The First Sunday After The Epiphany

Romans 12:1-5; Luke 2:41-end

Apologies for the delayed post - I hope you had a blessed Sunday yesterday! Now, with no further ado:

This week’s Gospel reading gives us the only canonical account we have from Jesus’ adolescence: the boy of twelve years old staying in the Temple after the Passover after his parents depart; the worry of the parents; the frantic search which culminates in their finding him astonishing the teachers with his understanding. It is tempting, I think, to read this as a charming family story, perhaps even a reflection on the difficulties involved in parenting the Son of God. The sermon illustrations about children lost in shopping malls practically write themselves. But to say no more than this is to miss the point. For in Jesus’ response to his parents’ admonition, we get a marvelously succinct description of Jesus’ mission, and with it, clear evidence that Jesus as an adolescent was clear about his identity and his work: “Wist ye not that I must be about my Father’s business?”

Paolo Veronese, Christ Among the Doctors (c. 1560)