0:00:06 > 0:00:112,000 years ago, wise men followed a star on a journey to see
0:00:11 > 0:00:13a child who'd been born in a stable.
0:00:14 > 0:00:17It was a journey full of risk and uncertainty.
0:00:19 > 0:00:23But their reward was to witness what we're celebrating here today at
0:00:23 > 0:00:28Blackburn Cathedral - the revelation that God had become one of us.
0:00:31 > 0:00:34Today, I find out what modern astronomy tells us
0:00:34 > 0:00:37about the star the kings followed,
0:00:37 > 0:00:40about the Festival of the Epiphany in the Orthodox Church,
0:00:40 > 0:00:44and the Parable of the Prodigal Son as you've never seen it before.
0:00:44 > 0:00:46Plus, hymns by our congregation
0:00:46 > 0:00:49and performances by Carleen Anderson and Tessera.
0:00:55 > 0:00:57CHEERING
0:00:57 > 0:00:59Well, the turkey's finally been eaten,
0:00:59 > 0:01:02the tinsel and baubles are about to be packed away,
0:01:02 > 0:01:05and all you have left to do is to go back to the shop
0:01:05 > 0:01:08and ask for a refund for Aunt Dorothy's present.
0:01:12 > 0:01:14Christmas may be just about over,
0:01:14 > 0:01:17but the real story is only just beginning.
0:01:17 > 0:01:18We're marking Epiphany,
0:01:18 > 0:01:22the day we celebrate the visit of the kings to the Christ child,
0:01:22 > 0:01:25a scene magnificently depicted in our first hymn.
0:03:44 > 0:03:47People have been studying the night sky for millennia.
0:03:48 > 0:03:51And the wise men are traditionally said to have found
0:03:51 > 0:03:54the infant Jesus by following a star.
0:03:55 > 0:03:59I don't think the Magi were following a star specifically,
0:03:59 > 0:04:03there was no sort of celestial sat nav that was leading them
0:04:03 > 0:04:05by the hand across the deserts,
0:04:05 > 0:04:09through Jerusalem, down to Bethlehem to the specific stable.
0:04:09 > 0:04:11This wasn't required.
0:04:11 > 0:04:13They were told by looking at the heavens that there was going
0:04:13 > 0:04:17to be a new King of the Jews, and, of course, the goings on in
0:04:17 > 0:04:22the heavens also indicated to them when this new king would be born.
0:04:23 > 0:04:27And so, they then followed that message.
0:04:27 > 0:04:29Is there any indications, scientifically,
0:04:29 > 0:04:31that there really was a star?
0:04:31 > 0:04:36If you read the Bible, you're trying now to date the birth of Jesus
0:04:36 > 0:04:42and, of course, this happened after a taxation, you read in Luke, and
0:04:42 > 0:04:45before the death of Herod, you read in Matthew,
0:04:45 > 0:04:50and this gives you a sort of time window between 9 BC and about 4 BC.
0:04:51 > 0:04:53And then you become an astronomer
0:04:53 > 0:04:56and you start looking at the heavens in that time period to see
0:04:56 > 0:04:59if there is anything going on up there
0:04:59 > 0:05:01that might give the Magi a message.
0:05:02 > 0:05:05There was this thing known as a triple conjunction of Jupiter
0:05:05 > 0:05:07and Saturn in the constellation of Pisces,
0:05:07 > 0:05:12so here you have two planets, wandering stars in those days,
0:05:12 > 0:05:16coming together three times in one constellation.
0:05:16 > 0:05:21We also see a bright comet and we see a new star,
0:05:21 > 0:05:24and we see Jupiter getting close to Venus,
0:05:24 > 0:05:27so there are quite a few things that people can argue about.
0:05:27 > 0:05:31So, David, what sort of people were the Magi?
0:05:31 > 0:05:35Well, we think that they were Zoroastrian priests whose job would
0:05:35 > 0:05:40be to help the ruler of the country they lived in interpret what was
0:05:40 > 0:05:43happening in the sky. In essence, they were astrologers.
0:05:43 > 0:05:46Astrologers, not astronomers?
0:05:46 > 0:05:50Well, in those days there was no such thing as astronomy, which is
0:05:50 > 0:05:55trying to understand, in essence, the physics of what's going on up there.
