Such is the mystery of the manger of the Lord, and such is the obvious sign of the coming of the Saviour into the world, indicated by the angel to the shepherds: a child wrapped in a manger. And truly it is a great sign, for it is full of great mysteries, as we have already heard.

And so, may the Divine Infant, who was born for our sake, be honored, thanked, and worshiped by all creation, and to the Most-Pure and Most-Blessed Virgin Mary, who gave birth to Him, glory and praise from all generations forever. Amen.

The Legend of the Adoration of the Magi

"Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea, in the days of King Herod, behold, the Magi came from the east" (Matt. 2:1), not from any one eastern country, but from different countries, as is evident from the writings of the Holy Fathers, who speak differently about this. Some of them are of the opinion that the Magi were from Persia [1]; this is the opinion of St. Chrysostom, St. Cyril of Alexandria [2], Theophylact and others, on the grounds that especially in that country the art of the astrologers flourished [3] and no one could become a king there unless he had first studied this art. Others believe that the Magi were from Arabia [4]; this opinion is held by the Holy Martyr Justin [5], St. Cyprian, St. Epiphanius, on the grounds that this country was very rich in gold, frankincense and myrrh [6]. And some think that the Magi came from Ethiopia [7]; for from there once came the Queen of Sheba, i.e. the Ethiopian queen to Jerusalem, in order to listen to the wisdom of Solomon [8], which, according to the explanation of Blessed Jerome, foreshadowed the present event, namely, the coming of the Magi to the spiritual Solomon – Christ, Who is God's wisdom (Blessed Jerome, commentary on the Prophet Isaiah). And David says: "Ethiopia will stretch out her hands to God" (Psalm 67:32). However, all these countries, eastern and adjacent to each other, abounded in gold, frankincense, and perfumes, in all of them the practice of magic and stargazing was widespread; moreover, the wise men in these countries were not ignorant of the prophecy of Balaam [9] about the star that was about to shine, which prophecy was transmitted from generation to generation, partly orally, partly in writing. It may be thought that the most true thing is that one of the Magi was from Persia, another from Arabia, and the third from Ethiopia, because their origin from various countries is indicated in the prophecy of David, where it is said: "The kings of Tarshish and the isles will bring him tribute; the kings of Arabia and Sheba will bring gifts" (Psalm 71:10). This is what David prophesied about the Magi, who had to come to Christ with gifts, as the interpreters of the Divine Scripture assume. The words of David, "kings of Tarshish," mean, "overseas," for "Tarshish" means "sea"; therefore, understand here Persia as being beyond the sea [10]. "The King of Arabia" clearly points to Arabia. And David points to Ethiopia when he says, "And Sheba shall bring gifts," for Sheba is the city which is the capital of all Ethiopia. So those three wise men were from Persia, Arabia, and Ethiopia. They are called Magi not in the sense of people who practiced demonic sorcery and harmful spells, but because the Arabians, Syrians, Persians, Ethiopians, and other Eastern peoples had the custom of calling their sages and astrologers Magi. And these magi were not from among the magicians and sorcerers, but from among the wisest astrologers and philosophers [11]. They are also called kings not in the sense of powerful kings, rulers of many countries, but as having received from them each his own city or a certain principality. For St. Scripture is in the habit of calling the rulers of particular cities kings, as is evident from Gen. 14. And from which cities those kings came, there is no reliable information about this; only it is known that they were from the countries of the East, and that there were three of them, according to the number of the three gifts they brought: gold, Lebanon, and myrrh. Although each of them came from his own country, nevertheless, led by one star, they, according to God's providence, came together during their journey, and, having learned the intention of each other, they went together, following the star, of which the very glorious astrologer Balaam had once prophesied, saying: "A star rises from Jacob, and a rod rises from Israel" (Num. 24:17). What kind of star was it? Chrysostom and Theophylact assert that it was not one of the heavenly or visible luminaries, but that it was some divine and angelic power that appeared in place of the star. For all stars from the very creation of the world have their existence, and this star appeared at the end of the ages, at the incarnation of God the Word. All stars have their place in the sky, but this star was visible in the air; all the stars usually flow from east to west, and this star moved unusually from east to south, in the direction of Jerusalem; all the stars shine only at night, but this star shone like the sun during the day, incomparably surpassing the celestial stars both in radiance and majesty; all the stars with the other luminaries, with the sun, with the moon, and with the entire circle of celestial bodies, have their own constant movement and flow, and this star sometimes moved, and sometimes stopped, as Theophylact says: "When the Magi walked, then the star also went, and when they rested, it also stood."

