Special Papal Angelus Address on the Epiphany with Pope Francis

 

POPE

• ANGELUS
• POPE
• EPIPHANY

Pope at Angelus: Magi teach us to wonder at the humble Child Jesus

At the Angelus prayer on the Feast of the Epiphany, Pope Francis invites Christians to look to the Child Jesus and wonder at His humility, as the Magi did when they arrived at the manger in Bethlehem bearing gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh, and to see the problems of the world through the eyes of children.

By Lisa Zengarini

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Pope Francis prayed the Angelus on Saturday, the Solemnity of the Epiphany of the Lord, with pilgrims gathered in St. Peter’s Square.

In his remarks ahead of the traditional Marian prayer, the Pope invited the faithful to reflect on the scene of the Magi, who, after wondering about the apparition of a star, set out for Bethlehem to find Jesus and offer Him their gifts.

The humility of the Child Jesus, God made man

The three wise men, said the Pope, didn’t find a prince or a nobleman, but a simple Child, the child of poor people, and recognized in Him the presence of God prostrating themselves before Him.

Their experience, he said,  is important for us too, as “in the Child Jesus, we see God made man” and invites us to “wonder at His humility” like they did.

“Contemplating Jesus, staying before Him, adoring Him in the Eucharist, remarked the Pope, “is not wasting time but giving meaning to time; it is rediscovering the course of life in the simplicity of a silence that nourishes the heart.”

“Let us stay before the Child too; let us pause in front of the crib.”

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Pope Francis then invited Christians to listen to and learn from children “who also speak to us of Jesus, with their trust, their immediacy, their wonder, their healthy curiosity, their ability to cry and laugh spontaneously, and to dream.”

“If we stand before the child Jesus and in the company of children,” he said, “we will learn to be amazed, and we will start out simpler and better, like the Magi. And we will know how to have a new and creative outlook on the problems of the world.”

“Let us ask ourselves, then: in these days, have we stopped to adore, have we made a little space for Jesus in silence, praying before the crib? Have we dedicated time to the children, to speaking and playing with them? And finally, are we able to see the problems of the world through the eyes of children?”

Pope Francis concluded by praying that Mary, Mother of God, may “increase our love for the Child Jesus and for all children, especially those burdened by war and injustice.”