0:05:55 > 0:05:58Yeah. And also the movement of what's going on up there.
0:05:58 > 0:06:01In the past, they were astrologers.
0:06:01 > 0:06:03They were, in those days, convinced that what was happening
0:06:03 > 0:06:08in the heavens did have a direct effect on our lives here on Earth.
0:06:09 > 0:06:12Any ruler worth his salt, in those days,
0:06:12 > 0:06:15would have had some wise men working for him
0:06:15 > 0:06:19so they were helping the ruler decide when to invade another country
0:06:19 > 0:06:23or when to go and pay homage to a new leader and all that sort of thing.
0:06:23 > 0:06:28Is it important that we know the date of Jesus' birth?
0:06:28 > 0:06:31Well, to me as a Christian, the answer to that is no.
0:06:31 > 0:06:36I mean, it's important that Jesus was born, but much more important that he
0:06:36 > 0:06:39was baptised, he ministered and he died on the cross for our sins.
0:09:12 > 0:09:16The word epiphany comes from a Greek word meaning revelation or
0:09:16 > 0:09:20manifestation. We celebrate the kings' visit to Jesus,
0:09:20 > 0:09:22because it was through them
0:09:22 > 0:09:26that Christ was first revealed to the world, but this isn't
0:09:26 > 0:09:30the only Biblical event associated with the festival.
0:09:32 > 0:09:34Jesus' first miracle was at the wedding at Cana
0:09:34 > 0:09:38when he showed his divinity by turning water into wine.
0:09:40 > 0:09:42Mary told Jesus that they'd run out of wine
0:09:42 > 0:09:46and then instructed the servants to do whatever he asked.
0:09:46 > 0:09:51I wonder what it must have been like for Mary all those centuries ago,
0:09:51 > 0:09:54giving birth to a baby who'd be visited by kings
0:09:54 > 0:09:57and then grow up later to perform miracles.
0:10:01 > 0:10:04# What child is this
0:10:04 > 0:10:07# Who lay to rest
0:10:07 > 0:10:13# On Mary's lap is sleeping
0:10:13 > 0:10:19# Whom angels greet with anthems sweet
0:10:19 > 0:10:26# While shepherds watch are keeping
0:10:26 > 0:10:31# This, this is Christ the King
0:10:31 > 0:10:38# Whom shepherds guard and angels sing
0:10:38 > 0:10:43# Haste, haste to bring him, Lord
0:10:43 > 0:10:50# The babe, the son of Mary
0:10:52 > 0:10:58# So bring him incense, gold and myrrh
0:10:58 > 0:11:04# Come peasant king to own him
0:11:04 > 0:11:10# The King of King's salvation brings
0:11:10 > 0:11:17# Let loving hearts enthrone him
0:11:17 > 0:11:22# O raise, raise a song on high
0:11:22 > 0:11:29# The virgin sings a lullaby
0:11:29 > 0:11:34# Joy, joy for Christ is born
0:11:34 > 0:11:37# The babe, the son
0:11:37 > 0:11:40# The holy one
0:11:40 > 0:11:48# The babe, the son of Mary. #
0:11:54 > 0:11:56That we may be worthy to be filled with
0:11:56 > 0:11:58the sanctification as we receive...
0:11:58 > 0:12:01'In Eastern churches, Epiphany is one of the most important
0:12:01 > 0:12:06'feast days, though it's known by another name - Theophany.'
0:12:06 > 0:12:07Let us pray to the Lord.
0:12:07 > 0:12:11'Theophany is celebrated more in the Eastern Church than Christmas,
0:12:11 > 0:12:14'because the beginning of the ministry of Christ,
0:12:14 > 0:12:16'at his baptism, is considered by us
0:12:16 > 0:12:21'to be fundamental to understanding our vocation as Christians.'
0:12:21 > 0:12:24Now, of course, Christmas is important,
0:12:24 > 0:12:26because it's the incarnation of the Word, the birth of Christ,
0:12:26 > 0:12:30but the beginning of his ministry at his baptism, for us,
0:12:30 > 0:12:31is a greater celebration.
0:12:31 > 0:12:35# O, voice of the Father... #
0:12:35 > 0:12:37'In church, on the Feast of Theophany,
0:12:37 > 0:12:41'we have the water in the font and we bless it.
