During a holiday visit to some friends, I was asked by my friends’ eight-year-old son about the scariest movie I’ve seen.  I responded, “The Wizard of Oz.  The green witch is frightening enough, but those flying monkeys are truly creepy.”  My friends’ son agreed knowingly with a nod of his head. 

Then, I asked my friends’ son about the scariest movie he has seen.  He responded, “Home Alone 2.  It’s really scary when the burglar gets turned into a skeleton.”  I haven’t seen that movie, but I comprehend the frightening nature of skeletons. 

There is no lack of scary stories to tell. The story in today’s Gospel, for example, contains all the elements required for a truly scary movie.  There is an evil king who would do anything to protect his power, wise and visionary strangers from a foreign country, and innocent victims who narrowly escape danger. 

The purpose of the Epiphany, however, isn’t to frighten us.  The evil king, the wise men, and the several dangers serve to highlight the message of the Epiphany – a message about the nature of truth.  Not coincidentally, this message about the nature of truth is as timely today as it ever was. 

In our society, truth and truthfulness are often disputed.  Some of the disputes are about what is true, and other disputes are about whether any truth can exist. 

Truth can be defined in the classical sense of objective data that is learned through experience.  Under this definition of truth, science and history are comprised of truthful data that apply universally at all times, to all people, and in all situations.   

Alternatively, truth can be defined as a purely individual and subjective experience that exists to validate one’s personal opinions.  Under this definition of truth, the data of science and history are true if they support one’s opinions, but false if they challenge one’s opinions.  Data, therefore, can be both true and false at the same time, depending on the opinions of those who perceive the data. 

A subset of those people who define truth subjectively are at least honest enough with themselves to say that no truth really exists; rather, there is only personal opinion.  This judgment about the non-existence of truth is usually associated with nihilism or sociopathy, 

The above definitions of truth are emblematic of the twenty-first century, but they do not differ greatly from the attitudes of people in the ancient world.  The ancient Roman Empire enforced laws that benefited the government but did nothing to protect its vassal states from crime and corruption.  Consequently, there were no universally accepted rules except for the rule of the survival of the fittest; most people perceived their lives to be ruled by chaos and injustice. 

One of the notable similarities between our society and the ancient societies under Roman rule is that people, both then and now, put very little trust in authority and held very little hope that their situation would improve.  The message of truth proclaimed by the Epiphany was addressed to people who struggled to know if any truth existed and, if truth existed, could it be known with certainty. 

The definition of truth proclaimed by the Epiphany is an obvious one that is too often overlooked.  The truth revealed by the Epiphany is that human viciousness is incompatible with God’s conciliation. 

Herod was a deeply insecure despot whose depravity made infanticide look like an appropriate way to maintain political power.  The religious leaders whom Herod consulted were so timid and self-concerned that they protected their social status by willing complicity with Herod’s injustice. The Magi made an arduous journey in order to give appropriate worship to the Incarnate Son of God.  Joseph and Mary were so devout and trusting that they followed God’s will without hesitation. 

The Epiphany reveals truth that both enlightens the disputes about facts and offers certainty about human existence.  The truth of the Epiphany reveals that God desires only what is best for us and does only what is good for the world.  The Epiphany also reveals that God’s People are to imitate God’s benevolence and providence. 

The story of the Epiphany contains frightening characters, mortal threats, deep devotion, and unshakeable faith.  This isn’t a scary story; it is a story that intends to reveal eternal truth against a background of transitory evil and injustice.  The truth is that all people need and deserve to receive justice and loving kindness; any claim to the contrary is proven to be a falsehood by the claimant’s desire for fair treatment from others. 

God freely gives justice and mercy to those who call upon God’s Name.  God’s limitless generosity makes us free to imitate God’s benevolence and providence.  For this reason, the truth of the Epiphany is described as light – the light that reveals human nature as being in need of justice and God as the only source of what all people need and deserve.