10:30 am, Sunday, Jan 7, 2024 ~ FBCA (Is 60:1-6; Ps 72; Mtt 2:1-12) J G White

Once upon an Epiphany, three college students dressed up as three kings, and went to a party. It was, approximately, thirty years ago yesterday, in Wolfville. A mature student and his wife threw an Epiphany party at the house they were renting. They invited the other ‘Chapel nerds,’ us kids who went to chapel on campus all the time. And, three of us dressed up as three wise kings. I wish there were photos. I guess we wore robes and crowns or turbans.

Epiphany is the Christian celebration of the Messiah being revealed to the whole world! Starting with those wise visitors from the East, the Magi. I think, in the early centuries of Church history, the first three special festivals that arose celebrated the Epiphany, the Resurrection - what we call Easter - and Pentecost: the dramatic arrival of the Holy Spirit in some special ways. Christmas - the celebration of the Nativity of Jesus, His Birth, did not arise until later in Christian history.

What does one do to celebrate the Epiphany? Why be joyful? Well, notice that the visitors to the Holy Family were ‘overwhelmed with joy’ when they finally found them - found little Christ. The revealing of Jesus to others is cause for amazing joy. It’s time to connect with our own searching and finding what gives us overwhelming joy. Have you ever been to an Epiphany party? Maybe we should plan on one for next year. We can certainly dress up as ‘We Three Kings.’

But, why are they kings? Matthew is the one Gospel writer who tells us the story of these visitors, who came along about the time Jesus was a toddler of two years old. Matthew calls them magi; they are wise folk from somewhere east of Palestine. I think followers of Jesus took Matthew 2 and connected it with older texts and poetry in the Bible. Such as Psalm 72, which we read some of here. That vision has kings of other nations coming to honour the King of the Jews.

At Epiphany, we could consider what have been our greatest quests in life. What goals brought us the greatest joy - whether we think we attained them or not? What journeys have we taken that got us to the most important things?

Once upon an Epiphany, a Minister, a Lawyer, and a Journalist walked fifty kilometres, in a blizzard. I know, it sounds a bit like I am starting a joke, but it was no joke. Three of us walked one January 6th from East Ferry to Downtown Digby, just about 50 kms. And, even though it was a snowy blizzard, -15 degrees (-23 windchill), the wind was at our back, we had excellent stops planned for warm food and drink, and our all day companionship was serene. We walked from about 5:30 am to 5:00 pm, that Saturday, Epiphany.

Were we wise men? Some called us that. Some called us crazy! It was actually training for a 50 mile walk later in the year: that's 80 kilometres. What possible joy could we find in such a journey?

There can be great joy, satisfaction, learning, and improvement, when we reach out to the limits of what we can do. What we can physically do; what we can mentally do; what we can do spiritually. Test yourself. Train yourself. Push yourself. And do it with others. Perhaps the Maji of old can be our model for these things.

I have certainly never been an athletic person, but that is improving with each decade. So well I remember being in Newfoundland for the first time in 2007. I went to Gros Morne and hiked the trail up to the top of the mountain. I got to part that is uphill rocks, like a rough, wild staircase that never seems to end. I felt powerless. Physically powerless, for maybe the first time in my life! I could take a few steps, climbing the rock, and then had to pause before the next. Bit by bit, I got to the top of Gros Morne.

But it is wonderful to discover what one can do. Like learning I can walk 50 kms in one day, or even 80, if I train and prepare and learn how to do it. Little would I have imagined my body could do such a thing. Of course, you know this is also true of the human mind, and the spirit, and of groups of us in relationship. Our greatest training to reach our full potential comes in teams, helping one another. Jesus gets manifested to us in others who help us. With Christ we discover there is more possible in our lives than we first thought.

I included in today’s bulletin photos from the social media postings of The Wandering Wisemen. From the start of Advent to the Day of Epiphany, yesterday, some wise woman posted a picture a day of these little toy kings and their camel, making a journey to Jesus. Many of the Wandering Wisemen scenes have them helping one another along, and learning from their successes and their missteps. So it is, always.

Once upon an Epiphany, four wise amateurs hiked to some old growth forest to seek rare lichens growing on the bark of giant trees. This was yesterday, in Annapolis County, south of Goldsmith Lake. Good name for a wilderness area to visit on Epiphany, eh? Goldsmith.

And yesterday was worth its weight in gold, as I spent it with two old friends and one new one, each of them quite wise in knowing trees and plants, fungi and lichens - even in January with the snow on and the leaves off. Aside from a reunion of friends in the beautiful outdoors, what joy can there possibly be in looking for stubble lichens? Getting up close and personal with the dead wood of big tree trunks, squinting at the surface to search for the tiniest, mushroom-like pinheads of rare stuff that looks like stubble?

You know. The tiniest living things have beauty and can be quite amazing. I also think of how they were there all along, in the woods, for the past fifty years, and I did not see them until now. Wow! And some of these lichens - which are a combo of fungi and algae and/or bacteria - are rare. They are indicators of old forests, and thus give hints that other special and rare things may live in the same woods. Also, some of these lichens are protected by legislation: on crown land, at least, they are to have a buffer zone of 50 for 100 m.

So it is protective work for volunteers to survey the woodlands and find wonderful things, and report them. It was joyful, environmental work. In this, I find Christ made manifest - in all creation. The living God can be present in any creature, anywhere. The joy in the beauty of the world is shared by God and with God.

At Goldsmith Lake, the Cosmic Christ shines through. And at Cape d’Or. And Shepody Mountain: Chapeau Dieu. And your own backyard. In these scenes, the Spirit illuminates the value of each living thing, a part of the whole web of life. So graciously we have found ourselves to be part of this life. So we rejoice. Sometimes we have overwhelming joy because of what we found: some things we sought for, some we were not even looking for.

Wise Men still seek Him, it is said, all wise people. We seek the living Christ in all places and experiences of life. We learn our personal limits, be they physical, moral, spiritual, social, or whatever. We also discover that much mere is possible when we push our limits, as Jesus promised. And we live in creation finding great joy out there. Thanks be to God for the journey - the long one - that leads to overwhelming joy!

Let us observe a moment of SILENT Meditation.

PRAYERS of the People Like a star that inspires, there is a light from this table that shines, Light of hope amid all that is evil or deadly. We rejoice that a victory has been won by Jesus!

When God is a Child there’s joy in our song, and hope in our prayers. With healing touch and comfort of spirit, bless many people, we pray, including Molly, Reuben and Bob – dealing with cancer and all that goes with it. With riches and generosity bless those of our communities who are needy, and who will find this cold season very hard. With hope and resilience may those who mourn be blessed, including all who knew and loved a local teacher, Marie.

We call upon the Prince of Peace today, as every day, for the sake of the people of Ukraine, of Palestine and Israel, and other war-torn lands. We seek to know the grace of the Spirit for places where disasters have hit, and people’s lives are destroyed. As we leave this safe gathering now, take us into the world as messengers of good news and activists for grace. A.