0:12:41 > 0:12:45'We're using a very ancient prayer of a patriarchal Jerusalem,
0:12:45 > 0:12:49'and we insert the cross three times into the water'
0:12:49 > 0:12:53to bless the water and we sing a hymn appropriate for the feast,
0:12:53 > 0:12:56and, after that, the water being blessed is then taken to
0:12:56 > 0:13:00'people's homes and, in that way, people connect themselves to
0:13:00 > 0:13:03'the baptism of Jesus and to the gift of the Holy Spirit.'
0:13:06 > 0:13:09Icons are in important part of the Orthodox Church
0:13:09 > 0:13:13and the Icon of Theophany is particularly special.
0:13:14 > 0:13:19You see the Holy Spirit in the form of a dove and Christ in the waters,
0:13:19 > 0:13:22and we see the hand of the Father proclaiming the Word,
0:13:22 > 0:13:24"This is my beloved son."
0:13:25 > 0:13:29It's important to me, cos we see Christ in his baptism,
0:13:29 > 0:13:32the voice of the Father and the Holy Spirit descending on him
0:13:32 > 0:13:34in the form of a dove.
0:13:34 > 0:13:39This reveals to me, and to the whole world, a new life.
0:13:39 > 0:13:43What's the significance of icons?
0:13:43 > 0:13:47Well, as St John of Damascus says, "We paint what we have seen."
0:13:47 > 0:13:51So, now God has taken on human flesh, we can depict him.
0:13:51 > 0:13:53On the one hand, you could say they're important as
0:13:53 > 0:13:56someone would have a picture of their Grandmother
0:13:56 > 0:13:57and love it and adore it
0:13:57 > 0:13:59and kiss their Grandmother who's departed.
0:13:59 > 0:14:02On the other hand, it could be an encounter
0:14:02 > 0:14:04with the eternal, with the divine.
0:16:50 > 0:16:51Do you know who this is?
0:16:51 > 0:16:54It's Archimedes sitting in his bath shouting, "Eureka!"
0:16:54 > 0:16:56as he discovers the law of hydrostatics.
0:16:58 > 0:17:01He had an epiphany, a flash of inspiration, if you like,
0:17:01 > 0:17:04when he suddenly realised
0:17:04 > 0:17:08and developed the mathematical principle that bears his name.
0:17:08 > 0:17:13Today, the word epiphany means sudden insight or realisation,
0:17:13 > 0:17:15just like Archimedes had as he sat in his bath.
0:17:17 > 0:17:20Such moments can occur anywhere.
0:17:20 > 0:17:24Not far from Blackburn Cathedral is the magnificent Pendle Hill.
0:17:26 > 0:17:30Just 40 years after the famous witch trials that took place here,
0:17:30 > 0:17:34a young Christian man named George Fox was walking on Pendle Hill
0:17:34 > 0:17:38when he had what might be described as an epiphany.
0:17:40 > 0:17:43George Fox is arguably the most important founder
0:17:43 > 0:17:45and leader of the early Quaker movement.
0:17:45 > 0:17:47He was born in 1624
0:17:47 > 0:17:51and lived through the turmoil of the English Civil War period.
0:17:52 > 0:17:56Like many people at the time, George Fox was dissatisfied with the
0:17:56 > 0:18:01established church and was seeking a purer form of Christianity.
0:18:01 > 0:18:03He'd already had an epiphany, in a sense.
0:18:03 > 0:18:07He'd come to the conclusion that what mattered was
0:18:07 > 0:18:11focusing on the workings of the Spirit within all people.
0:18:11 > 0:18:14He'd already been travelling around areas of the North Midlands
0:18:14 > 0:18:17and Yorkshire and preaching to people.
0:18:18 > 0:18:21When he came to the Pendle Hill area, he felt the Lord calling him
0:18:21 > 0:18:23to go up on the hill
0:18:23 > 0:18:26and when he got there, he had a particular vision
0:18:26 > 0:18:29of people to be gathered. He was looking to the North, actually,
0:18:29 > 0:18:33and the early Quaker movement really started in that area of the country,
0:18:33 > 0:18:36before it spread out across the whole of England and beyond.
0:18:39 > 0:18:42It's always been important for Quakers to recognise that the
0:18:42 > 0:18:44Spirit is available to all people and, therefore,
0:18:44 > 0:18:47the possibility of an epiphany is always there.
