"We Are the Point of Epiphany"

Well, it’s Epiphany — so where is God? Epiphany means “the manifestation of a divine being,” so — let’s see It! After all, we live in a culture that demands proof that is preferably empirical. We have heard the story about the wise men picking up on astral wonders and following a prophetic star. They got to see the baby. When do we get our chance?

We humans are so eager to see That Which Lies Beyond Us that we often miss That Which Dwells Among Us. Writing in the seventh century, St. Maximos the Confessor declared, “The center of a circle is regarded as the indivisible source of all the radii extending from it; similarly, by means of a certain simple and indivisible act of spiritual knowledge, the person found worthy to dwell in God will perceive pre-existing in God all the inner essences of created things.”

Basically, Maximos is saying that the Divine courses through all things. With a touch of spiritual understanding, we become aware of It and see It.

So, in a moment of awareness, when you look in a mirror, you see It. When you are embraced by your child, your partner, your spouse, or your lover you are held in the embrace of It. When you gaze with wonder upon the beauty of creation — the intricacy of snowflakes, a wandering deer, a playful puppy, a crashing waterfall — you are gazing upon It.

Do you see It? Now’s your chance!

There are many dull-eyed people in the world who need to see It but can’t, for whatever reason. It isn’t our place to judge their dim vision one way or another. We’re called to live beyond that. Rather than pointing to the shortcomings of others, spiritual or otherwise, we are called to be the focus of that prophetic star. We are called to live a life that reveals our inner essences pre-existing in God. We are the point of Epiphany, we are the revelation.

Sure, it is easier to pine away for a super special-effects-filled return of the Son of God, complete with thunderbolts and the fires of Armageddon. It is even easier to just ignore the whole story. But we do either at our own peril. Both of these choices deny the greatest story, and that is you and me. God is made complete in you and me. Our inmost essence has been cradled in the Love of God from before time and beyond.

In a moment of Epiphany, touch that essence and, in outrageous acts of Love, allow the world to see the manifestation of the Divine.

Joel t