Matthew tells the story of how some wise men arrive in Jerusalem asking where they can find the newborn king whose star they followed from the east. The old-born king, Herod, is not exactly delighted at the news-perhaps because he fears his own star may lose its place in the firmament in the light of the new competition. He calls together the wise men from Jerusalem, who consult the scriptures to find that a leader will emerge from Bethlehem in the land of Judah.
The wise men from the east continue their quest and come to journey’s end in Bethlehem where the star halts over a house. They enter it and see the child with his mother Mary. They pay homage to the child, leave their unusual gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh, and then quietly return to their own country without reporting to Herod.
Matthew’s is the only Gospel to tell the story, and the question arises: what does it mean? We sense that Matthew is telling us a wonderful truth, is revealing to us some hidden event, is trying to engage us in good news. And in the second reading today Paul tells us the meaning of the story when he writes: “God’s secret plan was reveal to me and was unknown in past generations; ‘’ it means that pagans now share the same inheritance as the Jews , that they are parts of the same body, and that the same promise has been made to them, in Christ has been made to them, in Christ Jesus, through the gospel.’’
That is the meaning of the story of the magi! Matthew describes beautifully in a story the same truth that Paul affirms in his letter: the truth that Jesus is for all peoples. The wise men are the pagans, the Gentiles, the non- Jews, like ourselves. We come from all over the world, and we can find Jesus and do him homage. He is the infant king of the Jews, but he is not the exclusive property of any tribe or nation: he belongs to us all, as we can all belong to him. He is journey’s end for all who seek the face of God, for all who seek for meaning and purpose in their lives. He came not only for the chosen race, but for the human race. He is for all of us.
In a sense the wise men are the ancestors of all of us who seek. We are all seekers: we seek for love, for acceptance and for understanding. And we know that the journey towards wholeness and holiness is a journey without end. We do not have stars in the sky to guide us; but even the wise men had to stop being stargazers and consult the scriptures to find out where Jesus was. We don’t have stars to guide us, but we do have the scriptures and each other in our journey to God.
The scriptures and the star led the wise men from the east to Bethlehem - which literally means ‘’House of Bread’’ There is where our journey has taken us today, here in the house of bread.
We come here to this place as seekers hoping to find Jesus again in the word of the scriptures and in the breaking of the bread. We believe that the scriptures will lead us to him again, and that we can commune with him in the breaking of the bread. In the word and in the sacrament, we meet Jesus again. And we meet him in each other, in our frailty and brokenness. The Lord is present in each of us here.
We are all the hiding place of God. Let us pray that the Lord will show himself through us to all peoples.