Episode Transcript  

One

Today we celebrate the Feast of Epiphany

Matthew tells us that, “After Jesus had been born at Bethlehem, wise men came to Jerusalem from the east. 'Where is the infant king of the Jews?' they asked. 'We saw his star as it rose and have come to do him homage.' When King Herod heard this he was troubled, and so was the whole of Jerusalem. He called together all the chief priests and the scribes of the people and enquired of them where the Christ was to be born. 'At Bethlehem in Judaea,' they told him …Then Herod summoned the wise men to see him privately. He asked them the exact date on which the star had appeared and sent them on to Bethlehem. ' Go and search diligently for the child.' he said 'and when you have found him, let me know, so that I too may go and do him homage.' Having listened to what the king had to say, they set out.”

Pope Benedict, in his work The Infancy Narrative, says the men of whom Matthew speaks were not just astrologers. They were “wise.” Wise for one reason and one reason alone. They went in search of Christ.

Two

What prevents us from setting out?

Herod was an unwitting prophet. He said, “Go and search diligently for the child.” We should pursue Christ in the sacraments, in prayer, and in friendship. But often we don’t. What prevents you from searching diligently for Christ? 

Ultimately, there is only one reason: we have a mistaken idea of happiness. We think that happiness is found in our achievements or relationships, or experiences, or good health, or financial security, or the ability to do whatever we want. These things consume our thoughts, our time, our energy, or love.

Every person has two or three things they love and want more than God. The only exceptions are the saints. I am no saint. I know the three things I love and want more than God. I know it because when I am in danger of losing one of them, I become anxious, stressed, angry, or sullen. And all my thought and energy is consumed with protecting them.

These are my idols. And I beg God to purify me of them so that I can possess Him. Do you know yours? Will you admit it? Will you beg Him to purify you?

Three

The Deadly Sin of Sloth 

Notice that upon hearing Christ was born, Herod was troubled and with him, all the inhabitants of Jerusalem. And none of them went in search of Jesus. Why?

They suffered from the deadly sin of sloth. Sloth is not laziness. Sloth is a kind of resentment. It’s resenting God for giving us such a noble calling, to share in his divine life and become a saint. Sloth is like saying to God, “Why couldn’t you have just left me alone to enjoy myself? Why did you call me to become a saint?”

Then we try to escape our noble calling by busyness and distraction. What do you think is the number one reason people give for not spending more time in friendship with God in prayer? You got it! They are too busy. But who is forcing you to be too busy? 

The person lying on the couch binge-watching Netflix may be a more popular image of sloth. But all those over-scheduled and over-committed, those who are busy all the time and in the process neglect God, are the more typical manifestation of sloth in our culture.

Were you too busy in 2025 for the relationship with God you really wanted?

Four

The second way Sloth blocks us from possessing God is by distraction and entertainment

Have any of your kids ever had a major assignment due, and instead of just consistently working at it, they procrastinated the assignment altogether? Well, that’s what people with sloth do. They know the assignment is a deep friendship with Jesus and to become saints, but instead of working on that, they get distracted. 

Why do you think we waste so much time on pointless entertainment: news, shows, sports, social media…? Because we are trying to forget our assignment, union with God, either because we think it’s not possible, or that it will take too much effort, or mostly because we know deep down, we will have to give up our vices and sins we like so much. 

Five

The Epiphany ends with the Wise Men being warned in a dream, so they returned home by a different way.

We all have things we want and love more than God, we all allow ourselves to be too busy, and we all can fall into distraction through entertainment. But let’s go by a different route this year.

So, what changes do I need to make? Only you can determine that. Only you can make the choice. God created you to possess Him, and you will be satisfied with nothing less. But you may need to do something different in your life, you may need to return home by a different way. 

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