December 17th, 2025
“Three Wisemen” by Mindy Indy
A Grand Act of Hope
By Kelly Sankowski
About a month ago, the northern United States had the opportunity to see the aurora borealis (Northern Lights). Even though this had happened once before in the past year, it is pretty unusual, so it felt like a rare opportunity to catch a glimpse of something beautiful.
I told my husband we should try to go see them—to let our two young sons stay up extra late and drive to a park with less light pollution. It felt like a radical act of hope to disrupt our routine and sacrifice those precious hours I get to myself at night, just for the slight chance of seeing something.
This adventure is what comes to mind for me when I reflect on our theme “A Star in the East.” I wonder what the wise men expected when they decided to follow the bright star. How certain were they that they would find something extraordinary? Did it feel like a shot in the dark? Were they, too, overwhelmed by the despair of their time and grasping for something to make them feel hopeful?
They made a bold choice to set out on their journey, just as many of Jesus’s ancestors had done. In today’s Gospel reading, I always linger a little longer over the few names of women that Matthew chooses to include—Rahab, Ruth, and Mary. Each of these women played a crucial role in salvation history not because they played it safe, but because they made a risky decision.
For Rahab, it was hiding Israelite spies in her home, with the hope that she could keep her family safe. For Ruth, it was choosing to remain with her mother-in-law, Naiomi, after the death of her husband, even though it might mean not having the financial support or social acceptance of marrying another husband. For Mary, it was saying “yes” to bearing Jesus into the world, despite the social stigma—and even risk to her life—that came with the appearance of being an unwed mother.
Being bold does not come naturally to me. I tend to like to play it safe, which is why my conscious effort to throw my two toddlers in the car and journey to seek wonder felt significant. I was exercising the muscles of hope—a hope that does not just wish for something different, but acts to bring it about.
As we drove to the park, my younger son was dozing off and my older son kept saying, “We are going to see the Israel Lights!” (I believe this came on the heels of his lesson about Moses in school). In the end, we did not see anything other than some beautiful stars. It turns out the night before had been the better night, and we missed it.
So my grand act of hope didn’t quite pan out, but that is okay. With my hope muscles flexed, perhaps making bold choices to seek beauty, or truth, or goodness will start to come more easily. Because after all, if the wise men had just stayed home, they would have missed out on seeing God incarnate.
Kelly Sankowski is a freelance writer based in Toledo, Ohio. She writes a monthly(ish) Substack called "The Moon's Shadow".
Mindy Indy is a cartoonist and illustrator based in Brooklyn, NY. She has illustrated several children's books for Our Sunday Visitor in the God's Superheroes series under her real name, Melinda Steffen.