Posted on 12/15/2014 1:25:07 PM PST by SeekAndFind
Who were the Magi?
The Gospel of Matthew mentions the Magi who came from the East to worship the newborn Christ child (cf. Matthew 2:1-12). Exactly who the magi were though remains somewhat of a mystery.
Oftentimes, the English translations of the Bible use the word astrologers for magi. In Greek, the original language of the Gospel' the word magos (magoi, plural) has four meanings: (1) a member of the priestly class of ancient Persia, where astrology and astronomy were prominent in Biblical times; (2) one who had occult knowledge and power, and was adept at dream interpretation' astrology, fortune-telling, divination, and spiritual mediation; (3) a magician; or (4) a charlatan, who preyed upon people using the before mentioned practices. From these possible definitions and the description provided in the gospel, the magi were probably Persian priest-astrologers who could interpret the stars, particularly the significance of the star that proclaimed the birth of the Messiah. (Even the ancient historian Herodotus (d. 5 century BC) would attest to the astrological prowess of the priestly class of Persia.)
More importantly, the visit of the magi fulfill the prophecies of the Old Testament: Balaam prophesied about the coming Messiah marked by a star: "I see him, though not now; I behold him, though not near: A star shall advance from Jacob and a staff shall rise from Israel..." Psalm 72 speaks of how the Gentiles will come to worship the Messiah: "The kings of Tarshish and the Isles shall offer gifts, the kings of Arabia and Seba shall bring tribute. All kings shall pay Him homage, all nations shall serve Him" (72:10-11). Isaiah also prophesied the gifts: "Caravans of camels shall fill you, dromedaries from Midian and Ephah; all from Sheba shall come bearing gold and frankincense, and proclaiming the praises of the Lord" (Isaiah 60:6).
St. Matthew recorded that the Magi brought three gifts, each also having a prophetic meaning: gold, the gift for a king; frankincense the gift for a priest; and myrrh -- a burial ointment, a gift for one who would die. St. Irenaeus (d. 202) in his Adversus haereses offered the following interpretation for the gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh respectively King, God, and Suffering Redeemer as well as virtue, prayer, and suffering.
Traditionally, we think of the three magi as the three kings. We usually have the three kings in our nativity sets' We even sing, "We three kings of orient are...." Here the three gifts, Psalm 72, and the rising star in the East converge to render the Magi as three kings travelling from the East.
Actually, the earliest tradition is inconsistent as to the number of the Magi. The Eastern tradition favored 12. In the West, several of the early Church fathers eluding Ongen, St. Leo the Great, and St. Maximus of Turin — accepted three. Early Christian painting in Rome found at the cemetery of Sts. Peter and Marcellinus depicts two magi and at the cemetary of St. Domitilla, four.
Since the seventh century in the Western Church, the magi have been identified as Gaspar, Melchior, and Balthasar. A work called the Excerpta et Collectanea attributed to St. Bede (d. 735) wrote, "The magi were the ones who gave gifts to tile Lord. The first is said to have been Melchior, an old man with white hair "d a long beard... who offered gold to the Lord as to a king. I he second> Gaspar by name, young and beardless and ruddy complexioned. . . honored Him as God by his gift of incense, an oblation worthy of divinity. The third, black-skinned and heavily bearded, named Balthasar. .. by his gift of myrrh testified to the Son of Man who was to die." An excerpt from a Medieval saints calendar printed in Cologne read, "Having undergone many trials and fatigues for the Gospel, the three wise men met at Sewa (Sebaste in Armenia) in AD 54 to celebrate the feast of Christmas. Thereupon, after the celebration of Mass, they died: St. Melchior on January 1, aged 116; St. Balthasar on January 6th, aged 112; and St. Gaspar on January 11th, aged 109." The Roman Martyrology also lists these dates as the Magi's respective feast days.
Emperor Zeno brought the relics of the magi from Persia to Constantinople in 490. Relics (whether the same or others) appeared in Milan much later and were kept at the Basilica of St. Eustorgius. Emperor Frederick Barbarossa of Germany, who plundered Italy, took the lics to Cologne in 1162, where they remain secure to this day in a beautiful reliquary housed in the Cathedral.
Even though some mystery remains to the identity of the magi, the Church respects their act of worship: The Council of Trent, when underscoring the reverence that must be given to e Holy Eucharist, decreed, "The faithful of Christ venerate this most holy sacrament with the worship of latria which is due to the true God.... For in this sacrament we believe that the same God is present whom the eternal Father brought into the world, saying of Him, 'Let all God's angels worship Him.' It is the same God whom the Magi fell down and worshipped, and finally, the same God whom the apostles adored in Galilee as Scripture says" (Decree on the Most Holy Eucharist, 5).
