Today is the feast of the Epiphany, the twelfth day of Christmas, although in some jurisdictions the official celebration is moved to Sunday, January 8.  Accordingly, the readings for this reflection accompany the Christmas Weekday Mass rather than Epiphany. 

The reading from First John expounds on the evidence for the divinity of Our Lord, a keystone of our faith. The biblical accounts of the first Christmas present evidence for us to ponder, including the angelic hosts witnessed by groups of people as well as more private angelic utterances, not to mention the many prophetic witnesses fulfilled by Our Lord’s birth.  This reading focuses on the witness of the Holy Spirit, which was likewise made known to groups as well as to specific individuals.

At the baptism of our Lord, the Spirit testified to his divinity.  We recount this in the alleluia before the gospel reading: “The heavens were opened and the voice of the Father thundered:  This is my beloved Son:  Listen to him.”  A voice that thundered.  That would be hard to forget. 

Signs and wonders accompanied our Lord throughout his ministry, and they also accompanied the crucifixion, including darkness at midday, a torn curtain in the Holy of Holies, and prophetic utterances by the soldiers who crucified him and one of those crucified with him.  His resurrection and many appearances thereafter, not to mention the miracles performed by those who followed him, likewise provide evidence. And of course, the witness of the Spirit continues through the lives of those who follow Christ down through the ages.  Yes, that witness works through, and even within, us.

“Whoever believes in the Son of God has this testimony within himself.”  We possess this deeper truth of eternal life, even though it is not yet fully realized, because we possess the Son of God.  Periods of desolation may occur when this reality may seem far from us for a time, but we don’t let go of this possession.  The evidence is there, all around us and even within us.  Sometimes this evidence comes from very ordinary things and seemingly mundane events in daily life, which whisper silently to us, telling us not to despair, that this world is full of wonder and there is beauty to behold in the midst of all its troubles, and that we can persist through all this trouble. 

The gospel readings for today permit two variations, the baptism of our Lord in Matthew (an event of witness already noted above) and the long genealogical passage found in Luke, which I would categorize among the seemingly mundane events that nevertheless witness to the truth of our faith.  The genealogies trace our Lord’s ancestry through his legal adoptive father, Saint Joseph.  Our Lord chose to come to us to save us through the long unbroken chain of human life, with all its messes.  He chose to enter into our messy world in order to bring his life to us, and he will keep us through all the messes we must encounter on our journey.  Thanks be to God.