Epiphany 3rd January 2016

As I reflected on today’s celebration of the Epiphany two words came to my mind – spiritual journey.

Firstly the spiritual journey of humankind as we enter a new year.

Secondly, there’s the spiritual journey of the wise men to Our Lord and their offering at journey’s end.

Thirdly linked to this the Church’s spiritual journey through her Seasons. Today we enter the third season since we began the church’s year - Advent purple turned to Christmas white, a colour that continues into Epiphany season.

At St Giles we keep the shorter option which sees the ordinary green season return Monday week after the Advent-Christmas cycle climaxes with the descent of the Spirit on the Feast of the Baptism of the Lord, next Sunday, in parallel with how the Lent and Easter seasons climax with the Spirit’s arrival at Pentecost

The spiritual journey of humankind as we enter a new year. The spiritual journey of the wise men to Our Lord and the Church’s spiritual journey through her Seasons.

These three bring me to the final thought of another much simpler spiritual journey.

It is of but a few inches - fifteen inches…

The story goes there was once a rabbi in Cracow, Isaac son of Yekel, who dreamed one night that there was a great treasure under the bridge at Prague.

He set off at once for Prague, but when he got there found that there was a heavy guard on the bridge. The rabbi had no choice but to explain his dream to one of the guards.

When the guard heard the story he burst into laughter. ‘How crazy can you get? Suppose everyone went off after their dreams? Why I once dreamed that there was a treasure hidden in a house in Cracow. It was in the house of a man called Isaac, son of Yekel, but do you think I was going off to Cracow because of that dream?

The Rabbi Isaac returned to Cracow.  He had treasure at home. He did not need to go to Prague.

So it is with the spiritual journey. If we want spiritual riches we’re more likely to find them by opening our eyes to what we have already than by journeying the world over.

The truth of Epiphany is about God come down to our level to dwell in human hearts.

If people want to journey to God today they need move inches and not miles.

Fifteen inches, to be precise, down from the head to the heart. That is where we find God.

Too often our capacity for doing things and going places works against what’s most important – the short journey, always possible, to rest in God, to contemplate the one who made us and offers himself to us continually.

Our restless minds distract us. They move us away from the treasure to be found in the stillness of the heart. When the mind can be stilled, and lowered, into the heart - there is salvation.

The Kingdom of Christ is within us.

Accomplishing this short journey within means taking time day by day to reflect, to sit or kneel in God’s presence and indeed our own presence.

There we find hunger and longing, hurt and inadequacy, pride and fearfulness.

None of these melt away on the spiritual journey but they can be owned and offered to the Lord who meets us just as we are.

Fear not to enter his courts in the slenderness of the poor wealth thou wouldst reckon as thine.

The journey within takes courage. There’s so much that would keep us on the surface, even the so-called mission task of the Church, not to mention the multitude of recreational options available to us, the manifold activities we can choose to fill up our lives!

The inner journey takes courage and it takes time, time to be.

The famous writer Pascal said most of mankind’s problems derive from our inability to sit still in a room.

To do just that, to sit still Just maybe 15 minutes a day - 5 minutes with the Scriptures, 5 minutes in quiet worship and 5 minutes in intercession, prayer for others, including our parish - what a difference if we made that the flavour of our spiritual journey in the coming year!

‘Jesus loves us as we are’ it’s said.  

As we own that love day by day we own ourselves, our souls and bodies and make them more and more fully a living sacrifice to be united with his perfect Offering in the eucharist.

Speaking of this sort of spiritual journey T.S.Eliot wrote these great lines: And the end of all our exploring – will be to arrive where we started – and to know the place for the first time.

The Kingdom of Christ is within us.

Wise men still journey to Jesus but they don’t move anywhere.

Whatever we do in 2016 as individuals or as a Church may we be the Church better by being Christians better so that the depths of Christ may resonate from our prayers and our eucharist’s and our lives here in Horsted Keynes!  

Be still and know that I am God!