Following the Star to ... Nazareth?! (a Steve Orr Epiphany reflection)

The Wise Men never made it to Bethlehem.

Wait. What?!

In the Sony animated Christmas film, The Star (which was delightful), some talking animals, following several adventures, eventually join the three Wise Men to greet the newborn Jesus lying in a feed trough (manger) in a Bethlehem stable.

But, talking animals aside, is that what really happened?

Most retellings of the Nativity story follow the same basic plot line as the Sony version: three Wise Men (sometimes called Magi or Kings) travel “from the East” (that is, east of Israel), following a star that, they say, heralds the birth of “the King of the Jews (Messiah).” They head first to Jerusalem, but find only the current king, Herod.

Everyone's interested to know who and where this new King is, especially Herod. So he gathers Israel’s scholars, and they all agree Bethlehem is where the Messiah will be born. The Wise Men then leave Jerusalem and follow “the star” to that stable in Bethlehem where they find Jesus still in the feed trough and bestow their respective gifts.

But, some scholars disagree.

They point out that scripture clearly states (see this week’s Matthew selection) the Wise Men only enter the story “after Jesus was born.” Further, when they finally meet Jesus, it is in a house ... no mangers or animals (talking or otherwise) are present.

There are those who argue that, according to Jewish Law, Jesus was presented at the Temple about 40 days after His birth. This was required for all firstborn sons. They point to the second half of Luke chapter 2 which supports their view and also contains this: “When they had finished everything required by the law of the Lord, they returned to Galilee, to their own town of Nazareth.” (Luke 2:39)

So. Could the Wise Men have followed the star to Nazareth instead of Bethlehem? Maybe. There is no real way for us to know. Scripture only tells us they followed the star to a house where “On entering the house, they saw the child with Mary his mother; and they knelt down and paid him homage.” (Matthew 2:11)

Wait. What happened to the stable?

I don't suppose we'll ever know. All we really know is that at some point after Jesus was born —days? weeks?— wise men came on pilgrimage from the east based on what they saw in the heavens and they worshiped Jesus.

In other words: some people learned about Jesus and felt they should seek Him out. Leaving behind all that was familiar to them, they began a spiritual journey, following God’s lead. When they found Jesus, they worshiped Him.

Sounds like something anyone could do ... anywhere.

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A very different version of this reflection appeared in January 2013 as “A Little Epiphany of my Own.”
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Image credit: http://www.freebibleimages.org/photos/wise-men/
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READINGS FOR THE COMING WEEK
Epiphany of the Lord (January 6, 2018)

Isaiah 60:1-6
Psalm 72:1-7, 10-14
Ephesians 3:1-12
Matthew 2:1-12


Link to table of readings for the season of Epiphany: https://lectionary.library.vanderbilt.edu//lections.php?year=B&season=Epiphany

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The 12 days of Christmas end on January 5th. Lectionary Breakfast meets that morning at the Waco “Egg and I” Restaurant for about an hour. We start at 8:00 and enjoy an hour of prayer, food, discussion, fellowship, and laughter.

No drumming drummers expected ... well, not 12 of them, anyway.

Blessings,
Steve

Gifts for the Magi (a Lectionary reflection by Steve Orr)

Do you ever wonder where writers get their ideas?

A lot of people do. It's not always easy to provide an answer to that question, either. Some can point to events in their personal history as inspirations. Others will tell you they made it all up "out of whole cloth." I know of one author who insisted he dreamed his stories while he slept, rising in the night to write them down before they slipped away from him.

After last week's exploration of Amahl and the Night Visitors, I found myself wondering where Gian Carlo Menotti got his idea.

Three wise men traveling to Bethlehem who stop and pass the might with a boy and his mother: that's a unique concept. Lucky for us, Menotti actually wrote about this in the booklet that accompanied the original cast recording. And it is fascinating! He tells of growing up in Italy where Santa Claus was not a part of their Christmas celebrations. In his youth, children looked forward, instead, to the visitation of the three kings. He wrote:

"I actually never met the Three Kings—it didn't matter how hard my little brother and I tried to keep awake at night to catch a glimpse of the Three Royal Visitors, we would always fall asleep just before they arrived. But I do remember hearing them. I remember the weird cadence of their song in the dark distance; I remember the brittle sound of the camel's hooves crushing the frozen snow; and I remember the mysterious tinkling of their silver bridles."

