"Connecting Particles and Systems" January 5, 2014

Isaiah 60:1-6 Matthew 2:1-12 How many times have we seen the Creche in front of the Library, or witnessed a Christmas Pageant? Before opening the bulletin for this morning's worship, many of us knew tomorrow is the 6th of January, this is 12th Night, the arrival of the 3 Kings, completion of the Christmas story with the star and wise-men. There are some images so ingrained into us, we imagine we know what they are all about without listening to the Scriptures, without hearing the sermon, without considering our faith. Isaiah proclaimed “Arise, Shine, For your light has come, the glory of the Lord is upon Thee! For behold Darkness shall cover the earth, Gross darkness shall cover the people, but the Lord shall arise, and God's glory shall be seen upon You!” There is a subtlety to this passage, often lost to us. As Central New Yorkers we know what is to swell in darkness! Yesterday, there was a great orange ball in the sky, several of us were so unaccustomed to seeing the sun, we imagined it had to do with SU Basketball. There is a wonderful irony to our circumstance, we have come to know that living with so many cloudy days, so little sunshine, we are naturally deficient in Vitamin D, so what does it mean when we are deficient in seeing the Son? When we have lived our lives focused upon what we can do what we accomplish, what we can control? All Addiction programs are based on the 12 Step Model, the first step of which is admission that we are powerless over our addictions, we are not in control. A frightening mood has been undermining our nation, our world. For the first time in hundreds of years many have come to realize that our children will not have the opportunities we had. We implicitly believed the world would always get better! Where Grandparents had survived the Great Depression, their children had fought for Freedom, fought against tyranny and oppression to create a world without war. The next generation in many cases were the first in their family to go to college. But economically, and in terms of pollution, politically, and socially the world we pass to our children may not be as bright and hopeful. However, there is another side to that. I am very proud of our children, but to be honest, I really do not know what they do. One is in the field of “magnetellurics”hypothesizing possibilities based on Plate Tectonics, theoretically using the heat of earth's core as an energy source. Through him, I have come to learn that light, is not only a brightness, but can be measured as a point, particles, a spot, a line, a ray, or a wave. Light can be bent and both reflected and refracted. And depending upon our unique position in relation to the light, we may see differing colors. Truthfully, I do not understand. While my grandfather was Professor of Engineering and our son has advanced degrees in Optical Engineering, I was one of those who in Geometry Class, understood that there were Givens, so to arrive at the answer made up Rules. Perhaps that is the clue! Not that we make up phony rules, not that we can control the world and give to our children gold and frankincense and myrrh. But that we have given the world our children! The world has a future because it did not stop with you and me. I recall growing up, my parents discussing a Generation Gap, and they could not understand or agree with our music, our ideas, our hairstyles. But we do not need to agree, or to adopt as our own, or to prevent, but to trust. Isaiah's point is not that "God has shined upon you," but THROUGH you to the world. Our role, our purpose in life, is not to be the star, not to be the ones who control everything that is to come. Instead, God shines through each one of us, to bring the world to know God cares. The Gospel of Matthew's archaic Story of the Wise-men is incredibly appropriate for today. Because the point is that the Savior comes to the world through Judaism. Prophesied by Angels, in the lineage of David, born in Bethlehem. However, those who are not Jewish, recognize the signs from Nature, from Science, from Wisdom, all of which point them to seek the Savior. We live in a time of Alternative Spiritualities. Prior to this, throughout history, there was very little interaction across religions. Marrying outside your faith, might mean marrying an Episcopalian, or a Methodist, or a Baptist. Couples who did not marry someone from their own congregation had to choose which religious system to raise their children. Today, if our children marry, they are as likely to find someone who is B'hai or Hindu, or Atheist. Many of us find Meditation and Tai Chi important to our overall balance. The story of the Kings, is that those who come from systems outside Judaism, all recognize the need for a Messiah sent from God, and leave everything to come. This passage emphasizes that those who come from other traditions, other parts of the world may be willing and able to risk trusting, where King Herod, who was put in place by the Roman Empire saw only a threat to his power and identity. They left home and family, and traveled across the world, seeking a Savior. King Herod, when he heard of this, tried to murder the one who threatened his power, and when he was thwarted, he killed anyone and everyone who might be a potential threat. Are we willing to trust the future to be in the hands of another generation, those from another culture whom we may never understand? OR, do we guard and protect and fear that others will not recognize our power system, will act differently? There is another, implicit issue in this story. For the Star led the Wise-men to King Herod. Had Mary and Joseph not had the baby; had the wise-men not come to Herod, he would not have killed all the male children under two years of age. Herod learned from the Wise-men that a King was being born. But Herod, even with his authority and power, did not know where. He consulted his advisors, they did not immediately know and needed to look up the answers. Finding a passage from Micah 5 that said he was to be born in Bethlehem, the Scribes reported this to King Herod, who told where to the Kings. They went and paid him homage. The point of faith IS NOT that a Savior comes to protect the world from all evil. But rather that in the midst of the evil of this world, God does provide a Savior. Because God does, there are perhaps worse things that happen, but also the possibility for all Creation to be brought to God. Finally, there is a curiosity about this story. Over time, there has been speculation who these three were and what they represent, as well as where they went afterward. Like Shakespeare's three ages of humanity, we have given them identities one very young, one in mid-life, one aged. One from East Africa, one from Babylon, one from Persia. We have even given them names of Balthasar, Melchior and Caspar. While there have been creative stories of the impact upon each for having seen the child in the Manger, no one knows what happened to them. The point being, that it was not about what they got out of their quest, out of witnessing the Savior. They gave everything they had and laid it before him. In fact, according to the Bible, we do not actually know how many wise-men there were, only that there were three gifts: Gold representing the Gift for a King, Frankincense the Gift for a High Priest, Myrrh the oil for Anointing the Dead. Perhaps there were four Wise-men, or Five, or Twenty, we do not know. What the Bible does say, is that entering, before presenting their gifts they each did something, they GAVE HIM HOMAGE. If they had dropped their gifts at the door, it would have seemed like their Admission Fee for seeing the Savior and you have to have something to see him. If they had presented their gifts upon seeing him, it could have appeared like visiting Presidents and Kings appearing before an Equal presenting gifts to demonstrate their power. Instead, before anything else, the Wise-men knelt in homage and prayed.