Although some say that those Magi took swift horses and, hastily making their way, rode to Bethlehem on the 13th day after the birth of Christ, this is incredible.

Other interpreters, to which St. Epiphanius belongs, say that the star appeared at the hour of the Nativity of Christ, but that the Magi came to worship after two years and found the Infant Christ already two years old. This opinion is based on the fact that Herod ordered the killing of infants from two years old and below, according to a time that he carefully learned about from the Magi. But St. Theophylact calls such an opinion clearly incorrect, for there is an understanding true to the whole Church, according to which those Magi worshipped Christ in Bethlehem, when Christ was still in the cave, and after two years Christ was not only not in Bethlehem, but not even in Palestine, but in Egypt. For, as it is said, according to the testimony of St. Luke, after purification on the 40th day in the temple, where the elder Simeon met the Lord, and after everything had been done according to the law of the Lord, Saint Joseph and the Most-Pure Virgin Mary with the Child immediately returned to Galilee, and not to Judea, they returned to their city of Nazareth, and not to Bethlehem; and already from Nazareth, at the command of the angel, they set out for Egypt. How could the Magi, after two years, find Christ in Bethlehem? And Nicephorus, the ancient Greek historian,12 relates that the star appeared in the east two years before Christmas, and that the Magi traveled to Jerusalem for two years, so that they arrived at the very hour of Christmas. Apparently, this historian also agrees with what is written in the Gospel about the slaughter of infants from two years of age and below, but his opinion is also unreliable.

What is the reliable opinion about the time of the appearance of the star? I think that the opinion of St. John Chrysostom and Theophylact. These teachers say this: "The star appeared to the Magi before the birth of Christ. Since they had a lot of time to spend on the journey, therefore the star appeared to them long before the Nativity of the Saviour, so that they could, having reached Bethlehem, worship Christ, who was still in swaddling clothes. Note that these teachers of the Church do not assign a two-year time to that star, but only say that "before a great time," as if to say, "a few months." On the basis of this interpretation of Chrysostom and Theophylact, according to which the star appeared before the time of the Nativity of Christ, it is proper to understand that on the very day and hour on which, by the Annunciation of the Archangel and the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, the Word became flesh, curling in the immaculate womb of a virgin, nine months before the Nativity, the star appeared in the east. Understanding this, we will not depart from the testimony of the above-mentioned teachers, and at the same time reject the incredible delay of the Magi on the path for two years, and the two-year-old age of the murdered infants will be spoken of later, on their feast day. Thus, nine months before the Nativity of Christ, during the Annunciation, the Magi saw a star in the east, and at first in amazement and bewilderment they pondered what kind of star it could be. Is it not some meteor [13] shining in the air and announcing some misfortunes, as comets also herald [14]. And in fact, that star foretold misfortunes for the murderer-enemy in those countries, namely: the fall of idols, the exorcism of demons, and the bright radiance of the light of the holy faith. Then, realizing that this star was not accidental, but had a Divine nature and Divine likeness, the Magi remembered the ancient prophecy of Balaam, and also came to their senses with what the Indian Sibyl Erythraea [15] had predicted about the same star; especially, as St. Leo, the Pope of Rome [16] understands, having been secretly taught by God Himself, that the time has come for the birth of the Lord and King of all the universe, who is to be born in Israel, as Balaam also prophesied: "Man shall arise from Israel" (Num. 24:17), and that this is His star, foretold long ago. Believing undoubtedly that this was so, and fully equipped for the journey, they set out from their own countries, and, as has already been said, during the journey they came together and made the journey in one mind. Meanwhile, the nine-month period from the time of the star's appearance was expiring, and the hour of the Nativity of Christ was approaching. And they approached the borders of Palestine and finally reached the capital of Judea, Jerusalem, on the very day of the Nativity of Christ. When they approached Jerusalem, the star that led them suddenly disappeared from sight, because if the same star had shone in Jerusalem, the people would have seen it in any case and would have followed the Magi to Christ with it. Then both Herod and the envious Jewish rulers of the synagogue would have known where the born Christ was, and out of envy they would have killed Him prematurely.

