Feast of the Epiphany: Gifts of the Magi

A reading from the Gospel according to St Matthew:

In the time of King Herod, after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea, wise men from the East came to Jerusalem, asking, ‘Where is the child who has been born king of the Jews? For we observed his star at its rising, and have come to pay him homage.’ When King Herod heard this, he was frightened, and all Jerusalem with him; and calling together all the chief priests and scribes of the people, he inquired of them where the Messiah was to be born. They told him, ‘In Bethlehem of Judea; for so it has been written by the prophet:  

“And you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah,  

are by no means least among the rulers of Judah;  

for from you shall come a ruler  

who is to shepherd my people Israel.”’  

Then Herod secretly called for the wise men and learned from them the exact time when the star had appeared. Then he sent them to Bethlehem, saying, ‘Go and search diligently for the child; and when you have found him, bring me word so that I may also go and pay him homage.’ When they had heard the king, they set out; and there, ahead of them, went the star that they had seen at its rising, until it stopped over the place where the child was. When they saw that the star had stopped, they were overwhelmed with joy. On entering the house, they saw the child with Mary his mother; and they knelt down and paid him homage. Then, opening their treasure-chests, they offered him gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh. And having been warned in a dream not to return to Herod, they left for their own country by another road. 

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If you look at images of the visit of the Magi made in fifteenth century Florence, you may be lucky to get more history than you bargained for. The Epiphany was a particularly special feast day for the Florentines, with a particular guild which organised a great procession through the city, with members of the ruling Medici family taking part. Lorenzo de Medici even changed his birthday from the 1st to 6th January, such was his devotion to this feast! And in several Florentine pictures of the scene, the Magi themselves, and the entourage which follows them, members of the Medici family are revealed painted as Kings and leading figures in the great caravan which journeys to the Christ child.  

Today’s feast has many layers. Sometimes, each of the magi is portrayed at a different moment in life, one young, one middle aged, and one elderly man, symbolising the prostration of the whole of life, every age, at the feet of this child: God Made Man.  There is not a time or a context which should not find its home and its liberation at the feet of the Christ child. All our strivings, our talents, our achievements – our treasures - are worthless, unless they are offered at the service of Christ’s love, taking their part in that remaking of the world and its priorities which is enabled by Christ’s incarnation – Jesus' birth.   

‘When he is King, we will bring him the King’s gifts’, runs one much-loved Epiphany carol. What should we lay before Christ in this new year? A traditional answer would be to look at the symbolism of each of the traditional gifts: gold for riches, frankincense for worship, myrrh for the delicately intertwined frailty of life and death which characterises our humanity. What should we leave, as individuals and as communities, at Christ’s feet which needs his judgement, his mercy, his transformation this new year? In the great and mighty wonder of the Word Made Flesh, we shall find given back to us a life, a cure, and a vocation which is greater than anything we have given up.