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Monday, January 18, 2016
ANGELUS POPE FRANCIS
FEAST OF THE BAPTISM OF THE LORD
Saint Peter's Square
Sunday, 10 January 2016



Dear Brothers and Sisters, Good morning!

On this Sunday after the Epiphany, we celebrate the Baptism of Jesus, and we gratefully recall our Baptism. In this context, this morning I baptized 26 infants: let us pray for them!

The Gospel presents Jesus, in the waters of the River Jordan, at the centre of a wondrous divine revelation. St Luke writes: “when Jesus also had been baptized and was praying, the heaven was opened, and the Holy Spirit descended upon him in bodily form, as a dove, and a voice came from heaven, ‘Thou art my beloved Son; with thee I am well pleased’” (Lk 3:21-22). In this way Jesus is consecrated and manifested by the Father as the Saviour Messiah and liberator.

In this event — attested by all four Gospels — is the passing from the baptism of John the Baptist, symbolized by water, to the Baptism of Jesus “with the Holy Spirit and with fire” (Lk 3:16). Indeed, the Holy Spirit is the principal artisan in Christian Baptism: it is he who burns and destroys original sin, restoring to the baptized the beauty of divine grace; it is he who frees us from the dominion of darkness, namely sin, and transfers us to the kingdom of light, namely love, truth and peace: this is the kingdom of light. Let us think about the dignity to which Baptism elevates us! “See what love the Father has given us, that we should be called children of God, and so we are” (1 Jn 3:1), the Apostle John exclaims. This splendid reality of being Children of God entails the responsibility of following Jesus, the obedient Servant, and reproduces his lineaments in our very selves: namely docility, humility, tenderness. This is not easy, especially when there is so much intolerance, arrogance, harshness around us. But with the strength we receive from the Holy Spirit it is possible!

The Holy Spirit, received for the first time on the day of our Baptism, opens our heart to the Truth, to all Truth. The Spirit impels our life on the challenging but joyful path of charity and solidarity toward our brothers and sisters. The Spirit gives us the tenderness of divine forgiveness and permeates us with the invincible power of the Father’s mercy. Let us not forget that the Holy Spirit is a living and vivifying presence in those who welcome him, he prays in us and fills us with spiritual joy.

Today, the Feast of the Baptism of Jesus, let us ponder the day of our Baptism. All of us were baptized, let us give thanks for this gift. I ask you a question: which of you knows the date of your Baptism? Surely not everyone. Therefore, I encourage you to find out the date, by asking, for example, your parents, your grandparents, your godparents, or going to the parish. It is very important to know it, because it is a date to be celebrated: it is the date of our rebirth as Children of God. For this reason, homework for this week: go and find out the date of your Baptism. Celebrating that day means and reaffirms our adherence to Jesus, with the commitment to live as Christians, members of the Church and of a new humanity, in which all are brothers and sisters.

May the Virgin Mary, first Disciple of her Son Jesus, help us to live our Baptism with joy and apostolic zeal, welcoming each day the gift of the Holy Spirit, which makes us Children of God.
After the Angelus:
Dear brothers and sisters, I greet all of you, faithful of Rome and pilgrims from Italy and other countries.

As I said, on this Feast of the Baptism of Jesus, according to tradition I baptized many children. Now I would like to convey a special blessing to all children who were recently baptized, but also to young people and adults who have recently received the sacraments of Christian initiation or are preparing for them. May the grace of Christ always accompany them!

I wish a happy Sunday to all. Do not forget the homework: find out the date of your Baptism. And please, do not forget to pray for me too. Enjoy your lunch. Arrivederci!

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Thursday, January 14, 2016
ANGELUS POPE FRANCIS
SOLEMNITY OF THE EPIPHANY OF THE LORD
Saint Peter's Square
Wednesday, 6 January 2016



Dear Brothers and Sisters, Good morning!

