The Three Wise Men
We celebrate Epiphany in the New Year. It is an excellent time to consider how we approach the year ahead
Sources of Truth: Epiphany sermon on discipleship
In this sermon I describe the Wise Men as scientists on a search for truth, and identify five sources of truth they used: 1) text, scholarship, academia; 2) stars, astronomy observing the natural world; 3) travel, direct engagement; 4) asking for directions, consulting local experts, and 5) trusting the numinous, the spiritual.
"And yet these five different sources of reliable information were still not enough to find the Christ - because Matthew’s line about the star stopping over the house is just pure nonsense! How did the Magi find Mary and Jesus? The Bible simply does not say. There is a leap of faith involved. A gap in logic. A point at which all our human sources of truth stand back and wait."
In this sermon I describe the Wise Men as scientists on a search for truth, and identify five sources of truth they used: 1) text, scholarship, academia; 2) stars, astronomy observing the natural world; 3) travel, direct engagement; 4) asking for directions, consulting local experts, and 5) trusting the numinous, the spiritual.
"And yet these five different sources of reliable information were still not enough to find the Christ - because Matthew’s line about the star stopping over the house is just pure nonsense! How did the Magi find Mary and Jesus? The Bible simply does not say. There is a leap of faith involved. A gap in logic. A point at which all our human sources of truth stand back and wait."
This morning I would like to highlight three aspects of their journey that seem to me to be relevant to us as we embark on the journey of this year, whatever that may hold.
The first thing that strikes me about the journey of the Magi is that the journey was both well planned and highly flexible. Their studies pinpointed a prophecy, and identified a star in the night sky. This took years of work, leading up to a radical decision – to leave their studio, to step out of academia into the big wide world, to set off on a journey not just in theory but in person!
Includes poems, hymn suggestions, and Matthew 2 as a shared reading.
The first thing that strikes me about the journey of the Magi is that the journey was both well planned and highly flexible. Their studies pinpointed a prophecy, and identified a star in the night sky. This took years of work, leading up to a radical decision – to leave their studio, to step out of academia into the big wide world, to set off on a journey not just in theory but in person!
Includes poems, hymn suggestions, and Matthew 2 as a shared reading.