‘Mage, they call me, Magus, or magician; diviner,
sorcerer, wizard. They think I know and can control future events. In truth I
can't. They are who and what they are, whoever and whatever they were made. I
have not the power to change them. I am a scholar. My interest has always been
the sun and moon, the stars and planets. What are their rhythms? What effect do
they have on the earth, on people, on events? It is an ancient and honorable profession.
That's what started us on that journey so long ago.
Something which looked like a star appeared, one we had never seen before. Without
warning it appeared in our Western sky, blazing several orders of magnitude
brighter than anything we had seen before. Nowhere was there a record
describing a star suddenly appearing in such a fashion. There were popular
legends, of course, of stellar events which heralded important earthly events,
such as the birth of a prophet or an Emperor. We read the holy writings of the
Israelite people. There was a statement in the book the Israelites called
Numbers:
"The
oracle of Balaam son of Beor, the oracle of the man whose eye is clear, I see
him, but not now; I behold him, but not near – a star shall come out of Jacob,
and a sceptre shall rise out of Israel.... One out of Jacob shall rule.... (Numbers 24:15, 17, 19)
So, armed with observations, with prophetic words, and
our need to find out, we set off on roads we had never travelled before,
language we did not know, different food and different people. I never did like
traveling. The camels were stubborn, balky, and miserably uncomfortable to ride.
Unfortunately, in the desert camels are the best mode of transport. Sometimes I
would get off and walk, just to get away from them. Most nights we camped by
the road, with only a miserable campfire to warm us, and our clothes to cushion
the stone hard ground. If and when there was an inn, it was usually small and
cramped, with poor food - and somehow whenever *we* appeared the prices were
astoundingly expensive. Sometimes the smell of those places, or the bedbugs and
fleas, made sleeping on the ground preferable.
On we went, mile after miserable mile, day after
dreadful day, freezing in the snow which often hits this part of the country. I
tell you, I was getting less and less optimistic about this journey. The
problem was, many of my colleagues thought this was grand adventure, excitement
and anticipation, the different food and landscapes amazing, the possibilities
for learning endless. They would tell you it was the chance of a lifetime to do
something completely unknown, to risk everything to take this journey.
Finally we came to Jerusalem; and were directed to the
palace. Herod was king, the third ruler with that name. Because he succeeded in
staying in favour with Rome and carried out a great building program to
memorialise himself, he styled himself Herod the Great. We were ushered into
his presence, and because of our credentials and the distance we had come, he
treated us with some courtesy. So we asked where we might find the child born
to be king of the Jews. We said we had seen the star, and deduced that it was
connected to the ancient writings. When he heard our question his face paled;
he was visibly shaken. Promising to consult priests and scholars, he dismissed
us. We were taken to guest rooms where baths and food were provided. After we
had rested, we were summoned to a private audience, and Herod questioned us
about the star. When had it appeared? What did it look like? What made it so
special? As we answered him, he determined that we should go on to Bethlehem.
He told us to search for the child, and to make sure we let him know when this new
king had been found.
Since Bethlehem was only about five miles south of
Jerusalem, we set out late that afternoon. It was just dark when we arrived.
Riding up the hill into the town, it appeared that the star had shifted and
begun to move. Obviously Bethlehem was not going to be our next stop. So we
continued, inquiring and learning that several families who had been there had
left quite suddenly, and gone probably to Egypt. Well, once we had gone that
far, we felt we must go on to whatever end there was in this journey. We all
agreed, even I, that we had been brought this way for a reason, even if that
reason was not yet clear.
So on we went - all the way into a small place in
Egypt, the star continuing to lead us - until suddenly it seemed to stop over a
small house. Or maybe we just thought it did – I was never too sure. Yet we
knew this was the place! When we were admitted, we saw in the lamplight a small
child. His mother invited us to sit, and offered us food - humble, but
delicious and warm, far better than the food in the inns. We knelt to look at
this child more closely. He seemed ordinary, and yet there was nothing ordinary
about him. It was as if he were filled with something far more than human. We
gave our gifts, tokens of gold, incense and perfume. Even though his parents
were poor peasants, they received our gifts with a royal grace and dignity,
acknowledging us but in complete humility.
Since it was late and the road was quite dark, and
they had little room inside, we camped yet another night, but in a small shed.
The wind, for some reason, seemed not so cold, nor the ground quite so hard. But
our sleep was filled with strange dreams. I awoke more than once feeling
terrified. My dreams were filled with a vision of Herod's face streaked with
blood, and loud screams of terror which made me break out in a sweat. Something
was not right.
The next morning, having all had similar dreams, we
agreed that we would not return to Herod. Instead we angled around through the
hills, back toward Hebron, but then East, below the Salt Sea, before returning
to our homes on a different route – one far less travelled. On our way home, we
heard the tales of a massacre of small boys under two years old.
That was many years ago, and I have taken other
journeys since then, but none quite like that one. I am not even exactly sure
why I undertook that journey, given that I don’t really like to travel without
having a really precise road map all the way and all the details covered. I
have come to think it was not by my choice that I went, but more that I was
drawn on that journey, pulled by the one who inspired the prophecy and raised
the star. On that journey, I saw two kings; Herod, a skilled political ruler
who eliminated anything which he perceived as a threat. The other was the
child. For all Herod's acumen and experience, he was no different than anyone
else who has touched power. For all the child's helplessness and innocence, he
seemed to be the embodiment of a saying from the ancient Israelite holy
writings, come to life:
"Look, the young woman shall become pregnant, and have a son, and
he will be called Emmanuel," which in their language means, "God is
with us."
