What is Your Shooting Star?

 

I am at Cathedral Gorge in Nevada taking sunset reflections of the landscape, but as I scout this location my real goal is to come back in the pitch of night to do some astro photography. Yes, I came back at 9pm into the park, carefully driving into the parking lot, finding my way in the dark. I set up my tripod, shined some light on a cliff while looking up into the night sky. The above photo is a “God moment” for while you see the stars shining bright, there is a shooting star streaking across the night sky. Awesome!

 

This reminds me of the following Scripture verse: “Where is the child who has been born King of the Jews? For we observed his star at its rising and have come to pay him homage.” (Matthew 2:2) 

 

Epiphany comes from a Greek word meaning “manifestation” or “appearing” is the day after the Twelfth Day of Christmas and celebrates this story in Matthew’s gospel (Matthew 2:1-12) about some astrologers from “the East”—possibly from Babylon (which is modern-day Iraq)—who’ve determined that an unusually bright star is a heavenly sign that a new king is being born. 

 

Being good diplomats, these clever fellows set off to follow the star to Judea where they intend to offer some pricey birthday presents to the new little sovereign, possibly on behalf of their nation and the folks back home. The trouble is, as you can readily tell from the gospel reading, the guy who currently occupies the throne of Judea isn’t too tickled to know there’s a new king on his turf, so he plans to use the stargazers as spies so he can find the little tyke and snuff out his competition.

 

Here's a little back story: The Wise Men, as we call them, may likely have been Zoroastrian priests who were revered for studying the heavenly bodies and predicting their influences upon the earth. The miraculous star may have been a comet or possibly a close conjunction between Saturn and Jupiter which astronomers believe occurred around the end of the reign of King Herod.

Another legend, which I like, says that they were of three different ages. Gaspar was a very young man. Balthazar was in his middle age, and Melchior was an old man. When they arrived at Bethlehem, they went into the cave one at a time. When Melchior, the old man, went into the cave, there was no one there but a very old man his own age with whom he was quickly at home. And they spoke together of memory and of gratitude. The middle-aged Balthazar encountered a middle-aged teacher when he went into the cave and they talked passionately of leadership and responsibility. And when young Gaspar entered, he met a young prophet, and they spoke words of reform and promise. And then when they had all gone outside after going in one by one, the three of them took their gifts and went in together. And when they went in together there was nobody there but a twelve-day-old infant. And later on they understood. The Savior speaks to every stage of life. The old hear the call to integrity and wisdom. The middle-aged hear the call to generativity and responsibility. And the young hear the call to identity and intimacy.

What jumps out at you about this story? Jesus is constantly inviting us. What is he inviting you to today? And will you accept his invitation? Will you say yes? Will you say no? Will you say maybe? Will you vacillate on whether or not to accept his invitation? Or will you just boldly say, "Yes, I will follow"? And that's what we see with the magi; we see them boldly responding to Jesus's call, boldly responding to Jesus's invitation. And so whatever it is he's inviting you to do today, I encourage you, I challenge you to boldly say yes. Our purpose is to cultivate the way of the Savior in our everyday lives. It’s a call to be loving, compassionate, inclusive, generous, and forgiving. It’s also a call to see the way of Christ in other human beings and to celebrate that holy presence when we recognize it. 

 

Lord, I pray for all my Sonshine Friends that we will be less hung up on doctrines and traditions and just, like the Wise Men, seek Jesus. We won’t care about our position in society, but we will care about the hungry, the hurting, and the lost. We won’t insist on conformity, but we will open our churches for the healing and comfort of all people, no questions asked. May this New Year be a time when you draw closer to Jesus.

 

Calm

 

This morning as I am watching the London New Year’s parade, I was humbled to receive the following email from a Sonshine Friend. “Pray you take time to take care of yourself- remembering we are all human- you’ve had a lot going on in your personal life-the scare you had earlier with your wife, the loss of Ken, tending to his family, of your close friend Father Erick’s daughter being murdered, and checking in on his family, all the loss, crisis, struggles and difficulties you assist with… and especially when feeling a wee bit run down-  and it’s one of the busiest times of the year- none of us want anything to happen to you!!!  So please do take care of yourself, know others care.”

 

Let me share this reflection about being “calm.” “Let it be done unto me according to your will,” Mary had said.

A real Archangel had appeared, handing out shocking news. What a jolt the Annunciation must have been for someone so unassuming, as Mary. Did she flinch?

No. She reacted with calm. She said simply, “I accept. Tell me how this wonderful birth will happen.”

But the series of events that followed do not seem to warrant calm. Mary became a betrothed woman found pregnant. Her husband-to-be had been about to divorce her until an angel explained things in a dream.

And since walking was the usual mode of transportation in those days, sometimes for astonishing distances, the census call did not make her promise easy. It was the last part of her pregnancy—the most difficult time of all to travel from Nazareth in the far north of Israel down to Bethlehem, which is south of Jerusalem. Not an impossible distance, but in the last month of pregnancy, a real challenge. This was God’s will and she had accepted it. Joseph in his kindness got a donkey for Mary to ride.

This Sunday we see Mary just days after the grueling journey and the amazing birth. She is carrying out the promise she made to Gabriel. All is well. The child is healthy and cute, and the angels, unable to contain their joy, have once more danced into Mary’s life. Even the animals understand. It is breathtaking.

It would seem that Mary’s calm would now seek some quiet and rest after all that had happened. But no. Unkempt shepherds, straight from the fields, “went in haste” to the shelter, announcing in their craggy voices that they knew who this baby is. Angels had told them. Wise men, or as we now say, kings, found the holy shelter and barged right in, bearing royal gifts.

Does this all impinge on Mary’s peace? No. She is good to her word. The Gospel says that she quietly "kept all these things, reflecting on them in her heart.”

How could she do this? Part of it was her personality, but even more, it was the presence of God deep within her, so deep that she let her life become one with his, and produced a son. Life on this earth is never free from hazards and setbacks and stunning difficulties, but as Mary let her heart reflect, and as she watched each movement of the newborn baby, she breathed in a holiness, a degree of holiness that even she had not known before.

“May it be done unto me according to your will.” Her acceptance was complete.

Lord, I pray for all my Sonshine Friends in this New Year that we witness this calm, in ourselves, within a crowded, difficult, surprising stable, as we keep the picture of it within our own hearts, may each of us be able to echo her words, “May it be done unto me according to your will.”

May the intercession of our Blessed Mother bring you closer to her Son and fill your year with grace, hope, and peace.

 

Wishing you a happy and blessed New Year!