A Homily for the Feast of the Epiphany

On Christmas day,
I stopped by the house of a friend
whose family had gone to Chihuahua
to visit relatives for the holiday.
 
Unable to take off work 
to join in the vacation,
he invited his cousin over for dinner.
  
This was the first time
I met this cousin.
He was young and thin
and his English was poor.
I learned he was married
and that he and his wife
have a two-year-old daughter.
  
Unfortunately, like my friend,
he was unable to be with his family
for Christmas.
Not because his family is in Mexico,
but because his wife and little girl
were apprehended inside a Walmart
and are currently being held
in a detention center near the border.
  
Needless to say,
the atmosphere in my friend’s house
was somber and subdued.
  
These days, as we all know,
the immigrant road 
is a hard road to walk.
  
It is not like the smooth path 
down which shepherds dashed
on the way to Bethlehem.
  
Nor is it like the route
on which Magi totted their camels 
beneath a starlit sky.
  
No.
It was more like 
the dark alleys  
on which Joseph, Mary and the magi fled
to escape Herod’s henchmen.
 
Yes, this young man
is traveling that kind of road.
 
Have you ever found yourself 
on a similar route?
Lost and uncertain
as to what lies ahead?
 
Have you ever found yourself stranded 
like the young mother in dentation,
with no one to turn to or lean on?
  
 If so, what do we do?
When worry closes in...
when despair invades our thoughts...
what do we do?

Do we just keep trudging along...
putting one foot in front of another?
Do we shake our heads in dismay
as tears well-up in our eyes?
  
Or might we follow the example of St. Joseph?
Do we pack the saddle bags, 
secure them to the donkey,
and set off down the road
knowing that God is with us
every step of the way?
 
Do we mirror the faith of Mary?
Do we pull the Savior close
and whisper our fear into his ear?
 
+++        
 
On Christmas day, 
before leaving my friend’s house,
the three of us offered a prayer.
  
I have no doubt 
that the love poured out in that prayer
penetrated the walls of a cell near the border…
and blossomed into a love
that no human heartache or flagging spirit,
no public policy or earthly power 
will ever diminish or destroy
for, indeed, in the words of St. John, 
Light has appeared in the darkness,
a Light no darkness can extinguish,