In today’s Gospel, the narrative of the Magi coming from the East to Bethlehem to adore the Messiah, conveys a breath of universality to the Feast of the Epiphany. This is the breath of the Church which wants all peoples of the earth to be able to encounter Jesus, to experience his merciful love. This is the desire of the Church: that peoples may find Jesus’ mercy, his love. Christ is newly born, he does not yet know how to speak, and already people — represented by the Magi — can meet him, recognize him, worship him. The Wise Men stated: “we have seen his star in the East, and have come to worship him” (Mt 2:2). Herod heard this as soon as the Magi arrived in Jerusalem. These Wise Men were prestigious men, of a distant religion and different culture, and they were on their way to the land of Israel to worship the newborn king. The Church has always seen in them the image of humanity as a whole, and with today’s celebration of the Feast of the Epiphany, the Church almost tries to direct, respectfully, each man and each woman of this world to the Child who is born for the salvation of all. On Christmas Eve Jesus manifested himself to shepherds, humble and scorned men — some say brigands. They were the first to bring a little warmth to that gelid cave in Bethlehem. Then the Magi arrived from faraway lands. They too were mysteriously drawn by that Child. The shepherds and the Wise Men were very different from each other; however, they had one thing in common: heaven. The shepherds of Bethlehem immediately hastened to see Jesus, not because they were particularly good, but because they kept watch in the night and, raising their eyes to heaven, they saw a sign, they heard its message and followed it. It was the same for the Magi: they observed the heavens, saw a new star, interpreted the sign and set out on their journey, from afar. The shepherds and the Wise Men teach us that in order to encounter Jesus it is necessary to be able to lift our gaze to heaven, not to withdraw into ourselves, into our own selfishness, but to have our heart and mind open to the horizons of God, who always surprises us, to be able to welcome his messages and respond with readiness and generosity.

When the Magi, the Gospel says, “saw the star, they rejoiced exceedingly” (Mt 2:10). For us too, there is great comfort in seeing the star, in other words in feeling guided and not abandoned to our fate. The star is the Gospel, the Word of the Lord, as the Psalm states: “Thy word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path” (119[118]:105). This light guides us to Christ. Without listening to the Gospel, it is impossible to encounter him! The Wise Men, indeed, by following the star arrived at the place where they found Jesus. Here “they saw the child with Mary his mother, and they fell down and worshiped him” (Mt 2:11). The experience of the Magi exhorts us not to be satisfied with mediocrity, not to “cut corners”, but to seek the meaning of things, to fervently explore the great mystery of life. It teaches us not to be scandalized by smallness and poverty but to recognize majesty in in humility, and to be able to kneel before it.

May the Virgin Mary, who welcomed the Wise Men in Bethlehem, help us to lift our gaze from ourselves, to allow ourselves to be guided by the star of the Gospel in order to encounter Jesus, and to be able to humble ourselves to adore him. In this way we will be able to bring to others a ray of his light, and to share with them the joy of the journey.
After the Angelus:
Dear brothers and sisters, today let us express our spiritual closeness to our Christian brothers and sisters of the East, Catholics and Orthodox, many of whom will celebrate the Birth of the Lord tomorrow. May our wishes of peace and good will reach them, along with a nice round of applause as a greeting!

Let us also remember that the Epiphany is the World Day for Missionary Childhood. It is the feast of the children who, through their prayers and sacrifices, help their neediest peers by being missionaries and witnesses of brotherhood and sharing.
I express my warm greeting to all of you, individual pilgrims, families, parish groups and associations, from Italy and from various countries.

I wish a happy feast day to all. Please do not forget to pray for me. Enjoy your lunch. Arrivederci!
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Monday, January 11, 2016
ANGELUS POPE FRANCIS
Saint Peter's Square
Sunday, 3 January 2016



Dear Brothers and Sisters, Happy Sunday!

