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The Light of the World
Sixth Sunday after Epiphany
The Mass
This week introduces us to a new aspect of the power of the divine King. In spite of its humble
beginning, the kingdom of God swept all opposition before it and established itself firmly in
the hearts of men. Although apparently weak and helpless, the Church has been sustained
through the centuries by the almighty power of God. The Church has been endowed with a
subtle power to attract the hearts of men, and when they have submitted to her gentle rule, she
proceeds to sanctify them. “The Lord hath reigned.” The Church is an epiphany of the Lord, a
manifestation of His overwhelming power.
Conscious of the strength and vitality which God has given her, the Church approaches the
altar of the Lord. “Adore God. . . . The Lord hath reigned; let the earth rejoice” (Introit). The
Church asks only that she may be faithful to the service which God expects of her. “Grant us,
we beseech Thee, O almighty God, ever to fix our thoughts on reasonable things and to do what
is pleasing to Thee both in words and in deeds” (Collect). The Church has no doubt about her
divine commission or her power; she asks only that her children concern themselves with the
things of God, both in word and in deed. She knows that if they have their minds and hearts
fixed on the things that pertain to God, they will be filled with Christ and will grow in spirit.
Like the Thessalonians, they will live by faith and perform the works of love. They will depend
on the power of God for all things, and rest satisfied with the reward that is promised them in
the kingdom of Christ that is to come. They have turned away from the false gods which they
once served, and are now devoted to the service of the living God (Epistle). Only the power of
the divine King could have accomplished this transformation, and for this reason the Church
rejoices when she sings, “The Gentiles shall fear Thy name, O Lord, and all the kings of the
earth Thy glory” (Gradual).
The strength of the Lord which has been planted in the Church is like the grain of mustard
seed which was sown in a field. The mustard seed is the smallest and most insignificant of all
seeds; yet it grows into a mighty tree. So, too, the seed which God has planted in the Church.
This seed is again compared to the leaven which a woman hid in three measures of meal. In a
short time the whole was leavened. In like manner the power and the strength of God penetrates
the whole Church until it is filled with the spirit of Christ. “The right hand of the Lord hath
wrought strength” (Offertory).
In the Offertory the Church places her prayers of praise and thanksgiving upon the altar. The
most precious offering which she can make is the offering of her heart, and this she makes by
uniting it to the sacred offering of Christ in the Mass. That she may be worthy to associate her
offering with His, she prays in the Offertory prayer for purity of heart and for inward and outward
renewal. Presently the Lord Himself will appear in the midst of His faithful to offer Himself up
for them, and to be offered by them to His heavenly Father.
In Holy Communion He presents Himself to the soul and fills it with His own life. The
sacred host is the mustard seed which God plants in the souls of men; it will soon grow into a
mighty tree. The sacred host is the leaven which the woman hid in three measures of meal. The
almighty Father hides His power in the person of His divine Son, which the soul receives in
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