The Magi In My Life

This is an Epiphany sermon based in the story of the magi from Matthew 2.1-11, as well as the Episcopal School of Dallas virtue of “Openness” for the month of February. In the Spirit of openness, I decided to give a sermon a little differently than I normally do. From a pulpit. I hope you will be open to this! Now if you are skeptical like me, you may wonder if openness is even a virtue, and if so, why is it important enough to devote a whole MONTH to it. Well, I am glad you asked!

Most of our virtues are virtues of the heart and hands: “Heart” virtues encourage us to feel certain ways in our hearts, like feeling empathy in September, or Appreciation in April. “Hand” virtues encourage us to do something in the world, like making peace in October, or serving in December, or creating in January. But instead of a virtue of the heart or the hands, Openness is primarily a virtue of the “Head”. It encourages us to open our minds and transform the way we think. 

Like our Scripture for the month says from Romans 12: “Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your minds.”

To have a transformed and renewed mind means to have an open mind: Open to listen to God's voice wherever God speaks. And to know that God speaks at all times, in all kinds of ways, through all kinds of voices. 

Only an open mind, a receptive mind, is ready to listen for God's voice. Because ALL truth is God's truth, wherever it may be found. And if we want to be open to truth we have to get past rigid habits and limited mindsets which deafen us to the sound of God's voice. 

A great example of openness actually comes from our Gospel Story of the First Epiphany, which we read again today. And it is an openness from two sides: On one side, you have the magi who came seeking God's wisdom and truth embodied in the child Messiah. 

These magi came from an advanced and powerful culture— probably ancient Persia— so they had every reason to doubt God would be found among the Jewish people, who were from a poor and oppressed and war torn land. These magi probably possessed great education, what we might consider "advanced degrees". So what could they possibly learn from a child? Much less a child who was said to be a Messiah of a people who were not their own?

And yet, they were open to the voice of God. They were open to the star above. They were open to finding the truth, no matter where that truth led them. And it led them to the makeshift home of a poor Jewish couple and their unique child. And this is where the door of openness swings the other way.

Because it would have been the easiest thing for Joseph and Mary to shut the door, and pretend no one was home. These were visitors from a foreign land. They had a different culture, a different language, a different religion. They were "other", and why would God speak through anyone that was "other"? 

After all, their Scriptures seemed to indicate that God was only TRULY known through the Law and Prophets of the Jewish people. The holy family had every reason to reject these “unholy” visitors and their "gifts".

And yet, they welcomed them in. They had fellowship with them. They listened to each other. And they exchanged gifts. The magi were enriched from experiencing the Love of God in a small child. And the holy family was enriched by resources— gold, frankincense, and myrrh— that they could never earn in ten lifetimes. 

And while this is a story about many things, for us this month it is a story that displays why we need to open our minds to hear all the ways God speaks to us. So I would like to tell you how opening my mind, to hear God speak through diverse voices, has deepened my relationship with Jesus, and my ability to love others. 

Because, like the holy family, I have had several "magi" in my life. These are people who come from outside of my culture, outside of my form of religion, and outside of my comfort zone. And yet, without listening to them, I would not be able to follow Jesus the way I do.

The first voice I want to introduce you to is an African Orthodox bishop from the 4th century. His name is Athanasius, and over 1600 years ago, he helped shape the Nicene Creed, which most Christians use to confess their faith in Christ, every Sunday. And yet, the way he followed Jesus was extremely different from how we follow Jesus in American culture in the 21st century. 

In his book called "On the Incarnation" he tries to explain why God became human in Jesus. For Athanasius, it is because God wants to be united to us in love, to be in a relationship with us. And this is not just united by simply believing in Jesus, or by simply obeying God’s Word. 

For Athanasius, Jesus shows us that God literally wants us to dwell IN us, and fill us with God's light and love and life, from the inside out. His key phrase was "God became human so that humans may become divine".

Why is this such a big deal? Because a 4th century African Orthodox view is very different from the assumptions packed into much of 21st century American Christian culture. I remember being taught as a new Christian that the message of Jesus is primarily transactional: Christ does something, to get us to do something, so we get something in return. 

In this case, the transaction is all about paying debts. We owe a debt to God, for sin, that we cannot repay. So, God pays that debt for us, by dying on the cross. But we have to complete that transaction by giving our lives back to Christ. Or else we are punished.

Athanasius' view 1600 years ago is not transactional, but relational. God wants to share deeply in our lives. So deeply that God becomes one of us in Christ. And in Christ God invites us to share deeply in God. And the effect of this relationship is not merely the transaction of paying a debt.

