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January 7, 2024A stranger in a foreign land, I was exhausted and homesick as my summer Spanish immersion ended in Guatemala. The rusty minivan arriving outside my small residence filled me with joyful hope. I was flying home to the U.S. and would be, at long last, completely happy. Or so I thought. After about half an hour of being home, I thought to myself, “This place is boring. I want to go somewhere.” So, I hopped in my car and left to see my friends. As I drove, I wistfully wondered, “Where am I truly at home?”
The feast of Epiphany has a lot to do with our notion of home. Where is our origin? Where are we going? When is our wandering done? Saint Matthew tells us of the Magi, “They were overjoyed at seeing the star.” This star will bring them home, to a place where their questing will end, and they will be satisfied. Their real home is neither in the East nor in the earthly Jerusalem. Somehow, their home is wherever this boy and his parents are.
If you’re a teenager or older, you probably know by now that every physical home we have is temporary. So, we look up at the countless stars in our proverbial skies: things which bedazzle and beckon us to follow toward peace. The Gospel invites us to behold that — at long last — God has sent us a star to follow home, one that whispers, “Follow me! I will take you home!” Perhaps that star is your spouse. A friend. An opportunity. A cause. An intuition about a new direction. A prayer group. What is it for you? How will you know? It will lead you to Mary and Joseph and their son, and you will be home. — Father John Muir ©LPi
