"Wisdom and Belief"

Matthew 2:1-12

The visitors from the East are referred to in a couple of different ways.  Some call them the Wise Men from the East, some call them Three Kings.  What we know about them is that they were likely astrologers who were interested in the patterns of light and stars in the sky. The were perhaps an early form of scientists, trying to explain and make sense of the universe.

This Sunday we celebrate the arrival of the Wise Men, the Kings, at the house of the child Jesus. We call this day Epiphany Sunday. The actual day of the Epiphany is January 6, known in many countries as Three Kings Day and a day of celebration and eating of King's Cake. A celebration that will go on leading right up to Carnavale, or Mardi Gras, which this year is February 9.

Perhaps as we celebrate the arrival of the three Wise Men or Kings or astrologers, we should take one last look at the theme of belief we focused on during Advent.  What does it mean to truly submit to God's love in your life and believe?  And, this week, let's add to that the role that wisdom, true wisdom, plays in belief.  How do belief and wisdom go hand in hand? Do you believe that wisdom and belief do intersect one another, and if not, what ways do they seem to be opposites to one another?

In today's post-christendom world, we have a lot of cynicism and disbelief. We also have a lot of folks talking a lot about, and writing and reading a lot about, inner wisdom. How you have to rely on your own inner wisdom to get you through life.  I am interested in the way our 'inner wisdom' might just be the voice of God and very closely related to our ability to believe.

In the Wise Men's story, they were told by King Herod to report back to him the Christ' child's location, yet when they saw the Child, they were overcome with joy (belief) and decided to 'go home by another way,' rather than reporting back to Herod.  They relied on a gut reaction, an inner wisdom, to send them a different direction.  They saw the child and believed and then found the inner wisdom to respond appropriately to what they now believed.

Interesting stuff... this intersection between belief and wisdom.  What are your thoughts?  Email me at peverhart@niwotumc,org or comment below.