The Festival of the Epiphany of our Lord Jesus Christ ---- 6 January 2019

Matthew 2:1-12

1 In the time of King Herod, after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea, wise men from the East came to Jerusalem, 2 asking, "Where is the child who has been born king of the Jews? For we observed his star at its rising, and have come to pay him homage." 3 When King Herod heard this, he was frightened, and all Jerusalem with him; 4 and calling together all the chief priests and scribes of the people, he inquired of them where the Messiah was to be born. 5 They told him, "In Bethlehem of Judea; for so it has been written by the prophet: 6 "And you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah, are by no means least among the rulers of Judah; for from you shall come a ruler who is to shepherd my people Israel.' " 7 Then Herod secretly called for the wise men and learned from them the exact time when the star had appeared. 8 Then he sent them to Bethlehem, saying, "Go and search diligently for the child; and when you have found him, bring me word so that I may also go and pay him homage."

9 When they had heard the king, they set out; and there, ahead of them, went the star that they had seen at its rising, until it stopped over the place where the child was. 10 When they saw that the star had stopped, they were overwhelmed with joy. 11 On entering the house, they saw the child with Mary his mother; and they knelt down and paid him homage. Then, opening their treasure chests, they offered him gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh. 12 And having been warned in a dream not to return to Herod, they left for their own country by another road.

wise men from the East came to Jerusalem, asking, "Where is the child who has been born king of the Jews?

·       This festival of the Epiphany (or “Three Kings Day” or “Little Christmas” if you prefer) brings us the Gospel story of visitors from far away lands who come to honour the child Jesus having observed his star at its rising…

·       It’s an odd story since it includes unknown “wise men” coming to see the Christ child because they observed his star at its rising… It also includes a note of menace as Herod says the wise men are to report back to him so that I may also go and pay him homage. We know what Herod means and he shows his intent in the horrible event that the Church has long called “the slaughter of the innocents”, the killing of all boys up to the age of two in and around Bethlehem. There’s even a very sad Christmas carol about that event, the Coventry Carol.

·       A lot of things have been added to this Gospel story, things that Luke didn’t tell us… like the number of the wise men. Were there three or were there more? We don’t know, but since there were three gifts, we get three wise men. Tradition has named them Caspar, Melchior, and Balthasar, but they might have been Curly, Moe, and Larry since Luke doesn’t say.

·       We call them “wise men” or even “kings.” Luke calls them “magi”, a plural term for the learned priest of the Persian religion of the time. They were known to be astrologers as well, studying the stars for clues about the future. Whatever we might call them, they are not Jewish and they are from the nation that was the deadly rival of Rome in the Middle East. They are Gentiles and possibly even hostile enemies.

·       They bear odd gifts. Modern day comedians have said wise women would have brought casseroles, fresh diapers, and baby sitters. Instead we have gold, frankincense, and myrrh and we might wonder why.

·       I have a story for that. Years ago, when I was part of a monastic order, I’d go for spiritual direction at a near-by Trappist abbey. It was Epiphany and the monks were permitted to speak in the dining room, a rare treat. They also had a sort of party with some wine and desserts. From the library where I sat, I could hear them laughing. Just then the abbot came into the library with the figures of the three magi for the nativity scene. He’d had a few drinks and was very talkative that day. He explained the gifts to me. Gold is the gift worthy of a king, representing our lives given to God. Frankincense is used in worship as the incense mentioned in the book of Revelation, so it is the gift of worship, our worship and prayer. Finally, myrrh is said to be the most bitter of herbs and could be used in incense. It is used in burial rites and it is a foreshadowing of Jesus’ own death. Or so the abbot told me. In these gifts, the magi acknowledged Jesus as King, God, and sacrifice for the sins of the world.

·       So is there Good News here among all these additions? Absolutely! “Epiphany” means “appearance” or "manifestation" and in this festival we celebrate the appearance of the Word made flesh. In many traditions, this is the end of the Christmas season (although you can stretch it to next week’s festival, the Baptism of Jesus, which is also tied to the idea of Epiphany), so we continue to celebrate and rejoice in the Incarnation of Jesus.

·       Add to that the presence of the Gentile wise men, honoring the Word made flesh. Now in their presence in the Gospel, the Gentile world is added to the people of God. Now all people are God’s people, are the chosen people, without taking one thing away from the Jewish people as God’s people. Luke is believed to be writing to a Jewish-Christian audience, so the inclusion of Gentiles as worshipers of Jesus would be a surprise. In the same way, Matthew may have written to to the Gentile world which despised the poor. So who is first to be told of the birth of Jesus?  Poor shepherds!

·       We may not be rich or powerful or born into a special group. We may not be seen as wise by a great number of people. What we are is blessed and graced and included in the love of God by the one who took on our flesh, who preached good news to the poor, and made us all – no matter where we were born – a holy people.

·       One custom for Epiphany is house blessings. Often the year is written in chalk above the door as well as the initials “C-M-B” for Caspar, Melchior, and Balthasar. The letters can also mean Christus mansionem benedicat – “May Christ bless the house.” May this always be  so.