Notes for Sunday, January 4th, 2009

The Season of Epiphany

January 6 is known in western Christian tradition as Epiphany. It goes by other names in various church traditions. In Hispanic and Latin culture, as well as some places in Europe, it is known as Three Kings’ Day (Span: el Dia de los Tres Reyes, la Fiesta de Reyes, or el Dia de los Reyes Magos; Dutch: Driekoningendag). Because of differences in church calendars, mainly between the Eastern Orthodox and the western Catholic and Protestant traditions, both Christmas and Epiphany have been observed at different times in the past. Today, most of the Eastern Orthodox traditions follow the western church calendar. The exception is the Russian Orthodox Church which still follows the older calendar and celebrates Epiphany as the Theophany on January 19th.

Epiphany is the climax of the Christmas Season and the Twelve Days of Christmas, which are counted from December 25th until January 5th. The day before Epiphany is the twelfth day of Christmas, and is sometimes called Twelfth Night, an occasion for feasting in some cultures. In some cultures, the baking of a special King's Cake is part of the festivities of Epiphany (a King's Cake is part of the observance of Mardi Gras in French Catholic culture of the Southern USA).

In traditional Christian churches Christmas, as well as Easter, is celebrated as a period of time, a season of the church year, rather than just a day. The Season of Christmas begins with the First Sunday of Advent, marked by expectation and anticipation, and concludes with Epiphany, which looks ahead to the mission of the church to the world in light of the Nativity. The one or two Sundays between Christmas Day and Epiphany are sometimes called Christmastide. For many Protestant church traditions, the season of Epiphany extends from January 6th until Ash Wednesday, which begins the season of Lent leading to Easter. Depending on the timing of Easter, this includes from four to nine Sundays. Other traditions, especially the Roman Catholic tradition, observe Epiphany as a single day, with the Sundays following Epiphany counted as Ordinary Time.

The term epiphany means "to show" or "to make known" or even "to reveal." In Western churches, it remembers the coming of the wise men bringing gifts to visit the Christ child, who by so doing "reveal" Jesus to the world as Lord and King. In some Central and South American countries influenced by Catholic tradition, Three Kings’ Day, or the night before, is the time for opening Christmas presents. In some eastern churches, Epiphany or the Theophany commemorates Jesus’ baptism, with the visit of the Magi linked to Christmas. In some churches the day is celebrated as Christmas, with Epiphany/Theophany occurring on January 19th.

The colors of Epiphany are usually the colors of Christmas, white and gold, the colors of celebration, newness, and hope that mark the most sacred days of the church year. In traditions that only observe a single day for Epiphany, the colors are often changed after Epiphany to the colors of Ordinary Time, usually green or thematic sanctuary colors, until Transfiguration Sunday, the last Sunday before the beginning of Lent.

As with most aspects of the Christian liturgical calendar, Epiphany has theological significance as a teaching tool in the church. The Wise Men or Magi who brought gifts to the infant Jesus were the first Gentiles to acknowledge Jesus as "King" and so were the first to "show" or "reveal" Jesus to a wider world as the incarnate Christ. This act of worship by the Magi, which corresponded to Simeon’s blessing that this child Jesus would be "a light for revelation to the Gentiles" (Luke 2:32), was one of the first indications that Jesus came for all people, of all nations, of all races, and that the work of God in the world would not be limited to only a few.

The day is now observed as a time of focusing on the mission of the church in reaching others by "showing" Jesus as the Savior of all people. It is also a time of focusing on Christian brotherhood and fellowship, especially in healing the divisions of prejudice and bigotry that we all too often create between God’s children.

An Epiphany Prayer

Father, we thank you for revealing yourself to us in Jesus the Christ, we who once were not your people but whom you chose to adopt as your people. As ancient Israel confessed long ago, we realize that it was not because of our own righteousness, or our own superior wisdom, or strength, or power, or numbers. It was simply because you loved us, and chose to show us that love in Jesus.

As you have accepted us when we did not deserve your love, will you help us to accept those whom we find it hard to love? Forgive us, O Lord, for any attitude that we harbor that on any level sees ourselves as better or more righteous than others. Will you help us to remove the barriers of prejudice and to tear down the walls of bigotry, religious or social? O Lord, help us realize that the walls that we erect for others only form our own prisons!

Will you fill us so full of your love that there is no more room for intolerance. As you have forgiven us much, will you enable us with your strength to forgive others even more? Will you enable us through your abiding Presence among us, communally and individually, to live our lives in a manner worthy of the Name we bear?

May we, through your guidance and our faithful obedience, find new avenues in ways that we have not imagined of holding the Light of your love so that it may be a Light of revelation for all people.

We thank you for your love, praise you for your Gift, ask for your continued Presence with us, and bring these petitions in the name of your Son, who has truly revealed your heart.

Amen

Matthew Chapter 2 details the story of the Wise Men…

1…when (better translated as ‘after’) Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judaea in the days of Herod the king, behold, there came wise men from the east to Jerusalem,

 2Saying, Where is he that is born King of the Jews? for we have seen his star in (better translated as ‘from’) the east, and are come to worship him.

7…Herod, when he had privily called the wise men, enquired of them diligently what time the star appeared. (He wanted to know when Jesus was born)

10When they saw the star, they rejoiced with exceeding great joy.