0:18:47 > 0:18:50Quaker worship is very much based on sitting quietly
0:18:50 > 0:18:53and waiting for the Spirit to guide and transform us
0:18:53 > 0:18:54and so, at any moment,
0:18:54 > 0:18:58we might experience an epiphany that completely transforms our lives.
0:21:27 > 0:21:31The three centuries after George Fox's epiphany on Pendle Hill,
0:21:31 > 0:21:34Ray Lovegrove walked into a Quaker meeting one day
0:21:34 > 0:21:36and had an epiphany of his own.
0:21:38 > 0:21:39'When I was a young adolescent,
0:21:39 > 0:21:43'I had the normal kind of problems that adolescents have.
0:21:43 > 0:21:44'I was angry...'
0:21:44 > 0:21:47and didn't know quite where to turn to
0:21:47 > 0:21:51and I'd found an encyclopaedia with religions in it.
0:21:51 > 0:21:52I started looking at them
0:21:52 > 0:21:56and going along every week to see what they're all about.
0:21:56 > 0:21:58I don't think I found Quakers under Q, I think
0:21:58 > 0:22:02I found them under R for Religious Society of Friends and I went along
0:22:02 > 0:22:06and, instantly, there was something different about them.
0:22:06 > 0:22:09"..are striving towards a flourishing, just,
0:22:09 > 0:22:12"and peaceful creation."
0:22:12 > 0:22:15'I started going regularly to Quakers and, eventually,
0:22:15 > 0:22:18'found myself with a copy of George Fox's journal.'
0:22:19 > 0:22:22The most important thing that came through it for me
0:22:22 > 0:22:26was the idea that you had this channel of communication
0:22:26 > 0:22:30within you and all you have to do is give yourself space
0:22:30 > 0:22:36and silence and open that corridor, if you like, to communicate with God.
0:22:41 > 0:22:45I've read lots of other accounts of people having epiphany moments,
0:22:45 > 0:22:47moments when their life's changed
0:22:47 > 0:22:51and Quakers don't generally use the word, but I think it's quite
0:22:51 > 0:22:55suitable to describe the change that that brought around in me.
0:22:57 > 0:23:01Being a Quaker has effected me in all kinds of ways and it's made me
0:23:01 > 0:23:03live as a Quaker really from when I get up in the morning to
0:23:03 > 0:23:05when I go to bed at night.
0:23:07 > 0:23:11I try to live as simple a life as I can.
0:23:11 > 0:23:12I live by growing our own food.
0:23:12 > 0:23:15Most of the things we eat on the table actually
0:23:15 > 0:23:17come from our own garden.
0:23:17 > 0:23:18I also dress very simply.
0:23:18 > 0:23:22I dress in a way that many Quakers do around the world
0:23:22 > 0:23:27and that reinforces to me, "I'm not just a Quaker at a meeting.
0:23:27 > 0:23:29"I'm a Quaker when I'm feeding the chickens.
0:23:29 > 0:23:31"I'm a Quaker when I'm digging the garden.
0:23:31 > 0:23:34"I'm a Quaker when I'm cooking food." And that's important.
0:23:38 > 0:23:42# All to Jesus
0:23:42 > 0:23:47# I surrender
0:23:47 > 0:23:55# All to him I freely give
0:23:56 > 0:24:01# I will ever
0:24:01 > 0:24:05# Love and trust him
0:24:05 > 0:24:10# In his presence
0:24:10 > 0:24:17# Daily live.
0:24:19 > 0:24:25# Ooh...
0:24:30 > 0:24:33# Ahh...
0:24:33 > 0:24:35# To Jesus
0:24:35 > 0:24:38# All to Jesus
0:24:38 > 0:24:42# Ahh...
0:24:42 > 0:24:45# Surrender
0:24:45 > 0:24:49# I surrender all
0:24:49 > 0:24:53# I surrender, I surrender all
0:24:53 > 0:24:57# I surrender all
0:24:57 > 0:25:04# I surrender, I surrender all
0:25:04 > 0:25:06# All...
0:25:08 > 0:25:11# I surrender...
0:25:11 > 0:25:14# I... I surrender...
0:25:14 > 0:25:22# I surrender all
0:25:22 > 0:25:23# Ah...
