This week, Christians celebrate the Feast of the Epiphany. It marks the visit of the Magi (wise men, or ‘three Kings’) from the East to see the child Jesus. As a New Year dawns, how do we feel about the continuing disruption that unique person brought into the world?
Reaction to the Epiphany in Ethiopia. Thanks to Esrombegashaw under Creative Commons
We invite you to spend some time reading or listening to T.S. Eliot’s, The Journey of the Magi. It is full of treasure. (You may also like to look at the recommended bible readings for today, from the Hebrew prophet Isaiah and the Gospel according to Matthew).
Unlike traditional, sentimental portrayals of the bright star, stable, calm parents and well-behaved baby in the manger, the poem allows for a deep sense of ambivalence about times when something genuinely new happens. Conversion to a faith might be such a time, as it was for Eliot. A pandemic might be another.
The Magi are disoriented by their arduous journey to unknown lands and then by the prospect of integrating their discoveries.
Does this relate to your experience?
What does Epiphany mean to you this year, if anything?
Are you, too, on a winter journey at “the worst time of year?” Do the night fires go out? The towns seem unfriendly? Do you sometimes regret ever starting out?
The wise man who speaks this poem decides on reflection that, while he would take this journey again, he must accept the death as well as the new birth within it.
For Christians, the essential journey has not ended. Christ came as a baby and did many wonderful things as a person. But the business is not finished.
What might this mean?
Spend some time in silence, contemplating the journey travelled and the road ahead.
What part do other people play?
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A journey outside familiar boundaries can leave us, like the wise man, disoriented. That may not be the end of the story but it is the present reality. Can God, the Divine or something else beyond ourselves help to ground us, enable us to share our light with others and inspire us once again to set out from where we are?
We pray that there will be enough light to show the path.
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The wisdom of the Magi was manifest in their willingness to venture out and journey on together. Your journey might take you to a new geographical place - but in lockdown that seems unlikely! It might involve a different kind of movement in the places where you already are. It might take you inwards, as you uncover your true self. It is always good to have company.
Later, you may find you have more to offer a world that is often overwhelmed by fear of the unknown.
Thanks to https://thedoubter.org/454/epiphany-reflections/ for inspiration.