Yes, that's right: not reindeer, but camels.

A little research and I learned that Italy's children sent their toy requests to the three kings, anticipated their arrival, and left water and snacks for them and their camels to help sustain them on their long journey. Menotti's childhood gave him the inspiration for what became a beloved Christmas tradition, an English language opera that is still performed.

Do these kinds of activities sound familiar to you?

Apparently, there is a certain universality to what happens in the Christmas season, regardless of where you live. Even if there is no Santa there. And that is our connection to this week's Lectionary.

Epiphany continues. We'll be in this season until Mardi Gras (February 28th in 2017). The Lectionary scripture selections each week focus on one or more aspects of Epiphany. This week, they all reference the universality of the Gospel; Jesus came for us all. This is so clear in the selection from John where, upon seeing Jesus again, John declares to his own disciples "Behold the lamb of God" who was, even as John spoke, "taking away the sin of the world."

Did you see that? ... the sin of the world, not just of the Jews. Even though John saw it, clearly, that's a part of the ongoing message from God to His people that many of them couldn't quite wrap their heads around ... that their Messiah would somehow belong to non-Jews, as well.

I suspect their thinking may have been a bit Israel-centric, much like ours is when we think of the rest of the world. Well, that was never the way God saw it. He always pictured an entire world rejoined with Him in harmony, a people who chose Him just as He had chosen them.

We see it in this week's Isaiah selection where the Lord, through the Prophet, tells of how the restoration of Israel to God is, in essence, too easy a thing for the savior, by itself. He would also be a light to the nations so salvation would reach to the very ends of the earth. And it's there in this week's Psalm where the Psalmist declares he has proclaimed God's faithfulness and salvation to the "Kahal rav" (the largest community).

And, finally, we see it in the selection from 1 Corinthians where Paul greets them along with everyone else, in every place, who claims the name of Jesus. He clearly notes that Jesus is universal, not limited to one nation or group, but for the whole world.
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http://lectionary.library.vanderbilt.edu/lections.php?year=A&season=Epiphany

READINGS FOR THE COMING WEEK
Second Sunday after the Epiphany (January 15, 2017)
First reading
Isaiah 49:1-7
Psalm
Psalm 40:1-11
Second reading
1 Corinthians 1:1-9
Gospel
John 1:29-42
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Join us Friday morning at Lectionary Breakfast as we continue to marvel at how God planned for our salvation. Find us at the Waco "Egg and I" restaurant. We start the fun at 8:00, spending the hour reading scripture, discussing, laughing, and praying.

True Epiphany.

Blessings,
Steve

Revisiting "Amahl and the Night Visitors" (a Lectionary reflection by Steve Orr)

I loved Amahl and the Night Visitors.

Do you know it? The story is of a boy and his mother living in Biblical times, not too far from Bethlehem. It's just the two of them. Their circumstances are not very good. The boy has to use a crutch to get around. The mother seems on the verge of exhaustion.

Late one night, there's a knock at the door.

What happens next is the substance of the first opera ever written for television in America. It was written in English for broadcast on the National Broadcasting Corporation (NBC). When it debuted, it was viewed by the largest audience to ever see a televised opera. Amahl and the Night Visitors was the first network television Christmas special to become an annual tradition.

In time, Amahl and his mother discover that their visitors are kings. They had traveled far and were tired. They asked for permission to rest in the home of Amahl and his mother. As the story unfolds, we learn, along with Amahl and his mother, that these kings are on their way to Bethlehem where they believe they will find a very special child, one that "the heavens" had identified as the "King off the Jews."

I can't recommend this strongly enough. It is a performance that is both endearing and mesmerizing. It captured my attention, fully.

Maybe that's because it is part of my childhood. Or maybe it's because it was the first time I was made to think of the "wise men" as actual people, people who interacted with other people. In any case, it was certainly the first time I recall thinking of a Biblical "character" as a real person, someone who did all the things I do; eat, sleep, have feelings, hurt, have infirmities, be protective of others, be tired, desire things, care about other real people, want to connect with God.

There have been many books, plays, and electronic productions about the Magi who visited the young Jesus. Sometimes they are referred to as kings, sometimes as wise men, sometimes as stargazers; but regardless of their title, people tend to think of them as being three in number. Scripture doesn't speak to this, so we don't know how many there were, only that "they" were plural and that they came later, not the night of Jesus' birth.

