We celebrate different manifestations of Christ in the world during the season of Christmas. The first manifestation was celebrated on Christmas day, when God manifested himself as the child Jesus born in the humble manger in Bethlehem. Next weekend, at the end of the Christmas season, Jesus is manifested as the Son of God as he receives his baptism in the Jordan River from John the Baptist as the voice of God comes down from the heavens, proclaiming: This is my dear son, in whom I am well pleased. Today’s feast takes place with the recently born baby Jesus being visited by the Magi, which is another manifestation of Jesus that we celebrate during this season. These three men who are strangers and outsiders give royal homage to the child. This recognition of the special nature of the child Jesus in the second chapter of Matthew’s Gospel is later reiterated in the theme at the end of his Gospel, as we are commanded to go forth and make disciples of all the nations.
Who were these men who visited the baby Jesus? The Greek text of the Gospel calls them “Magoi” which in English is translated into Magi. The Magi were a group of scholars who were associated with the interpretation of dreams, astronomy, astrology and magic. In later Christian tradition, they were called kings, influenced by the psalm we hear today: The kings of Tarshish and the Isles shall offer gifts; the kings of Arabia and Seba shall bring tribute. Tradition has numbered the Magi as three after the three gifts that they gave. And Tradition has given them names: Caspar, Balthasar, and Melchior. We are told in the Gospel that they came “from the east,” which could mean Persia, Syria or Arabia, or indeed any distant place.
What about the gifts that the three kings bring? On the surface, these might seem to be strange gifts to bring a baby in a manger. In our small faith group that met this past week on ZOOM, our group was discussing the significance that these gifts might have for us. In the Christological sense, St Irenaeus states that the gifts symbolize the mystery of God’s word made flesh. First, the gold is a symbol of Christ's royalty, representing Christ’s kingship. Second, frankincense, an incense used in Temple worship, represents Christ’s divinity. Lastly, myrrh was used to anoint bodies before burial. It represents Christ’s humanity, particularly in his passion, crucifixion, and death.
St Gregory the Great also mentioned in his homilies that the three gifts that the Magi bring represent gifts that we are to present to God in our own daily lives. The gold represents Christ’s wisdom, which is to shine in our lives. The frankincense represents our prayers and the adoration we are to give him. And the myrrh represents the daily sacrifices we are to make to the Lord. That is another wonderful way of looking at the symbolism of the gifts given to the Christ child.
Finally, let us look at the star which the wise men saw and followed. It is interesting that the wise men from the East followed it, but the priests and learned people of Israel did not. Our small faith group was discussing how the wise men knew the significance of the star and if they knew where it would lead. They knew it was leading them to the newborn king of the Jews. Was it the Holy Spirit that was leading them and guiding them on their journey? And what about us? Do we have our priorities so fixed in our lives that we are not looking for those stars and other journey markers that God sends us to lead us and guide, to help us follow his will?
In every age and in every culture, people seek God just as the Three Kings sought him. In every age, with the help of the Holy Spirit, people find God in the surprising humility of a baby born in a manger. Led by the Spirit, in the humility of a small child that greets us in the manger, many of the faithful come to realize that God's criteria and values are quite different from the values that humanity creates in our secular world. God does not manifest himself in the power of this world, but speaks to us in the humbleness of the love of the Christ child. The journey of the Magi from the East and their discovery of the Christ child is a sign that Jesus came to save all peoples, not just one particular people or nation. Let us welcome the Christ child the way the Magi did: with our gifts, with our lives, and with our hearts.
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