One of the most well-known Psalms is Psalm 23, beloved for its first words: “The Lord is my Shepherd, I shall not want.” These words and the imagery of the rest of the Psalm remind all of us that Jesus is watching out for us in every part of our lives. He is there in the good times and in the bad times, and he leads us to himself into eternal life. That is one of the reasons this Psalm is so often used at funerals – it gives us a chance to remember how Jesus shepherded us throughout our lives and continues to do so into death. 

One of the primary ways that our Good Shepherd, Jesus, leads and guides us is by bringing us to the sacraments. A shepherd leads his sheep to food, water, and shelter, and nourishes and heals his sheep when they need medicine of any sort. Jesus works similarly with us. He brings us to life-giving water in Baptism, feeds us with his body, the Eucharist, brings us into the shelter of the life of the Church, and offers us healing through Penance and Anointing. 

The sacraments can be seen in the different imagery used throughout the Psalm, but because today is the feast of the Baptism of the Lord, I will focus on the first image used – water. In verses two and three of the Psalm, we pray, “He leads me beside still waters, he restores my soul.” One may interpret this in many ways regarding the various comforts that God gives to his faithful people in this life – the consolations in the soul during prayer, good people he places in our lives to be refreshing streams, good books, good scenes in nature, actual cool springs of water when we find ourselves thirsty, etc. – God refreshes us because of his goodness and even brings us a solace of his presence while we are suffering, or, at the very least, a recognition that we are not alone whether we feel it or not.

One way to interpret these verses that we find in the tradition and which is arguably the best interpretation in terms of its messianic fulfillment, is that the Good Shepherd leads us beside the restoring waters of Baptism. This interpretation is the one used by St. Augustine in his very short commentary on this Psalm. St. Augustine notes, “He has nurtured me beside regenerating water: this means that he nurtured me beside the water of baptism, where those who have lost their soundness and strength are made new” (Expositions of the Psalms, 22.1-2, translated by Maria Boulding). In the sacrament of baptism, our souls are restored to new life and filled with the life of God!

Really, as St. Augustine explains elsewhere, “God could have granted no greater gift to human beings than to cause his Word, through whom he created all things, to be their head, and to fit them to him as his members” (ibid. 85.1). It is the grace of Baptism that causes us to be joined into that body, which is the greatest gift God could give us. To be joined to the body of Christ is to share in his divine life – his relationships with the Father and the Holy Spirit. Before baptism, a human being is a child of God in the sense of being created by him and loved as such. After Baptism, however, a human being is a child of God as one adopted into the Son, the second person of the Trinity. This is a far greater sonship or daughter-ship than before. The Father looks on us and loves us as he does Jesus. That is a great gift. 

We call this grace “filiation” – from the Latin, filius, meaning “son.” We also call this gift, “divinization.” In the sense that we are drawn into the life of the Trinity, we share the divine life of God. We don’t become God himself, but he gives us a share in his divinity by adoption (see 2 Peter 1:4). Today, we celebrate the institution of this great sacrament of new life. We thank Jesus for the gift of this adoption and our ability to call out “Our Father!” Praise be Jesus Christ. Amen!

As we celebrate the Epiphany of the Lord, we always hear the account of the visit of the Magi to Jesus after His birth in Bethlehem.  Guided by the star, they sought to see the “newborn King of the Jews.” (Mt. 2:2) As they set out, they prepared for this encounter, bringing with them “gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh” (Mt 2:11) which they presented to Him when they finally reached their destination.

In a homily on this feast day, the Church Father St. Peter Chrysologus reflected on this scene, emphasizing how these gifts were an expression of the belief in what they encounter:

Today the Magi gaze in deep wonder at what they see: heaven on earth, earth in heaven, man in God, God in man, one whom the whole universe cannot contain now enclosed in a tiny body. As they look, they believe and do not question, as their symbolic gifts bear witness: incense for God, gold for a king, myrrh for one who is to die. (Sermo 160: PL 52, 620-622)

These three gifts invite us to reflect on what we bring to the Lord each time we encounter Him, as they are an expression of what we believe of Him.  The gift of gold acknowledges that Christ is a king.  He is our King, and yet there are no doubt areas of our lives where we have yet to let Him rule in us.  What aspect of our lives are we still clinging to, unwilling to let Him be in control?  As we begin this year, let us present to Him our lives, giving Him freedom to reign in us in a way like never before, a reign that takes nothing from us, but gives us the gift of peace, joy, and freedom. 

