RVCC Pastor's Sermon

Sermon - January 6, 2008

“Who Were They Anyway?”

By Rev. Nancy Foran
Matthew 2:1-12

Some call them wise men or magi or kings. Others are certain that they were astrologers, magicians, or some sort of ambiguous royalty. They have been depicted as old and young, Nubian and Caucasian.

They came from the East, Matthew tells us. Does that make them Chinese, Persian, or even African? We could speculate forever, but when all is said and done, what we can for sure say about them is this: They came. They saw. They gifted.

From just a few lines in the Gospel of Matthew emerges one of the most evocative tales in the Bible – a story of travelers with only the stars to guide them making their way to Bethlehem, there to present precious gifts to a new born child.

And after they had ooh-ed and aah-ed at his tiny perfect features, they took a long and circuitous route home, avoiding Jerusalem and Herod’s jealousy and, if you choose to believe, their remains even found their way to a gilded shrine in Cologne, Germany, sometime during the middle ages.

Because Scriptural details about them are so sparse, most of our images derive from the Hallmark Christmas cards we send and receive. That being said, in our collective imagination, we envision a stately procession of three kings in turbans, crowns, elaborate capes and fancy slippers, with an entourage of servants and camels trailing behind – bearing gifts, precious and mysterious gifts.

However, behind the camels and crowns will always be the unanswerable questions. Who were these three? From whence did they hail? And were there only three? Or were there more – or less? Did many start the journey and only a few reach the cradle of the Christ Child?

Because I like Christopher Bellito’s notion that - "legends pop up when people begin to look closely at historical events. They want to fill in the blanks." - I thought it would be both entertaining and enlightening on this day of Epiphany to speculate about Matthew’s story of Jesus’ birth.

And so, this morning, I have it on good authority that three wise ones will be with us in worship, eager to tell the tale of their origins, their journey, and their gifts. Now at times they will be singing an old familiar carol about themselves – and you will need to join in the refrain.

Listen! I think they are approaching…..

MELCHIOR
In your Western tradition, I am Melchior, also known as the “King of Light”, and I bring you greetings from my homeland. My roots lie in ancient Persia, the area that you now call Iran. I am not Jewish, nor did I ever expect the baby we sought to have such a large and powerful spiritual following.

I am a disciple of Zoraster who, 1000 years before the birth of this child, preached a religious message of “Do good; resist evil.” Like you, I believe in just one God. My God is a Wise Lord of purifying fire and water who opposes a very real and very dark force of evil in the world.

I am one of the magi from the tribe of Medes (you know them as the Kurds), and so I am a priest in the Persian Empire. Some have said that I have magical powers, but I prefer to simply say that I have a gift of special knowledge. Your Apostles never understood men like me, calling us shysters, charlatans, and deceivers because our spiritual practices were different than yours.

My esoteric knowledge is beyond the common person. Unlike traders and farmers, I have an abiding interest in time keeping, calendars, tides, medicine, religion, and alchemy. Surely then my fondness for the stars and their movement in the night sky should not surprise you.

Before my fellow travelers came to Bethlehem, we stopped at the royal palace in Jerusalem because Herod, in his fear of being overthrown as King, had summoned us. And there we predicted flights of fancy to ease his tortured mind: “Beware of beautiful strangers, and on Friday avoid travel by water. The sun is moving into the house of Venus, so affairs of the heart will prosper.” We left our lies behind in the shadows of night, and our star continued to shine for the final five miles to Bethlehem – and the stable – and the Child.

I brought many gifts to the Baby in Bethlehem, but your tradition links me with the gift of gold. However, all my gifts were the very best I could find. You see, my empire controlled all the trade routes as far away as India and China.

I wanted to give the family something to ease the financial burden of raising this special child. Something told me they were poor because the star had settled over Bethlehem, a plain town for plain people. How odd, I thought, a child born into poverty destined to be the King of Kings. My gift was perfect, for gold is a gift fit for royalty.

God is a metal that will last forever. It will not corrode and can not be de-valued, even if it is buried for years on end. And it has so many uses. Gold can be worked into fine jewelry or cut into blocks or even made into coins.

My gift of gold also signified virtue and royalty. I trusted that one day this small baby would be a good and just king known to all of the world’s people. I offered gold for the king of kings. Every king needs vast quantities of gold. My gift was a fine start for this little Prince of Peace.

BALTHASAR
All my life I have been fascinated by stars. I used to dream of one day reaching up and grasping one of them to hold in my very own hands. As a boy I listened to the astrologers making their bold predictions of comets and intersecting planets. I learned their trade, and the night sky came alive for me. I made my home in the heavens. I found my wisdom in the stars.

However, searching the stars was just a small part of my eternal quest for true knowledge. To explain and understand our vast universe was all I wanted to do. And so I sought the truth in poetry, science, art, and my own religion. Charting the stars and predicting their movement was but one way to control the natural world and to better understand the ways and whims of God Almighty.

