By another road

 Matthew 2:1-12

I recently discovered a podcast called Literature and History. Doug Metzger has a PhD in literature, and has a bit of an attitude which makes his storytelling fun to listen to. In the podcast, he begins with cuneiform writings in 3100 BCE, and by the 8^th episode I have a growing sense of the creation and melding of stories in the region over the centuries.

So far, Metzger has demonstrated parallels in the literature itself, and the political and cultural events and “atmosphere” of the Middle East and how it impacts the writings themselves. And sometimes, how these ancient stories are reflected in the Biblical writings we know today.  

This is a map of the greater middle east at Jesus’ time. We often think about Jesus in relation to the tiny strip of land along the eastern edge of the Mediterranean Sea, but ancient peoples, and indeed modern peoples, never limit themselves to such a small area, any more than we consider the US as just Washington DC. When the author of Matthew tells us that the Magi came from the East, they could have come from a number of places: Nineveh, Babylon, Arabia, and India are only a few possibilities.

According to the Oxford Dictionary on Google, the term “magi” refers to “a member of a priestly caste in ancient Persia”. So, that narrows it down a bit for us, leading to the probability that the Magi who visit Jesus were from Persia, the then-current name for Babylon. There is speculation that the Magi knew about Daniel, who had lived in Babylon during the exile 400 years earlier.

They may have been Zoroastrian, a 3,000-year-old monotheistic religion that has some affinity with Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. Some say that the magi were astrologers and astronomers, so they were aware of changes in the sky. And some say they were interpreters of dreams. Which sort of fits with astrology and the interpretation of signs in the stars.

But there is no true documentation of just who they were, or exactly where they came from, so anything we say about them is speculation, other than that Matthew says they showed up and gave pricey gifts. … Assuming the star arose at the time of the birth, and it took time to organize a journey, and then travel 1,000 miles or more, then by the time they arrived, Jesus was a child, a toddler, not a baby in a manger.

While there are three gifts listed, and there has long been an assumption that there were 3 magi, there likely was a caravan of magi, maybe spouses, staff and servants, carrying multiple bags and boxes and jars of precious gifts worthy of giving to a king. Not to mention the women’s gifts of some of the daily necessities for raising a child, some clothes, some bedding, some food, some handy kitchen utensils.

It does appear that the Magi were leaders in their country, whatever that country to the East was. They brought wealthy and ritually important gifts to the newly born king. Their intent was to greet and honor the child, an act of hospitality and good diplomatic relations. Did they know that this child was special, other than a baby king? Matthew doesn’t say. I think it’s more likely that their religion taught them to welcome all, including those who believed in the Jewish God.

… The magi started at the palace, where they supposed the child is. But they were wrong; the Star-GPS guided them to the wrong house. And worse, they underestimated the current king’s desire for power and control. Herod the Great knew his position as client-king depended on not calling attention to himself except in ways that honored Caesar Augustus. So, he did everything he could to maintain his hold, including murder.

In this case, he used his allies the priests to determine where and when such a king might have been born. When the priests reported that Bethlehem was indicated by the Prophet Micah, Herod made plans to ensure the child never grew to adulthood, never became a threat to him. If we had not had the Service of Lessons and Carols last week, this story of the murder of the innocents would have been the text for Pr Nancy to preach about.

Fortunately, the magi had a dream, warning them that they should not return to Herod, and they returned to the East by another road. Thanks to the expanse of the Roman Empire, there were many roads they could take without going back to Jerusalem.

… Sometimes, the road to a location is easy. It’s 2 miles, just 4 turns, to my local Publix. But, last summer, I took a saved portion of my brother Dave’s ashes to sprinkle on the graves of our grandparents in Michigan. For some reason, even with the voice of Ms GPS, I missed a turn, or turned too early several times, and ended up going around the back of the cemetery, a mile north, a mile west, a mile south, half a mile east, and finally found the entrance. As I was driving through the familiar-feeling southwest Michigan countryside, with corn and vineyards and orchards all around me, I finally figured out it was Dave, wanting just one more ride in the car, and sending me by another road to his final resting place.

… There are many roads we can take to be with God, or to let God find us. Some of us have followed them all our lives, maybe with detours down another road, but we found our way back to God.
 That’s probably why we are all here in church this morning.

But, many take another road to the holy. Last week, Mike and I watched a 4-part story of Alan Cummings on the Royal Scotland trains, touring his home country. The last episode included a tour of the isle of Iona, which has been a holy place for many people for at least 2,000 years. As he was preparing to leave, Alan commented something like this: “I am an atheist, and I don’t believe in any kind of god. But I can feel there might be a spirit of something holy here.”

This week, I hope you will consider how many roads you have taken so far to be with God. And that you will be open to the ways God will lead you in the future, maybe down roads you never thought you would travel.

And remember, whenever you encounter a fork on the road, God travels with you down any path or highway you choose. Amen