The Historical Journey of the Magi

The Greek historian Herodotus indicates that the Magi were a sect of Medeans residing in Persia, which during the time of Christ's birth was under the rule of the Parthian Empire. The Magi were scientists, priests, astronomers and astrologers (at the time, these professions would not have seemed antithetical). The Magi existed, according to some estimates, for approximately five thousand years, seeing the rise and fall of many emperors. Though the Magi priesthood may predate Zoroaster, at the time of Christ they were almost certainly Zoroastrians. It should be noted that no religion in the ancient world was as similar to Judaism as this tradition: Zoroaster thought of aiding the poor as one of his religion's core values and believed in a day of judgement, a creator god and a personified evil (i.e. "the devil"). Zoroastrianism has also been referred to as "qualified monotheism" because, though other gods appear in their sacred texts, they are merely the servants of the creator god - a god of wisdom and justice.

These Magi then, were not merely a small band of 'wise men,' but a Medean tribe that had developed into an entire social class of priests and sages. Though they did not directly govern Persia, they were the center of spiritual-political authority through the ages of several great empires. They interpreted dreams and were responsible for sacred rituals, including animal sacrifices. The Magi may have even been responsible for crowning any new ruler who came to power. If true, then to be crowned without the favor of the Magi would jeopardize the legitimacy of any king.

The Magi believed that the stars could be used to predict the birth of great rulers. [Click here to read more about the star of Bethlehem]. Their interpretations led them to believe that the next great ruler was about to be born: the "king of the Jews." But even so, why visit the newborn king of a foreign nation? It is not implausible to assume that the main intention of the Magi was diplomatic in origin. If a new king had been born, it would prove useful to pay tribute to him and his family. They may have assumed that Herod, the ruler of Judea and Palestine, had produced a son, an heir to his seat of power, who would exceed his father's legacy by leaps and bounds. Rome and Parthia were the two "superpowers" of the era, much as the U.S. and Russia were before the fall of the Soviet Union. Palestine was significant as a militarily strategic point between these two powers - the bridge between East and West.

Since their journey would take them several months, it is more than likely that they brought with them a long list of secondary objectives. Since tensions between Rome and Parthia were high at this time, the Magi may have wanted Herod (who was a close personal friend of Emperor Augustus) to help them intercede and prevent a war. On these matters we can only speculate but it is fairly safe to assume that the Magi would have seen the world not only through a spiritual, but also a political lens.

Diplomatic motives, then, if not the primary objective, must have at least been a secondary consideration. There is nothing to suggest that the Magi were seeking a 'spiritual king.' Though they are described as 'worshipping' Christ this is not far afield from the language of reverence used to refer to mortal forms of nobility and authority (though the chasm between 'political' and 'spiritual' authority was not very wide in their era). Nevertheless, it is easy to read the end of their story as a "conversion" of sorts, which almost implies, at the outset, that they had meant their trip to be a spiritual quest. Whatever the cause, it can be imagined that these men embarked on their trip with anxious but hopeful hearts. The journey itself would be long and arduous. And who knew what they would find at their journey's end?

Assuming that they had followed the main trade route from Persia (modern day Iran), they would have probably used horses to cross over mountainous and rocky terrain, switching to camels once they reached the desert. It can be assumed, since their journey did not need to be kept secret, that they traveled along the main trade route of their era. This meant that they would have followed the Euphrates River up through what is now Iraq, crossed over the harsh and desolate Syrian desert, passed through the lush Jordan Valley and arrived, after a journey of several months, at the gates of Jerusalem. They would have seen harsh and barren deserts, lush green hills, mountains and rivers. To a small group of wearisome travelers unaccustomed to such turbulent and varied conditions, it might have seemed as if they had traveled across the entire stretch of the world. T.S. Eliot captures the spirit and struggle of this trek best in his famous poem "The Journey of the Magi."
[Click here to read Eliot's "The Journey of the Magi."]

What happened next came as a shock. King Herod had become sickly and paranoid. Among other medical ailments, he suffered from syphilis. He was dying, and those who stood a chance to replace him on the throne knew that now was the time to make their bid for power. To thwart these attempts, Herod had already killed his previous wife and several of his sons. King Herod knew that the new King the Magi were seeking could not be one of his own heirs.

Consulting with his advisors, Herod learned of the Hebraic prophecies concerning a Jewish leader who would be born in Bethlehem. Sharing this information with the Magi, he then said to them: "Go and search diligently for the young child; and when you have found him, bring me word again, that I may come worship him also." Of course, Herod hoped to have the child slain, destroying any potential threat to his rule.

After a journey of over a thousand miles into a foreign country, the Magi finally found their way to Mary, Joseph and their son Jesus, who was, at this point, between the ages of one and two. To the elite and aristocratic Magi, this couple might have seemed like simple "peasants." They were also of a different race and religion. Yet, as we all have heard from the story, St. Matthew has said that they offered up "Gold, Frankincense and Myrrh." These were gifts not easily or quickly parted with and they imply that the Magi meant to legitimize the newborn's rule. St. Matthew even describes the Magi falling down to "worship" the newborn. What did they envision for this small child and his future? What sort of nation did they imagine that he would lead? What did these foreigners learn from their travels abroad - their pilgrimage? What influenced them to risk their lives for a child of prophecy? Did they think of him as a political 'King' or had some of their discoveries given rise to a more spiritual interpretation? What sort of conversations did these men have with Mary and Joseph? Did their cultural and religious differences seem irreconcilable? Were they able to communicate at all, or was the language barrier insurmountable? St. Matthew is intentionally simple and brief in his narrative, omitting these details.
[Click here to read Matthew's account of these events].