The Liturgy today, the Second Sunday after Christmas, presents us the Prologue of the Gospel of St John, in which it is proclaimed that “the Word” — that is, the creative Word of God — “became flesh and dwelt among us” (Jn 1:14). In other words, that Word, which dwells in heaven in the dimension of God, came upon the earth so that we should hear it and we could know and physically touch the Love of the Father. The Word of God is his Only Begotten Son, having become man, full of love and devotion (cf. Jn 1:14); it is Jesus himself.

The Evangelist does not hide the dramatic nature of the Incarnation of the Son of God, emphasizing that the gift of God’s love is marked by mankind’s failure to receive it. The Word is the light, yet mankind preferred darkness; the Word came among his own, but they received him not (cf. vv. 9-10). They closed the door in the face of God’s Son. It is the mystery of evil that undermines our life too, and it requires vigilance and attention on our part so that it does not prevail. The Book of Genesis offers a nice phrase that lets us understand this: it says that sin is “couching at the door” (cf. 4:7). Woe to us should we let it enter; lest sin would close our door to anyone else. Instead we are called to open wide the door of our heart to the Word of God, to Jesus, in order to become his children in this way.

On Christmas Day this solemn beginning of the Gospel of John was proclaimed; today it is offered to us once again. It is the invitation of the Holy Mother Church to welcome this Word of salvation, this mystery of light. If we welcome him, if we welcome Jesus, we will grow in the knowledge and the love of the Lord, we will learn to be merciful like him. Particularly in this Holy Year of Mercy, let us allow the Gospel to become ever more incarnate in our lives as well. Approaching the Gospel, contemplating it, and embodying it in daily life is the best way to come to know Jesus and to bring him to others. This is the vocation and the joy of every baptized person: to reveal and give Jesus to others; but in order to do this we must know him and bear him within us, as the Lord of our life. He protects us from the evil one, from the devil, who is always lurking at our door, at our heart, and wants to get in.

With a renewed impetus of filial abandon, let us entrust ourselves once again to Mary: may we contemplate her gentle image as the Mother of Jesus and our Mother in the nativity scene during these days.

After the Angelus:

Dear brothers and sisters, I address a cordial greeting to you, the faithful of Rome and pilgrims from Italy and from other countries. I greet the families, associations, various parish groups, in particular that of Monzambano, the confirmands of Bonate Sotto and the young people of Maleo.

On this first Sunday of the year I renew to everyone wishes of peace and goodness in the Lord. In glad moments and in sad ones, let us entrust ourselves to him, who is our mercy and our hope! I also recall the commitment that we undertook on New Year’s Day, the Day of Peace: “Overcome Indifference and Win Peace”; by the grace of God, we will be able to put it into practice. I recall as well the advice that I have so often given you: every day read a passage of the Gospel, a verse of the Gospel, in order to know Jesus better, to open our hearts wide to Jesus, and in this way we can help others to know him better. Carry a small Gospel in your pocket, in your purse: it will do you good. Do not forget: read a passage of the Gospel each day.

I wish you a happy Sunday and a good lunch. And please, please, do not forget to pray for me. Arrivederci.



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Monday, January 11, 2016
GENERAL AUDIENCE POPE FRANCIS
Wednesday, 30 December 2015



Brothers and Sisters, Good morning!
In these days of Christmas the Child Jesus is placed before us. I am certain that in our homes many families still have a nativity scene arranged, continuing this beautiful tradition brought about by St Francis of Assisi which keeps alive in our hearts the mystery of God who became man.

Devotion to the Child Jesus is widespread. Many saints cultivated this devotion in their daily prayers, and wished to model their lives after that of the Child Jesus. I think in particular of St Thérèse of Lisieux, who as a Carmelite nun took the name Thérèse of the Child Jesus and the Holy Face. She is also a Doctor of the Church who knew how to live and witness to the “spiritual childhood” which is assimilated through meditation, as the Virgin Mary taught, on the humility of God who became small for us. This is a great mystery. God is humble! We, who are proud and full of vanity, believe we are something big: we are nothing! He, the Great One, is humble and becomes a child. This is a true mystery. God is humble. This is beautiful!