I think that is the one phrase which sticks with me
after all these years. Despite the cold, the discomforts, the strange food and
dangerous roads, despite the fact that I am not even of their faith, I believe
God was with us on that journey. Had I stayed home I would have regretted that
for the rest of my life.”
January 6 is Epiphany. Every
year, the lectionary brings us the Magi; we take all the elements of three
years’ worth of biblical story and scrunch it down into weeks - four of Advent,
one or two for Christmas, one for Epiphany – and thus forget that this story
played out over several years. The Magi are generally identified as Medeans
living in Persia, which at the time of Jesus’ birth was part of the Parthian
Empire. They were scientists, priests, astrologers, and almost certainly
Zoroastrians, an entire social class of priests and sages, the center of
spiritual- political authority through several great empires over roughly five
thousand years. They interpreted dreams and led sacred rituals, and may have been
responsible for crowning any new ruler who came to power. If true, then to be
crowned without the favour of the Magi would jeopardize the legitimacy of any
king.
They believed that stars
could be used to predict the birth of great rulers. They believed that the next
great ruler was about to be born: the "king of the Jews." But even
so, why visit the newborn king of a foreign nation? We could assume that their
main intention was diplomatic; they may have thought that Herod had produced a
son, who would exceed his father's legacy by leaps and bounds. Rome and Parthia
were the two "superpowers" of the era.
They arrive in Jerusalem to
find Herod suffering from syphilis, paranoid and almost dead. There was a
laundry list of people happy to help him along to the next world. He had killed
his previous wife and several sons out of suspicion that they were trying to
kill him. He knew the new king was not his offspring. So he consulted with
advisors, found out about the prophecy, and determined to find this usurper to
his power.
After a journey of about 1300
miles, all the way into Egypt, the Magi found Mary, Joseph and the child of
approximately two years old. What went through the minds of these aristocrats
as they met this poor couple of a different race and religion, a mere step up
from untouchables? They were not Jewish, but foreigners, Gentiles, considered
pagan. If you look closely at your Christmas cards, you might see that
tradition has one of them African, one Asian, and one Caucasian. Nowhere does
it say there were three, just that they were Magi from the east.
So, rich and influential
Zoroastrian scholars and astrologers made a pilgrimage to a town in a country
more than a thousand miles from their home. They saw a celestial phenomenon
which they believed heralded the birth of a new king, perhaps even a new kind
of king. They travelled an incredible distance, found the one they were
seeking, and presented incredibly expensive and significant gifts. They were
not Jews, yet what they found transcended any individual faith. They had an
“Aha!” moment - in fact, a couple of them. They took a long journey to an
unknown place, which in itself was full of learning; they stretched themselves
in coming to find a child of Peace, who was not of their faith; they saw
through Herod, and returned on a different road - another one they likely had
not travelled before. Somehow, they were profoundly changed.
Something happened to all the
players in this story. All of them knew beyond a shadow of a doubt that there
was no return to the same life, from the journeys they had taken. They were
true pilgrims, because they were willing to set out on a long, long journey
without knowing if they would even live. The Magi found what they were seeking,
and left changed by their entire experience. Mary and Joseph did not turn away
the “pagan” Gentiles, but welcomed the visitors and offered hospitality.
When we look back in our church
history, we’ve discriminated against other branches of Christianity, and other
faiths. We discriminate against others within our congregations who don’t see
things the way we do. But the reality is we are all pilgrims on a journey of
faith, hopefully having “Aha!!” moments of our own. Light is beginning to dawn,
a little bit at a time. The whole church is moving into a place which has not
existed for us in recent memory, where the Christian church is not the centre
of faith or the world. It is unknown territory for us, and in this unknown
territory we as individuals are changed.
Rev. Jody Seymour at Davidson
United Methodist Church in North Carolina, says: “People who journey without
being changed are nomads. People who change without going on a journey are
chameleons. People who go on a journey and are changed by the journey are
pilgrims.” So who are we in this story? Are we Magi, or people willing to set
out on the road with them, looking for something unknown? Are we true pilgrims,
or nomads, or chameleons? Do we come here, week after week, year after year,
and nothing changes? Do we hang on to our negativity, our grudges? Are we
Herod?
If we are pilgrims, then we
are on this journey with every single other person in this congregation, this
pastoral charge, this church, and all peoples of all beliefs - and we owe it to
all of those others to have respect for them, even when we do not agree. God
works in the world in God’s way. If we treat one person poorly, then all our
claims are empty – and if we claim to follow Jesus, to follow the star, we have
no other option but to allow ourselves to change and be changed. Epiphany means
seeing new light and stepping out on a new road. Just as we were called to
repent in Advent, so now we are called to live the repentance. May it be so.
Sources:
- "The Mage's Tale" by William A. McWeeny January 1997)
- “A New Road” Matthew 2:1-12 Epiphany 2008
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