Epiphany |
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Scripture |
Matthew 2; 1-12 2 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. |
Devotional |
When we peel away the surplus meaning and focus on justice and power, the real gift of the mysterious and exotic visitors of greeting cards and Christmas pageants is a warning. Alerted by a star to his birth, the Magi seek the prince of peace in Jerusalem , the center of power. They are summoned and go to Herod the king, alerting him to the birth of a potential rival. While the Magi return, oblivious and unscathed, to their own country by another route, the family they honored flees as refugees, and their neighbors’ children are slaughtered. When the privileged seek salvation in the places of power, the consequences for the vulnerable and oppressed are brutal, and often unseen. 1 How do we get the real message? The real message: Jesus is God’s revelation to the world. One beginning point could be the Magi were able to find Jesus by what light they had-a star. Therefore,, we receive enough light to find Jesus if we seek him. Another point to make is that the pagans find Jesus while those who claim to know the scripture and claim to be close to God do not. This Epiphany message should be: From the beginning of Jesus’ life we see the dividing walls being broken down. Different races and cultures are coming together. From the very beginning we experience Jesus breaking down barriers between races and cultures. Just as King Herod sees Jesus’ birth as the birth of a rival, is the birth also a rival to each of us? Is Jesus’ birth a rival to the life style of our culture? I wonder how comfortable Jesus is with our celebration of his birth. Are we seeking the prince of peace at the center of our world? Today outside the town of Bethlehem where Jesus was born there are new walls that separate one people from another. A wall built by people who claim to have the scripture and to know God. Can Jesus break down the new walls that divide God’s people? This Daily Meditation by Henri Nouwen challenges us to a new way. So much of our energy, time, and money goes into maintaining distance from one another. Many if not most of the resources of the world are used to defend ourselves against each other, to maintain or increase our power, and to safeguard our own privileged position. 1 Laureel A. Dykstra “Living the Word. Sojourners Magazine, January 2008. p. 48
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