1 00:00:00,240 --> 00:00:00,640 Foreign. 2 00:00:06,720 --> 00:00:11,520 Thank you for engaging with the homily by Pastor Chill Will from 3 00:00:11,520 --> 00:00:12,480 Chapel Hill. 4 00:00:12,800 --> 00:00:17,520 I hope this message encourages you, challenges you and moves you 5 00:00:17,760 --> 00:00:22,320 to go deeper in your faith and enrich how you love God and love 6 00:00:22,320 --> 00:00:24,320 your neighbor in your day to day life. 7 00:00:24,960 --> 00:00:25,880 Just a reminder. 8 00:00:25,880 --> 00:00:29,240 Like the scriptures and Gospels themselves, this homily was 9 00:00:29,240 --> 00:00:32,220 written for a particular community in a particular, particular 10 00:00:32,220 --> 00:00:33,900 context, time in history. 11 00:00:34,540 --> 00:00:38,780 And yet, like our sacred texts, I hope that these words hold 12 00:00:38,860 --> 00:00:42,620 timeless truths about God's unconditional love and grace. 13 00:00:43,020 --> 00:00:46,060 We hope these words speak to you in a meaningful way. 14 00:00:53,820 --> 00:01:01,830 Good morning, Merry Christmas, Happy New Year and Merry Epiphany. 15 00:01:02,150 --> 00:01:03,590 Yes, welcome to worship. 16 00:01:03,590 --> 00:01:04,470 I'm Pastor Will. 17 00:01:04,790 --> 00:01:07,990 Welcome to Holy Trinity and Lutheran Campus Ministry. 18 00:01:08,070 --> 00:01:13,870 Yes, Today is the 11th day of Christmas and so that's why we're 19 00:01:13,870 --> 00:01:18,030 still lighting the Advent candles and Christ Candle and still 20 00:01:18,030 --> 00:01:19,150 have the Christmas tree up. 21 00:01:19,150 --> 00:01:22,270 But as you'll notice in our liturgy this morning, we also have 22 00:01:22,270 --> 00:01:26,310 a transition into the Day of epiphany, which is January 6th this 23 00:01:26,470 --> 00:01:26,870 Tuesday. 24 00:01:26,950 --> 00:01:28,470 So today is kind of a blend. 25 00:01:32,470 --> 00:01:37,110 The Holy Gospel According to Matthew in the time of King Herod, 26 00:01:37,110 --> 00:01:41,950 after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea, Magi from the 27 00:01:41,950 --> 00:01:46,790 east came to Jerusalem, asking, where is the child who was, 28 00:01:47,110 --> 00:01:49,430 who has been born King of the Jews? 29 00:01:50,260 --> 00:01:54,820 For we have observed his star in the east and have come to pay 30 00:01:54,820 --> 00:01:55,780 him homage. 31 00:01:57,220 --> 00:02:00,780 When King Herod heard this, he was frightened, and all of Jerusalem 32 00:02:00,780 --> 00:02:04,820 with him, and calling together all the chief priests and the scribes 33 00:02:04,820 --> 00:02:08,940 of the people, he inquired of them where the Messiah was to be 34 00:02:08,940 --> 00:02:09,300 born. 35 00:02:10,020 --> 00:02:12,420 They told him, in Bethlehem of Judea. 36 00:02:13,460 --> 00:02:17,820 So it has been written by the prophet and you, Bethlehem in the 37 00:02:17,820 --> 00:02:21,940 land of Judah, are by no means least among the rulers of Judah, 38 00:02:23,060 --> 00:02:27,220 for from you shall come a ruler who is to shepherd my people 39 00:02:27,300 --> 00:02:27,940 Israel. 40 00:02:29,380 --> 00:02:33,500 Then Herod secretly called for the Magi and learned from them the 41 00:02:33,500 --> 00:02:36,100 exact time when the star had appeared. 42 00:02:36,980 --> 00:02:39,700 Then he sent them to Bethlehem, saying, go and search 43 00:02:39,700 --> 00:02:43,580 diligently for the child, and when you have found him, bring me 44 00:02:43,580 --> 00:02:45,980 word so that I may go and pay him homage. 