Wise men from the East

Damaskinos - Adoration of the Magi

Now after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king, behold, wise men from the East came to Jerusalem, saying, "Where is He who has been born King of the Jews? For we have seen His star in the East and have come to worship Him." When Herod the king heard this, he was troubled, and all Jerusalem with him. And when he had gathered all the chief priests and scribes of the people together, he inquired of them where the Christ was to be born. So they said to him, "In Bethlehem of Judea, for thus it is written by the prophet:

'But you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah,

Are not the least among the rulers of Judah;

For out of you shall come a Ruler

Who will shepherd My people Israel.'"

Then Herod, when he had secretly called the wise men, determined from them what time the star appeared. And he sent them to Bethlehem and said, "Go and search carefully for the young Child, and when you have found Him, bring back word to me, that I may come and worship Him also."

When they heard the king, they departed; and behold, the star which they had seen in the East went before them, till it came and stood over where the young Child was. When they saw the star, they rejoiced with exceedingly great joy. 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 gift to Him: gold, frankincense, and myrrh. Then, being divinely warned in a dream that they should not return to Herod, they departed for their own country another way.

- Matthew 2:1-12

Today we continue our Christmastide readings, with the story of the "wise men" from the East. Now after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king, behold, wise men from the East came to Jerusalem, . . . My study notes here that "Matthew anticipates Jesus' mission to the Gentiles. The wise men, or Magi, who come from the East, that is, outside of Israel (perhaps from Persia), are the scholars of their time. In the Old Testament, Balaam (Numbers 23; 24) was one of their predecessors, a Gentile who also anticipated the Messiah. The worship of the Lord by the Magi is symbolic of the Church, the true Israel, in which membership is determined by faith, not by ethnic lineage." It continues, "One of the rare bits of chronological information in Matthew places this event in the reign of Herod the Great, king of Judea (37-4 B.C.). An underling of Rome, he was a great builder but a cruel ruler." I find it very important that we have a sense of "all things" being under this Creator, this Babe who is the king or Messiah. My study bible's commentary that this is Matthew's vision of Jesus' mission to the Gentiles, teaches us something very important about this Incarnation: it is the incarnation of Creator, the One who is Truth and Whose Spirit is called the Spirit of Truth. Therefore, we anticipate rightly, whatever is true in all religion in some sense serves the Person who is Truth, and is also found in Christ.

. . . saying, "Where is He who has been born King of the Jews? For we have seen His star in the East and have come to worship Him." A note here reads, "The star signifies the extraordinary importance of the birth of the Christ Child. In ancient times a star signified a god, a deified king (Num. 24:17). This star is a sign of the Messiah Himself, signifying the light He will shed upon the world." A kind of revelation leads the "wise men" to Jesus. The light of the star gives us part of the nature of this Messiah; He is the light coming into the world, and into the darkness, to illuminate the Way for those who would be wise. In this event, we have an understanding of the cosmic nature of Christ, this Messiah, who is not just for one people, but for a whole universe of beauty and creation, and those who understand, who see.

When Herod the king heard this, he was troubled, and all Jerusalem with him. And when he had gathered all the chief priests and scribes of the people together, he inquired of them where the Christ was to be born. A note here teaches: "Knowing little of the Jewish Messiah and fearful of losing his throne to a newborn king, Herod asks the chief priests and scribes . . . where the Christ was to be born. The chief priests of the temple in Jerusalem are the political and religious leaders of the Jews. They include the high priest, who alone can enter the Holiest of All (Heb. 9:7). They have no idea that the Messiah has been born. The scribes, high cabinet officers (2 Kin. 22; Jer. 36:10), know the Messiah is to be born, and where. But they have no revelation that He has come. God reveals His truth to those with 'a noble and good heart' (Luke 8:15)." Herod learns some intelligence (in the political sense) from the wise men - there is a threat to Herod's reign. We see this mysterious confluence of intelligence, of wisdom. The Magi come from the East, and they understand. Herod calls together his own intelligence counsel - those who know the Scriptures, whose business it is to understand the things that pertain to the awaited Messiah. All prepare for the arrival, born into our world, of the incarnate Deity of all - a cosmic event, in the form of a Babe. Indeed, all of the cosmos participates - even the star as a sign, and the gifts of the earth borne by the Magi of gold, frankincense and myrrh. And it is not only the realm of religion, wisdom and spiritual understanding that is preparing for this event, but the political realm as well. The question is, as the quotation from Luke 8:15 would teach us, how will each understand this event in their hearts? It is a universal question, open to us all.

