FEAST OF THE EPIPHANY (C)
6th JANUARY 2013
THOUGHT FOR
THE DAY
The Epiphany is
older
than
Christmas and has
a deeper meaning.
For
instead
of
simply being an
anniversary of the
birth of Christ, it
testifies
to
the
whole purpose of
the incarnation: the manifestation of
God in Jesus Christ.
ENTRANCE ANTIPHON
Behold, the Lord, the Mighty One, has
come; and kingship is in his grasp, and
power and dominion.
FIRST READING (Isaiah 60: 1-6)
Arise, shine out, Jerusalem, for your light
has come, the glory of the Lord is rising on
you, though night still covers the earth and
darkness the peoples. Above you the Lord
now rises and above you his glory appears.
The nations come to your light and kings to
your dawning brightness. Lift up your eyes
and look round: all are assembling and
coming towards you, your sons from far
away and your daughters being tenderly
carried. At this sight you will grow radiant,
your heart throbbing and full; since the
riches of the sea will flow to you, the
wealth of the nations come to you; camels
in throngs will cover you, and dromedaries
of Midian and Ephah; everyone in Sheba
will come, bringing gold and incense and
singing the praise of the Lord.
RESPONSORIAL PSALM (Psalm 71)
Response: All nations shall fall
prostrate before you, O Lord.
1
O God, give your judgement to the
king, to a king’s son your justice.
That he may judge your people in justice
And your poor in right judgement.
2 In his days justice shall flourish
And peace till the moon fails.
He shall rule from sea to sea,
From the Great River to earth’s bounds.
3
The kings of Tarshish and the sea
coasts shall pay him tribute.
The kings of Sheba and Seba
Shall bring him gifts.
Before him all kings shall fall prostrate,
All nations shall serve him.
4 For he shall save the poor when they
cry and the needy who are helpless.
He will have pity on the weak
And save the lives of the poor.
2nd READING (Ephesians 3: 2-3a.5-6)
You have probably heard how I have
been entrusted by God with the grace
he meant for you, and that it was by a
revelation that I was given the
knowledge of the mystery. This
mystery that has now been revealed
through the Spirit to his holy apostles
and prophets was unknown to any
men in past generations; it means that
pagans now share the same
inheritance, that they are parts of the
same body, and that the same promise
has been made to them, in Christ
Jesus, through the gospel.
GOSPEL ACCLAMATION
Alleluia, Alleluia! We saw his star as it
rose and have come to do the Lord
homage. Alleluia!
THE GOSPEL (Matthew 2: 1-12)
After Jesus had been born at Bethlehem in
Judaea during the reign of King Herod,
some wise men came to Jerusalem from the
east. 'Where is the infant king of the Jews?'
they asked. 'We saw his star as it rose and
have come to do him homage.' When King
Herod heard this he was perturbed, and so
was the whole of Jerusalem. He called
together all the chief priests and the scribes
of the people, and enquired of them where
the Christ was to be born. 'At Bethlehem in
Judaea,' they told him, 'for this is what the
prophet wrote: And you, Bethlehem, in the
land of Judah, you are by no means least
among the leaders of Judah, for out of you
will come a leader who will shepherd my
people Israel.' Then Herod summoned the
wise men to see him privately. He asked
them the exact date on which the star had
appeared, and sent them on to Bethlehem.
'Go and find out all about the child,' he said
'and when you have found him, let me
know, so that I too may go and do him
homage.' Having listened to what the king
had to say, they set out. And there in front
of them was the star they had seen rising; it
went forward and halted over the place
where the child was. The sight of the star
filled them with delight, and going into the
house they saw the child with his mother
Mary, and falling to their knees they did
him homage. Then, opening their treasures,
they offered him gifts of gold and
frankincense and myrrh. But they were
warned in a dream not to go back to Herod,
and returned to their own country by a
different way.
COMMUNION ANTIPHON
We have seen his star in the East, and
have come with gifts to adore the Lord.
Knowledge and Wisdom
What makes the Magi so interesting?
Why are we so fascinated by the story
of the guiding star and the three
distinguished travellers from the east
who stopped to ask for directions? Is it
because just as we are packing away
our festive decorations and finishing
the last of the choccies, the three wise
men come along and give us an extra
dimension to Christmas?
Perhaps it’s fair to say that scientists
rely on facts over instinct. Scientists
are people who are rather reluctant to
believe anything that they can’t prove.
What’s interesting about the three wise
men is that as astronomers, they were
guided by scientific fact and their
knowledge of the stars, but they were
also guided by spiritual curiosity. They
were men with a mission to seek out
truth and wisdom by whatever means.
The wise men didn’t start out with
answers, they had to study, think, learn
and eventually follow their instincts.
They placed their trust in a star that
was behaving oddly! In this case, their
trust was rewarded by finding the baby
Jesus. They worshipped him because
he was the answer to their spiritual
quest. Unlike us, they didn’t pack
Christmas up into the attic and get on
with their lives as though nothing had
happened. It’s likely that they would
have gone home changed men. For
the Magi, life would never be the same
again.
So what can we learn from this
eccentric trio? In the same way as the
star got the wise men questioning, so
too can we find guiding stars in our
own lives; Signs of the times that force
us to think. What circumstances get us
looking for deeper meaning? The
desire to leave a mind numbingly
meaningless job perhaps? The need to
make sense of an interesting book or
the desire to study a new subject? We
don’t need to cross a desert on a
camel to find answers. We’ve got the
luxury of TV and radio, the internet,
libraries, newspapers, universities,
family, friends and gut instinct. Perhaps
the greatest thing we can learn from
the story is that knowledge is not worth
very much without wisdom.
The star of Bethlehem shone for Jews
and Gentiles alike. The three wise
men, who were not Jews, revealed to
the world a God who is there for all
who seek truth. Because of Jesus, all
spiritual journeys are ultimately eternal
journeys.
Holy Father invites each one of us to
ask ourselves how our faith effects our
every day decision making. This month
we are invited to join in Pope
Benedict's prayer intention " .... that in
this Year of Faith Christians may
deepen their knowledge of the
mystery of Christ and witness
joyfully to the gift of faith in him.”
Peace
Actions
January 2013