We did not really know if the movement of the heavens, the position of the planets, and the way the stars formed pictures in the sky had special meaning, but we sensed something extraordinary was happening when a brilliant star rose in the evening sky.

It was a star that tracked like no other we had seen. It called to mind the ancient prophecies of counselors, gods, and a prince of peace. The star drew us from our observation towers and called us from our astrological charts. It beckoned us to journey – and so we did.

I am from Babylon and, in addition to my close acquaintance with the movements of the stars and planets, I also knew about the Messianic expectations of the Jewish people. I am not Jewish, but, after all, the Jews were exiled to my land for generations.

I had heard tales of them hanging their harps on the willow trees by the river and weeping in despair of ever seeing their homeland again. I remembered their unending hope for a leader to free them from Roman oppression.

Like the other travelers, I too brought many gifts to Bethlehem. You see, I am sometimes known as “the Lord of Treasure.” I expected to find a child born into opulence and splendor. Why would I anticipate the Jewish Messiah to be anything other than one with a pedigree of religious power and military might?

I carefully considered the baby I thought we would find – and chose to bring him frankincense. This precious resin from trees grown in Asia and Southern Arabia gives off a sweet and heavenly scent when it is burned or even warmed. My frankincense was of the best quality and so was the very lightest in color.

I knew that my gift of frankincense would be a soothing one for a new family – even a family so impoverished. Not only would their home be filled with beautiful perfume, but burning frankincense would also keep away the pests and flies, useful for a newborn in his circumstances.

My gift of frankincense also had religious significance. Your Old Testament names it as one of the elements used in holy anointing. And, of course, frankincense recalls times of prayer in any temple, and so, for the baby, my gift symbolized his priestly office.

CASPAR
I am Caspar, the youngest of the travelers bearing gifts for the little child. My name means “the white one”, perhaps because my youth has kept me clean in spirit. Surely, though my years are few, I am one of the chosen ones to reach Bethlehem. Many have attempted to make the journey, but few can sustain the terrible storms along the way. Many turn back and return to their former, easier lives.

I traveled far, for my home is in Arabia. Your Old Testament scripture even says so. Your prophet, Isaiah, remarks that, 'Herds of camels will cover your land, young camels of Midian and Ephah. And all from Sheba will come, bearing gold and incense and proclaiming the praise of the Lord.' My homeland, Sheba, is located in south-west Arabia. Ruled by priest-kings, it is known for its wealth, for it trades in spices, gold and jewels with surrounding countries.

My route was long and difficult at times. I began by sailing to Ezion Geber. From there the safest and fastest route was the King's Highway which stretched from Ezion Geber to Damascus. Along the way, the star guided us away from the Highway, beckoning us to cross the Jordan River, go south to Jerusalem, and eventually stop at Bethlehem.

Though I am not of royal blood myself, I often represent the ruler of my tribe and travel as an envoy – on a horse, by the way. You often depict us on camels, but only traders bringing their wares along the Silk Route used camels.

I moved about only in the highest of social circles and would never have ridden a camel. You see, I consulted with kings and queens on the latest political and economic developments. I offered them advice. I was one of the most respected of the wise ones.

My gift to the child was precious indeed. I presented him with myrrh, a gum from the Commiphora tree. You should see such trees. They grow to close to 9 feet and have spikey branches like a thorny crown.

Myrrh comes from the sap of these trees and is collected like frankincense. When the tree I cut, sap oozes out. It hardens and can be pulled off the wood. Though it has a bitter taste, myrrh has healing properties. You see, the resin of myrrh becomes more adhesive as it dries and can seal the wounds of a soldier easily and well.

Like frankincense, myrrh is also used in anointing oil. However, because it can also preserve even the dead, it is used with other sweet spices to embalm the bodies of those who lie in cold rock tombs.

And I knew that someday even this Child in the manger would die, and I feared for the world at his death. My gift of myrrh symbolized the suffering he would endure and honored his sacrifice.

I could see his pain and hurt as clearly as I could see the star that heralded his birth. With myrrh, his body would be embalmed, and the cloying sweetness of my myrrh would follow him to whatever it is that comes after death.

CONCLUSION
And so from distant places travelers came to honor the Christ Child. As you have learned, they brought gifts of great value and symbolic significance, though perhaps the greatest gift of all was to disobey Herod, the two bit king of Judea and travel to their faraway Eastern homelands by another route.

Let us join in singing praises to both the three we have met here today as well as the Christ child they sought and found by singing verses 1 and 5 of “We Three Kings.”

Sermon - January 6, 2008

“Who Were They Anyway?”

By Rev. Nancy Foran Matthew 2:1-12

By Rev. Nancy Foran
Matthew 2:1-12