why? Because the more we give in to our sexual appetites, the less we can recognize God. Jesus taught in Mt 5:8, the Sermon on the Mount: “Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God.” When we are not pure in heart (or in body), we shall not see God.

Try to keep these three feasts sort of together in your head and heart: Epiphany, the Baptism of Jesus, and the wedding at Cana. They are designed to help us recognize Jesus’ identity so we don’t miss him when he comes to us in the faith of foreigners, in our Baptism, and in our spouse.

Praised be Jesus Christ!