The Light of Christ to the Nations
The Adoration of the Magi is depicted in a stained-glass window at Holy Family Church in the Fresh Meadows section of the Queens borough of New York. The feast of the Epiphany of the Lord, also known as Three Kings' Day, is observed Jan. 7 in 2024. (OSV News photo/Gregory A. Shemitz)
The Epiphany of Christ is the fulfillment of a long expectation. This centuries-long anticipation, to one degree or another, was experienced by Jew and Gentile alike. To mention the former is no surprise, for we all know of the messianic prophesies given to the Jewish people. What of the other nations, however? How can one assert they possessed a similar expectancy?
Looking at the Gospel reading for Epiphany Sunday,i we see the Magi arrive in Jerusalem and ask for “the newborn king of the Jews,” saying they saw “his star.” Upon its rising, the Magi followed the star from a great distance so they may “do him homage.” This raises some questions. What is it about this star which leads the Magi to make this association? Why, upon seeing this star, would they be looking for a newborn who was to be King of the Jews, specifically? At its rising, why would the Magi “seek…in the messianic light of the star of David, the one who will be king of the nations?"ii
The nations possessed a general expectation of our Lord’s arrival because it was foretold, both within and without the Old Testament. It is easy to associate the Hebrew Scriptures with the Jewish people, but one can easily forget how this sacred writing was not strictly limited to their reach. It behooves us to recall how God inspired writers (such as Daniel) while His people were in exile in the East. As the Venerable Fulton J. Sheen reminds us in a chapter titled, “The Yearnings of the Pre-Christian World,” the fulfillment of the prophesy of Daniel, with the release of the exiles from Babylon, opened the eyes of many nations to the subsequent promises of God.iii
In fact, the release of the Jews from their captivity gained international notice. For what arose in its wake was a series of “prophesies” in the Gentile world regarding the Jewish people and a special king who would rise to prominence in their midst. As Sheen illustrates in a chapter titled, “The Only Person Ever Pre-announced,” ancient literature is filled with testimony asserting the coming of a new king from Judea who will reign as Master and Ruler of the World.iv The writers include Tacitus, Suetonius, Aeschylus, Cicero, Virgil, Confucius, Plato, the Sibyls, and a particularly interesting witness from China through the “Annals of the Celestial Empire” (which also offers corresponding testimony to the Star of Bethlehem).
With pre-Christian societies in such a state of anticipation, it is not difficult to imagine them investigating the Jewish Scriptures looking for further signs. What would they have found? Perhaps “the scepter shall never depart from Judah, or the mace from between his feet, until tribute comes to him, and he receives the people’s obedience"v or “a star shall advance from Jacob, and a scepter shall rise from Israel.vi
Regardless of what specific prophesies the Magi were privy to, God moved them. As Pope St. Leo I testifies, the Christ-child desired to be recognized by the nations for whom He would soon die.vii As such, He moved the star as He moved the pillar of cloud in the desertviii, leading the Magi to Him, so they could lay down conscious giftix of adoration at His feet.
As Simeon received revelation by the Holy Spirit and would, in the spirit, prophesy regarding our Lord and Ladyx, so would the new Gentile believers be inspired and moved, being brought to Him so they may depart by “another way.”
No one has ever met Christ and departed the same way they came. When we encounter the light of Christ, do we truly embrace living “another way”? Do we not owe it to Him, living a life in fulfillment of which He created such anticipation?
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i The Gospel of St. Matthew, 2: 1-12.
ii Catechism of the Catholic Church, 528.
iii Fulton Sheen, Life is Worth Living, 1953, p.34.
iv Fulton Sheen, Life of Christ, 1977, p.18-19.
v Genesis 49:10.
vi Numbers 24:17.
vii Pope St. Leo I, Sermon 31, On the Feast of the Epiphany I, ch.1.
viii St. John Chrysostom, Homily 6 on Matthew, ch.3.
ix Leo, ch.2.
x The Gospel of St. Luke, 2:25-32.
Jason Whitehead was received into the Catholic Church in 2012 and subsequently received a master’s degree in Theology from Holy Apostles College and Seminary. He began working for the Diocese of Fort Worth in 2014 and currently serves as Department Director of Evangelization and Catechesis. Find his regular columns for the North Texas Catholic here.