45 00:02:47,260 --> 00:02:48,540 They had heard the king. 46 00:02:48,540 --> 00:02:53,660 They set out, and there ahead of them went the star that they had 47 00:02:53,660 --> 00:02:56,420 seen in the east until it stopped over the place where the 48 00:02:56,420 --> 00:02:57,100 child was. 49 00:02:58,700 --> 00:03:02,300 When they saw the star had stopped, they were overwhelmed with 50 00:03:02,300 --> 00:03:02,780 joy. 51 00:03:03,740 --> 00:03:06,940 On entering the house, they saw the child with Mary, his mother. 52 00:03:07,820 --> 00:03:09,660 They knelt down and paid him homage. 53 00:03:10,540 --> 00:03:13,300 Then, opening their treasure chest, they offered him gifts of 54 00:03:13,300 --> 00:03:15,420 gold, frankincense and myrrh. 55 00:03:16,460 --> 00:03:20,700 Having been warned in a dream not to return to Herod they left 56 00:03:20,700 --> 00:03:23,020 for their own country by another road. 57 00:03:23,820 --> 00:03:27,620 This is the Gospel of the Lord, the name of the Father, the 58 00:03:27,620 --> 00:03:29,020 Son, and the Holy spirit. 59 00:03:31,580 --> 00:03:37,480 On this 11th day of Christmas, I declare God is a mystery. 60 00:03:39,720 --> 00:03:42,200 Duh, Pastor Will, that's no brainer, right? 61 00:03:43,240 --> 00:03:45,440 Of course the divine is a mystery. 62 00:03:45,440 --> 00:03:50,920 And the words and images we use to try to reflect and articulate 63 00:03:51,960 --> 00:03:57,400 the divine ultimacy, we ultimately fall short. 64 00:03:59,080 --> 00:04:04,440 And yet we believe in a personal God who desires to be in 65 00:04:04,440 --> 00:04:09,440 relationship with us, refuses to be God without us. 66 00:04:11,120 --> 00:04:17,760 One of my favorite things to do is stargazing Gaze at the heavens 67 00:04:17,760 --> 00:04:23,120 and the stars and the planets and the cosmos and ponder and wonder 68 00:04:23,280 --> 00:04:29,080 and be in awe of the vastness of the universe to ask the big questions 69 00:04:29,080 --> 00:04:34,290 all of us ask and ponder, echoing Psalm 8 when I look to the 70 00:04:34,290 --> 00:04:40,690 heavens, what are human beings that you are mindful of them, mortals 71 00:04:40,690 --> 00:04:41,930 that you care for them? 72 00:04:43,610 --> 00:04:49,250 During Advent, we spend time with these questions and lean into 73 00:04:49,250 --> 00:04:54,970 our longings and we wait and prepare for a promised Messiah. 74 00:04:56,090 --> 00:05:01,070 At Christmas, we see God's response to our questions and longings 75 00:05:01,070 --> 00:05:07,670 and hopes by Christ being born for us and with us, a sign and a 76 00:05:07,670 --> 00:05:12,790 symbol revelation of God's ultimate solidarity with the human 77 00:05:12,790 --> 00:05:13,310 condition. 78 00:05:14,830 --> 00:05:23,150 Epiphany is a season of cosmic unveiling, God disclosing and revealing 79 00:05:23,720 --> 00:05:30,200 who this Christ is and what kind of Messiah he will be and is. 80 00:05:31,480 --> 00:05:36,040 And to kick off the day of the epiphany, the season of epiphany, 81 00:05:36,040 --> 00:05:39,560 we we begin with one of my favorite stories in all of scripture, 82 00:05:40,600 --> 00:05:42,680 the one we heard just read a few moments ago. 83 00:05:43,560 --> 00:05:46,760 Now, I know there is a star in our Gospel reading, and it appears 84 00:05:46,760 --> 00:05:50,120 there is a small band of rebels who resist against empire 85 00:05:50,120 --> 00:05:52,020 by going owned by a different row. 86 00:05:52,020 --> 00:05:54,780 But I'm not going to do any Star wars theology this morning. 87 00:05:56,060 --> 00:06:02,780 However, I do want to go down the important road of faith and science. 88 00:06:03,820 --> 00:06:05,580 First, a little background and context. 89 00:06:05,820 --> 00:06:10,220 Around 10 years ago, longtime member of Holy Trinity and professor 90 00:06:10,220 --> 00:06:15,580 emeritus of physics at Duke, Al Goshaw, heard an interview by 91 00:06:16,790 --> 00:06:23,670 Jesuit brother and astronomer Gay Guy Consolmano on the NPR podcast. 