0:25:23 > 0:25:30# I surrender all
0:25:32 > 0:25:39# I surrender all. #
0:25:44 > 0:25:48Last year, the Diocese of Blackburn hosted some visitors from afar
0:25:48 > 0:25:51and they brought their wisdom with them.
0:25:55 > 0:25:58'The Simply Living Mission Team is a group of young monks and nuns
0:25:58 > 0:26:00'from the Solomon Islands.
0:26:00 > 0:26:02'They've come a long way to share their message
0:26:02 > 0:26:07'and have been accompanied on their journey by Brother Clark Berge.'
0:26:07 > 0:26:10'We live and work in the Solomon Islands in Vanuatu,'
0:26:10 > 0:26:14in the South Pacific, where it's really hot,
0:26:14 > 0:26:17but the people are really warm too.
0:26:17 > 0:26:19THEY CHANT IN OWN LANGUAGE
0:26:21 > 0:26:25'To be a brother or a sister of a religious order is
0:26:25 > 0:26:27'incredibly popular in the Solomon Islands.
0:26:27 > 0:26:29'In the Church of Melanesia there must be, well,
0:26:29 > 0:26:35'just shy of 1,000 and the average age would be 20 to 30.'
0:26:35 > 0:26:37There was an old man...
0:26:37 > 0:26:39Yes! Here I am!
0:26:40 > 0:26:44'The Mission Team's programme includes their unique interpretation
0:26:44 > 0:26:47'of the Parable of the Prodigal Son.'
0:26:48 > 0:26:49..who had two sons.
0:26:51 > 0:26:52Where are you from?
0:26:53 > 0:26:55The island of...Solomon.
0:26:55 > 0:26:56Solomon? Yes!
0:26:57 > 0:27:00My name is Nathaniel Ru.
0:27:00 > 0:27:02And I came from the Solomon Islands.
0:27:03 > 0:27:06I joined the Living Mission Brotherhood,
0:27:06 > 0:27:09um, at the age of 21 years.
0:27:10 > 0:27:13'It is my first time out of my country.
0:27:14 > 0:27:17'I've never met the young white people in my life.'
0:27:19 > 0:27:24We just came to show other people how we live, how we worship,
0:27:24 > 0:27:26and how we do things in Solomon.
0:27:26 > 0:27:27Wow! Great!
0:27:27 > 0:27:29It's for my hat!
0:27:29 > 0:27:30No!
0:27:31 > 0:27:32Wear it on your leg, boy.
0:27:32 > 0:27:37'The Mission is like the Magi that come from the East to visit'
0:27:37 > 0:27:38the baby Jesus.
0:27:38 > 0:27:44We've come from the Solomon Islands to England to show people that
0:27:44 > 0:27:49Christ is in the midst of them and to worship him and to adore him and, in
0:27:49 > 0:27:53a sense, to encourage them in their own life and their own ministry.
0:27:53 > 0:27:57'Being on the Mission is, in a sense, what the Epiphany is about,
0:27:57 > 0:28:00'showing forth the power of the Gospel to the whole world.'
0:30:25 > 0:30:27Like the wise men...
0:30:27 > 0:30:31teach us to seek you by desiring you
0:30:31 > 0:30:34and let us find you in loving you
0:30:34 > 0:30:36within the light of Christ...
0:30:37 > 0:30:39..and the blessing of God Almighty.
0:30:39 > 0:30:45May the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit sustain you in your search.
0:30:46 > 0:30:47Amen.
0:30:47 > 0:30:48ALL: Amen.
0:30:50 > 0:30:54The kings worship the infant Christ and give him gifts of
0:30:54 > 0:30:58gold, frankincense and myrrh. The words of our final hymn suggest
0:30:58 > 0:31:00that we too bow down and worship him,
0:31:00 > 0:31:04not with gold and incense, but with humility and obedience.
0:33:29 > 0:33:31Next week, Bill meets artists inspired by
0:33:31 > 0:33:34the beautiful Holy Island of Lindisfarne,
0:33:34 > 0:33:37and sets the scene for some hearty hymn singing in the ancient
0:33:37 > 0:33:42parish church with its intriguing brand-new stained glass window.
0:33:42 > 0:33:45Plus, music from popular band Iona.