Next Sunday we will still be in the Christmas season – but our gospel reading is an Epiphany story (no time to stretch it out – by the second Sunday in January, Jesus will be all grown up and getting baptized…) So we will encounter those mysterious wise men from the “East,” who followed the star so far from home – right into our pageants and crèche sets.
Where did Matthew hear this story that has come down to us as part of Jesus’ nativity narratives? Did Luke not hear it, or not include it? So many questions…
Who were these star seekers? A new light had appeared in their night sky, and their interpretations of it told them that a new king had been born for the Jews. What had these people to do with the Jewish people? We do not know. We’re not sure where they came from, or how many they were. The only thing we might reasonably assume is that their names were not Caspar, Melchior or Abegnado whatever the third guy is said to have been called!
Why were they willing to travel so far to offer obeisance to a foreign king? What was it about that star? Its brightness? Its sudden appearance? Some astronomers think a super nova was visible in the heavens around that time, and that this is what the magi saw. (I once read such a book – I think it was called The Once and Future Star; here’s a link, though I can’t tell from the description if it is the same book.)
What did these men care about a king for the Jews? Did the star they saw signify great power? Did they want to be the first to get in his good graces? The gifts they are said to have brought are of extremely high value and very symbolic – gold as treasure, frankincense, a resin prized for its scent, and myrrh, also a resin, from which ointment was made for anointing bodies for burial. These are gifts for a king indeed. What did they think when they found a mere child? Matthew only tells us that they knelt and worshiped him and offered the gifts they had brought.
And what do they signify for us? How do you find your way into this story? Do you feel like one who is seeking and has found, or is still on the road hoping you’ve read your guidance correctly?
If you heard about Jesus, would you travel to see him?
What is the most precious gift you might offer him?
We could start with our time. As we begin another round of Jesus stories, might we consider investing more deeply in getting to know Him in these stories? That means not only reading the story, but spending some time in contemplation, meditating on the story, discerning who you most identify with in that tale on a given day, asking Jesus to be real for you as we allow the story to usher us into prayer.
When we truly find ourselves in Jesus’ presence, we have no need to look further. Perhaps that is why those magi, for all their wealth and knowledge and sophistication, knelt and paid homage to this small child. As unlikely a king as he appeared to be, they knew they had found the Real Thing.
There was no need to look further, only to bask in his presence, offer what they had come with, and take the long way home, their hearts full, their longing satisfied.
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