There was a time in which, in the divine-human Person of Christ, God was a child, and this must hold a particular significance for our faith. It is true that his death on the cross and his Resurrection are the highest expressions of his redeeming love, however let us not forget that the whole of his earthly life is revelation and teaching. In the Christmas season we remember his childhood. In order to grow in faith we will need to contemplate the Child Jesus more often. Certainly, we know nothing of this period of his life. The rare indications that we possess refer to the imposition of his name eight days after his birth and his presentation at the Temple (cf. Lk 2:21-28); in addition to this, the visit of the Magi and the ensuing escape to Egypt (cf. Mt 2:1-23). Then, there is a great leap to 12 years of age, when with Mary and Joseph he goes in pilgrimage to Jerusalem for Passover, and instead of returning with his parents, he remains in the Temple to speak with the doctors of the law.

As we see, we know little of the Child Jesus, but we can learn much about him if we look to the lives of children. It is a beautiful habit that parents and grandparents have, that of watching what the children do.

We discover, first of all, that children want our attention. They have to be at the centre — why? Because they are proud? No! Because they need to feel protected. It is important that we too place Jesus at the centre of our life and know, even if it may seem paradoxical, that it is our responsibility to protect him. He wants to be in our embrace, he wants to be tended to and to be able to fix his gaze on ours. Additionally, we must make the Child Jesus smile in order to show him our love and our joy that he is in our midst. His smile is a sign of the love that gives us the assurance of being loved. Children, lastly, love to play. Playing with children, however, means abandoning our logic in order to enter theirs. If we want to have fun it is necessary to understand what they like, and not to be selfish and make them do the things that we like. It is a lesson for us. Before Jesus we are called to abandon our pretense of autonomy — and this is the crux of the matter: our pretense of autonomy — in order to instead accept the true form of liberty, which consists in knowing and serving whom we have before us. He, the Child, is the Son of God who comes to save us. He has come among us to show us the face of the Father abounding in love and mercy. Therefore, let us hold the Child Jesus tightly in our arms; let us place ourselves at his service. He is the font of love and serenity. It will be beautiful today, when we get home, to go to the nativity scene and kiss the Baby Jesus and say: “Jesus, I want to be humble like you, humble like God”, and to ask him for this grace.

Special greetings:
I invite prayers for the victims of the natural disasters that have recently struck the United States, Great Britain and South America, particularly Paraguay, sadly claiming lives, displacing many people and causing extensive damage. May the Lord give comfort to those peoples, and may fraternal solidarity support them in their needs.

I greet the English-speaking pilgrims and visitors taking part in today’s Audience, including the pilgrimage groups from Norway, the Philippines and the United States of America. I thank the choirs for their praise of God in song. With prayerful good wishes that the the Church’s celebration of the Jubilee of Mercy will be a moment of grace and spiritual renewal for all, I invoke upon you and your families an abundance of joy and peace in the Lord. Happy New Year!

I wish for all that the light of Christ, which shined upon mankind on Christmas Eve, may spread in your daily life.

I address a special thought to young people, to the sick and to newlyweds. May the icon of the nativity scene which we contemplate in these days help you, dear young people, to imitate the Holy Family, model of true love. May it sustain you, dear sick people, to offer your suffering in union with that of Jesus for the salvation of the world. May it encourage you, dear newlyweds, to edify your household on the rock of the Word of God, rendering it, on the example of that of Nazareth, a welcoming place, filled with love, understanding and forgiveness.

