Reading: "The Star" (adapted) by Robert Killam
From Celebrating Christmas: Anthology, Edited by Carl Seaburg

         To our ancestors in a far-off time, all nature was a mystery. Everywhere were spirits and demons and gods, beings to be feared and worshipped. But the greatest were the gods of the heavens, the sun, and the moon, and the stars….And … up there, in the starry firmament, surely there must God dwell, and there must prayers be sent. And when the heavens change, and a new star is born, to burn bright-this surely is a sign, a sign to draw shepherds and Wise Men, even from the East, to worship a newborn child.

         Today, the heavens are not so mysterious as they were then. Our magi, the astronomers, say that the Star of Bethlehem was really a dying star, whose bright death-fire was a gleam in our sky for a few weeks, and then went out.

         But the Star has really remained, whatever our modern magi say. For its meaning to us will never pass away, and its light will never die out. Its message is the same tonight as it was twenty centuries ago: "Peace on Earth, Good Will toward all people." And we see it now as they saw it then, and still follow it.

Sermon

         Today is the eleventh day of Christmas. Tuesday will be Epiphany, a revelation of the divine to the Three Kings. In previous years, I've said that the Three Kings, sometimes called Three Wise Men, were probably Zoroastrian priests. Zoroaster had been a Persian prophet of Ahura Mazda, God of Light. It is typical of the Jews to have three humble shepherds attend the birth of a special person. But the Gospel writer who invented the story of the Three Wise Men intended to help give the impression of a noble birth for Jesus. This story-writer would want the world to know that the high priests of Zoroaster came to pay homage to a great king whose birth Zoroaster himself had predicted.

         In the time of Jesus, the Zoroastrian religion was the oldest and most highly respected religion in the Middle East. Even the Romans would have been impressed to hear that Zoroastrian priests had followed a star to pay homage to a newborn king. We know these priests as "The Magi", meaning "priests" in Persian. (Actually "Magi" is an inaccurate Greek rendition of the Persian word mobed, which means priest. Anyway, the Greek word Magi stuck.)

         The Christian church refers to January 6th as the Epiphany, or revelation of the divine. So today is the 11th day of Christmas, the first day being December 25th. Do you remember the song "The Twelve Days of Christmas? It begins, "On the first day of Christmas my true love gave to me, a partridge in a pear tree". If you were raised Catholic or Episcopalian, each day would be meaningful to the Christmas Story. The 11th day would be Eleven Pipers piping, meaning the 12 apostles, minus Judas Iscariat, proclaiming (or piping) the "good news". Do you remember what the 12 drummers drumming represented? They represented the 12 concepts of the Apostles Creed!

         The day following the 12th day of Christmas is the Feast of the Three Kings or the Adoration of the Magi. It is always on January 6th. In the presence of the baby Jesus, the Magi experienced an Epiphany, that is, a revelation of God. (In the Eastern Orthodox church, Jesus' birthday is on January 6th, with Epiphany on January 19th.

         In the Unitarian Universalist tradition, the stories of Christmas are too fantastic to take literally. If you are a UU Christian for whom Christmas is deeply meaningful, or a UU pagan who prefers the Solstice experience, or a UU Humanist who just likes the festive season, or a UU Mystic who likes the possibilities inherent in all regular cultural celebrations, or a combination of some or all of these, it is unlikely that you interpret the stories as fact. But it is up to you how you interpret these stories.

         People get really creative with this Wise Men story. One Christmas, I was visiting a small Southern town where there was a nativity scene that showed creative workmanship. I found one thing that was strange, however. The Three Wise Men were wearing red fireman's helmets. When I stopped at a Quick Stop store at the edge of town, I asked the lady behind the counter about the helmets on the Three Wise Men. She exploded in anger. "You darn Yankees never do read the Bible!!!"

         I assured her that I did and had even been to seminary but I couldn't recall anything about firemen in the Bible. She snatched her Bible from behind the counter and ruffled through some pages, and finally jabbed her finger at a particular passage. Sticking it in my face, she said, "See, it says right there. 'The three Wise Men came from afaaaar'!"

         Seriously though, while it's true that few UUs would claim to have had an Epiphany, with a capital E, meaning a revelation of God, we might admit to having epiphanies large and small, both with a small "e". In our modern day, when we say we've had an "epiphany" (with a small e), we really mean that we've had a deep insight into something in life. (This is not to say that some of us might have had an Epiphany, with a capital E!)

