The
season of Epiphany, and its message and significance to our universal spiritual
journey, is too often diminished between the two more elevated seasons of
Christmas and Lent. But if you think about it, the message of Epiphany is HUGE;
it is the emerging light and life of the divine amidst the creation. If Christmas
is the birth of Jesus, the Christ, and Lent is the end of life challenge and
suffering of Jesus, the Christ, then what is Epiphany, but the very life and
teaching and emergence of Jesus, the Christ?
Epiphany
begins with the long journey and visitation of wise men from the east to pay
homage to the recently born King of Israel. So let’s start there. Woven into
our sacred story, from the beginning, is this idea of a unity of thought and
connection between peoples of all nations and faiths. These pilgrims from
another culture and religious tradition recognizing the gifts God has given the
world through the people and faith of Israel.
I
admire the sense of adventure and broad inclusion these wise pilgrims demonstrated
through the journey to Bethlehem. Here we are, two thousand years later, and we
still suffer the lack of this kind of mutual appreciation and respect of
cultures and traditions other than our own. We worry about the rising
influences in our culture that extend beyond our own ethnicity and religion. It
is big news that for the first time in 242 years of the congress, the dress
code that prohibited hats or headwear must be altered to allow newly elected
Muslim congress woman, Ilan Omar, to wear her hijab in the halls of congress.
Most
of us, myself included, have lived in a predominant culture that pronounced
certain values and beliefs as the only perspectives and traditions that were
correct. Christianity was not simply our faith, it was the only faith, and all
others, were inferior, or even worse, dangerous and to be avoided if not
eradicated from our culture. I find this pervasive microview of the naturally
diverse and varied creation we live to be both troubling and sad. For too much
of my life I have felt uncomfortable with recognizing and even exploring the
gifts and wisdom and divinely inspired scriptures from faiths and traditions
other than my own. For too much of my life I have felt that Christianity and
the culture in which I was born and raised was all I needed. How narrow of me. How
I have limited myself from the riches and wisdom that those other than my own,
could bring to my life and my world.
But
right in the heart of our own sacred story are wise men from the east,
utilizing spiritual practices and traditions and wisdom of their own, to travel
great distance and effort to pay homage to a King of a people not their own,
given by a God they do not follow, to be enriched and enlightened by his very
presence and all that it might mean.
I
admit, this is a rather unconventional presentation that I am sharing this
morning. It is more “orthodox” to present this visitation from the magi as a
recognition that this Christ of the Jews was truly the Christ and Savior of the
whole world, of all peoples and all traditions, and ultimately (if things are
to go the way God intends them), all faiths, traditions, cultures will be
brought to this true light and manifestation of God through this young boy,
born amongst the Hebrew people.
But
I think the perspective I am presenting holds a relevant and timely epiphany. It
is actually a good thing, a wise thing, a godly thing, to go beyond your own
familiar culture and tradition. It is a good thing to recognize the divine
blessings other faiths and traditions bring to our world. Sacred stories and
symbols other than our own bring great enrichment to our shared lives. Here is
something even more provocative: I think this political and cultural crusade to
keep America “Christian” is an example of very un-christlike behavior and
ideals. The gifts of the Muslim tradition, the Jewish tradition, the pre-Christianized
indigenous and folk traditions, the humanist traditions, bear rich and blessed
gifts to our own tradition. This idea is promoted in our own baptismal vows
that we will re-commit to together next week: Will you seek and serve Christ in
ALL persons, loving your neighbor as yourself? AND will you strive for justice
and peace among all people, and respect the dignity of every human being?
The
world is rich, the universe unfathomable, and creation is beautiful because of
the infinite and diverse gifts and blessings and sacraments offered in all their
variation and sources. The gifts of the wise men from the east may not simply
be frankincense, gold, and myrrh. The gift they offer, and it is much needed in
today’s rising influences of separatism and culture wars, is the gift of paying
homage to the divine gifts and presence provided to our world by peoples,
faiths, and cultures other than our own.
Follow
their example by taking the trouble and journey to explore and understand
others, or at the very least, recognize the dignity of their existence, and
return back to your own culture and faith, more blessed and enlightened than
had you never bothered to leave or explore.
Amen
Click here to listen.
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