Solemnity of Epiphany

Giotto, Adoration of the Magi
via Wikipedia

We are perhaps in danger of not realizing fully how close Our Lord is to our lives because God presents himself to us under the insignificant appearance of a piece of bread, because he does not reveal himself in his glory, because he does not impose himself irresistibly, because he slips into our life like a shadow, instead of making his power resound at the summit of all things ... How many souls are troubled because God does not show himself in the way they expected! (J. Leclerq, A Year with the Liturgy)

In Conversation with God: Advent and Christmastide

The Solemnity of the Epiphany is celebrated either on January 6 or, according to the decision of the episcopal conference, on the Sunday between January 2 and January 8. Epiphany celebrates the visit of the three kings or wise men to the Christ Child, signifying salvation for the Gentiles. Read more at Catholic Culture.

The Adoration of the Magi

The Adoration of the Magi by Edward Burne-Jones

It's All Downhill From Here ...

A little midweek humor for the Epiphany.

In a small southern town there was a "Nativity Scene" that showed great skill and talent had gone into creating it. One small feature bothered me.

The three wise men were wearing firemen's helmets.

Totally unable to come up with a reason or explanation, I left. At a "Quik Stop" on the edge of town, I asked the lady behind the counter about the helmets. She exploded into a rage, yelling at me, "You stupid Yankees never do read the Bible!" I assured her that I did, but simply couldn't recall anything about firemen in the Bible.

She jerked her Bible from behind the counter and ruffled through some pages, and finally jabbed her finger at a passage. Sticking it in my face she said "See, it says right here, the three wise man came from afar."