Epiphany Notes 2013

Epiphany Jan. 6 Mt. 2:1-11, Is. 60:1-6
I don’t recall when I spoke on an actual. Epiphany Sunday .In the calendar, this concludes the 12 days of Christmas. Epiphany's root sense is a shining out, and it means that a truth is made manifest, it has a spotlight on it.I have been unable ot lay my hands on a Wendy farley quote, but she says something to the effect that the Incarnation reveals the hidden truth that lies beneath the surface of a life.
As some of you are aware, I get a kick out of different parts of the Bible in conversation. The readings today are examples of taking the gospel story and noticing some similar material and making a new more detailed story.So the magi get linked with kings due to their gifts. They are given identities through the place names in the psalms. Camels get imported from the other biblical pieces, all linked by two of the gifts. Maybe one of the reasons many of us make New Year’s resolutions is the hope for an epiphany that will change our lives. I wonder if the Magi had an epiphany when they presented the gifts to the child they saw as a newborn king.

As some of you are well aware, I like movies. As I was working on this,  I realized they feature an epiphany fairly often.that’s one of the pleasures of guessing the villain in a mystery. (Yearling life is fine, mighty fine, but it ain;t easy,or the Kid when the blind girl realizes the Tramp had gotten her to operation to gain her sight-You, or Bernstein recalling the girl with the yellow parasol in citizen Kane), or Meathead understanding Archie after he speaks of being abused by his father in a drunken speech )(I read the Gift of the Magi story at Methodist Village and the look of stunned amazement when the young husband realizes what thye have both done to amke a nice christmas for each other). We go to therapy hoping that a brilliant therapist will be able to unlock the key to our unhappiness and offer a clear, easy way out.

Forgive me if I have mentioned this last year, but one of my epiphanies in this story was looking at the three gifts of the Magi. We read of some of the gifts this morning but the only place where all three are in close proximity is in the building of the tabernacle in Exodus. In other words without realizing, the Magi were honoring a new type of king. More importantly, without realizing it, they were in the very presence of God Incarnate, in the child in front of them. Let me put it another way. The magi were known to be wise, but their wisdom failed them in going to the wrong place to look for the newborn king. Without realizing it, they were face to face with someone who deserved more homage than all of the royalty of history laid end toend. Yet, these outsiders stumbled into the very revelation of God.

The Magi were sages, counsellors for the powerful and the rich. Here they visit a poor family. They represent all of the outsiders who are drawn by the star of Bethlehem, including us. they also represent the importance of wisdom but also its fragility. they misunderstood the message of the star and almost sealed the early death of Jesus,perhaps before he could talk. I am sick of Christians being a laughingstock at the court of secular wisdom. Being fools for christ does not mean that we act and think foolishly. At its best, the church honors the wisdom we possess and then deepens it with the reflection and history of years of religious reflection and revelation.Dim bulbs shine little light.