Pope Benedict's Prayer
Intention
for
January
2013
Jesus commissioned Simon Peter to
'strengthen' his brothers and sisters.
Pope Benedict, the successor of St
Peter, is doing just that by calling upon
the Church to observe the Year of
Faith, which began on October 11th
2012,and
which
concludes
on
November 24th 2013. While the church
is growing in some parts of our world,
in many others
it seems that
men
and
women
have
forgotten all that
our faith has to
bring. It seems
that in societies
which
were
once
traditionally
Christian,
the
following of Christ is no longer the path
we follow. The closing of churches, the
decline in the number of those
attending Mass regularly, the scarcity
of vocations to the priesthood and
religious life are symptoms of a deeper
erosion of faith. No wonder 'Peter'
looks to 'strengthen’ his sisters and
brothers. During this Year of Faith the
for
In England and Wales ‘Peace
Sunday’ is celebrated on 20th
January 2013 The theme is
'Blessed
are
the
Peacemakers'.
Please help the Woodland Trust to
create more woodland in 2013 by
taking this year's Christmas cards to
your local Marks and Spencer during
January.
From January 2nd to 31st 2013,
specially-marked
Christmas
card
recycling bins will be placed in over
300 participating Marks and Spencer
stores across the UK. For every 1000
Christmas cards brought into store,
Marks and Spencer will plant a tree
with the Woodland Trust.
The Marks and Spencer scheme is
different to most kerbside recycling
schemes because, at the same time as
making sure vast quantities of card are
recycled, it supports the Woodland
Trust by paying for thousands of extra
native trees to be planted in the UK
each year.

Remember to pray for peace in
the Middle East around
Epiphany time.

January 18-25 is Christian
Unity Week. The 2013 theme
is 'What does God require of
us?'
Recycle Your Unwanted
Christmas Presents
Mark Holocaust Memorial
Day on 27th January. The
theme
for
2013
is
‘Communities Together: Build
a Bridge,’ encouraging groups
and individuals to come
together and consider how
neighbours have turned on
each other, and challenges us
to build stronger and more
tolerant
communities.
(www.bethshalom.com)
Before stuffing your
unwanted presents at
the back of the cupboard, think about
how others could benefit if you recycled
them.

Turn
your
Christmas
cards into trees!
Your local charity shop can convert
your gifts into cash to fund vital work.
Begin the year by helping those in most
need.
SICK LIST
Please pray for Eileen Taylor,
Geoffrey Hope, Phyllis Snuggs, Ruth
Edwards, May Frost, Fr Harry
Reynolds, Claire White, Brian
Goldsbury, Joanne Ware, Sheila
Burt, Peggy Devine, Sarah Butler,
Joshua Mills, Tanisha Chester, Jane
Hand, Dennis Cebunka, Victoria
Kane, Katherine Deasey, Eileen &
Oona Treacey, Karen Roche, Jo
Page,
Brenda
Sharp,
Eileen
McNulty, Teresa & Eric Williamson,
John
Collins,
Julien
Clarke,
Anastasia O’Connell, Peter &
Patricia Collins, Frank Whelan, Trent
& Mary Hobbs, Elliott Cable, Kim
Boulton, Baby Ellis, Mary Moody,
Evangelos Sarros, Kay & Ron
Chester, Deacon John Newman,
Ann
Lichfield,
Margaret
O’Donoghue, Hugh Burton, Bishop
Pat Lynch, Brian Gotting, Susan
Graham and Pat Massey.
ANNIVERSARIES
Please pray for all those who have
died recently.
Please also
remember
those
whose
anniversaries occur at this time:
Nancy Connelly, Damiano Buffo,
Winnie Mead, Audrey Philpott,
Shirley Corderey, Alfie Misteldine,
George Clarke, Fred Blick, Ellen
Keese, Bernadette Halpin, William
Goodall, Gerard Kyne, Edward
Penfold, Fred Michelmore, Dorothy
Tovey, Margaret Shanahan, Betty
Reed, George Fitzgibbon, Frank
Dowle, Breda Vardy & Leslie Hurley.
May their souls, and the souls of all
the faithful departed, rest in peace.
Amen.