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Sunday, January 10, 2016
JAM DINDING
FOTO: di sini
Jam dinding
Teman bekerjaku
Kulirik setiap saat
Berkali-kali dalam sehari  

Jam dinding
Teman setiaku
Dialah yang memberiku isyarat
Kalau-kalau sudah pas waktunya  

Jam dinding
Tak banyak bicara
Banyak bekerja
Bahkan tanpa henti  

Jam dinding
Pejuang tangguh
Tak pernah lelah
Tak pernah istirahat  

Jam dinding
Pekerja ulet
Bekerja bukan untuk mencari uang
Bekerja bukan untuk memamerkan diri
Bekerja bukan untuk mengharapkan imbalan  

Jam dinding
Pegawai anti korupsi
Tak pernah korupsi
Baik waktu maupun uang
Tak pernah minta saham  

Jam dinding
Pecinta sejati
Tak pernah meragukan cintanya T
ak pernah memutuskan cintanya  

Jam dinding
Pecinta yang setia
Tak pernah selingkuh
Tak pernah cemburu  

Jam dinding
Model cinta
Mencintai tanpa pamrih
Mencintai karena ingin mencintai  

Jam dinding
Penanda waktu
Dikaulah sahabat sejati
Yang membantu membagikan waktu harianku  

Jam dinding
Andai kamu bias bicara
Mungkin kamu akan protes
Tidak ada hari libur bagimu  

Jam dinding
Kamu memang tak bermulut
Tapi kamu berbicara padaku
Kamu memberi banyak hal padaku  

Jam dinding
Kamu membangunku di pagi hari
Kamu memberhentikanku dari keasyikkan pekerjaanku
Kamu menyuruhku untuk istirahat sebelum malam berlarut  

Jam dinding
Satu kata untukmu
Terima kasih
Untuk semua yang kamu lakukan  

PRM, 10/1/2016
Gordi

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Sunday, January 10, 2016

Kamu jadi aku
Padahal kita banyak beda
Entah mengapa kamu mau
Aku tak menyangka  

Aku tak punya apa-apa
Rumah mewah tak ada
Mobil pribadi tak punya
Arloji buatan Swiss tak ada  

Sedang kamu balikan dari aku
Cincin emas di tangan
Kalung emas di leher
Punya mobil lebih dari satu  

Tapi kok aneh
Kala kamu mau jadi aku
Kala kamu mau tinggalkan semua milikmu itu
Aku tahu itu berat  

Hanya mukjizat yang memampukanmu
Mobilmu kau sumbangkan untuk anak panti asuhan
Cincin dan kalung emas kau jual
Uangnya kau sumbang anak miskin di desa terpencil  

Lebih aneh lagi kala dirimu yang bersih itu mau dikotori
Diriku kotor dengan lumpur
Jari tanganku tak semulus jarimu
Kuku tanganku tak sepanjang kuku tanganmu  

Tapi kamu mau jadi diriku
Kau masuk lumpur seperti aku
Kau potong kuku tanganmu agar bisa bekerja sepertiku
Kau relakan kemulusan kulit jarimu jadi rusak  

Ah betapa kamu mau
Mau jadi seperti aku
Aku yang hina ini
Dengan jadi diriku rupanya kamu jadi mulia  

Beginilah sebenarnya pemimpin
Memimpin rakyatnya untuk menjadi rakyat yang baik
Satu-satunya cara ya harus mau jadi rakyat dulu
Agar tahu kondisi rakyat
Bukan berlagak memimpin dan mengambil jarak dengan rakyat  

PRM, 10/1/2016
Gordi


*FOTO di sini

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Friday, January 08, 2016
ANGELUS POPE FRANCIS
SOLEMNITY OF MARY, MOST HOLY MOTHER OF GOD
XLIX WORLD DAY OF PEACE
Saint Peter's Square
Friday, 1st January 2016



Dear Brothers and Sisters, Good morning and happy New Year!

At the beginning of the year it is beautiful to exchange good wishes. In this way we renew for one another the hope that the year which awaits us may be somewhat better. It is fundamentally a sign of the hope that enlivens us and invites us to believe in life. We know, however, that with the new year, everything will not change, and that many of yesterday’s problems will still be here tomorrow. Thus I would like to express to you a wish supported by real hope, which I have drawn from today’s liturgy.