92 00:06:23,750 --> 00:06:29,070 On being on the podcast, Brother Guy talked about the main 93 00:06:29,070 --> 00:06:32,070 questions at the crossroads of faith and science. 94 00:06:32,070 --> 00:06:38,790 Again, notice the use of the word and and not or and then he shared 95 00:06:38,790 --> 00:06:43,030 part of his book would you baptize an extraterrestrial? 96 00:06:43,770 --> 00:06:47,090 And other questions from the astronomer's inbox at the Vatican 97 00:06:47,090 --> 00:06:47,770 Observatory. 98 00:06:48,250 --> 00:06:50,810 I cannot recommend this book enough. 99 00:06:51,290 --> 00:06:52,170 Spoiler alert. 100 00:06:52,250 --> 00:06:55,730 When someone asked him would he baptize an extraterrestrial, he 101 00:06:55,730 --> 00:07:02,890 said, only if she asked to be Al shared this interview and book 102 00:07:02,890 --> 00:07:06,090 with me and other members of the congregation who are scientists 103 00:07:06,330 --> 00:07:09,050 and we agree that this would be a great book to study together. 104 00:07:11,150 --> 00:07:16,390 That book study re energized our engagement with issues and questions 105 00:07:16,390 --> 00:07:17,710 around faith and science. 106 00:07:18,270 --> 00:07:23,430 So much so that we eventually received a grant from Fuller Seminary 107 00:07:23,430 --> 00:07:27,430 to go deeper with these questions and issues, specifically 108 00:07:27,430 --> 00:07:32,110 with emerging adults to break down the myth that one has to choose 109 00:07:32,910 --> 00:07:34,590 faith or science. 110 00:07:36,200 --> 00:07:38,840 With that grant and our experiences and conversations, we 111 00:07:38,840 --> 00:07:43,240 discovered over and over again that there are plenty of scientists 112 00:07:43,400 --> 00:07:46,880 who happen to be people of faith and people of faith who happen 113 00:07:46,880 --> 00:07:47,880 to be scientists. 114 00:07:49,080 --> 00:07:52,640 And through these deeper relationships and wrestling with 115 00:07:52,640 --> 00:07:58,120 the questions, there emerged other organizations and relationships 116 00:07:58,120 --> 00:08:01,990 that we became involved with, like science for the church that 117 00:08:01,990 --> 00:08:04,910 eventually led for us commissioning a brand new faith and 118 00:08:04,910 --> 00:08:05,830 science hymn. 119 00:08:06,950 --> 00:08:11,150 And I've been working on a limited series of faith and science 120 00:08:11,150 --> 00:08:14,430 podcast through a mini grant through the North Carolina Synod 121 00:08:14,430 --> 00:08:15,830 called you'd Matter Matters. 122 00:08:15,990 --> 00:08:18,070 Hopefully that will come out later on this month. 123 00:08:19,910 --> 00:08:24,390 I'm preparing for this Sunday and this message and reflecting on 124 00:08:24,470 --> 00:08:26,550 Christmas and the day of the Epiphany. 125 00:08:28,470 --> 00:08:32,790 I was reminded of chapter four in Would you baptize an extraterrestrial? 126 00:08:32,870 --> 00:08:36,230 Entitled what is the star of Bethlehem? 127 00:08:37,830 --> 00:08:42,550 Brother Guy shares that since they observe and oversee the Vatican's 128 00:08:42,550 --> 00:08:46,550 observatory and they look at the stars and the cosmos all the 129 00:08:46,550 --> 00:08:49,950 time, this question is one of the top emails and questions they 130 00:08:49,950 --> 00:08:51,270 get on a daily basis. 