 11And when they were come into the house (not a stable), they saw the young child (not a baby) with Mary his mother, and fell down, and worshipped him: and when they had opened their treasures, they presented unto him gifts; gold, and frankincense and myrrh. (because three gifts were mentioned, it has always been assumed that there were three wise men, but we’re never actually told their number)…

13And when they were departed, behold, the angel of the Lord appeareth to Joseph in a dream, saying, Arise, and take the young child and his mother, and flee into Egypt, and be thou there until I bring thee word: for Herod will seek the young child to destroy him. (I can’t help but wonder if they met up with, and followed the wise men)

 14When he arose, he took the young child and his mother by night, and departed into Egypt:

 15And was there until the death of Herod: that it might be fulfilled which was spoken of the Lord by the prophet, saying, Out of Egypt have I called my son. (there is irony here, since Egypt was the Land of Persecution for the Israelites during the time of Moses)…

 16Then Herod, when he saw that he was mocked of the wise men, was exceeding wroth, and sent forth, and slew all the children that were in Bethlehem, and in all the coasts thereof, from two years old and under, according to the time which he had diligently inquired of the wise men.

(So Jesus was about 2 years old when he first met the wise men)

Then was fulfilled that which was spoken by Jeremiah the prophet, saying,

 18In Rama was there a voice heard, lamentation, and weeping, and great mourning, Rachel weeping for her children, and would not be comforted, because they are not.

 19But when Herod was dead, behold, an angel of the Lord appeareth in a dream to Joseph in Egypt,

 20Saying, Arise, and take the young child and his mother, and go into the land of Israel: for they are dead which sought the young child's life.

 21And he arose, and took the young child and his mother, and came into the land of Israel.

 22But when he heard that Archelaus did reign in Judaea in the room of his father Herod, he was afraid to go thither: notwithstanding, being warned of God in a dream, he turned aside into the parts of Galilee:

 23And he came and dwelt in a city called Nazareth: that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophets, He shall be called a Nazarene. (And we can only speculate how much interaction Jesus had with the wise men, and how much of an influence they had on him)…

Wise Men – referenced all throughout the Old Testament, but a reference in Daniel 2:2 best categorizes them - 2So he called in his counselors, advisors, magicians, and wise men…

The Wise Men of the Bible are individuals who possess secret knowledge, or hidden knowledge; they are sometimes called ‘Magi’ because the word ‘Magi’ means ‘hidden, secret knowledge,’ and a ‘Magus’ is someone who possesses hidden or secret knowledge…MAGI is the root word for MAGIC and MAGICIAN…

There is a mysteriousness to the Magi of the Scriptures…they remind me of another mysterious character who makes one appearance in the Old Testament, and vanishes: Melchizedek

Genesis 14:18-20

18…Melchizedek, king of Salem, brought forth bread and wine: and he was the priest of the most high God.

 19And he blessed him, and said, Blessed be Abram of the most high God, possessor of heaven and earth:

 20And blessed be the most high God, which hath delivered thine enemies into thy hand. And he gave him tithes of all.

Hebrews 7 refers to Melchizedek in some detail…

1…Melchizedek, king of Salem, priest of the Most High God, who met Abraham returning from the slaughter of the kings and blessed him, 2 to whom also Abraham gave a tenth part of all, first being translated “king of righteousness,” and then also king of Salem, meaning “king of peace,” 3 without father, without mother, without genealogy, having neither beginning of days nor end of life, but made like the Son of God, remains a priest continually. 4 Now consider how great this man was, to whom even the patriarch Abraham gave a tenth of the spoils.

Some believe that the Old Testament prophet Daniel (who was a master of sacred scribes) entrusted a Messianic vision (to be announced in due time by a "star") to a secret sect of the Magi for its eventual fulfillment, per Daniel 4:9, which reads, “ 9O Belteshazzar, master of the magicians, because I know that the spirit of the holy gods is in thee, and no secret troubleth thee, tell me the visions of my dream that I have seen, and the interpretation thereof,” and Daniel 5:11, which reads, “ 11There is a man in thy kingdom, in whom is the spirit of the holy gods; and in the days of thy father light and understanding and wisdom, like the wisdom of the gods, was found in him; whom the king Nebuchadnezzar thy father, the king, I say, thy father, made master of the magicians, astrologers, Chaldeans, and soothsayers.” – This is entirely speculation, but stems from the understanding that, in the Old Testament, witchcraft of any sort was strictly forbidden, and punishable by death – so why does Daniel sanction and endorse these magicians? They must not have been magicians as we understand them; they must have been wise men, is the argument.

Other historians contend that the Magi were a sect from ancient Persia, who — prior to the conquest of the Medes in 550 BC — were responsible for religious and funerary practices, which might explain the gifts presented to the young Jesus.

Melchior, Balthazar, and Gasper are the three traditional names given to the wise men who visited Jesus…but, again, we don’t really know how many wise men there were…around 1270 a.d., the travelor Marco Polo claimed to have seen their graves in what is today the district of Saveh, near Tehran…he wrote of this:

“In Persia is the city of Saba, from which the Three Magi set out and in this city they are buried, in three very large and beautiful monuments, side by side. And above them there is a square building, beautifully kept. The bodies are still entire, with hair and beard remaining.”

The gifts of the three wise men are prophetic — gold as a symbol of kingship on earth, frankincense (an incense) as a symbol of priestship, and myrrh (an embalming oil) as a symbol of death. Sometimes this is described more generally as gold symbolizing virtue, frankincense symbolizing prayer, and myrrh symbolizing suffering.

What subsequently happened to these gifts is never mentioned in the scripture, but several traditions have developed One story has the gold being stolen by the two thieves who were later crucified alongside Jesus. Another tale has it being entrusted to and then misappropriated by Judas. Another story is that the family quickly pawned or sold them and later used the money to finance their flight to Egypt; it seems probable that it would be the only way to pay for such a voyage.

God of all glory, by the guidance of a star you led the Wise Men

to worship the Christ Child. By the light of faith lead us to your

glory in heaven. We ask this through Christ our Lord.

 Amen.