..the feast of the Epiphany ; the coming of the three wise men/ kings to the manger.. Epiphany means “showing” ; the showing of infant Jesus to the world & to other world religions..one star, one child, one God.. ..in chronos time, it seemed they were late; they arrived having set out weeks ago bringing expensive gifts ; however, they realised when they found this king in a manger, the child Jesus, then & now, needed real presence..our real presence here tonight/this morning.. ..so that he, in his nothingness, can give us the only gift worthy of him & us..love.. “..at this sight [ of the infant of love ] you will grow radiant..” ; Lord have mercy “..your heart [ & his heart ] throbbing & full..” ; Christ have mercy “..above you the Lord now rises..” [ Christ the morning star ] ; Lord have mercy May Almighty God have mercy on us, forgive us our sins & bring us to everlasting life. Amen. ..our feast is the story of a day in the life of migrants; three migrated from Nazareth to Bethlehem as the result of a census; shepherds on a hillside beyond Sproxton, itinerant mendicants /nomads, were called to the manger as the first visitors/ guests..& three kings, called inspired to travel a vast & dangerous distance to meet a different king of a different faith, whose life & importance was predicted they thought, not in tea leaves, but in the stars; ridiculed by fellow members of their national society of astronomers, they set out.. a feast of migrants for migrants, & for those of us prepared to set out for the manger..to leave the baggage of our usual traditional Christmas behind & travel light..I wonder how many of you, who have been here since Christmas Eve, have taken the courage to step up to our manger & offer the greatest gift you could ever give him..& he to you..I wonder?.. & to listen to our angels. I am drawn back to 29 Sept 2019 feast of St Michael & All Angels; World Day of Prayer for migrants & refugees, when Pope Francis blessed a new sculpture by Timothy Schmalz “angels unaware” depicts shallow boat full of migrants of all ages all standing/sqeezed, hoping for best & fearing worst..a feast today of migrants for migrants, three kings for three outsiders “God speaks through..”..remember our logo for this, the Church Year of the Word?..where God speaks through gospel, & through you everyday..& today through this weave & the importance of migrancy..our local migrancy in the parish amalgamation, where journey is much much more than travelling a short distance of an extra 3miles..& what of “our” migrants in tented villages outside Calais, visited by one of “ours” in last few wks, by Helen Moss, Louis Moss our young organists mother..a story of a day in the life of Helen Moss..prospective migrants meeting hostility from today’s Herod’s “perturbed & so was the whole of Jerusalem” & others too close to home to name..disturbing the status quo on which insiders prosper “we’ve always done it this way” who see presence of migrants in UK as a threat rather than an opportunity “no room at the inn” as many would have voted for their exclusion, or for a points system of entry, grading their economic worth to us before allowing entry; a doctor yes ; a nurse perhaps ; a carwash cleaner who lives in a stable, four to a room, no thank you..”angels unaware”..the infant Christ today is shown to all nations, celebrating the gifts & worth of migrancy..Christ himself sent by his Father, put at risk on his journey of migration from divinity to humanity; despised & rejected by the very people he came to save..ridiculed “this surely is the carpenters’ son?..& he could work no miracles there; he was amazed at their lack of faith” Our Lord’s eventual exclusion deportation was through a puppet trial & the death sentence..& his reaction? “Father forgive them for they know not what they do..” “angels unaware”.. & Matthew, typically, a Jew, writing for insiders/Jews tells us in gospel “the sight of the star filled them with delight, & going into the house, they saw the child with his mother”.. really?..a house?..the comfortable dwelling of insiders & their permanence of residence, certificated by legal deeds or occupancy agreement..really?..or a stable, the birthplace of the infant Messiah & shelter of the least..coming to save all nations, & through them, through shepherds foreigners outsiders & three kings from the Far East, through all of them & finally to you & I ..”God speaks through..” the gospel & the life story of migrants ..& the words God spoke through the sculpture, etched onto it the following words, which eventually, please God, will be etched fittingly on the lintels above our three Churches.. “remember always to welcome strangers, for by doing this some have entertained angels [some have entertained the infant Jesus himself ] without knowing it”..”angels unaware” ..& for the Matthews among us, who need chapter & verse Catholicism, it is Hebrews Ch13 v2.. “arise, shine out Jerusalem..[ Ampleforth Gilling & Oswaldkirk ]..for your light has come, the glory of the Lord is rising on you..” ..are we blessed or are we blessed?.. [ Epiphany Mt 2;1-12 ]