The gift of incense acknowledges that Christ is God.  As such, He is worthy of our adoration and prayerful worship.  As we begin this year, we can consider the place that prayer and worship to God have in our lives.  Are we giving Him our very best when we come to Mass, the place of worship par excellence? Do we prioritize going to Mass every Sunday and Holy Day of Obligation?  Are we mindful of how we prepare for Mass?  Are we intentional about trying to be as attentive as possible, with that full, active, conscious participation the Church asks?  Perhaps we are not where we desire to be with our worship of Him, and that is okay.  Let us ask Him for the grace to love Him more with a love that overflows into a more fruitful expression of our praise, especially at Mass.

The gift of myrrh acknowledges that Christ, while being fully God, is also fully man.  As such, He will one day die.  The myrrh is used for preparing a body after death.  As we begin this year, we might want to consider those places where we are dead or dying and in need of the new life that Jesus offers us.  I have in mind here our relationship with the Sacrament of Penance, or Confession.  When we go to confession, we present to the Lord those places in our lives which cause us pain, guilt, and shame.  We would rather not bring them to Him, but they cannot be healed and brought back to life unless we bring them to Him, whose death alone can destroy sin, and whose Resurrection promises us new life not just after we have confessed, but also for eternal life.  Perhaps this year we can make a more firm commitment to frequent the Sacrament of Penance and so experience the more abundant life that comes from experiencing His healing mercy.

As we begin this new year, let us seek to imitate the Magi in our adoration of this newborn King and offer Him the gifts of our obedience, our worship, and our desire to live anew in the life of grace He offers to us.

When a gift is given, the full and proper response of gratitude is not always automatic or quick. Depending on the quality and type of gift, it can take some time to truly appreciate the magnitude of the generosity and love that were involved in the offering. St. Thomas Aquinas even reflects on this truth when he writes about gratitude in his Summa Theologiae (this section is in II.II.106.4). To truly give thanks, one often needs to take some time after the gift is given in order to reflect and recognize just how meaningful the gift was. This time taken allows the gratitude to be full.

This weekend, we celebrate the appearance (epiphany) of Jesus Christ, the King of Kings, to the magi, or the men commonly known as “the three kings.” They offer him gifts of Gold, Frankincense, and Myrrh. These gifts are kingly and meaningful, and it was only after a great deal of reflection that the Christian community saw the true significance of the gifts. Practically, they may have been a huge support to Mary and Joseph as they escaped to Egypt. 

More symbolically, however, these gifts are seen as prophetic signs revealing who Jesus truly is. He appeared as an ordinary baby boy, and yet he was the Messiah and the God of Israel, the second Person of the Trinity. The Gold, therefore, signified his kingship and royalty. The Frankincense symbolizes his Divinity and his Priesthood. Finally, the Myrrh signified his future death. The darkness of that “hour” at the end of his earthly life overshadows even his beginning as an infant. 

Our understanding of a gift matures upon deeper reflection.

This weekend at Cathedral, we celebrate our Epiphany party. It is an annual chance for parishioners to come together, enjoy fellowship, and celebrate the gift of Christmas. At this point we’ve had some time to relax after the festivities, and we can look back over the past year and give thanks together. 

I look back over this past year with a good deal of happiness. In particular, I am grateful for my assignment here at the Cathedral. In the context of the Epiphany party and this reflection on gratitude, I want to express my own deep thanksgiving to God and to all of you at this parish for the gift of my time here. 

I arrived here right before July 1, 2024, after my ordination as a priest. It’s kind of hard for me to believe but it has been a year and a half now that I’ve been both a priest and a priest at the Cathedral. I’d say that’s a good amount of time for my sense of the gift of this place and God’s goodness to me here to begin to mature and deepen. I certainly am not finished, and after I leave here someday, I’ll be able to look back and truly (or at least as much as I can in this life) realize just how great a gift God gave me in sending me here. 

Truly, I can say I love the people, the priestly fraternity, the prayer, the Masses, the hospital visits, time in the office, time at SHG, weddings, funerals, and so many other gifts that God has blessed me with that I don’t have room to list here. This first assignment has been a true gift from God and is exactly where God knew I needed to be. I pray I have served you well in this time and that God continues to grow and shape me through my time here to serve well all those he will send me to in the future. I could say much more, but I hope that as you enjoy the party this weekend, or if you celebrate the Epiphany elsewhere, you look at your life with the Cathedral family with gratitude. It is a gift from God. May he bless you today and every day!