Epiphany has inspired some beautiful hymns and music. Travellers from exotic places offering precious gifts to a baby in a manger conjures up rather lovely images for us, even though we have nothing much to base our pictures on of the men richly clad in silk and brocade and wearing crowns! Also, importantly, the adoration of Jesus by those wise men, who travelled great distances to see baby Jesus, and then knelt down and worshipped him, seems to trigger in us the desire to worship him as well.
Hymn-writers lead us gently through this story on to what it might mean for us. In an earlier issue of the magazine (February 2019) we had an article focussing mainly on the famous hymn, ‘O Worship the King in the Beauty of Holiness’ by J S B Monsell. The beauty of holiness is such a profound and haunting theme.
Epiphany hymns are also appealing because of their allusion to a star guiding us and dispelling darkness (especially in winter time) as in Bishop Heber’s hymn, ‘Brightest and Best of the Sons of the Morning’. Both these hymns refer to the gifts of the wise men, but interpreted in the first as ’gold of obedience’ and ’incense of lowliness’ , and then going on to say:
Truth in its beauty and love in its tenderness
These are the offerings to lay on his shrine.
In Heber’s hymn, he asks if our offerings should be of gems and pearls, and myrrh from the forest and gold from the mine. But then he firmly reminds us:
Vainly we offer each ample oblation
Vainly with gifts would his favour secure
Richer by far is the heart’s adoration
Dearer to God are the prayers of the poor.
These thoughts are reminiscent of the Parable of the Pharisee and the Widow with their offerings at the Temple, of course.
The hymn ends with the prayer:
Brightest and best of the Sons of the morning,
Dawn on our darkness and lend us thine aid ...
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