The dating is broad, but gives us a point of reference, & reminds us Jesus' birth takes place in evil days. So what's new? That kind of world a lot of people still have to live in. Herod 'The Great' - what a misnomer!- is a despot. We should with immediate effect rename him 'Herod the Bttom of the Pit'! Life is cheap. And there are still Herods around. Jesus & his family are every bit as much at risk in many places today. Those of us in Australia need to be aware of persecution of Christians close to home in parts of Indonesia, not to mention other parts. Aware, too, & beware of persecuting Muslims as scapegoats for the crimes of terrorist extremists. There are plenty of right wing war-waging extremist Christians to deal with first! Still, here in Oz, we're more likely to date things by which horse wins the Melbourne Cup. What about where you live?

Much of the 'Magi-c' has been taken out of Faith today by 'left brain' influences within Church, a divide we can do without. In this story, astrologers (we're not told how many!) who definitely don't fit the Hebrew faith-mould take centre stage. Wise ones, no doubt, but to turn them into kings is far fetched. What we make of the story depends on whether we're open to God's kind of Magi-c, an ability to push the bounds further than those in control want to set them. MT likely wants us to connect with the magi-cians of Egypt & their battles with Moses. Now a new & greater Moses is on the scene. It's a no-contest. The magi-cians submit. As a common car sticker reminds us, 'Magic Happens', but for the most part, instead of being included in the fun & wonder of life, God's left out. It's as if Magic Happens, but God doesn't. In that case, neither do we! Here, Magi-c pays homage & invites us, too, to pay homage to the one who's Lord of right & left brain & every other function. Who frees us from all captivities. (Is anything more captivating than Magi-c?)

As this is all clearly story, don't bother explaining (away) the ins & outs of divine astronomy. God imaginatively, or, if we insist, literally, turns the Godlight on events now shaping up among the people of Israel & the house of David. Which is where Herod's anxiety comes in. No-one, not even a despot, should miss the significance of the Christ event for cosmic history. The Magi see the star, comet, or whatever it is because they're searchers after truth looking in the right place at the right time. So may we all be looking through our spiritual telescopes!

It's no use searching if we're not prepared to follow the Star when it rises. Not the 'follow your star' syndrome which has become part of our culture. As has the feed on the 'stars', celebrities, cult manipulated by the media. That kind of star is only famous because they're famous! There couldn't be a better (or, worse!) example than the Idol craze on cheap & nasty TV sweeping the world of younger viewers. What are false stars except black holes sucking us in (& spitting us out?) The GodStar, on the other hand always leads us to journey away from ourselves, away from pseudos, from celebrityitis & on to find the Most High God.  God Star's unlikely to appear in the sky today, but among ourselves. Together, as the Body of Christ, let's discern the Truth & journey in its consequences. If I see a star & no-one else in the Body discerns it too, i.e. if it doesn't check out, I do well to beware following it. The God-Wisdom of the Body is a safeguard against being led too far up the garden path! On the other hand, lack of discernment may leave us too long at the starting post.

The language of journeying & pilgrimage can be used too lightly. Are we really ready to set out on the journey when the time's right & we're called to make our move? Or, are we weighed down through carrying too much gold, frankincense, myrrh, stocks, shares, or other baggage? Rocks in our head? Are we more into prices on the Stock Exchange than gifts for the King?

'King of the Jews' (Judeans) isn't so much a foray into Jewish politics on the part of the Magi as a feeling for and entering into the mysterious ways of God. Something HUGE is on the go. An EVENT of Cosmic Magnitude. That star, real or, in the best (faith) sense of the word, imagined, still throws light on God's ways. There are scary lessons about light to be learned  from our cosmic physicists, even if at first glance they seem to be disconnected from traditional religion, travelling to & from unlikely places.

When Herod's disturbed, everyone takes cover. This is life & death business for anyone who gets in his way! He makes the same mistake we often see repeated today: bring in the consultants; leave it to the experts. When gifts like discernment, compassion, wisdom, enlightenment, common sense, etc. are left out of whatever evaluation is on the go, people suffer. The Body is dis-enfranchised. This is not to denigrate expertise as such, only to discern its true place.

Fear of the consequences often stops us short of practising "do justice, love mercy, & walk humbly with our God." [MIC 6:8] This includes the way we raise & protect today's children from abuse & death. Fear is an evil that takes possession of us & does all it can to counteract God's love. It opts for Chaos rather than the New Creation. It does terrible things to anyone who gets in its way, not least our children. Fear in various forms is a key factor at work tearing nations apart, from inside & outside, still killing our children of all ages. Things have only got worse, not better since September 11th, 2001.

Long before the information downloads available from the internet, Micah [5:1] tells us where the Messiah will be born. (Some of today's scholars aren't so sure, but...) To Herod, this is a threat, & deeply personal. You can't have two 'Kings of the Jews'. Herod, himself a usurper doesn't want to be himself gazumped! His claim to the throne won't stand up against a proven genuine descendant of David. Like many of us, he only turns to Scripture when all else fails, with all the inherent risks of literalism, misuse & misunderstanding. Mind you, he only turns to it second-hand, via scholars. If you can imagine the most ruthless, godless person in the flock coming wanting a favourable ruling on what the Scriptures say about some issue, quail then for the 'chief priests & scribes' Herod with his pathologically suspicious nature presses into service. By the way, is it worth asking if Jesus the Messiah isn't really a threat to us & our way of life? Rather than God's promise of a better way?

When God opens our eyes to the Messiah, & we pay homage in whatever our way is today, can we do anything other than go home like the Magi, by a different way, step by risky step? Home will never be the same again. Not even in the same place!