07

Shining Star light for all peoples

Gospel: 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." When King Herod heard this, he was greatly troubled, and all Jerusalem with him. Assembling all the chief priests and the scribes of the people, he inquired of them where the Messiah was to be born. They said to him, "In Bethlehem of Judea, for thus it has been written through the prophet: 'And you, Bethlehem, land of Judah, are by no means least among the rulers of Judah; since from you shall come a ruler, who is to shepherd my people Israel.'" 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. And having been warned in a dream not to return to Herod, they departed for their country by another way.

Preaching：

Epiphany Sunday always brings the reading about the magi, the wise men from the east in search of the King of kings, the incarnate God. From the earliest days of the Church, the magi have aroused keen interest among the faithful. They were one of the favorite themes of early Christian artists. Many pleasant and touching legends were born around the mysterious magi, but must be kept accurately distinct from the Gospel story so as not to compromise the message that the sacred text wants to communicate. Matthew introduces the magi as a symbol of all the pagans that before the Jews themselves opened their eyes to the light of Christ.

Stars were widely believed to appear at the birth of a great person: big for the wealthy, tiny for the poor, blurry for the weak. The appearance of a comet was thought to be a sign of the advent of a new emperor. Many astronomers devoted time and energy to check if two thousand years ago, there appeared in the heavens a very bright star in concurrency with the birth of Jesus. They are admirable for their efforts. However, reading the text of Matthew astronomers should easily realize that the evangelist does not allude to an astronomical phenomenon. The wise men saw the star that precedes them while they are going from Jerusalem to Bethlehem, then a star… from north to south. Really strange! All the celestial bodies move from east to west. The star referred to by Matthew is not to be found in heaven but in the Bible, in the book of Numbers. In Numbers 22–24, we find Balaam, a magi of the East, just like the ones mentioned in the Gospel today.

Matthew highlights another particular: the magi (the symbol of the pagan peoples) would never have come to Christ if the Jews with their Scripture had not shown them the way. Israel was the mediator of salvation for all peoples. Popular piety applied to each of these gifts a symbolic meaning: gold indicates the recognition of Jesus as king, incense represents the adoration in front of his divinity, myrrh recalls his humanity—this fragrant resin will be remembered during the passion (Mk 15:23; Jn 19:39).

Even the story of the mounts was not invented for nothing. It is still the first reading today that speaks to us of “a troop of camels and dromedaries” that come from the East (Is 60:6). Unlike the shepherds who contemplated and rejoiced in front of the salvation that the Lord had revealed to them, the magi prostrated themselves in worship (v. 11). Their gesture recalls the court’s ceremony—the prostration and kissing of the feet of the king, or kissing the ground before the image of the deity. The pagans have therefore recognized as their king and their God the child of Bethlehem, and offered him their gifts.

They have become the symbol of people around the world who are led by the light of Christ. They are the image of the church, made up of people of every race, tribe, language, and nation. Entering the church does not mean giving up one’s identity. It does not mean submitting to an unjust and false uniformity. Every person and every people maintain their cultural characteristics. With these, they enrich the universal church. Nobody is so rich as not to need anything nor so poor as not having anything to offer.

证道：东方贤士朝拜小耶稣，普世万民寻求基督光

    主显节一直是有关东方三贤士的福音，东方的贤士寻找万王之王——降生成人的天主。从初期教会开始，东方三贤士在信友们中间引起了很大的兴趣。他们是初期基督徒艺术家们最喜欢的题材之一。很多愉快动人的传说都是围绕神秘的东方三贤士而产生的，但必须与福音叙述保持准确的区分，不能损害圣经想要传递的讯息。玛窦介绍东方三贤士是作为所有外邦人的象征，他们在犹太人之前，向基督之光睁开了他们的眼睛。

     人们普遍认为，在伟人出生时就会有星星出现：富人的大星星，穷人的小星星，弱者的星星模糊不清。彗星的出现被认为是新皇帝降临的征兆。两千年前，许多天文学家花费时间和精力来验证，在耶稣诞生的时候，天上出现了一颗非常明亮的星。他们的努力着实令人敬佩。然而，阅读玛窦福音经文中的天文学家，让人非常容易意识到：玛窦圣史并不是指的天文现象。贤士看到在他们从耶路撒冷去白冷城的路上，那颗星从北到南，在他们前面引领。真不寻常！所有的天体从东到西移动！玛窦所提及的那颗星并没在天空发现，而是在旧约圣经的《户籍纪》中找到的。在《户籍纪》22-24章，我们发现东方的术士巴郎，就像今日福音中所提及的东方贤士。

     玛窦强调的是另一个特点：如果犹太人的旧约圣经没有给他们指引，象征外邦人的东方贤士是绝不会归向基督的。以色列是救恩走向万民的媒介。大众对这些礼物的虔诚赋予了象征意义:黄金表示承认耶稣是王，乳香表示在耶稣天主性前的朝拜，没药使人想起耶稣的人性——这种芳香的树脂将会在受难期间被纪念（谷15：23；若19：39）。

甚至有关坐骑的故事也不是凭空捏造的，仍然是今日第一篇读经告诉我们来自东方的“一群骆驼和单峰驼”（依60：6）。不像那些在救恩前注视和喜乐的牧人，上主已经启示他们了，东方三贤士俯伏朝拜婴孩耶稣。他们朝拜的姿势使人想起宫廷的礼仪——跪拜和亲吻君王的脚，或者在神像前亲吻地面。外邦人已经承认了白冷的婴孩是他们的君王和天主，并献上了他们的礼物。

他们已经成了全世界各族人民中，那些被基督之光引领者的代表。他们是教会的画像，是由各种族，部落，语言和国家的人所组成。进入教会并不意味着放弃自己的身份，也不是屈从不正义和错误的一致性。每个人和每个民族都继续保留他们自身的文化属性，并借此更丰富普世教会。没有人富到不需要任何东西，也没有人穷到一无所有。

文稿来源：雅颂福传