Thus Blessed Theophylact discusses this: "Why," he says, "have the Magi come? For the condemnation of the Jews, for if the Magi, being pagans, believed, what answer can the Jews give? The Magi from such distant lands came to worship Christ, but the Jews, having Him with them, persecuted Him."

The Magi, having entered the capital city of Jerusalem, asked about the newborn King: "Where is the King of the Jews who is born? For we have seen His star in the east, and have come to worship Him" (Matt. 2:2). And immediately this news surprised the people and confused King Herod and all the leaders of Jerusalem. The king, having gathered together all the chief priests and scribes, asked them:

- Where is Christ to be born?

He began to fear that the kingdom would be taken away from him, and he pondered how to kill the newborn King. Learning that Christ was to be born in Bethlehem, he summoned the Magi and tortured them about the time of the star's appearance. Then, concealing the deception, having an unrighteous thought and an evil intention, he said slyly:

- "Go, search carefully about the Child, and when you find it, inform me, that I also may go and worship Him" (Matt. 2:8).

When the Magi departed from Jerusalem, immediately a star appeared guiding them, and went before them, and they rejoiced greatly at its second appearance. And she walked before them until she brought them to Bethlehem, to a cave, and stopped over the place where the Child was. Over the dwelling where the Child was, a star stopped, i.e. it descended from the height and approached the earth. Otherwise, it would be impossible to know what place it stands over if it did not descend lower. Thus also Blessed Theophylact argues, following St. Chrysostom: "This was an extraordinary sign," he says, "for the star descended from on high, and, descending to the earth, showed the Magi a place. For if it had been on high, how could they have known a certain place where Christ was? Because each star dominates many places. As you often see the moon at the top of your house, so it seems to me that it is above my house, and it seems to everyone to be the same, namely, that only above them stands the moon or some star. In the same way, that star could not clearly point to Christ, if it had not descended and stopped over the head of the Child." And by this miracle it is evident that that star was not one of the stars in the firmament of heaven, but was a special power of God. So, the Magi found the One Whom they were looking for when they entered the house, as the Gospel says. On this basis, many believe that they did not find Christ in a cave, but in one of the houses of the city, since the Gospel does not mention a cave, but a house. In this opinion, the Gospel seems to say: "When the multitude of people who had come for the census dispersed, then the common inn and other houses of the citizens of Bethlehem became free, then the Mother and Child were transferred from the cave to one of the houses. But the Holy Martyrs Justin, Chrysostom, Gregory of Nyssa and Jerome say that the Lord remained in the cave where He was born, until the very time of purification, which took place on the 40th day, and that the Magi also found Him there. And so it happened so that the earthly kings would know that the Kingdom of the newborn King is in poverty, in humility and in contempt for worldly glory, and not in riches, vanity and chambers. The purpose of this was also that their faith might be more strongly manifested, by virtue of which they did not repent and did not murmur when they found Him for Whom they had made such a long journey and Whom they hoped to find in the king's chambers - in such poverty."

Finding the Lord in the cave, the Magi worshipped Him fallen, that is, not with simple worship, but befitting God, not only as a man, but also as God, because, as St. Irenaeus and Pope Leo say: "Those Magi, mysteriously enlightened by the grace of the Lord, when they saw the Child, knew and believed that He was God, and therefore worshipped Him not only as King, but also as God, by worship befitting God. That is why it is written: "Having fallen, and having opened their treasures, they brought Him gifts" (Matt. 2:11), fulfilling the commandment: "Let them not appear before the Lord empty-handed" (Exodus 23:15). What are the gifts? Gold, frankincense and myrrh, gold as to the King, frankincense as to God, myrrh as to mortal man (Blessed Theophylact). For the Jews anointed the body of the dead with myrrh, wishing to preserve it whole. In this way, the three kings honored the One of the Trinity with three gifts, and with these gifts they confessed in Him two natures. About this St. Leo says the following: "They bring frankincense to God, myrrh to man, gold to the King, rightly honoring God's and human nature in unity, they believe in it with their hearts, and confess it with their gifts."