The Epiphany of the Lord
R. Lord, every nation on Earth will adore you.
Written by Allyson Gary
“Lord, every nation on Earth will adore you.” Sometimes, it seems like we’re more divided than ever. The idea that every nation on Earth could agree on anything let alone adore someone seems downright impossible, but that’s the beauty of God’s power. God is capable of bringing us together. And I would argue that it can only be through the work of God that we can all be brought together in love. Now, an important caveat to remember is that the psalmist does not mention that this will be easy. Perhaps we read this psalm and think, “This only applies to us after the Second Coming.” We are somehow absolved of healing the rifts in our communities because reaching across that chasm seems impossible.
As our Christmas season draws to a close, our feelings of good will sometimes come to an end as well. We spend Advent and Christmas trying to increase our holiness and our gratitude, but what happens when Ordinary Time starts up again? Christmas, and its lessons, should not stop here on Epiphany Sunday. We should strive to bring the joy of Christ’s birth into the rest of our year.
The best way to get others to adore God, is to align ourselves first. St. Francis of Assisi said, “Preach the Gospel at all times, and if necessary, use words.” We draw others to the faith not with the cleverness of our words, but with our actions. Living a life of peace and joy, found in the Lord, is what is supposed to set Christians apart from the rest of the world. We are meant to be recognizable by our acts of charity, our words of humility, and our commitment to love and forgiveness.
Perhaps we do not have to wait for Heaven to be united in our adoration of God. For God’s love to radiate from us, we must first accept it. We must spend time with Him every single day to fortify our hearts for the suffering we face in the world. We can heal the divisiveness we face, but we have to start small—we have to start with ourselves.
In the Gospel of Matthew, Jesus instructs us that if we are at odds with our brother, that we must go to him to heal the rift before we come to God’s house. Are there rifts in your own life that need to be healed? Is there forgiveness that you need to extend that you have been withholding?
Throughout Advent, we heard that we must always be ready for God to call us home at any moment, therefore, we must view the healing that must take place in our own lives with the utmost urgency. What divisiveness needs to be healed in your own life? What steps can you take this week to bring about more unity?
Allyson Gary is the host of Memento Mori: The Podcast, where she discusses grieving and death through a Catholic lens. You can follow Moments Mori: The Podcast and Allyson Gary on instagram.
Pray with today’s psalm.