As we celebrate Christmas and the Feast of the Epiphany, we too must be mindful of our duty to adore our Lord through prayer, worship, and self-sacrificing good work. St. Gregory Nazianzen (d. 389) preached, "Let us remain on in adoration, and to Him, who' in order to save us, humbled Himself to such a degree of poverty as to receive our body, let us offer not only incense, gold and myrrh..., but also spiritual gifts, more sublime than those which can be seen with the eyes" (Oratorio, 19).
- Fr. Saunders is pastor of Queen of Apostles Church in Alexandria.
Mary: Oh....a burial spice. How......inappropriate.
Curley: You’re welcome, toots. Nyuk, nyuk, nyuk.
Don’t tell me that was in an old three stooges clip....
I always knew that 3 wise men was just a guess.
Is that not the plural of major, as in one major, two or more maji?
Badda bing, badda boom, couldn’t resist.
No insult whatsoever intended on the biblical reference.
Is that not the plural of major, as in one major, two or more maji?
Badda bing, badda boom, couldn’t resist.
No insult whatsoever intended on the biblical reference.
That was the actual conversation. 3 Stooges never did the Nativity.
But why would they have cared about anything happening in Judea, which was 500 miles across the desert and in enemy territory anyway (since the magi came from the Parthian Empire)? The only plausible answer to me is that they were descendants of the Judeans who were carried off to Babylon 500 years earlier, who were considered the best and the brightest, like Daniel and his companions. Most of the Jews in Persia did not return to Judah with Nehemiah, but they would still have kept up with the prophecies and such, and would have been looking for signs of the Messiah, just as the Judeans would, or should, have been looking.
I clearly remember getting kicked out of Sunday School for calling them the Three Wise Guys.
In other words, what you are saying is that these Magi’s were not really Gentiles, but Israelites (like Daniel?)
RE: I always knew that 3 wise men was just a guess.
So, how did the Wise Men morph into “Kings” ( as in the Christmas Carol )?
Wise men still seek Him and wise men still worship Him.
My dad, a retired Lutheran pastor, says that there were 15-18 wise men. Many people assume that there were three wise men, since Matthew said that they gave three gifts. My dad also says that Jesus was about two, when the wise men found him. The star appeared when Jesus was born, and the wise men came from present-day India.
Daniel was a Magi in both the Babylonian, and later, the Persian courts. He could have shared Jewish writings with the rest of the Persian Magi who then kept an eye out for the coming of the Messiah.
It has always puzzled me a little, but by anyof those definitions of the Magi, they were practitioners of occult arts.
The OT is pretty clear about its position on occultism of any sort. Just as clear as it is about idolatry, murder, adultery, and homosexual acts.
So how is it that these magicians were among the first to worship Christ? Did they thereafter repent of their practices and give them up.
I don’t expect an answer, really, but if someone has an opinion, I’d like to hear it, and the reasoning behind it.
More accurately they would be Jews but not Israelites, in the same way that Jews in the US are Jews, but not Israelis until they make aliyah and return to their ancestral home. For a concurrent opinion, check here.
“but by anyof those definitions of the Magi, they were practitioners of occult arts”
Magi is a Greek word, a translation of the original Hebrew word for “wise man” “sage”, etc. It is not the original term, but at the time of writing (the first century), its meanings were close enough to “wise sage” to suit. (It later came to have additional meanings added on.)
There are some who believe the wise men actually came from China—based on the two-year period necessary for them to arrive (the same time as taking the silk road to Judea would take).
You can leave out astrology as playing a part in their understanding of the star, because that same astrological “knowledge” was not confined to Persia (and points east), but was also known in the Roman world. Ergo, had the star had an astrological meaning, everyone—not just people in the east-would have seen and interpreted the “sign”.
But the bible says that when they arrived and mentioned they had seen the star, all Jerusalem was stirred. Why would this be so if everyone had seen the “sign” and interpreted it the same way?
The wise men came to Jerusalem, to Herod, to find the newborn king. Had they been Jewish sages, they would have headed to Bethlehem (as Herod’s own sages told him was the place the messiah was to be born). Hence, we might—might—deduce they were not Jewish.
(all just thoughts for discussion)
Interesting thread. Bookmarking.
RE: My dad also says that Jesus was about two, when the wise men found him.
I tend to think this would be correct.
1) It says this in the Bible: ( Matthew 2:11 ):
(capital emphasis mine ):
And when they had come into the HOUSE, they saw the young Child with Mary His mother, and fell down and worshiped Him. And when they had opened their treasures, they presented gifts to Him: gold, frankincense, and myrrh.
So, the wise men arrived at the HOUSE where Mary and Joseph lived and not in the stable next tot he inn where the manger was.
2) Herod ordered the massacre of infants two years old and younger.
Token black. The idea has been around for a long time, apparently.
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