By Kathy Berken
On Deck
When I was growing up, we put together our Nativity set with Mary, Joseph, the shepherds and sheep. We left baby Jesus in the box until after midnight Mass on Christmas Eve, and the three Kings (technically, astrologers, wise men, or magi) until the feast of the Epiphany on Jan. 6. Since we set up our tree the morning of Dec. 24, we were honoring the traditional Twelve Days of Christmas (but without any partridges or calling birds!).
Because I barely had any time with the Kings and their camels, I just considered them an afterthought. Now I realize how significant they were!
As we dig deeper into the gospel story of the Magi who brought gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh to Jesus in Bethlehem (Mt. 2:1–12), we realize that Jesus’ life changed dramatically because of their visit. King Herod felt deceived by the wise men because they never returned to tell him Jesus’ exact location, and as a result, Herod ordered the killing of all males in Bethlehem under the age of two. This is the first instance of someone feeling threatened by Jesus’ presence in the world.
The Magi made the pilgrimage to Bethlehem because they saw the star in the east representing the birth of a new king. They went to Jerusalem to ask advice from Herod. His priests and scribes led them to Bethlehem, as foretold in Micah 5:2. Instead of returning to Jerusalem to inform Herod, they obeyed the message they received in a dream to take a different route home due to Herod’s desire to kill Jesus.
Meanwhile, Joseph also listened to a message in his dream telling him to flee to Egypt because of Herod’s intentions. Do you ever wonder what would have happened if the Magi had not gone to Herod first? Or if they did not pay attention to the star’s significance and stayed back?
Their journey to Bethlehem was a pilgrimage of hope. Despite the hardships they encountered, and then the warnings to return via a different route, the wise men deliberately chose to find the new king and offer gifts decidedly symbolic to Jesus’ life. They were traveling to meet the Son of God, believing him to be the new king of the Jews. Hence, the gold. Learning of Jesus’ divinity, they offered frankincense, traditionally used for worship. Myrrh, used in burial rites, symbolized Jesus’ death.
How is all this hopeful? If the Magi were never involved, someone else might have alerted King Herod of the star and its significance, and after consulting the priests and scribes, would have sent his henchmen to Bethlehem to find Jesus and kill him. Instead, the Magi saved Jesus’ life because they listened to the message in their dream. Through their gifts, they confirmed to Mary and Joseph their knowledge of Jesus’ kingship (albeit not of this earth), his divinity, and the foretelling of his eventual death.
Had the Magi not saved Jesus, Herod would have killed him, and none of us would have ever known Jesus as the Son of God. Imagine your life without your Christian faith!
So, as you arrange the wise men, camels, their gifts, and all their assistants next to the stable with Jesus, Mary, Joseph, the donkey, oxen, shepherds, and sheep, consider offering a prayer of gratitude. Thank the Magi for being instrumental in allowing Jesus to live into adulthood, to grow in wisdom and knowledge, to live out his mission, and to allow billions of people throughout the past 2,000 years to know that God came to earth as a human, just like us.
(Kathy Berken is a spiritual director and retreat leader in St. Paul, Minnesota. She lived and worked at L’Arche in Clinton — The Arch from 1999-2009.)
