THE EPIPHANY OF THE LORD

[cappie]

When we hear today’s Gospel the visit of the Magi  we see how fearlessness in seeking the holy leads to freedom and joy.

So, in what ways are the magi fearless?

 The wise men are not afraid to stop and ask for directions. If you prefer, they are not afraid to ask for help, get more information. They may have special abilities, like noticing and tracking an unusual star, but they do not neglect the use of basic common sense. Looking for a king? Go to the king’s house. Ask for help there. “Where is the child who has been born king of the Jews?” they ask, we observed his star, and here we are, ready to do him homage.”

When Herod hears about this, he is terrified. King of the Jews? I am the King of the Jews! Herod thinks. There is a young pretender to my throne out there somewhere. Herod is scared, but he knows where to go for more information. He knows scripture will have the details he and the wise men need.

This is important. The wise men know something of God’s grace through nature. Through the appearance of the star, they know that the Christ has been born, but their knowledge from nature alone is incomplete. They need scripture to tell them where. By the star’s guiding, they are close—they are about 14 Kms away from Bethlehem—but experiencing God through nature is not enough. They do not know enough to get to the full manifestation of God. They do not know enough to be able to truly worship.

On the other hand, Herod can get a room full of scholars together and still not truly worship. One can memorize verses from the Bible, but miss the Gospel, the Good news of God’s redeeming love for all people in Jesus Christ.

Herod does not question the authenticity of the star. He does not question the authenticity of the scripture. But he is so certain of his own importance that he will not even go with the magi to see the child for himself.  He would rather stay in Jerusalem, send others to do his bidding, turn his magi guests into servants—go, do this and that, and then come back and tell me.  He is not seeking God’s truth, so he spends his time and energy scheming and deceiving.

The wise men, not afraid to ask for help, direction, guidance, and not afraid to trust the witness of scripture, continue on their way, filled with great joy.

They follow the star and the guidance of the scripture to Bethlehem where they find the Christ child. They worship and offer their gifts – gold, for a king; frankincense, to honour his divinity; myrrh, because this divine king will die, and myrrh is used to anoint the body of a king. The wise men achieved their goal: worshipping the true king of the Jews.

Then, they show fearlessness in two more ways.

First, during the night, they receive word in a dream not to return to Herod. And they obey. They do not second-guess the divine. The wise men are not intimidated by worldly power, and they are not drawn by it either. They are not afraid that Herod told them to come back and they are not obeying him. They do not get caught up in Herod’s intrigues or see if maybe there could be something in it for them if they go to Herod, or if maybe they can change Herod.

Second, they return home by another way. They are not afraid to incorporate new information when it is given to them, even if it changes their plans.

With their departure by another way, the wise men exit the story.

But they do not have to exit our lives as witnesses and examples. After all, they were the first of all the people, through the generations and throughout the world, who worship Jesus Christ and find that perfect love casts out all fear.

Like the Magi, we may not know exactly what we are looking for, but if we set our sights high enough, God will not hesitate to lead us into new epiphanies where we will meet God among us in unexpected and wildly rich ways.