Saturday, January 4, 2014

The Worship of the Magi


" After their audience with King Herod, the magi set out. And behold, the star that they had seen rising preceded them, until it came and stopped over the place where the child was. They were overjoyed at seeing the star, and on entering the house, they saw the child with Mary His mother. They prostrated themselves and did Him homage. Then, they opened their treasures and offered Him gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh." [Matthew 2:1-12].

It is the Feast of Epiphany, the day on which we commemorate the magi seeking the baby Jesus and paying Him homage.

In modern terms, paying homage means worshipping something or someone. I look around me and what I see is a lot of worship, but not of the sacred kind.

Young people, especially, seem to worship technology. They regard time spent in school, eating, or sleeping, and doing chores, as an interruption from what they really seek -- time using electronics. It has gotten to the point that young people fear human interaction. One young man, in an experiment forcing him to give up his smart phone, said he hated one-on-one conversations, because then he could not control his emotions or the trajectory of the conversation. Young people looking for a job need to be taught to shake hands and look the interviewer in the eye.

Or, we worship science and human endeavor.  I grew up in a family such as this, where there IS no God. What results is a tragedy, because when human imperfections fail us, without God we fall into self-blame, anxiety, and depression. What a terrifying world it is, without God to rely on when we fall down!

Or, we worship ourselves. We obsessively take self-portraits using our cell phones.("selfies"). We lose all sense of decorum and of our place in a community. We are so self-absorbed, we take selfies at funerals, or  in dangerous situations, while skiing or driving a car. We start with thinking it is all about us. We end with believing we are immortal.

Or, we worship our superior knowledge. I have seen some people become trapped in the fallacy that if they are materially successful in life, then they are smarter than anyone else. They worship their own power and control over the Universe. They believe that they have a duty to micromanage everyone. They continually try to play God with others. They forget that all that they have comes from God, not from their own superiority. They become alienating and arrogant. In the extreme, this kind of person can become a political dictator like Hitler who, in trying to control the world, ends up annihilating it.

Or, we worship money. My family believed in "Worship of the Almighty Dollar". Those who worship money, like my family, evaluate everything based on a cost/benefit analysis. Going to church becomes " a waste of time and money", because there is no scientifically measurable benefit from the investment of time and monetary donations. The primacy of money leaves no room for God. This world view produces people who see others as "human resources", not as living, breathing individuals. Those who put money first become opportunistic and heartless, cold and even cruel. They become devoid of humanity.

Or, we worship celebrity. The celebrity culture regards those who are gifted human beings, as gods. Few human beings, no matter how talented, can withstand that kind of  scrutiny.  The celebrity ends up believing that he or she is invincible. Then, they behave recklessly, like James Dean or Janis Joplin. Or, they quietly implode like Michael Jackson or Marilyn Monroe. Or, they explode in anger and lash out like Charlie Sheen or Alec Baldwin. ( " The Ten Angriest Celebrities" , Toronto Sun, November 8, 2013).

Or, we worship status. We believe that because of our title at work, or our supposedly superior ethnicity, that we are better than anyone else. This leaves us intolerant and judgmental, even racist. In the end, we are egotistical but alone, because no one can ever measure up to our ideal of perfection. We forget that we are only human, imperfect like everyone else.

Or, we worship our own bodies. This kind of person believes that she is superior because of her fitness or physique. Yes, we are meant to take care of our physical selves, but in the extreme, worship of the body becomes self indulgence, or pride, even pornography. Then, when we age and develop infirmities, are we left with self-loathing? When we obsess about our bodies, we forget what is in our hearts.

I ponder the magi and I think, would you or I today, do as they did? Would we don our best clothes, not to impress others, but to pay respect to the Son of God? Would we travel a long distance, following a faraway star, relying on a prophesy or rumor, never really sure who or what we would find in the end--   but embarking on the journey anyway?

Would we bring extravagant gifts, not to show off our wealth,  but to demonstrate how infinitely valuable this tiny baby is to us, today, tomorrow and for the rest of time?

Who do YOU worship?

[ Related Posting: " The Worship of Technology", June 5, 2013; " Epiphany, January 6, 2011].

(c) Spiritual Devotional 2014. All Rights Reserved.

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