I am not generally a liturgical fuss budget, but what a mess we are up for. Today's Holy Family celebration had a reading in which the Magi having departed, Joseph has a dream and flees with the family to Egypt--notwithstanding that magi and camels are still on the other side of the altar (probably just edging across the Jordan River).And then, Roman-rite wise, the magi arrive on January 2 (next Sunday, the Epiphany), six days before they are said to have arrived, and with the family already in Egypt (per today's reading).Who's in charge here? The same crowd that has done the new mistranslation?

Margaret O’Brien Steinfels is a former editor of Commonweal. 

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