St. Peter Chrysologus was bishop of Ravenna way back in the 5^th century. In 1729, he was declared a doctor of the Church, largely because of the profound insights he gave the world through his sermons.

One of those insights relates to the feast we celebrate today—the Epiphany of our Lord. Specifically, it concerns the question the magi posed to the people of Jerusalem and eventually to King Herod: "Where is the newborn king of the Jews?"

The point made by St. Peter Chrysologus is that the magi did not need to ask this question. And that makes perfect sense, does it not? God was leading these men himself through the instrumentality of a star, so all they had to do was continue following it! They didn’t need to ask for directions from Herod or anyone else.

So why did they ask? According to St. Peter, it was to taunt and chastise Herod and the people of Jerusalem! In effect, the magi were saying to them, "Why isn’t the newborn king of the Jews here where he belongs?!" St. Peter writes in his sermon, "’Where is the newborn king of the Jews?’ This is tantamount to saying: Why does the king of the Jews lie in a manger, and not repose in the Temple? Why is he not resplendent in purple, rather than poorly clad in rags? Why does he lie hidden in a cave, and not on display in the sanctuary?"

My personal theory is that the star led the magi to Bethlehem via Jerusalem. But when the star didn’t stop in Jerusalem, the magi were startled; they were perplexed. They said to themselves, "Wait a minute. This star has appeared because the new king of the Jews has been born. We know that. But why isn’t it stopping here in Jerusalem? This is David’s city; this is where the king of Jews is supposed to be. Why haven’t these people welcomed their new ruler? Why isn’t the king where he belongs?"

A very good question 2,000 years ago, and a very good question for us today!

Why isn’t the king where he belongs?

Following Jesus Christ, our Savior and King, is supposed to be our number one priority in life. He is supposed to be enthroned in our hearts, such that every single aspect of our lives is conformed to his Gospel. But that is not the case for any one of us, since we all sin every day! Following Jesus is not always number one on our list of priorities. We can be tempted, for example, to eliminate daily prayer, or give Jesus just a few minutes at the beginning or end of the day (if we happen to think of it!). We can be tempted to neglect Mass when something "really important comes up." We can get casual about arriving at Mass on time, and become callous about leaving early. And we can be tempted to pick and choose what teachings of the Church we will follow. Jesus is the King of kings and the Lord of lords who deserves our complete obedience and the very best we have to give in terms of time and talent and energy! So, why isn’t the King enthroned in our hearts the way he should be? Why isn’t the King where he belongs?

Why isn’t he where he belongs in our families? How many families are really united in their love of God and their commitment to Christ and his Church? How often do we even talk about God with members of our families? How often do we pray with members of our families? How often do we say grace before meals? Why isn’t the King where he belongs?

Why isn’t the King where he belongs in our interpersonal relationships? That’s a question I could have asked a young man the other day who called me to book a date for his wedding. At one point I questioned him about his fiancee and where she was from. Then I said, "And what religion is she?" He said, "Wait a minute, Father, I’ll ask her."

He didn’t know what religion she was! And he plans to marry this person! How can you be ready to make a lifelong commitment to someone when you don’t even know what they believe about God? Is the King where he belongs in that relationship? Obviously not, since he’s not even sure if she believes in Jesus, the King!

And why isn’t the King where he belongs in our culture, and in our nation’s public life? Why isn’t he where he belongs at our town council meetings? In case you missed it, it’s highly likely that praying to the King will no longer be permitted in that particular setting.

Personally, I thought Fran Valliere had an excellent insight on this matter, which he shared in a letter to the editor in last Sunday’s Westerly Sun. Fran’s basic point was that real inclusiveness should mean that everyone on the town council is free to pray as he or she chooses to pray. Thus, a Moslem town council member should be free to offer a public prayer to Allah; a Jewish town council member should be free to pray publicly to Yahweh; a Christian town council member should be free to offer a public prayer to Jesus Christ; and an atheist town council member could choose to have a moment of silence when his turn to offer the invocation came up.

I think that’s the true "American way." After all, the Founding Fathers of our country believed very strongly that the citizens of this great nation should be free to acknowledge the King publicly. They believed in freedom of religion, not freedom from religion. Unfortunately the ACLU believes the latter, and right now they are much more influential in our nation than George Washington and Thomas Jefferson are.

Why isn’t the King where he belongs?

Ultimately I would say there are two ways for us to respond to that question. We can either respond like Herod, or like Peter Chrysologus and the saints.

As you will recall from your reading of Sacred Scripture, Herod responded to the question by getting angry and then slaughtering the Holy Innocents.