131 00:08:52,640 --> 00:08:57,320 He and his colleague at the Vatican Observatory, Father Paul 132 00:08:57,320 --> 00:09:02,360 Mueller, shared that this short story, only found in the Gospel 133 00:09:02,360 --> 00:09:07,080 of Matthew, is a great icon revealing a healthy dialogue between 134 00:09:07,080 --> 00:09:10,160 faith and science because it has elements of both. 135 00:09:11,680 --> 00:09:16,760 So they lift up the important questions of what was the star? 136 00:09:16,760 --> 00:09:17,600 Was it a star? 137 00:09:17,600 --> 00:09:18,000 Really? 138 00:09:18,810 --> 00:09:21,650 Was it a miracle or some kind of natural phenomenon? 139 00:09:21,650 --> 00:09:23,130 Or perhaps both? 140 00:09:24,250 --> 00:09:28,650 And more importantly, why did the author of Matthew choose to place 141 00:09:28,650 --> 00:09:32,330 this story in his story about Jesus? 142 00:09:33,530 --> 00:09:37,850 Brother Guy and Father Paul all share that the top candidates 143 00:09:37,850 --> 00:09:44,490 for what this Bethlehem star could be is perhaps a supernova. 144 00:09:45,500 --> 00:09:45,820 Huh? 145 00:09:46,700 --> 00:09:47,540 Where's Louis? 146 00:09:47,540 --> 00:09:50,860 He asked as we are walking away from children's he goes, what 147 00:09:50,860 --> 00:09:51,860 about a supernova? 148 00:09:51,860 --> 00:09:53,180 I was like, well, here you go. 149 00:09:54,460 --> 00:09:58,700 A star that goes supernova is a star that gets super bright right 150 00:09:58,700 --> 00:10:00,140 before it explodes. 151 00:10:01,420 --> 00:10:06,100 These events can be seen even in the daytime, but these events 152 00:10:06,100 --> 00:10:10,580 are super rare, and stars tend to be orderly and predictable and 153 00:10:10,730 --> 00:10:14,210 and evidence of their explosions can be traced for thousands 154 00:10:14,210 --> 00:10:15,930 of years after they've taken place. 155 00:10:16,810 --> 00:10:21,650 There doesn't seem to be any remnants of a supernova around the 156 00:10:21,650 --> 00:10:22,730 time of the birth of Christ. 157 00:10:23,050 --> 00:10:26,250 The most astronomers, including Brother Guy and Father 158 00:10:26,250 --> 00:10:28,330 Paul, rule this one out. 159 00:10:30,010 --> 00:10:31,210 Maybe it was a comet. 160 00:10:32,250 --> 00:10:36,730 Again, comets are very predictable and easy to investigate. 161 00:10:36,730 --> 00:10:41,680 Their paths and evidence of their existence, so they rule that 162 00:10:41,680 --> 00:10:42,720 one out as well. 163 00:10:44,560 --> 00:10:49,480 Perhaps it was an unusual configuration or an alignment of 164 00:10:49,480 --> 00:10:53,600 planets that when stacked near each other in the night sky, they 165 00:10:53,600 --> 00:10:55,200 look like a giant bright star. 166 00:10:56,240 --> 00:10:59,400 This is a leading candidate because Kepler even noticed that 167 00:10:59,400 --> 00:11:00,480 in 7 B.C. 168 00:11:00,880 --> 00:11:04,880 jupiter and Saturn aligned with each other and made a spectacle 169 00:11:04,880 --> 00:11:05,600 in the sky. 170 00:11:05,770 --> 00:11:07,760 And that most people noticed. 171 00:11:09,360 --> 00:11:10,880 But the question still lingers. 172 00:11:12,000 --> 00:11:17,040 Why were the Magi the only ones who noticed in Matthew's story 173 00:11:17,040 --> 00:11:21,560 about Jesus, this star, Brother Guy likes the theory that 174 00:11:21,560 --> 00:11:25,360 connects the magi themselves and their vocation and their lives 175 00:11:25,760 --> 00:11:26,960 with the star. 176 00:11:28,000 --> 00:11:30,960 You see, the Magi were not necessarily we three kings. 177 00:11:32,170 --> 00:11:33,170 There were three gifts. 178 00:11:33,170 --> 00:11:36,170 But notice Matthew never mentions how many Magi there were. 179 00:11:37,050 --> 00:11:41,570 These Magi were pagan astrologers who studied the star 180 00:11:41,570 --> 00:11:47,050 so they could make predictions and horoscopes for kings and rulers. 