It’s hard not to ponder the horrific irony in the timing of this year’s Epiphany feast celebrated Jan. 6, and the killing of a Minneapolis woman by ICE agents a day later.

The Christian observance of Epiphany celebrates the arrival of the magi who traveled a great distance to see the newborn baby savior, signifying Jesus’ revelation to all the world as the messiah, not only to the Jews.

In other words, it’s a festival to recognize the savior’s manifestation as God in the flesh.

Because of that, an epiphany also can be described as a moment when one has a clarifying spiritual experience in which God, or just the heavenly kingdom in general, becomes crystal clear to them.

I mean, what could be more joyful than the thought of God making himself known to all in the everyday form of baby Jesus?

And then the very next day after this year’s Epiphany celebration, ICE agents shot and killed a 37-year-old mother during a confrontation in Minnesota’s largest city, making one wonder where in the world was God during all of that.

There seems little room for an epiphany in such a tragic event, and I can see why so many people are outraged. When federal agents can indiscriminately shoot and kill Americans right in the middle of a street in broad daylight, who can see God present in that?

Fair question. One that I don’t have the answer to.

But what I do know is this: We have a God who promises to be with us in all of our heartache and helplessness and hardship. … It’s just that sometimes we have to dig real deep and work real hard to witness the epiphany in such a messy world.

I admit that even I don’t know what to do with all my anger over this most recent senseless, violent act, and so many more perpetrated by those currently in power who only care about holding onto that power.

However, my friends, what we can’t do is let these emotions turn into rage because that is not doing here on earth as it is in heaven. Rage begets rage; hate begets hate. And neither is going to turn around our current circumstances.

No, rather as faithful people we need to look to the heavenly beacon in the sky just as the magi did 2,000 years ago. We need to find the Star of Bethlehem that shone so brightly that the magi were compelled to travel some 1,000 miles to find God lying in a manger.

Similarly, we need to follow today’s mythical Star of Bethlehem all the way through this country’s long dark night of our soul until we do witness an epiphany that can help us make sense of this tragedy.

And work like that takes faith and patience and love. Amen.

— Devlyn Brooks is the CEO of Churches United in Moorhead, Minn., and an ordained pastor in the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America serving Faith Lutheran Church in Wolverton, Minn. He blogs about faith at findingfaithin.com, and can be reached at devlynbrooks@gmail.com.