The Magi were warned by God in a dream not to return. Since Herodotus informs us that they were famous dream interpreters; it is clear that they would take such a dream very seriously. They escaped Palestine through an alternate route. In his fury, Herod ordered that every child under the age of two in Bethlehem be slain. (Today, Holy Land Trust commemorates this event by hosting "The Festival of Innocents," which honors innocent children who have been more recently slain by modern "Herods.") Joseph, Mary and their son fled to Egypt until Herod died and it was safe to return.

No matter how deeply we dig into the question of the Magi, we are always left with more questions than answers. Their story is one of the great mysteries of the New Testament and scholars, of course, have proposed a plethora of theories to explain the riddle of the 'Wise Men.'

Differing Interpretations

The Magi are mentioned in only one of the gospels, Matthew, and their story is told in less than 300 words. This raises a contentious question: why didn't the other infancy gospels (the gospels that describe the events surrounding Jesus' birth) mention the Magi? Some Christian theologians, though they do not question the validity and significance of Matthew's account, have suggested that he hadn't intended his narrative to be read as strict history, that it is a story included for its theological-and not its historical-significance. The New Catholic Encyclopedia concludes that there are at least three possible readings of this text: "(1) the Magi were real persons who visited Christ just as Matthew describes them; (2) a group of Magi had visited Jerusalem at some time previous to the birth of Christ and Matthew associates this visit with the guidance of the star and the adoration of Christ; (3) the star and the visit and the Magi themselves are completely legendary, elements introduced to underline the fulfillment of prophecy… Nothing in the character of inspiration or in the nature of Sacred Scripture would preclude any of these possibilities." According to Richard Texler: "[Matthew's infancy gospel] sounds suspicious, so much so that by the 1960s belief in the magi was a litmus test to determine if one were a conservative or a liberal in matters biblical."

So, though we've put forward a few theories regarding the Magi, the field of possibilities is perhaps wider than we had originally anticipated. Even if we assume that St. Matthew's account was not intentionally parabolic and unhistorical, myriad theories exist on the facts regarding these men. Some have proposed, contrary to our assumption that the Magi came from Persia, that the group journeyed from Saudi Arabia, Babylon or Jordan (St. Matthew tells us only that they came from 'the East'). In popular accounts, some cultures have assumed that there were 'three' wise men or Magi, others have placed the number at twelve. At one point in European history, the 'three' Magi were divided by age and artists rendered them as being: young, middle-aged, and elderly. In the late Middle Ages, painters began portraying one of the 'three' wise men as black (which continues to be one of the standard motifs even today). The Magi were once assumed to be Kings, then merchants and then scholars. Speculation also arose that, if the Magi were kings, each came from a different continent representing Europe, Africa and Asia (which, though perhaps a beautiful gesture towards multiculturalism, is almost certainly not true). It seems that a few of the central questions of this story remain, despite our best efforts, shrouded in mystery.

Conclusion: The Lessons of the Magi

The Magi were rich and well respected scholars. They were power players behind the throne of Parthia. Embarking on an arduous trek through the various landscapes of the Middle East, they thought their task was ruled by a simple diplomatic mission but, in the end, they greatly offended king Herod, jeopardizing Parthia's relationship with Judea, and put their own lives at great risk. They had crossed over cultural and class boundaries to honor the small child of two peasants whom they had concluded was the child of prophecy and would become the much anticipated 'king of the Jews.' As non-Jews, these members of the Zoroastrian leadership nevertheless shared in a common vision with these faiths and like Jews (and later Christians) sought to honor God and his Messiah. In this sense, from the Christian vantage point, the Magi could almost be seen as the "Muslims" of the ancient world: people who in fact share more in common with Judaism and Christianity than any other tradition in modern times. Some may consider this statement "too bold" but it is certainly no accident that some of the first people to honor Christ's birth were foreigners and non-Jews. The Gospels are full of examples in which the "outsiders" of Judea are shown as true servants of God. Certainly the story also reaffirms that the command to "love thy neighbor" stretches beyond all cultural, linguistic, class and religious bounds.

The image of rich and exalted Magi bowing before a poverty stricken child Messiah has also captured the moral imagination of the world. Church ministers throughout the ages have used this image to implore their congregations to, just as the Magi did, honor God with a charitable gift (presumably through the church). The gift of the Magi is responsible for the current tradition of Christmas gift exchanges among friends and family members. The humbling of oneself in the giving of gifts could certainly be considered in the "spirit of the Magi." The danger of our age is that, according to Richard Trexler, the Magi have "lost their identities as Christian figures… Thus their gifts are now a byword for luxury gift giving in secular circles, their act of gifting understood at times as a purely commercial transaction." Here too, we could dig deeper and ask ourselves: what gifts would best honor the tradition of the Magi? And, in fitting with the image of the rich providing for the poor, who is in most need of the gifts that we can offer?

Though clear moral messages seem implied in St. Matthew's account, there are no easy answers to some of the questions raised by this narrative. We encourage you to explore the text and the issues yourself, giving the complications careful consideration. You will find, even if the gospel account is familiar to you, that there are layers and spiritual lessons that will reveal themselves after several readings. No matter how deeply we search, however, much will still remain shrouded in mystery. This is perhaps for the best. After all, the mystery itself, it could be said, is also a gift.

Appendix

click here to read St. Matthew's account of the "Wise Men." (Matthew, Ch. 2)
click here T.S. Eliot's poem "Journey of the Magi."
click here to read more about the "Star of Bethlehem"