181 00:11:47,690 --> 00:11:53,410 The spiritual advisors to the kings, the Magi's were the one who 182 00:11:53,410 --> 00:11:56,210 were studying and looking at the stars and the configuration of 183 00:11:56,210 --> 00:12:00,660 the planets, doing their best to make meaning of those alignments. 184 00:12:01,940 --> 00:12:06,740 It was widely known that Caesar Augustus claimed that a certain 185 00:12:06,980 --> 00:12:12,580 planetary alignment with the sun predicted and confirmed his royalty 186 00:12:12,580 --> 00:12:17,700 and lordship around the time of Jesus's birth, give or take a 187 00:12:17,700 --> 00:12:18,180 few years. 188 00:12:18,900 --> 00:12:23,140 Side note, we really don't know the exact time and date Jesus 189 00:12:23,140 --> 00:12:23,700 was born. 190 00:12:24,120 --> 00:12:27,280 The church just set the celebration of Jesus's birth around 191 00:12:27,280 --> 00:12:32,280 the winter solstice to make a theological point that Jesus is the 192 00:12:32,280 --> 00:12:33,080 light of the world. 193 00:12:33,960 --> 00:12:37,560 But around the time of when we think Jesus was born, there was a 194 00:12:37,560 --> 00:12:43,240 particular configuration and alignment of the planets Venus, Mercury, 195 00:12:44,120 --> 00:12:49,520 Mars, Jupiter and Saturn that had a particular alignment with the 196 00:12:49,520 --> 00:12:51,960 sun at the same time of a new moon. 197 00:12:52,310 --> 00:12:53,110 But the star was. 198 00:12:53,270 --> 00:12:57,830 The sky was really dark, that star was really, really bright. 199 00:12:59,110 --> 00:13:03,670 Interestingly, this was very similar to Caesar Augustus's claim 200 00:13:04,230 --> 00:13:09,030 that an alignment was the meaning of his lordship. 201 00:13:09,750 --> 00:13:14,030 And so these wise men and magi would have noticed the star in alignment 202 00:13:14,030 --> 00:13:16,630 and connected it with royalty. 203 00:13:17,760 --> 00:13:22,480 The author of Matthew would most likely have known this claim 204 00:13:22,480 --> 00:13:23,520 from Augustus. 205 00:13:23,520 --> 00:13:28,080 And perhaps he too wanted to say, well, guess what, we can make 206 00:13:28,080 --> 00:13:29,200 that claim too. 207 00:13:31,120 --> 00:13:36,880 So is this 12 verse story only found in the Gospel of Matthew a 208 00:13:36,880 --> 00:13:44,600 scientifically provable story or a theological point Matthew wanted 209 00:13:44,600 --> 00:13:46,640 to make for his community and readers? 210 00:13:48,000 --> 00:13:48,480 Yes. 211 00:13:50,080 --> 00:13:53,120 Does it have to be either or better? 212 00:13:53,200 --> 00:13:55,160 Perhaps it's both. 213 00:13:55,160 --> 00:14:00,080 And maybe it was a configuration of planets or some 214 00:14:00,080 --> 00:14:03,520 object in space that shined a great light just at the right time. 215 00:14:03,520 --> 00:14:07,800 But whether this star can be scientifically proven or not, there 216 00:14:07,800 --> 00:14:12,360 is this radical move that Matthew makes by hanging a star in 217 00:14:12,360 --> 00:14:16,990 the sky and bringing the Magi into the Jesus story. 218 00:14:18,430 --> 00:14:23,630 The first people in the Gospel of Matthew who recognized Jesus for 219 00:14:23,630 --> 00:14:30,470 who he is were pagan foreigners who use astrology to find 220 00:14:30,470 --> 00:14:30,830 him. 221 00:14:32,190 --> 00:14:32,750 Yep. 222 00:14:33,470 --> 00:14:34,030 Boom. 223 00:14:34,190 --> 00:14:35,150 Supernova. 224 00:14:35,870 --> 00:14:37,710 Wow, I just had an epiphany. 225 00:14:39,640 --> 00:14:43,640 Horoscopes and astrology are frowned upon in the Hebrew scriptures 226 00:14:43,640 --> 00:14:46,720 because it is seen as breaking the first commandment. 