Scottish Catholic Observer

This coming Sunday we celebrate the Epiphany of Our Lord, recalling the arrival of the Wise Men at the stable in Bethlehem and their acts of homage before the child in the manger. The wise men from the east are portrayed as representative of all the peoples, coming to recognise Jesus as the promised Messiah and the Lord and Saviour of us all. We are encouraged to imitate them by our own acts of homage before the Lord, and our willingness to present to him our own gifts, especially that of our worship and service of him as members of his Body, the Church. We do so in the spirit of thanksgiving proper to all who have been entrusted with the knowledge of the mysteries of our faith and who trust in the promises made to us, in Christ Jesus, through the Gospel (cf. Eph. 3:5-6).

I found an echo of the Epiphany in a recent message of Pope Benedict, in which he described the wonderful experience of World Youth Day in Madrid, and the more youthful form of Christianity growing from such events. He identified the young people of the Church pointing the way ahead for the new evangelisation under five headings –

• a new experience of catholicity, of the Church’s universality;

• a new way of living our humanity, our Christianity, shown by the volunteers who give of their time and themselves to serve others;

• the natural and central place of adoration;

• the sacrament of Confession as an integral part of our faith;

• the joy of having faith, of knowing we are accepted and loved by God.

Pope Benedict’s reflection on each of these points, which come from the young people themselves and not from above, is worth reading, but I would like to highlight his words on adoration, which is what the wise men came to offer the Child Jesus on bended knee and with special gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh. Pope Benedict participated in similar acts of adoration offered by young people before Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament at the Prayer Vigil in Madrid, as at Hyde Park the previous year, and was moved by the silence of those present as they recognised the physical presence of the Risen Christ in their midst and said with St Thomas: my Lord and my God! The Holy Father then goes on to explain what adoration is and why it touches many young Catholics so powerfully:

“Adoration is primarily an act of faith – the act of faith as such. God is not just some possible or impossible hypothesis concerning the origin of all things. He is present. And if he is present, then I bow down before him. Then my intellect and will and heart open up towards him and from him. In the risen Christ, the incarnate God is present, who suffered for us because he loves us. We enter the certainty of God’s tangible love for us with love in our own hearts. This is adoration, and this then determines my life. Only thus can I celebrate the Eucharist correctly and receive the body of the Lord rightly.” (Pope Benedict XVI ‘s Address to The Roman Curia for Christmas 2011.)

Pope Benedict XVI participated in similar acts of adoration offered by young people before Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament at the Prayer Vigil in Madrid, as at Hyde Park the previous year, and was moved by the silence of those present as they recognised the physical presence of the Risen Christ

These words encourage us to carry within ourselves the sense of wonder and awe in the Lord’s presence when we come to the Eucharist itself, thus participating in its celebration as fully as we can with voice, mind, and body, and especially with our hearts, united with the Lord and in communion with our brothers and sisters. Our own ability to adore the Lord in the Eucharist is strengthened by the time we spend with him in prayer before the tabernacle or when the Blessed Sacrament is exposed on the altar. As suggested by the Holy Father our sense of adoration should be particularly strong as we prepare to receive Holy Communion, saying the words “Lord, I am not worthy that you should enter under my roof, but only say the word and my soul shall be healed”, and bowing before receiving the sacrament as it is now recommended that we do (GIRM No.160).

In bringing to your attention what Pope Benedict sees as a particularly important aspect of our faith which young people are drawn to and want to experience more deeply, we have to work in our Diocese, in our parishes, schools and church-groups, to win the hearts of our young people for Christ. We need the young as active and joyful participants in the life of the Church, and we have to reach out to them with faith and courage. We can draw some inspiration from special events and great gatherings, because we see there that the young take the lead in showing their love for their faith and how good they feel about being part of the Catholic Church. They like what the Church offers – its apostolic tradition and world-wide membership, its beautiful Liturgy and deep prayer-life, its commitment to Christ and the living of the Gospel values and moral norms, its hope of eternal life and its firm trust in the Lord in the uncertainties and troubles of this world. Let us build on what we have at present and ask the Lord to be with our young people and all who lead them in the ways of faith and Christian living.

Contemplating the scene presented in the Christmas crib we see, together with the wise men, Mary and Joseph and the shepherds, all adoring the child in their own hearts, united in their prayer and attentive to the mystery of God become man. They will all leave Bethlehem soon – the wise men more discerning of the best path to return home by, the shepherds happy to pass on the Good News of the Saviour’s birth, Mary and Joseph to protect and care for the child as loving parents. As we leave the Christmas season behind may we live our own vocations to the full, filled with the Lord’s grace and goodness, and may we carry with us always the spirit of adoration and prayer that draws us to the Lord’s presence in the Eucharist and accompanies us as his witnesses in the world. May the Lord’s blessing be with you, and your families, throughout the year ahead.

With my prayers and good wishes,

Yours in the Lord,

Rt Rev Joseph Toal

Bishop of Argyll and the isles.