FEAST OF THE EPIPHANY

Matthew 2:1-12

In the time of King Herod, after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea, wise men from the East came to Jerusalem, asking, ‘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.’ When King Herod heard this, he was frightened, and all Jerusalem with him; and calling together all the chief priests and scribes of the people, he inquired of them where the Messiah was to be born. They told him, ‘In Bethlehem of Judea; for so it has been written by the prophet:

“And you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah,
   are by no means least among the rulers of Judah;
for from you shall come a ruler
   who is to shepherd my people Israel.” ’

 Then Herod secretly called for the wise men and learned from them the exact time when the star had appeared. Then he sent them to Bethlehem, saying, ‘Go and search diligently for the child; and when you have found him, bring me word so that I may also go and pay him homage.’ When they had heard the king, they set out; and there, ahead of them, went the star that they had seen at its rising, until it stopped over the place where the child was. When they saw that the star had stopped, they were overwhelmed with joy. On entering the house, they saw the child with Mary his mother; and they knelt down and paid him homage. Then, opening their treasure-chests, they offered him gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh. And having been warned in a dream not to return to Herod, they left for their own country by another road.

As you see in the photo, the shepherds and their flocks have moved on to make way for the Magi.  Still, the Wise Men and their camels are a tight squeeze in the setting as they pay homage to King Jesus.
 

Again from Pastor Katie Ladd at Queen Anne United Methodist Church:

The story of the Magi, which culminates in the Adoration of the Magi on January 6 – Epiphany – is a story about uncertainty, journey, death, and birth. Many of us look back to the story of the Magi believing it to be part of our spiritual history, but, a more mature faith looks to the story as something much more meaningful. It is about us searching for God. We struggle. We search. We come to what feels like unsatisfactory endings to our travels only to be led down yet more paths to unknown destinations. We go through periods of deep uncertainty. Like the Magi, we little understand the culture or the ways of Jesus and his family. Like the Magi, we are distanced from them by space. Unlike the Magi, we are also distanced by two millennia; time is its own ocean we must cross to meet the Christ-child. Like the Magi, we must die to our gods in order to enter into the presence of the God of the Most High.

Pastor Katie's reflections were inspired by T S Eliot's poem "The Journey of the Magi".

O God, by the leading of a star you manifested your only Son
to the Peoples of the earth: Lead us, who know you now by
faith, to your presence, where we may see your glory face to
face; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns
with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever.
Amen.

(Book of Common Prayer)

OBAMA FAULTED FOR VIOLENCE IN IRAQ AND SYRIA

This is rich. The chaos in Iraq is Obama's fault. 

More than two years after the administration failed to reach a status of forces agreement with Iraq and withdrew all American combat troops from the country, the two senior Republican senators are blaming President Barack Obama for the violence erupting there this week.

Oh, and Syria, too. 

"[The administration] has sat by and refused to take any meaningful action, while the conflict has claimed more than 130,000 lives, driven a quarter of the Syrian population from their homes, fueled the resurgence of al Qaeda, and devolved into a regional conflict that now threatens our national security interests and the stability of Syria's neighbors, especially Iraq," they said.

Send in the troops! Let the two old soldiers be the first to set foot on the ground in Iraq. Wait! One to Iraq and the other to Syria. Take your choice, fellas. You'll set things right in no time.

ST JOHN'S EPISCOPAL CHURCH - 2 CHRISTMAS

For thus says the Lord:
Sing aloud with gladness for Jacob,
and raise shouts for the chief of the nations;
proclaim, give praise, and say,
‘Save, O Lord, your people,
the remnant of Israel.’
See, I am going to bring them from the land of the north,
and gather them from the farthest parts of the earth,
among them the blind and the lame,
those with child and those in labour, together;
a great company, they shall return here.
With weeping they shall come,
and with consolations I will lead them back,
I will let them walk by brooks of water,
in a straight path in which they shall not stumble;
for I have become a father to Israel,
and Ephraim is my firstborn.

(Jeremiah 31:7-9)

Thy Kingdom come...

Time for the shepherds and sheep to move along and make way for the Magi.

THE TWELFTH DAY OF CHRISTMAS - THANKSGIVING

On this Twelfth Day of Christmas, I am thankful for finding my little lost wreath. The pin belonged to my sister, Gayle. After she died my nieces and nephew offered me a choice of a memento from her jewelry box or her clothes, and I chose the Christmas wreath. On Christmas Eve, I wore the pin to church and did not realize it was missing until I looked for it several days later. I knew the pin fell off either in church, in a crevice in the car, or in the street, in which case it was lost forever. Today, when I looked in the lost and found box in the parish hall, there it lay, all sparkly.

THE MAGI ON THEIR JOURNEY

A lovely reflection on the Feast of Epiphany from Katie, head pastor at Queen Anne Methodist Church, inspired by T S Eliot's poem, "Journey of the Magi".

The story of the Magi, which culminates in the Adoration of the Magi on January 6 – Epiphany – is a story about uncertainty, journey, death, and birth. Many of us look back to the story of the Magi believing it to be part of our spiritual history, but, a more mature faith looks to the story as something much more meaningful. It is about us searching for God. We struggle. We search. We come to what feels like unsatisfactory endings to our travels only to be led down yet more paths to unknown destinations. We go through periods of deep uncertainty. Like the Magi, we little understand the culture or the ways of Jesus and his family. Like the Magi, we are distanced from them by space. Unlike the Magi, we are also distanced by two millennia; time is its own ocean we must cross to meet the Christ-child. Like the Magi, we must die to our gods in order to enter into the presence of the God of the Most High.

