Do you believe people can change? Like truly, really, actually change? Are you feeling cynical about this question or more optimistic? Do you believe that you can change? Or is it simply that some changes are easier to make or easier to adjust to? What’s the difference in experiencing changes that you initiate versus changes that are forced upon you? Do you believe that people can change?
This idea of people changing is a central one to Christianity. Christianity says yes, people can change. People can live differently, kinder, more loving, more life-giving. Change is what redemption is all about. It’s the story of the prodigal son, who decides to change his lifestyle and circumstances and head home again. The prodigal love of the father accepts him back as a changed person. However, the older brother isn’t too sure. Has his younger brother really changed? Can he accept him back after all that he’s done? The older brother might be feeling a bit cynical.
The idea of people changing is also central to New Year’s resolutions. We make them because we believe that we can change. We may not be too sure about other people, but we’re capable, if we choose, of change. Yet most New Year’s resolutions are lucky to last until February! For those of us who make them, we start off well, and then something comes up, or we forget, or we change our mind about the importance or value of our resolution. And we stop. So, can we really change?
In the Epiphany story of the magi, the magi seem to have really changed. They come in one way, following the star, going to Jerusalem, and asking a lot of questions about this new king. The existing king, King Herod, who worked hard to secure his throne, sends them to Bethlehem with a request to return the favor by reporting back to him what they find. The magi follow King Herod’s direction, which the star confirms is the right path. They honor Jesus and give him gifts. Then, they stop asking questions. They’re warned in a dream against reporting back to Herod. And they go “home by another way.”
They are changed by their encounter with Jesus and they know that their journey home will not be the same as their journey there. They have had an epiphany and know that they will return to their countries as changed people. Moreover, the route home will be different than their route to Bethlehem. Their old maps, and ways of making sense of the world, will not work anymore.
I wonder if epiphanies are more central to bringing about lasting change than simply the decision to change. “Aha!” moments of deep realization can cause an internal shift and create motivation to change and continue with the change even when it gets hard, even when it means we have to draw a new map. We tend to like the familiar and the maps that we know, the routes we can follow without having to think about where we’re going. Yet for transformation to occur, we need new maps. We’ll explore how to create new maps over this Epiphany season.