We are drawing to the end of The Twelve Days of Christmas, and closer to the celebration of Epiphany, which takes place on 6 January. Traditionally, this special day commemorates the visit to Mary, Joseph, and Jesus, of “the three wise men” (or as one carol has it, the “three Kings” who came “a-sailing by”). But we are not quite there yet; it is only the eleventh of the twelve days. And so this is your cue, James Coombs: pipe away!!
I’ve already explored the part of the biblical story dealing with “the slaughter of the innocents” ordered by King Herod in posts earlier in this series. Today our attention turns to these characters who came “from the east”, following a star all the way to Bethlehem. To take our attention away from the cacophony of piping pipers, leaping lords, milking maids and mooing cows, along with a growing large assortment of birds, each contributing their own distinctive sounds into the musical melee, I offer two fairly contemporary pieces for Epiphany: first, a sonnet, and then, a carol.
The carol uses the story of the journey of the wise ones that is celebrated at Epiphany as the basis for considering our own journey of discipleship, following Jesus. It is another gem from the pen of Shirley Erena Murray and, as always, her words suggest ways that we can connect into the story in our own time, two millennia later.
Wise men came journeying
Wise men came journeying, once, long ago,
camel hooves swirling the sand dune and snow,
gold in the saddlebag, myrrh in the jar,
incense to honor the Child of the star.
Wise are the travelers led to move on
following signs where the Christ light has shone,
facing the deserts and crossing the lines,
heeding no limits that culture defines.
Wise are each one of us looking for change,
stargazer people, respecting the strange,
inner and outer worlds open to light,
centered on seeing the real and the right.
Wise ones keep journeying all through their days
bringing their gifts to the source of their praise,
risking the Promise with all they hold dear,
seeking God’s peace at the door of the year.
http://www.hopepublishing.com/html/main.isx?sitesec=40.2.1.0&hymnID=2956
And here is a poem in classic sonnet form, by Arthur Shippee, a friend and fellow-student I met while studying in the USA four decades ago. He writes sonnets for various times of the ecclesial year; this one is for the current time.
A Scribe at Herod’s Court, the Magi Having Left
The King rages — they’re gone off home, he’s heard.
That star puzzled, till foreign sages came
With reading they called fair — to us a word
Ill-starred and dark, obscure, a threatening claim.
So, worried Herod sought out guidance from
Us priests and scribes and shaped an answer shrewd:
“To Bethlehem! And send for me to come.”
His plan awry, he’s in a violent mood.
Herod! God bears with kings, as prophets knew.
Whate’er God’s plan, we do our work, keep whole
The Law, and offer sacrifices true,
Atoning for our sins of flesh and soul.
Yet, I’m perturbed, far more than I can say.
Shall all night’s lamps be doused at dawn of day?
Arthur Shippee, 2019, rev. 2021, 2023, 2024
An Informed Faith 