Happy Feast of the Epiphany! Have you ever wondered what happened to the gifts that were given to Jesus when he was a baby? Did Mary and Joseph save them until he was older? Were they used to help the family? Did they become offerings at the temple? It’s interesting to speculate about. More important than what happened to the physical gifts, is discussing why they are even mentioned in the first place. Immediately at Jesus’ birth we have a foreshadowing that he will be king, that he will be given gifts from on high, and that he will distribute these gifts.
Of course, we know now, that the gift Jesus is giving all of us is not Gold, Frankincense, or Myrrh, but rather the gift of eternal life. So we have this very clear event of gifts being given that foreshadow the gifts the King of Kings and Lord of Lords will give to us all. Then we look at the Second Reading for today and it makes much more sense. Paul is talking about stewardship. He mentions that he is a steward of God’s grace for the benefit of all. That is the role of the Church today.
God himself chose to become one of us in order to give us the free gift of grace that we lost in the beginning. He wants to bring us back, in a sense, to our origins by what he does on the cross, but he also wants to remind us who we are by being the perfect example of what it means to be human. Through the incarnation God became one of us to show us who we really are meant to be, and we can’t get there without his grace.
Each and every one of us has been given gifts from God. These gifts are often transmitted to us by the Church through the sacraments. In the same way that Paul was a steward of God’s gifts, so is the Church. Christ founded a Church so that we could be assured of his grace still working in our hearts and lives. It is our duty to be good stewards of all the gifts we have been given from God and not squander them.
During the Feast of the Epiphany let’s take a moment to thank God for becoming one of us and showering us with his free gift of grace, and then ask for the strength necessary to use his gifts to serve others and to bring as many people as possible into the shower of his love.
From all of us here at Diocesan, God bless!
¡Feliz Fiesta de la Epifanía! ¿Alguna vez te has preguntado qué pasó con los regalos que le dieron a Jesús cuando era bebé? ¿María y José los guardaron hasta que creciera un poco más? ¿Se utilizaron para ayudar a la familia? ¿Se convirtieron en ofrendas en el templo? Es interesante especular al respecto. Más importante que lo que sucedió con los dones físicos, es por qué se mencionaron desde un principio. Inmediatamente después del nacimiento de Jesús tenemos un presagio de que él será rey, que recibirá dones de lo alto y que distribuirá estos dones.
Por supuesto, ahora sabemos que el regalo que Jesús nos está dando a todos nosotros no es oro, incienso o mirra, sino el regalo de la vida eterna. Así que tenemos este evento muy claro de regalos dados que presagian los regalos que el Rey de Reyes y Señor de Señores nos dará a todos. Luego miramos la Segunda Lectura de hoy y tiene mucho más sentido. Pablo está hablando de la administración de bienes. Menciona que es un administrador de la gracia de Dios para el beneficio de todos. Ese es el papel de la Iglesia hoy.
Dios mismo eligió hacerse uno de nosotros para darnos el don gratuito de la gracia que perdimos al principio. Él quiere devolvernos, en cierto sentido, a nuestros orígenes por lo que hizo en la cruz, pero también quiere recordarnos quiénes somos siendo el ejemplo perfecto de lo que significa ser humano. A través de la encarnación, Dios se hizo uno de nosotros para mostrarnos quiénes realmente debemos ser, y no podemos llegar allí sin su gracia.
Todos y cada uno de nosotros hemos recibido dones de Dios. Estos dones a menudo nos son transmitidos por la Iglesia a través de los sacramentos. De la misma manera que Pablo era un administrador de los dones de Dios, también lo es la Iglesia. Cristo fundó una Iglesia para que pudiéramos estar seguros de que su gracia aún obra en nuestros corazones y vidas. Es nuestro deber ser buenos administradores de todos los dones que Dios nos ha dado y no desperdiciarlos.
Durante la Fiesta de la Epifanía, tomemos un momento para agradecer a Dios por hacerse uno de nosotros y colmarnos con su don gratuito de la gracia, y luego pedir la fuerza necesaria para utilizar sus dones para servir a los demás y atraer a tantas personas como sea posible a la lluvia de su amor.
De parte de todos nosotros aquí en Diocesan, ¡Dios los bendiga!
Tommy Shultz is a Business Development Representative for Diocesan. In this role he is committed to bringing the best software to dioceses and parishes while helping them evangelize on the digital continent. Tommy has worked in various diocese and parish roles since his graduation from Franciscan University with a Theology degree. He hopes to use his skills in evangelization, marketing, and communications, to serve the Church and bring the Good News to all. His favorite quote comes from St. John Paul II, who said, “A person is an entity of a sort to which the only proper and adequate way to relate is love.”
Feature Image Credit: Nina Mercado, unsplash.com/photos/_qN6tmGjmtg
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