Instead, this relationship results in the experience of being healed and made whole. God takes our sickness and death into Godself in Christ to fully experience it, and heal us from it. God becomes what we are, so that we may become like God. This gift revolutionized how I came to follow God through Jesus.

My next magi comes from 8th century Iraq. Her name is Rabia al-Adawiyya, and she was a Muslim mystic. She is one of the founders of the Sufi tradition within Islam, and is credited with bringing the doctrine of divine love to the center of the Sufi way. Her life embodied the root meaning of the term “islam”: complete surrender to the will of God. 

Rabia was orphaned and sold into slavery at an early age. Legends tell us she was granted freedom when her master saw her praying late at night, radiating a light that filled the house. Though she sought attention from no one, Rabia was recognized in her lifetime as a teacher of high stature and many visitors made their way to her door. Numerous tales, prayers, and conversations from Rabia's life have come down to us through almost thirteen centuries of Sufi teachers.

But perhaps her most famous quote is: “Lord, if I love you out of fear of hell, cast me into hell; if I love you out of hope of heaven, close its gates to me; but if I love you for the sake of loving you, do not deny yourself to me!”

Even though Rabia and I see God in very different ways— I see God primarily in the face of Jesus, while she would say no face can fully reveal God— yet, I learned something from her gift: 

I should not love God just for what I can get out of God. I should not love God simply to avoid punishment, or achieve happiness, whether that is in this life or beyond.  I should love God simply because God is Love. Simply because God loves me and enjoys me. True spirituality is not fear based, nor seeking reward. It is a relationship of Divine Love. 

My third magi comes from 20th century Vietnam, in the form of a small Buddhist monk named Thích Nhất Hạnh. Just as many Christians have been inspired to live a life of peacemaking and service by following Jesus as the Prince of Peace, so Thích Nhất was inspired by the life and message of the Buddha to embody a life of radical non-violence and self-giving. 

In the 1960's, although the United States was at war in Thích Nhất Hahn’s Vietnam, he saw a kindred spirit in the American Civil Rights Leader Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. So, he reached out, beyond national boundaries, and formed a relationship with Dr. King, and they rallied for peace and civil rights together: The little Buddhist monk and the outspoken Christian pastor. Dr. King was so impressed that he called Thích Nhất "an apostle of peace and non-violence". 

King would go on to nominate Thích Nhất for the 1967 Nobel Peace Prize, saying "I do not personally know of anyone more worthy of the Nobel Peace Prize than this gentle monk from Vietnam. His ideas for peace, if applied, would build a monument to ecumenism, to world brotherhood, to humanity"

This experience so impacted Thích Nhất that he would later go on to write a book called "Living Buddha, Living Christ" which details the many ways the message of Christ helped him become a better Buddhist, and how the message of the Buddha can help Christians follow Christ more deeply. His core idea in the book is "interbeing". As he says "Nothing can be by itself alone... Everything in the cosmos must “inter-be” with everything else".

Thích Nhất advocates that, just as God and humanity are one in Christ, and Christ calls us to share in that oneness through him, so also the Buddha teaches that we intimately share in the life of all other beings. Because I am “interbeing” with you, I cannot be the best I can be, without you becoming the best you can be. 

Thích Nhất goes on to say "When we see the nature of interbeing, barriers between ourselves and others are dissolved, and peace, love, and understanding are possible. Whenever there is understanding, compassion is born."

So, these are three of many magi in my life. I could have closed my mind to each of them, and never opened the books through which they spoke to me. I could have easily said "I think I live in the most powerful and advanced culture in history, and I think I practice the true religion, so there is nothing I can learn from anyone else!" 

I could have done that. But then I would have never experienced all the fullness of what God wanted to teach me, to follow Christ more deeply.

Because, just as the Christ child received three gifts from his magi— gold, frankincense, and myrrh— so also I have received three gifts from my magi: 

The Relational Religion of the Incarnation of God from Athanasius; Unconditional Love for God beyond punishment and reward from Rabia; The Interbeing that allows us to see others as part of ourselves from Thích Nhất Hạnh. And these gifts have proven essential for me as a follower of Jesus. 

Maybe in this month of Openness, God is calling you to listen to more voices, and open your minds to the transforming power of God’s truth and love. Maybe God has magi waiting for you to give you gifts. 

Maybe your magi are in a book you are reading for class, or waiting on a shelf in the library. Maybe you may find your magi in the science lab, or in a musical instrument, or in a class discussion. Maybe your magi will be found in a conversation with someone you never imagined you would sit down and talk to.

Where are your magi? What gifts will they bring? You will never find out, unless you open yourself to openness. Amen.