Star Power

If the Magi had been trying to find Jesus using stars today, they’d be lost. Looking up in our modern neighborhoods, it can be challenging to make out more than a few dozen of the brightest stars. We’ve even reached a point where “Blue Light Blocking Glasses” are a thing—to protect our eyes from over-exposure to our digital screens.

So what do we do to see the stars? We escape to landscapes where the light we create as humans doesn’t pollute God’s creation: deserts, mountains, and even deep space. In our lives, no big stars in the sky are leading us where we need to go. It isn’t so easy sometimes to discern where God is leading us. We may seek to use our gifts wisely, but in what manner and to what end is not always clear.

Fr. Prosper asked me a question this week: why did the star lead the Magi through Jerusalem before their ultimate destination of Bethlehem? That’s a circuitous route! However, when we look at our lives, God’s path isn’t straight. My life certainly has had pivots, twists, and turns. It was the faith of the Magi that the journey was just as important as the destination—that they needed of preview of the end to understand the beginning. Why else would they bear a gift of myrhh—the very substance used to wrap Jesus’ body after his death? (To be fair, it was a prescribed holy anointing oil used to anoint the tabernacle, high priests, and kings—but still, I appreciate the connection.)

St. Monica is a place where on our journeys, we can invite Christ to be with us every step of the way. God may not offer a star in the sky to lead us, but if we invite ourselves on our daily journey, the path will be much clearer.