They are the words by which the Lord himself asked that his people be blessed: “The Lord make his face to shine upon you.... The Lord lift up his countenance upon you” (Num 6:25-26). I too wish you this: that the Lord lay his gaze upon you and that you may rejoice, knowing that each day his merciful face, more radiant than the sun, shines upon you and never sets! Discovering the face of God makes life new. Because he is a Father enamoured with man, who never tires of starting with us all over again in order to renew us. The Lord is patient with us! He never tires of starting over again each time we fall. However, the Lord does not promise magical changes, He does not use a magic wand. He loves changing reality from within, with patience and love; he asks to enter our life gently, like rain on the ground, in order to then bear fruit. Always, he awaits us and looks at us with tenderness. Each morning, upon awakening, we can say: “Today the Lord makes his face shine upon me”. A beautiful prayer, which is a reality.

The biblical benediction continues in this way: “[The Lord] give you peace” (v. 26). Today we celebrate the World Day of Peace, whose theme is: “Overcome Indifference and Win Peace”. Peace, which God the Father wants to sow in the world, must be cultivated by us. Not only this, but it must also be “won”. This leads to a real struggle, a spiritual battle that takes place in our hearts. Because the enemy of peace is not only war, but also indifference, which makes us think only of ourselves and creates barriers, suspicions, fears and closure. These things are enemies of peace. We have, thanks be to God, a great deal of information; but at times we are so overwhelmed by facts that we become distracted by reality, from the brother and sister who need us. Let us begin this year by opening our heart and calling attention to neighbours, to those who are near. This is the way to win peace.

May the Queen of Peace, the Mother of God, whose solemnity we celebrate today, help us with this. Today’s Gospel states that she “kept all these things, pondering them in her heart” (Lk 2:19). Hopes and worries, gratitude and problems: all that happened in life became, in Mary’s heart, a prayer, a dialogue with God. She does this with us as well: she safeguards the joys and unties the knots of our life, taking them to the Lord.

This afternoon I will go to the Basilica of St Mary Major, for the opening of the Holy Door. Let us entrust the new year to the Mother, that peace and mercy may grow.

After the Angelus:
Dear brothers and sisters, I would like to thank the President of the Italian Republic for the wishes he expressed to me last evening in his Yearend Message, and which I wholeheartedly reciprocate.

I express gratitude for the numerous prayer initiatives and actions for peace organized in every part of the world on the occasion of the World Day of Peace. I think in particular of the national march that took place yesterday in Molfetta, sponsored by the CEI, Caritas, Pax Christi and Catholic Action; it is wonderful to know that so many people, especially young people, chose this way to spend New Year’s. I affectionately greet those attending the “Peace in all Lands” demonstration, promoted in Rome and in many countries by the Community of Sant’Egidio. Dear friends, I encourage you to go forward in your commitment to reconciliation and concord. I greet the families of the Family Love Movement, who held vigil last night in St Peter’s Square, praying for peace and unity in the families of the world. Thanks to everyone for these beautiful initiatives and for your prayers.

I address a warm greeting to all of you, dear pilgrims, present here. A special thought goes to the Sternsinger [Star Singers], children in Germany and Austria who bring Jesus’ blessing to homes and collect offerings for their poor peers.

I wish to all a year of peace in the Lord’s grace, enriched by mercy, and with the maternal protection of Mary, the Holy Mother of God. Do not forget, in the morning when you awake, remember that part of the blessing of God: “Today the Lord makes his face shine upon me”. Everyone! “Today the Lord makes his face shine upon me!” Once again! “Today the Lord makes his face shine upon me”.

Happy New Year. Enjoy your lunch, and do not forget to pray for me. Arrivederci!