So they said to him, "In Bethlehem of Judea, for thus it is written by the prophet: 'But you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah, are not the least among the rulers of Judah; For out of you shall come a Ruler Who will shepherd My people Israel.'" The quotation is from the Book of the Prophet Micah chapter 5, verse 2. Micah's prophecy teaches us about One "who is, and was and is to come" (Rev. 1:8), as it teaches about a future ruler "whose origins are from of old, from ancient times" - a concept rooted in Mystery, and the depth of Creation.

Then Herod, when he had secretly called the wise men, determined from them what time the star appeared. And he sent them to Bethlehem and said, "Go and search carefully for the young Child, and when you have found Him, bring back word to me, that I may come and worship Him also." Herod, of course, has received this news in one way, that does not speak of him as having "a noble and good heart." For Herod, all is political, and about threats to his political power. Here he uses trickery on the wise men. The seed of the Word begins even before He is born. How does it fall in each of us, from Herod to the wise men from the East?

When they heard the king, they departed; and behold, the star which they had seen in the East went before them, till it came and stood over where the young Child was. When they saw the star, they rejoiced with exceedingly great joy. 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 gift to Him: gold, frankincense, and myrrh. A note here reads: "Matthew, writing for Jewish Christians, cites Gentiles as the first worshipers of Jesus. Luke, writing for Gentile Christians, cites a the first worshipers the Jewish poor -- shepherds from surrounding fields (Luke 2:8-17 [see reading and commentary here and here]). The Magi, firstfruits of the Gentiles, come to Christ bearing gifts: gold, for King; frankincense, for God; and myrrh, for a Man who is to suffer and die. The wise men have received some knowledge about the newborn King through their observation of the star, but when they see Him, they recognize Him as the Sun of Righteousness (Mal. 4:2), the Orient (the rising sun) from on high (Is. 59:19), the Bright and Morning Star (Rev. 22:16)." In the presence of the Child, the Magi or wise men fall and worship Him. We are told, "they rejoiced with exceedingly great joy" as they have found their treasure, the Bright and Morning Star, the Sun of Righteousness, the Orient. We discussed the symbolism of the gifts of the Magi in an earlier commentary, on how the early church viewed Jesus' birth as a prefiguration of all that was to come (see Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, goodwill to men!) They understand Him as the Light coming into the world that brings exceedingly great joy.

Then, being divinely warned in a dream that they should not return to Herod, they departed for their own country another way. Again, the play of dreams divinely inspired with messages for those who are at work in these events that surround the birth of Christ comes into the Gospel. In so many of our Christmastide readings, we have received this sign over and over again, of God's grace at work through divine messengers and dreams.

What message do we get from this Gospel reading today? There is the great Light - Christ who is Himself "the East," the great "Star" of the morning, the "Sun of Righteousness." The wise men follow the light of the star to find the Star, and their hearts are illumined with a divine light, the understanding of exceeding joy at finding this Child and worshiping Him. How many ways can we find Christ? How many signs point the way in our lives? Do dreams help us to understand the way to God, and to the joy we find in finding Christ for ourselves? To my mind, this passage teaches us that all things lead to God, to that center of the great light we can find in our hearts. My study bible cites in commentary Luke's Gospel message about the word (from Jesus' parable of the Sower): But the seed on good soil stands for those with a noble and good heart, who hear the word, retain it, and by persevering produce a crop. The wise men come from the East, with such hearts noble and good. They can hear and they can see, in the spiritual sense in which Jesus will so often call on us to have true sight and hearing (see Matt. 13:15,16). People from every part of the world, from all backgrounds and understanding have this capability. The Child incarnate in Bethlehem is not just for one people but for all, from all traditions. All that is true comes from this cosmic Creator, the Person who is Truth, "whose origins are from of old, from ancient times." This mysterious root stretches through all of us, and through all of time, to the hearts of any who are ready to hear and understand the Word. Let us not bar in our hearts the wisdom of any person who can find the seed of this Word in their hearts where it can take hold and bear fruits. In a cosmic sense, we are all rooted in that Word, incarnate in the Babe born in Bethlehem, whose true origins begin before us all in Mystery, and are revealed to those to whom the Father wills, who are found everywhere. This is what the Gospel teaches us today. How many ways can the light of this Word reach into our lives? Let us understand that the answer to that question is unlimited, and open our hearts to the work of grace which cannot be contained by any human understanding or limitation we would put on the work of God in our world.