At the end of St. Matthew’s account of the arrival of the Magi, once they saw their star again when they left Herod’s palace and were filled with immense joy, they went to adore the Divine Child, but they listened to the angel and withdrew to their land by another road. It is time to reflect on the year we left behind and whether we have something, a person, a habit, or a thought to leave behind.
We can ask the Kings to show us from Heaven the paths that do not suit us. Perhaps it is only an attitude. It may be laziness, time spent on light devices, or a bad temper. Each one must ask for that light. Surely it will fill us with immense joy as it did them, not only to see what we have left over, but also to be constant on the new path.
A few days ago, I was talking to some young people, explaining that a Philosophy teacher of mine had told me: We have fewer and fewer virtues. Seeing their surprised faces, I began to think that either they didn’t know what I was saying, or that no one had taught them to define virtues as such, that everything in life takes effort, and that it depends a lot on you and your environment. Or, perhaps, what is easier: they had been taught it, but the bombardment of society, the lack of models, maybe the discouragement caused by tiredness, or a bit of everything, or things that I don’t know, had prevented them from taking root in family, domestic virtues; those of every day: work, diligence, some prayer, generosity.
For this reason, I invite you, and if you think you don’t need much more, to reflect today on how we are doing in terms of joy, as well as peace. If we are always complaining, if we want others to be happy before ourselves (what concepts, right?) Something that, years ago, would have been normal to propose, today is seen as audacity. Laziness is overcome with just one step: the first. So many times we think more about what we must do than what it costs us to carry it out later. The immediate pleasure of getting what we want with a single click on the screen makes us see as impossible what a series of concatenated actions cost.
And I am going to take a step further, with the help of Melchior, Gaspar and Balthasar. An invitation for this 2025 to go deeper, to not do things just because, to know that there is something more, deep in the Soul, in the most hidden part of our heart, something of eternal life. A reason that makes us continue forward. Christian Hope, whose Holy Year we have begun, is not supported on a foundation of quicksand. The Sacraments, spiritual life, self-giving, prayer are the basis of the gifts that God gives us. The day of the Epiphany is a wonderful day to ask the Kings to know how to accept everything that the Lord wants to give us. Knowing that we are in need is the most beautiful thing in human life, if we take into account that the Lord is eager to fulfill our desires. Happy Three Kings’ Day!
