ARE WE WALKING IN THE TRUTH?

ARE WE WALKING IN THE TRUTH?
Dear brothers and sisters, this Sunday we remember the Magi who came from faraway lands to worship the baby Jesus.
They came guided by a star. It is a unique story that opens our eyes to the fact that God is not limited to anyone. Notice
how different people came to know that the Son of God was born. The shepherds who were regarded as unclean and
could not take part in Temple worship without undergoing purification came to know through a direct vision of angels.
The magi knew through a reading of the stars. And King Herod’s scribes came to know through searching the scriptures.
Visions, stars, scriptures — different ways of arriving at the same truth. Matthew in his gospel indicates that when the
guiding star got to Jerusalem its light failed and the magi had to consult the scriptures to direct them to Bethlehem. Over
and above the natural light of the star, the magi still needed the supernatural light of scripture to finally get to Jesus. Herod and his scribes who had the scriptures failed to find Jesus but the magi who followed the natural light of the stars were
able to find him. Why? Because the Jewish authorities, even though they possessed the shining truth of revealed scriptures, did not follow it. They did not walk in the light of the scriptures. The magi, on the other hand, who enjoyed only a
star light followed its guidance. It is not the possession of the truth that matters, it is how prepared we are to walk in the
light of the truth that we possess. As Christians we believe that our religion possesses the fullness of the truth. But what
does that benefit us if we do not walk in the truth? Let us examine… Father Maria Joseph Kodiganti