Epiphany of the Lord

This Sunday, we celebrate the Epiphany of the Lord. As you know, this commemorates the three magi finding Jesus and giving Him gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh. 

The gold symbolized that Jesus was royalty and a King. The Jews used burned frankincense on their altars to show their prayers rising to God, so its symbolism was that it was only used for the worship of God, meaning that Jesus was truly divine. 

Myrrh was used in burials to mask the smell of the decaying body; when the magi gave it to Jesus at His birth, it symbolized that Jesus was born to die.

What gift can you give to Jesus? You may not have gold or frankincense or myrrh (well, I don't), but you have something else you can give, something He wants even more than mundane gifts: YOU. Christ wants your love and the salvation of your soul. He wants you to be with Him forever in Heaven more than any gold. He wants YOU more than anything.

So on this Epiphany, think of what you can give to Jesus.

"Lord, every nation on earth will adore you

Justice shall flower in his days,
and profound peace, till the moon be no more.
May he rule from sea to sea,
and from the River to the ends of the earth."

(from Psalm 72, today's responsorial psalm)