Some people are frightened to hold a newborn baby.  There is a sense perhaps that this small bundle of life is too fragile.  We may be afraid that we won’t hold it correctly, or that we might hurt the baby.  There may also be the anxiety of not knowing what to do, should the baby cry.  There is for many a reticence to hold or embrace a newborn child, because this new life represents something that seems foreign or at least poses perceived “threats” concerning expectations.  This vulnerable, seemingly helpless newness, which yearns to be held and cared for, may in fact, for some of us, be something we are, at least initially, afraid to touch.

I wonder who held the baby at the Nativity.  Of course, we can picture Mary holding the newborn child, but can we imagine that Joseph did, or that the shepherds or even that the Wise men dared embrace the new life, out of fear or reverence?  Whether or not they did, one thing is for certain – the baby longed to be held!

For some, the Solemnity of the Epiphany is the most significant celebration in the Christmas Season.  As it closes out the Christmas season (followed only by the Baptism of the Lord) it signifies perhaps one of the most important aspects of the Incarnation – the inevitable expansion and inclusion of everything and everyone.  If we consider the term Epiphany as meaning the manifestation or revelation of the Lord, we come close to grasping some of the great significance of this feast.

Isaiah the prophet has brought us full circle in this season, from the proclamation on Christmas Eve that “the people who have walked in darkness have seen a great light,” to today’s even fuller description of this event (Is 60:1-6):

“Nations shall walk by your light, and kings by your shining radiance.   Raise your eyes and look about; they all gather and come to you”

The Light that the Magi have followed in search of the newborn king, that we hear in today’s Gospel (Mt 2:1-12 ), is so Great that it lights up the way for everyone.  The Light from the great Star in the sky is a beacon to all.  They are gathering to come to see this New Divine and Human Life!  But, while we all are drawn to the light, we many times are afraid of it, like Herod, because it represents perhaps a “threat” to the status quo, the “normality” of our lives, the security that breeds familiarity and sadly enough also fear and resentment.

For those who dare to approach the Light, a curious thing seems to happen.  Isaiah describes it quite well,

“Then you shall be radiant at what you see, your heart shall throb and overflow, for the riches of the sea shall be emptied out before you, the wealth of nations shall be brought to you. Caravans of camels shall fill you, dromedaries from Midian and Ephah; all from Sheba shall come bearing gold and frankincense, and proclaiming the praises of the LORD.”

Inasmuch as we are drawn to the light, the Light at the same time wells up from within us.  The radiance that we see from a far is reflected at the same time close by and radiated from own hearts.  And this mutual radiance grows to an overflowing status that calls forth all giftedness.

Could this be the Gift of the Magi?  The recognition in the moment of beholding this beautiful NEW Light that everything is at the same time “lit up.”  The Gift that they bring, beyond the gold, frankincense, and myrrh, is precisely the recognition and appreciation for the Light that seems distant, but is in fact always close.  Is this another way of viewing the Incarnation, or the Divine enfleshment?  It is as if what we bring is what we receive and what we receive is what we bring.  We approach the Divine Baby of Light and Life, the Christ, as physical and spiritual beings.  We encounter the divinity of Christ IN each other.  In fact, this seems to be the only real way we can experience Christ.  If we consider other “ways” of encountering Christ, devoid of the human experience, we are actually denying the great and beautiful Mystery of the Incarnation.

In this way, Epiphany occurs every time we encounter each other in this way, that is, recognizing God’s presence or Light in how we touch each other.  The touch is one of attraction and giftedness.  The Light of Love draws us in, gathering us, only so that the radiance pours forth in an overflowing pattern that gives and receives at the same time.  What each one of us brings to this Life experience is something that can be received and shared by all.  We are drawn to each other, bringing with us, that which we can give.  But (and this is really an “and”) we can only give what we can receive back.  This is the radiance that emanates from the interaction itself – the touch.  This is holding the baby, that yearns so much to be cared for, embraced, coddled and shared.  This is what allows the New life to grow!

What does the touch look like?  It’s a consoling gesture given to one who is lonely or depressed and the solidarity shared by both in this Christ encounter.  It is the compassion received by the one who has been helped and the grace that the “helper” has received from the one helped.   It is the gift of the poor received by the franchised in a manner that humanizes everyone.  It’s the invitation to share the Light by noticing and responding to the fact that it is coming from ALL directions.

Paul refers to it, in his letter to the Ephesians (Eph 3:2-3a, 5-6), as the   “stewardship of God’s grace.”  It’s the invitation to compassion in which we must all enlighten each other.  This is the radiance of the child that invites the embrace of our own radiance, which when joined glows so brightly that it constantly overflows in abundant illumination!  So that what we “bring,” i.e., the gifts that we bear, are only gifts when we embrace the radiance of the receiver, which is also a gift and interestingly enough…the same GIFT.  Could this be a way of looking at Incarnation, Epiphany and even Salvation?  It would seem that if we can approach Life and each other in this Divine Human Light, we have to go “home by another way,” because we will have been transformed.

I pray that in this NEW YEAR we all learn to help each other “hold the Baby”…Together!

Peace

Thomas

The soul is the delicate yet durable cloth  woven and laced together in loving pattern  by the merciful strokes of God’s Passings…
    And the sheen of our soul is the ever-glowing  awareness we have of this sacred-stitched fabric.