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Thursday, January 07, 2016
HOMILY OF HIS HOLINESS POPE FRANCIS
Vatican Basilica
Wednesday, 6 January 2016
HOLY MASS ON THE SOLEMNITY OF THE EPIPHANY OF THE LORD



The words of the Prophet Isaiah – addressed to the Holy City of Jerusalem – are also meant for us.  They call us to rise and go forth, to leave behind all that keeps us self-enclosed, to go out from ourselves and to recognize the splendour of the light which illumines our lives: “Arise, shine; for your light has come, and the glory of the Lord has risen upon you” (60:1).  That “light” is the glory of the Lord.  The Church cannot illude herself into thinking that she shines with her own light.  Saint Ambrose expresses this nicely by presenting the moon as a metaphor for the Church: “The moon is in fact the Church… [she] shines not with her own light, but with the light of Christ.  She draws her brightness from the Sun of Justice, and so she can say: ‘It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me’” (Hexaemeron, IV, 8, 32).  Christ is the true light shining in the darkness. To the extent that the Church remains anchored in him, to the extent that she lets herself be illumined by him, she is able to bring light into the lives of individuals and peoples.  For this reason the Fathers of the Church saw in her the mysterium lunae.

We need this light from on high if we are to respond in a way worthy of the vocation we have received.  To proclaim the Gospel of Christ is not simply one option among many, nor is it a profession.  For the Church, to be missionary does not mean to proselytize: for the Church to be missionary means to give expression to her very nature, which is to receive God’s light and then to reflect it.  This is her service.  There is no other way.  Mission is her vocation; to shine Christ’s light is her service.  How many people look to us for this missionary commitment, because they need Christ.  They need to know the face of the Father.

The Magi mentioned in the Gospel of Matthew are a living witness to the fact that the seeds of truth are present everywhere, for they are the gift of the Creator, who calls all people to acknowledge him as good and faithful Father.  The Magi represent the men and woman throughout the world who are welcomed into the house of God.  Before Jesus, all divisions of race, language and culture disappear: in that Child, all humanity discovers its unity.  The Church has the task of seeing and showing ever more clearly the desire for God which is present in the heart of every man and woman.  This is the service of the Church, with the light that she reflects: to draw out the desire for God present in every heart.  Like the Magi, countless people, in our own day, have a “restless heart” which continues to seek without finding sure answers – it is the restlessness of the Holy Spirit that stirs in hearts.  They too are looking for a star to show them the path to Bethlehem.

How many stars there are in the sky!  And yet the Magi followed a new and different star, which for them shone all the more brightly.  They had long peered into the great book of the heavens, seeking an answer to their questions – they had restless hearts –, and at long last the light appeared.  That star changed them.  It made them leave their daily concerns behind and set out immediately on a journey.  They listened to a voice deep within, which led them to follow that light.  It was the voice of the Holy Spirit, who works in all people.  The star guided them, until they found the King of the Jews in a humble dwelling in Bethlehem.

All this has something to say to us today.  We do well to repeat the question asked by the Magi: “Where is the child who has been born the King of the Jews?  For we observed his star at its rising, and have come to pay him homage” (Mt 2:2).  We are impelled, especially in an age like our own, to seek the signs which God offers us, realizing that great effort is needed to interpret them and thus to understand his will.   We are challenged to go to Bethlehem, to find the Child and his Mother.  Let us follow the light which God offers us – that tiny light.  The hymn in the breviary poetically tells us that the Magi lumen requirunt lumine – that tiny light.   The light which streams from the face of Christ, full of mercy and fidelity.  And once we have found him, let us worship him with all our heart, and present him with our gifts: our freedom, our understanding and our love.  True wisdom lies concealed in the face of this Child.  It is here, in the simplicity of Bethlehem, that the life of the Church is summed up.  For here is the wellspring of that light which draws to itself every individual in the world and guides the journey of the peoples along the path of peace.

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