The child Jesus is born at the crossroads of the human drama. There are two paths that converge and then diverge in this great drama. The drama is the search for God. Jesus will always be at the center point of this search but there are two very different paths that a human person can take in this search for God which show themselves very early on in this drama.
There are those who search for God, following a guiding light, authentically seeking wisdom and truth, bringing gifts and seeking only to do God homage and to bow before him in adoration. They seek God to know him, to know his will for their lives and to follow wherever the light of revelation leads them. On finding Jesus their hearts are filled with love, joy and a deep and enduring peace. They are changed by their encounter with their heart’s true desire, a king who carries the light of the world with him and leads from a place of humility, purity and innocence. One who possesses a power beyond corruption and is born only to serve others and to save his people. The Wise Men are those who seek God with a pure and sincere heart and open their hearts to be made into a dwelling place for his holy Spirit of love and truth. They are contemplatives and mystics who have been reborn in the Spirit and who, once they have encountered Jesus, the Christ, the newborn King, forever travel the paths of life by a new way, led by the Spirit of Jesus, worshipping God in Spirit and truth. Like Jesus would tell the Samaritan woman at Jacob’s well who thirsts for new life: “But the hour is coming, and is now here, when true worshipers will worship the Father in Spirit and truth; and indeed the Father seeks such people to worship him. God is Spirit, and those who worship him must worship in Spirit and truth.” (Jn 4,23f) The way that they seek, that they find and that they will forever travel is a way of holiness and eternal light. They become children of light as St. Paul will write to the Ephesians, “For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Live as children of light, for light produces every kind of goodness and righteousness and truth. Try to learn what is pleasing to the Lord. Take no part in the fruitless works of darkness; rather expose them, for it is shameful even to mention the things done by them in secret; but everything exposed by the light becomes visible, for everything that becomes visible is light. Therefore, it says: “Awake, O sleeper, and arise from the dead, and Christ will give you light.” Watch carefully then how you live, not as foolish persons but as wise, making the most of the opportunity, because the days are evil. Therefore, do not continue in ignorance, but try to understand what is the will of the Lord.” (Eph 5,8-17) The Wise Men will forever follow a way of gift and grace with the Spirit of the Lord always deep in their hearts and their hearts always lifted up to the heavens in continuous adoration.
There are others who live in the darkness and who act in secret and are living in evil days and search for God with the intention to destroy. They see God and religion, the adoration and worship of God, as a threat to their freedom and their ersatz personal rights and powers. They live in fear of someone taking away their precarious place in the world. They engage in shameful practices with no compunction. As the Psalmist says in Psalm 14: “Fools say in their hearts, “There is no God.” Their deeds are loathsome and corrupt; no one does what is right. The Lord looks down from heaven upon the human race, to see if even one is wise, if even one seeks God. All have gone astray; all alike are perverse. No one does what is right, no even one…They have good reason, then, to fear; God is with the company of the just. They would crush the hopes of the poor, but the poor have the Lord as their refuge.” (Ps 14,1-6) Herod is the king of the fools. He is consumed with his own selfish will to power. He lives in perpetual fear, with good reason for his life will one day end in death. He is not enlightened but rather, he is deceived and denied truth and knowledge and dwells in darkness. He is blinded to the guiding light of the star that could lead him to the Christ child. Fury is always simmering just below the surface of his awareness and ready at any moment to erupt in violent outrage. He searches for Christ but as the angel reveals to Joseph, “Herod is going to search for the child to destroy him.” (Mt 2,13) The search for God along this path does not carry the intention of discovering and surrendering to the holy will of God but rather of imposing his selfish will upon the plans of God. Within his heart is not assent but denial. He doesn’t want to make a place for Christ in his heart but rather he wishes to deny Christ his place in the world.
In the middle of this drama of the search for God is the Holy Family of Jesus, Mary and Joseph. They have what others are searching for. They are the guardians of the way, the truth and the life that has been made visible in the child that dwells in the midst of their family. They live lives that are completely surrendered to God’s grace, will and providence. They live in perfect, unhesitating obedience to God. They listen more than they speak. They hear God’s call in their lives and they follow wherever it leads them. They are everyday contemplatives and mystics who, I am sure, were constantly gazing upon this child of light and love that they were called to watch-over and protect, amazed at what was revealed to them each day. They welcomed God’s word into their home and were always serving the word of God. They were just, righteous and holy persons. Every day they lived as St. Paul describes to the Colossians: “Put on, as God’s chosen ones, holy and beloved, heartfelt compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience, bearing with one another and forgiving one another, if one has a grievance against another; as the Lord has forgiven you, so must you also do. And over all these put on love, that is, the bond of perfection. And let the peace of Christ control your hearts, the peace into which you were also called in one body. And be thankful. Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, as in all wisdom you teach and admonish one another, singing psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs with gratitude in your hearts to God. And whatever you do, in word or in deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.” (Col 3,12-17) A true model of holy family life that is peaceful and secure and that is the perfect environment for growth and formation for a child. The Holy Family is a model of how to give thanks to God for the gift of your child by raising and forming that child to be a child of God. Jesus always lived with Mary and Joseph but he was not theirs, he always belonged to his heavenly Father.
There are still a lot of Herods in the world who are searching for holy families to destroy them. We live in a world of foolish people who deny God. As St. Paul says, we live in evil days. It seems like everyone is raging in our world and there is little room for heartfelt compassion and kindness. We can walk the path of wisdom and truth, seeking God with open and sincere hearts, listening always for his voice and worshipping him in Spirit and truth, shining like lights in a world of darkness or we can walk the path of the fools who only search for God to deny him. Along which path will we lead our families? We need to look to Joseph and Mary for their wisdom, guidance and example. We need to seek to live in obedience to God’s word. We need to listen more than we speak. Above all, we need to guard the great treasure of faith that has been entrusted to us, the True Presence of Jesus in our homes and families. The Word is still made flesh in the Holy Eucharist, that should still be the center of the holy family and our most guarded treasure!