Epiphany. Twelfth Night. The Three Kings. The Magi.

They traversed afar. They rejoiced. They fell down and worshiped. They brought precious treasures of gold, frankincense, and myrrh. As a pastor friend wrote, “We don’t know who these three mysterious, wise travelers were. We don’t know what happens to them after they leave the site of Jesus’ birth. All we know is they choose to follow the Star, to go and see, and then show great wisdom in not going back to report to King Herod…” ~Rev. Erik Folkerth~

On this day three years ago, my lifelong reverence for Epiphany was forever tarnished by horror. I watched in shock as the images of the insurrection unfolded in our nation’s Capitol. Throughout the afternoon I sat in total disbelief at how stirred up and violent the crowd was. This was not the calm and peaceful protest some insisted. And being Epiphany, my mind conjured a scene of the enraged King Herod ordering the slaughters of all male children in the biblical account in the second chapter of Matthew. This crowd marched and chanted and charged and taunted and pillaged. They fought viciously to remove every citizen’s choice and voice, to literally destroy the rights of “We The People.” And just like Herod, they murdered fellow citizens. The very foundation of our democracy in the United States of America was nearly lost that day, and most hauntingly, a basic sense of humanity was destroyed.

As M. and I walked early the next morning trying to unpack the reality and fear, his simple yet profound words of assurance resonated: “All we really have left to offer in today’s world is our humanity. We can continue to be kind humans and love others.” As always, his words calm my soul. Be kind. Love others. It is simple; it’s not always easy.

“We ARE the Magi, searching, resplendent in this world’s accoutrements of knowledge and wealth and achievement…but we search and seek something more.”  ~Ann Weems~

Perhaps we are more like the Magi than we realize. They chose kindness in not returning to Herod. As humans, we seek, discover, observe, perceive, grow, and change on our journeys. In our humanity, we shine the light on uncomfortable truths and realizations we often find difficult to process. We make choices, for better or for worse. We continue to search and seek more. And sometimes in our humanity, we simply choose “to return another way.”

So on this Epiphany, as we grapple with our humanity and being human, may genuine hope and daily intent include ways to seek truth, share kindness, and love others. In all our humanity, it may not be easy, but it’s a simple way to be human.