As preached by Sister Cecelia
Holy Wisdom Church
It is not easy to be a Christian today but it never has been easy. Where do we go for help to know what we need to do, what choices we are to make today, tomorrow and the next day? Scripture, the Good News of our Bible is one of the places to turn to. It is a formidable task and one that we frequently put off for the quiet time that never seems to come. Trying to understand the lessons we might glean from our Liturgical feasts this week though, is a start.
While there is much written about the symbolism of the gifts the Magi brought to the infant, it is understood that the Gold is a gift fit for a king. Jesus’ kingdom was not what the Hebrews were expecting. Jesus was to rule by love and not by force, ruling our hearts, not from a throne but from the cross.
Frankincense is a gift fit for a priest for the worship of God. It was in the temple worship and temple sacrifices that the sweet perfume of Frankincense was used. Opening the way to God was the function of a priest. A Latin word for priest is pontifex which means bridge builder. The priest is the one who builds a bridge between God and humankind. In some theological circles all believers are priests which follows then that we all have the responsibility of opening the way to God for others by our lives.
Myrrh is a gift for one who is dying or died. Even at the cradle of Christ, the gifts of the wise men foretold that He was to be the true King, the perfect High Priest and in the end the Supreme Savior of humankind.
After finding and worshiping Jesus, the Magi were warned by God not to return to Jerusalem and Herod. Finding Jesus may mean our lives must also take a different direction, one more responsive and obedient to God’s word. Are we willing to be led in a different way?
Let us notice that it is not the wise men from Jesus’ own country that came to pay him homage but the learned philosophers from Persia or Babylon. To both the Romans and the Hebrews the belief systems and dress of these travelers must have seemed very strange. What must Mary and Joseph have thought of them?
What would we have thought of their strange dress and ways?
Think of all the great diversity among the entire human race. It is not only the wide variety of the shapes of our noses, mouths, hair color and sizes. We have vastly different languages, cultures, styles of behavior and beliefs. If we find ourselves among people vastly different from what we are used to, we can feel threatened, and hostile. Much of the fighting occurring through the history of the human race has been over these kinds of differences. We are much more prone to kill people over their skin color, language or religious differences than over economic or political ideologies.
Early in Jesus’ ministry it seemed he came only for the house of Israel but before his ministry ended, he made it clear that he had come for the entire world. He told his followers to spread his good news to all.
Throughout much of history it was thought that others would have to give up their own cultures, their own belief systems entirely and become just “like us” in order to be followers of Christ. It was thought that salvation would involve a denial of everything in their past and the accepting of only our past. Exactly how Jesus perfects the best in every human tradition is difficult to say, as some things do have to change. We can now see how wrong it was for Western Christians to demand converts to become good Europeans as well as Christians.
To be a true follower of Christ, people only need to accept the loving tender, passionate Father in heaven that Jesus came to reveal. Remember how often Jesus said: “It is written in the law...but I say to you, etc”. It is difficult for many to believe those who are different from us can equally share in the graces of God. They do not have to have the same customs, the same culture to be part of the body of Christ. There is much work to be done to help bring about these real connections, this genuine understanding. If we have not been bridge builders before, let this Christmas be a beginning even if it means being led into different ways of being.
Christ is born!
While there is much written about the symbolism of the gifts the Magi brought to the infant, it is understood that the Gold is a gift fit for a king. Jesus’ kingdom was not what the Hebrews were expecting. Jesus was to rule by love and not by force, ruling our hearts, not from a throne but from the cross.
Frankincense is a gift fit for a priest for the worship of God. It was in the temple worship and temple sacrifices that the sweet perfume of Frankincense was used. Opening the way to God was the function of a priest. A Latin word for priest is pontifex which means bridge builder. The priest is the one who builds a bridge between God and humankind. In some theological circles all believers are priests which follows then that we all have the responsibility of opening the way to God for others by our lives.
Myrrh is a gift for one who is dying or died. Even at the cradle of Christ, the gifts of the wise men foretold that He was to be the true King, the perfect High Priest and in the end the Supreme Savior of humankind.
After finding and worshiping Jesus, the Magi were warned by God not to return to Jerusalem and Herod. Finding Jesus may mean our lives must also take a different direction, one more responsive and obedient to God’s word. Are we willing to be led in a different way?
Let us notice that it is not the wise men from Jesus’ own country that came to pay him homage but the learned philosophers from Persia or Babylon. To both the Romans and the Hebrews the belief systems and dress of these travelers must have seemed very strange. What must Mary and Joseph have thought of them?
What would we have thought of their strange dress and ways?
Think of all the great diversity among the entire human race. It is not only the wide variety of the shapes of our noses, mouths, hair color and sizes. We have vastly different languages, cultures, styles of behavior and beliefs. If we find ourselves among people vastly different from what we are used to, we can feel threatened, and hostile. Much of the fighting occurring through the history of the human race has been over these kinds of differences. We are much more prone to kill people over their skin color, language or religious differences than over economic or political ideologies.
Early in Jesus’ ministry it seemed he came only for the house of Israel but before his ministry ended, he made it clear that he had come for the entire world. He told his followers to spread his good news to all.
Throughout much of history it was thought that others would have to give up their own cultures, their own belief systems entirely and become just “like us” in order to be followers of Christ. It was thought that salvation would involve a denial of everything in their past and the accepting of only our past. Exactly how Jesus perfects the best in every human tradition is difficult to say, as some things do have to change. We can now see how wrong it was for Western Christians to demand converts to become good Europeans as well as Christians.
To be a true follower of Christ, people only need to accept the loving tender, passionate Father in heaven that Jesus came to reveal. Remember how often Jesus said: “It is written in the law...but I say to you, etc”. It is difficult for many to believe those who are different from us can equally share in the graces of God. They do not have to have the same customs, the same culture to be part of the body of Christ. There is much work to be done to help bring about these real connections, this genuine understanding. If we have not been bridge builders before, let this Christmas be a beginning even if it means being led into different ways of being.
Christ is born!