That "later" bit is part of the reason we have Epiphany on the church calendar at a later date than Christmas. Epiphany is the day set aside to recognize and celebrate the visitation of the Magi. Epiphany Eve is celebrated on January 5th, the "Twelfth Day of Christmas" of song fame (Drummers drumming, for those of you keeping score), with the observance of Epiphany falling on the 6th (or often on the nearest Sunday).

And, though you might not know it, Epiphany is one of the most important dates to us modern christians. While Christmas, with its announcement to those rowdy shepherds, represents when Christ was introduced to the Jewish people, Epiphany, with its Magi visitation, represents when Christ was first revealed to non-Jews.

Watching Amahl and the Night Visitors made the story of Jesus' birth come to life for me ... though Jesus is not in it. Neither are Mary and Joseph. Because it is the story of rather ordinary people encountering the extraordinary (in the form of Magi), it is the story of all of us. It portrays what it might have been like for us if we had been there.

Just some folks showing hospitality (with the little they possessed) to people on their way to an encounter with the Lord ... and then joining them on the journey.

Sound familiar?

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READINGS FOR THE COMING WEEK
Epiphany of the Lord (January 6, 2017)
First reading
Isaiah 60:1-6
Psalm
Psalm 72:1-7, 10-14
Second reading
Ephesians 3:1-12
Gospel
Matthew 2:1-12

Here is the link to the table of readings for this Epiphany Season, including Sunday, January 8th (January 6 - February 26, 2017): http://lectionary.library.vanderbilt.edu/lections.php?year=A&season=Epiphany
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Join us Friday morning at Lectionary Breakfast as we begin a new year. We still meet at the Waco "Egg and I" restaurant, start at 8:00 and wrap up around 9:00.

Visitors always welcome.

Blessings,
Steve

A Little Epiphany Of My Own

(a reflection for Epiphany by Steve Orr)

What I'm trying to figure out is what brought about the change. I know there was a change, but when and why are not clear. Somehow, though, it seems to be tied in with the Magi.

You all know the story, I think, from Matthew 2: the Magi (wise men) show up and throw fear into the whole of Jerusalem with all their talk about the birth of the King of the Jews (Messiah). Everyone's interested to know who and where this new King is, especially the CURRENT King, Herod.

There's another, more subtle concern here, as well. Rome rules much of the known world, including Israel. The idea that the long desired Messiah may actually have arrived is both exciting and frightening. And one big question on the minds of those in leadership? What actions would Rome take if their puppet king were replaced with an ACTUAL king, one chosen by God?

The word is that the Messiah would be born in Bethlehem. King Herod decides he may need to take some action, but he can't afford to look weak, so he secretly asks the Magi to report back after they check out Bethlehem.

I love this next part.

But not for the reasons you may think.

"They (the Magi), having heard the king, went their way; and behold, the star, which they saw in the east, went before them, until it came and stood over where the young child was. When they saw the star, they rejoiced with exceedingly great joy. They came into the house and saw the young child with Mary, his mother, and they fell down and worshiped him. Opening their treasures, they offered to him gifts: gold, frankincense, and myrrh." (Matthew 2:9-11 WEB)

Did you see it?

When the Magi arrived in Bethlehem, they followed the star to where it stopped, and they went "into the house" to encounter Mary and Jesus.

Wait. What happened to the stable?

At some point, someone made a decision to move Jesus, Joseph, and Mary out of the barn and into the house! I can't help but wonder why. The birth-night invasion of rowdy shepherds? All the subsequent talk in the village? Or did decency assert itself and someone finally realize what a petty (ugly?) thing it was to force a new mother and baby to stay in a cave with the animals?

I don't suppose we'll ever know. All we really know is that at some point after Jesus was born--days? weeks?--wise men came on pilgrimage from the east based on what they saw in the heavens and they worshiped Jesus in Bethlehem.

In a house.

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http://lectionary.library.vanderbilt.edu
READINGS FOR THE COMING WEEK
Epiphany of the Lord (January 6, 2013)

Isaiah 60:1-6
Psalm 72:1-7, 10-14
Ephesians 3:1-12
Matthew 2:1-12