227 00:14:46,720 --> 00:14:48,120 You shall have no other gods. 228 00:14:48,840 --> 00:14:52,520 The rotations and alignments of the stars and planets do not guide 229 00:14:52,680 --> 00:14:54,720 or oversee our destiny. 230 00:14:54,720 --> 00:14:55,720 Only God does. 231 00:14:57,080 --> 00:15:02,600 And yet, in this so strange that just might be true story, Matthew 232 00:15:02,680 --> 00:15:06,420 sets up the premise that perhaps God revealed what the divine 233 00:15:06,420 --> 00:15:10,220 is up to in Christ through the tools of the Magi. 234 00:15:11,340 --> 00:15:15,060 Share with his readers and his community that Jesus is Lord and 235 00:15:15,060 --> 00:15:21,660 King not just of Israel, but for all nations, all people. 236 00:15:23,820 --> 00:15:29,460 People, then and now, look to the stars in awe for hope and signs 237 00:15:29,460 --> 00:15:31,340 of life and meaning. 238 00:15:32,370 --> 00:15:33,170 God knows this. 239 00:15:34,210 --> 00:15:39,730 A common ground in faith and science is that we can stand on with 240 00:15:39,730 --> 00:15:44,330 the human ability to wander and dream and long for hope and be 241 00:15:44,330 --> 00:15:47,929 in awe of the heavens and ask questions and search for meaning 242 00:15:47,929 --> 00:15:48,850 and purpose. 243 00:15:50,130 --> 00:15:55,050 God uses this all the time to reach out to us, to let us know that 244 00:15:55,050 --> 00:15:57,650 there is a bigger story that we are a part of. 245 00:15:59,710 --> 00:16:05,510 Advent is a time when we align ourselves with our deepest questions 246 00:16:05,510 --> 00:16:07,070 and longing for a Savior. 247 00:16:08,190 --> 00:16:12,870 At Christmas we celebrate the gift that God is with us in solidarity 248 00:16:12,870 --> 00:16:15,550 with the human condition in flesh and blood. 249 00:16:17,150 --> 00:16:22,310 Epiphany is a time when God shines a spotlight on Jesus, revealing 250 00:16:22,310 --> 00:16:24,350 who this Messiah truly is. 251 00:16:26,480 --> 00:16:31,840 What makes the Magi wise is that they recognize and identify 252 00:16:32,000 --> 00:16:34,640 Jesus as King, not Herod. 253 00:16:35,600 --> 00:16:40,719 And they chose to disobey and resist and civil disobedience against 254 00:16:40,719 --> 00:16:45,520 the one claiming to be King and then choosing a different road 255 00:16:45,520 --> 00:16:48,880 rather than imperial tyranny and authoritarianism. 256 00:16:51,290 --> 00:16:56,890 So this epiphany, I challenge you to get out your telescopes and 257 00:16:56,890 --> 00:17:01,770 tools of observation, keep examining the mysterious and awe 258 00:17:01,770 --> 00:17:07,010 inspiring cosmic forces to examine, to discern the Herods of 259 00:17:07,010 --> 00:17:11,210 this world, but also more importantly, Jesus. 260 00:17:12,730 --> 00:17:17,850 Together we have the spiritual wisdom to know the difference between 261 00:17:17,850 --> 00:17:18,490 the two. 262 00:17:20,640 --> 00:17:23,600 Then we can travel by a different road. 263 00:17:24,480 --> 00:17:29,360 The way of Christ with the light of the world leading the way. 264 00:17:31,520 --> 00:17:35,280 A liaison on our world, on our way. 265 00:17:36,720 --> 00:17:37,360 Amen. 266 00:17:43,840 --> 00:17:44,960 Thank you for listening. 267 00:17:45,590 --> 00:17:48,830 If there is anything that stood out for you, or if you have 268 00:17:48,830 --> 00:17:51,590 a question or you just want to have a conversation. 269 00:17:51,990 --> 00:17:55,110 You are always free to reach out and contact us. 270 00:17:55,590 --> 00:17:57,430 And remember you are not alone. 271 00:17:57,830 --> 00:17:59,630 And that you are loved with a. 272 00:17:59,630 --> 00:18:01,589 Love stronger than death. 273 00:18:10,960 --> 00:18:25,260 Sam.