The Epiphany of the Lord

January 4, 2026

Isaiah 60:1-6; Psalm 72:1-2, 7-8, 10-11, 12-13;
Ephesians 3:2-3a, 5-6; Matthew 2:1-12

By:  Jude Siciliano, OP

Dear Preachers:

Our reading from Isaiah today is especially well suited to the feast of the Epiphany. It begins with a summons addressed to all of us: “Rise up in splendor, Jerusalem! Your light has come.” For people living in darkness—a darkness that shadows so many lives through confusion and misinformation, injustice and inequality, loneliness, isolation, and personal suffering—the prophet’s clarion call holds out hope for light despite the surrounding shadows.

Epiphany does not deny these shadows; rather, it proclaims that Christ has entered them. The light was revealed to the Magi and is revealed to us. This light shines amid modern forms of darkness, and believers are called not only to receive that light for themselves but also to reflect true justice, compassion, and faithful witness, so that those living in the shadow of death may find their way toward hope.

Isaiah’s vision of nations walking by Jerusalem’s light and being drawn to its radiance finds a concrete fulfillment in the story of the Magi. The wise men represent the Gentile world, guided by a star to Jesus. What Isaiah envisioned symbolically—people streaming toward God’s light—Epiphany reveals both historically and personally.

Isaiah anticipates foreigners from Midian and Ephah, “all from Sheba,” coming and bearing “gold and frankincense.” These gifts, later offered by the Magi, indicate that the child is king and worthy of worship, especially through the gift of frankincense. Together, they signal a time when the wealth and homage of the nations will be offered to the Lord—not as political tribute, but as an act of faith and praise.

Isaiah presents a God who is not confined to one people, place, or nation. In Christ, the light rises for everyone, and all are invited to walk in it and be guided by it. Alongside the material darkness of the world, there is also spiritual darkness. Many today live without a sense of meaning or purpose, or with only a limited awareness of God’s presence in their lives. They feel distant from God. This is the “thick cloud” Isaiah describes.

We possess electricity and powerful forms of artificial light, yet inner darkness—the “thick cloud”—cannot be dispelled simply by flipping a switch. Inner darkness is far more difficult to overcome than external shadows.

In the Letter to the Ephesians, Paul reflects on what he calls a “mystery” now revealed by God. In Scripture, a mystery is not a puzzle to be solved, but a divine plan once hidden and now made known. Epiphany, then, is the feast of a mystery unveiled by God. Paul declares that what was “not made known to people in other generations” has now been revealed through the Spirit: the Gentiles are coheirs, members of the same body, and copartners in the promise in Christ Jesus through the gospel.

Epiphany celebrates this radical inclusion as a work of sheer grace—and it also challenges the Church today.

If God’s mystery is about breaking down barriers, then any form of exclusion, superiority, or indifference contradicts the very meaning of Epiphany. The light revealed in Christ is meant to gather, not divide; to unite, not rank. On this feast, the Church’s mission—our mission—is to welcome the stranger, honor difference, and witness to a unity rooted not in sameness, but in Christ.

Moreover, the Church must be genuinely missionary, not merely maintenance-oriented. Epiphany reminds us that God’s saving action moves outward, like the star that led the Magi beyond familiar borders. The gospel is not meant to be clutched and preserved for insiders. The Church must practice radical hospitality and refuse to mirror the world’s divisions. We are called to witness to Christ in unexpected places.

The Magi found Christ in an unexpected place. Likewise, as a Church, we must seek and discover Christ among the marginalized, the forgotten, the wounded, and those living on the edges of society.

Today we are assured that the light has already risen and cannot be extinguished. We did not create the light; we already stand within it. Like the star, we point toward it by the lives we lead. Epiphany thus shapes the Church into a people always being sent—bearing light, welcoming the nations, and trusting that God is still drawing the world toward Christ.