First lines of the poem:

"A cold coming we had of it,
Just the worst time of the year
For a journey, and such a long journey:
The ways deep and the weather sharp,
The very dead of winter."
And the camels galled, sore-footed, refractory,
Lying down in the melting snow.

The entire poem is here.

No wonder the camel in my Nativity set is sitting down. He's sore-footed.

PONDERISMS

1. I used to eat a lot of natural foods until I learned that most people die of natural causes.

2. There are two kinds of pedestrians...the quick and the dead.

3. Life is sexually transmitted.

4. Healthy is merely the slowest possible rate at which one can die.

5. The only difference between a rut and a grave is the depth.

6. Health nuts are going to feel stupid someday, lying in hospitals dying of nothing.

7. Have you noticed since everyone has a cell phone these days no one talks about seeing UFOs like they used to?

8. Whenever I feel blue, I start breathing again.

9. All of us could take a lesson from the weather. It pays no attention to criticism.

10. How is it one careless match can start a forest fire, but it takes a whole box to start a campfire?

11. Who was the first person to look at a cow and say, "I think I'll squeeze these dangly things and drink whatever comes out"?  Hmm...  I have the same question about eggs.

12. If corn oil is made from corn, and vegetable oil is made from vegetables, then what is baby oil made from?

13. Do illiterate people get the full effect of alphabet soup?

14. Does pushing the elevator button more than once make it arrive faster?

15. Why doesn't glue stick to the inside of the bottle?

I may have published a number of the ponderisms before, but a few were new to me and made me laugh out loud.

"LAST CHANCE HARVEY"

Since I'd completely forgotten that I bought the DVD, I must have purchased the film "Last Chance Harvey" some years ago. Last night I finally watched, and I enjoyed the performances of two fine actors, Dustin Hoffman and Emma Thompson, in a lovely, romantic story. While the audiences' reactions were decidedly mixed, the critics gave the film higher marks. One critic said the movie was "sweet and tender", and another said, "They don't often make romances like this, so tell your mum - or granny!" Well, I thought it was sweet and tender, and I'm a mum and a granny, so I suppose that's why I more than liked the movie - I loved it. It will not be among the most memorable films I've seen, but it was a fine way to spend a cold and rainy New Year's Eve.

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

How many of you know the lyrics to "Auld Lang Syne"?



Or if you prefer the pipes...



The Scots - they are a proud people. I've seen their lovely Highlands.

"THE NINE TAILORS" BY DOROTHY SAYERS

Facebook's question du jour is, "What's on your mind?"  My answer is that I finished reading Dorothy Sayers' The Nine Tailors for the second or third time and enjoyed the mystery better than ever. I understood the process of change-ringing a bit more than in the previous reading (or readings). Sayers writes beautifully.

By contrast with the brilliance below, the bell-chamber is somber and almost menacing. The main lights of its eight great windows were darkened throughout their height; only through the slender panelled tracery above the slanting louvres the sunlight dripped, rare and chill, striping the heavy beams of the bell-cage with bars and splashes of pallid gold, making a curious fantastic patterning on the spokes and rims of the wheels. The bells with mute black mouths gaping downwards, brooded in their ancient places.

Tell me that's not fine writing. Better yet, think what you like, but if you disagree, don't tell me.

When I reread mysteries I rarely remember whodunnit, so the suspense remains the second or third time around, especially when years have passed between readings.

To see how change-ringing is done and how it sounds watch the videos below.

 

DID I READ THAT RIGHT?

Did I read that sign correctly?
TOILET OUT OF ORDER. PLEASE USE FLOOR BELOW

In a Laundromat:
AUTOMATIC WASHING MACHINES: PLEASE REMOVE ALL YOUR CLOTHES WHEN THE LIGHT GOES OUT

In a London department store:
BARGAIN BASEMENT UPSTAIRS

In an office:
WOULD THE PERSON WHO TOOK THE STEP LADDER YESTERDAY PLEASE BRING IT BACK OR FURTHER STEPS WILL BE TAKEN

In an office:
AFTER TEA BREAK STAFF SHOULD EMPTY THE TEAPOT AND STAND UPSIDE DOWN ON THE DRAINING BOARD

Outside a secondhand shop:
WE EXCHANGE ANYTHING - BICYCLES, WASHING MACHINES, ETC. WHY NOT BRING YOUR WIFE ALONG AND GET A WONDERFUL BARGAIN?

Notice in health food shop window:
CLOSED DUE TO ILLNESS

Spotted in a safari park:(I sure hope so)
ELEPHANTS PLEASE STAY IN YOUR CAR

Seen during a conference:
FOR ANYONE WHO HAS CHILDREN AND DOESN'T KNOW IT, THERE IS A DAY CARE ON THE 1ST FLOOR

Notice in a farmer's field:
THE FARMER ALLOWS WALKERS TO CROSS THE FIELD FOR FREE, BUT THE BULL CHARGES.

Message on a leaflet:
IF YOU CANNOT READ, THIS LEAFLET WILL TELL YOU HOW TO GET LESSONS

On a repair shop door:
WE CAN REPAIR ANYTHING. (PLEASE KNOCK HARD ON THE DOOR - THE BELL DOESN'T WORK)

Thanks, Frank.