28 December 2025

The wise men study the night sky. They make observations. They consult prophetic books. They establish theorems based on observation. They put their faith in them until another experiment or observation contradicts it.

Did these foreign astronomers lose faith in their own scientific enquiry? They had the star to  lead them to the Christchild so why detour to Jerusalem and ask their  fatal question, ‘Where is the child who has been born king of the Jews?’

If they had more faith in their own scientific thinking, would Herod have been so quick to massacre the innocents? Scientific enquiry doesn’t always result in good outcomes. Think of the atomic bomb?

Mistakes are made. They are often hidden from the pages of scientific or mathematical school books. We only read about the end results and ask, ‘How did they get this?’

Experiment is important and we should embrace it  in the Kirk. Make an experiment of a new initiative for a limited period of time, make observations on its outcomes  and deduce a theorem or not depending on what you discover.

The experiment may be a failure but the result may lead to a sound conclusion which would help shape our future together. On the other hand, it may be a success and open up a new world full of promise!

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