"A STAR IN THE DESERT"

Rev. Jim Petersen

First Congregational UCC- Great Falls, MT

                                          1-6-08                                                                     

Text: Matthew 2:1-12

 

It's O.K. to talk magi this morning. I know the 12 days of Christmas are gone, along with the tinsel, trees and other trimmings, but we can still do Wise Men.  Trust me, we are liturgically correct here.

 

Today is the Day of Epiphany, commencing the season of Epiphany, which follows the 12 days of Christmas, concluded yesterday, with Christmas easily being the shortest season of the Christian calendar year.  Darn!

 

Epiphany will be with us now until the season of Lent takes over on Ash Wednesday, which is early this year, February 5, as is Easter, but it still gives Epiphany better than a month to shine.

 

Epiphany is a lovely word.  It means "revelation" or "manifestation."  It is associated with the story of the Three Wise Men.  On Epiphany, we say, the Wise Men conclude their star struck journey to the stable in Bethlehem, where, for them, the Christ child is "revealed" or "manifest."

 

O.K.?  So Gary was right to read for you this morning this marvelous magi story which only Matthew tells.

 

The church, however, in its wisdom, did not leave it to Matthew alone to tell this story.  Rather the church continued a practice which its Jewish predecessors began.  That is, the rabbinical practice of expounding and expanding the biblical stories that the word of truth might continue to break forth from these old stories in new times and new places, for they, the early church, knew that "God was still speaking."

 

The Hebrew word for this preaching exercise is Midrash.  A retelling of the biblical story in modern dress, that God might speak to us anew, or a retelling of the biblical story with additional details, so we might see the story from a different angle and therefore glimpse God afresh.  Midrash or commentary.  It is a holy exercise.

 

In this spirit, much Midrash is written about the magi.  In fact, even in modern times Midrash has continued to  re-present the Wise Men, for instance, Menotti's opera, Amahl and the Night Visitors, or Henry Van Dyke's short story, The Other Wise Man.  Contemporary rewrites of an old story with new wrinkles.

 

The story of the Wise Men lends itself to Midrash, for Matthew gives us the outline of the story, but not much else.   For instance, all he tells us about the Wise Men is they are from the East, and they are Magi, meaning they are astrologers or magicians.  Our word "magic" comes from the word "Magi."

 

So we can agree this story has exciting potential, even if it is short on detail.  The church, through Midrash or retelling the story, adds to it.  The church tells us there were three Wise Men, not Matthew.  The church, not the Bible, names them Melchior, Balthazar and Gaspar.

 

It is the church who interprets the three Wise Men to represent the three races of humanity, each being a descendant of one of Noah's three sons, Ham, Shem and Japheth.

 

Other stories say they are from three different countries,  or three different ethnic races - black, white and yellow, or different ages - one elderly, another middle aged, the third young.  This is all consistent with what Matthew was trying to do with the story.  Matthew wanted to point out Jesus has come for everybody.  With the Wise Men this is no longer a Jewish story only.  Now "magically"   the child of God is "manifest" to all humanity.

 

Everyone, Jew and Gentile alike, may kneel before the manger.  Which is what these other stories say also.  For the sake of this morning's meditation, let me try a new midrash.   After all, this is what preachers do.  We look for new ways to tell the old stories that new meaning might break forth in our meeting.

 

What I want to do is compare the Wise Men of Matthew to the shepherds of Luke.  In Luke's Christmas story it is the shepherds who come to the stable to worship the Christ child, in contrast to Matthew's magi.  I am suggesting the two stories taken together provide us two very different people who show up at the manger.

 

For instance, take their respective journeys to Bethlehem.  For the shepherds this was relatively easy.  Just over the hill.  They could walk to the stable and still listen for the wolf's howl  near the flock.  Nobody would even know they were gone.  Short trip.

    

It was an entirely different journey for the Wise Men.  For them it took time and sacrifice.  It was arduous and dangerous, through foreign lands via unfamiliar roads.  They had to pack up and leave home in order to follow the star. 

 

The difference between the shepherds and Wise Men can represent the difference between two approaches to faith.  For the shepherds, they have always been there.  It's never been a question.  Or a struggle.  If you ask them when they first believed, they would say, they never knew a time they did not believe.  It was just the way they were born, or, at least, raised.  They always went to church.   For them Bethlehem was an easy journey.

   

Wise Men, and women, find the journey of faith more difficult.  They do not follow the star out of habit or routine.  They follow the star scientifically.  They weigh the evidence carefully and rationally.  They ask questions, consider both sides, and wait until all the facts are in before making up their minds.  This is the way of the intellect.  From their starting place, Bethlehem is a long and circuitous route.

 

The church historically has been filled with shepherds.  There was really no other choice.  The shepherd was told what to believe, and he or she believed.  No one thought to question.  The precepts of the church were handed down from parent to child, simple and clear, inviolate maxims and laws.  The kind of sayings you would sew into samplers and hang on the wall.

 

In our lifetime, however, many wise men and women have  appeared.  Accentuated by my  generation, where trashing traditions while racing to the moon was our gig.  We grew up with a scientific paradigm, and were taught to question and search for answers, using reason as our guide not God as our crutch.

 

What I want to point out this morning is the Bible says both Wise Men and shepherds make it to the manger.  God called both to Bethlehem to "come and worship, come and worship, worship Christ, the new born king."  Different types, from different places, via different paths, even in different books, but both arrive and both receive the manifestation of God in Christ.  We come as we are to the stable.  It's O.K.

 

Maybe you live with a wise man or woman.  Perhaps your son or your daughter fits this modern type.  Their attitude toward religion baffles you.  You raised them best you could, took them to church every  Sunday, well, most every Sunday,  well, most every Sunday of the winter months,  well, most every Sunday of the winter months you didn't sleep in or go skiing, and then one day they announce they are an atheist.  This hurts.  They reject the church.  Worse yet, they marry and bear children,  and aren't even interested in baptizing your grandchildren.

 

Shepherd that you are, this makes no sense.  Sure Confirmation Class was boring, but you bore with it, joined the church and never left.  For you it was a short trip.

 

Not anymore.  We have many more magi, where the mood is  to question,  specially venerable institutions, like the church.  The bias is skepticism and many wander, for there are many stars in the sky.