         I was listening to the Diane Rheam Show a few mornings ago. She was interviewing the writer Peter Hamill-some of us here recently read Hamill's book Snow in August. Diane Rheam wanted to talk about a book Hamill wrote many years ago, called A Drinking Life. She said, "Pete, what made you write that book?"

         He replied something to this effect, "Alcohol is the enemy of memory and a writer relies on memory. I just loved the atmosphere of the bars in Manhattan where writers, journalists, and small time mobsters go. I had already lost my wife and was threatened with losing custody of my daughters but still the life of the barroom was compelling. One night, a singer started singing, 'Lulu's Back in Town.' It suddenly hit me that a cheap Las Vegas lounge song like 'Lulu's Back in Town' summed up this bar experience. I gave up drinking that night and I also kept custody of my daughters. This is more than thirty years ago. I've had only a few relapses since then. A Drinking Life is about that time of my life." For me, Pete Hamill's insight that night was a big epiphany, an understanding and a resolve that changed his life.

         Lately, I've been an avid reader of the Standard Times' Opinion Page. On January 1st, there was an editorial captioned 'Save the oak.' This is the 125 year-old spreading oak tree that is behind the Leroy L. Wood Elementary School on Sconticut Neck Road in Fairhaven. This tree stands smack in the middle of what could be a new playing field for girls' softball. With the editorial was an impassioned letter from Fairhaven resident Sallie-Lou Johnson full of ideas about why and how the tree should be saved. She said, "Trees are wonderful creations. They're like old friends who are always there when you need them. They never criticize, complain, sass back or run away. . . They're good listeners and great to climb. They give shade, shelter, color, fruit, nuts, provide homes for birds and other creatures, are great to build tree houses in, and they never ask anything in return…. If the tree is cut down, we need to put a memorial plaque in its place…something like, "On this spot once stood a beautiful 125-year old oak tree. Five members of the School Committee of 2003 voted to have it cut down because it was in the way of future recreation …"

         Ms. Johnson might not only qualify as a UU mystical pagan but she also strikes me as someone who has had an epiphany about this tree but I think she is awakening epiphanies about it in others. I do hope you will write to the School Committee about this to support her. This is an example of an epiphany of a Community.

         Nations can also have an epiphany, a collective mind change that can have ripple effects around the world-especially if it is the USA! This year is an election year. It is an opportunity to change the world. The Opinion page cartoons in the Standard Times are truly excellent. The New Year's Eve cartoon was particularly arresting. There is a big globe of the world. On one side is a soldier with a gun, poised, ready; on the other is a terrorist with a bomb, poised, ready. Sitting on top of the globe is a baby with a banner for a bib with 2004 written on it. A baby! How will the world, or at least we, care for the baby of the world?!? But enough morbidity!

         We experience epiphanies when we reflect seriously upon our lives. Pete Hamill's resolve to not drink and not go to bars, didn't happen in a single moment. The song 'Lulu's Back in Town' struck him because he was already reflecting upon his life. A New Year offers us a chance to open up to big or small epiphanies. I'm going public with one of my epiphanies-I eat too fast! I resolve to eat more slowly to appreciate food more and eat less! Yes, it's a New Year resolution. I also have a much deeper and life changing one. I hope you will take the opportunity of the season to open yourself up to an epiphany large or small. We cannot change the whole world for the better, but we can change ourselves for the better.

         There is a solemn opportunity to this time of year. But it is also our last opportunity to bid one another a wholesome and healthy New Year. In my native Old England, we say the old Anglo-Saxon term waes haeil (pronounced "ways hail"), which means be whole. When I say to you "ways hail", (be whole) you should reply drink hael which means "to your health!"

         Many of us have brought our holiday leftovers to share.And thanks to a woman also from Old England, Wendy Donabie, for making Wassail for us today so that we can eat drink and be merry. So let's get in the mood by singing Here We Go A-Wassailing. And when we come to the last chorus, you might like to turn to your neighbor and sing, "Love and joy come to you…" May 2004 be filled with blessings and the benefit of acted-upon epiphanies. And this coffee hour, may to say to everyone you encounter, "Wassail!". And may they reply,"Drink Heil!"

References

The following has inspired and informed this sermon:

Vincent, Ken R. The Magi: from Zoroaster to the "Three Wise Men", North Richland Hills, Texas: BIBAL Press, 1999.