If the Christian vocation comes first, if the star shines ahead to start us along the path of God's love, it is illogical that we should begin to doubt if it chances to disappear from view. It might happen at certain moments in our interior life – and we are nearly always to blame – that the star disappears, just as it did to the wise kings on their journey.

The Magi did not yield to the temptation of thinking that no one would understand their difficulty. Instead, they asked for advice, trustingly and without worrying whether anyone might be surprised at their inquiries. They had got as far as they had because they had a great supernatural outlook.

But they also displayed a lot of common sense. They did all that was humanly possible to find their way again. It would have been childish at this juncture to abandon their project, and to cause the best hours of their lives, those spent following the star, to be wasted. It would have been unjust, even to themselves, to have returned home simply because they had lost that guiding star. And they were right; for God was at hand.

When they saw the star again, they rejoiced exceedingly, with great joy. They rejoice with that immense joy because they did what they were supposed to do. And they rejoiced because they were certain that they were on their way to the King who had just been born. And this is what you and I are doing now.

Painting by Hugo van der Goes (c. 1430/1440 – 1482) Flemish artist