To help celebrate the Epiphany of our Lord, I collected the following bits and pieces to record in my journal. I like to reflect on the importance of this day.
The Three Kings
by Henry Wardsworth Longfellow
Three kings came riding from far away,
Melchior and Gaspar and Balthasar,
Three wise men out of the East were they,
and they traveled by night and they slept by day,
For their guide was a beautiful, wonderful star,
The star was so beautiful, large and clear,
That all the other stars of the sky,
became a white mist in the atmosphere,
And by this they knew that the coming was near,
Of the Prince foretold in the prophecy.
Three caskets they bore on their saddle bows,
Three caskets of gold with golden keys,
Their robes were of crimson, silk with rose,
Of bells Pomegranates and frivolos,
Their turbans like blossoming almond trees,
And so the three kings rode into the West,
Through the dusk of night, over hill and dell,
And sometimes they nodded with beard on breast,
And sometimes they talked as they paused to rest,
With the people they met at some wayside well.
"Of the child that is born," said Balthasar,
"Good people I pray you tell us the news,
For we in the East have seen this star,"
And have ridden fast and have ridden far,
To find and worship the King Of The Jews."
And the people answered, "You ask in vane,
We know of no king but Herod
The Great." They thought the wise men were men insane,
As they spurred their horses across the plane,
Like riders in haste who can not wait.
And when they came to Jerusalem, Herod
The Great who had heard this thing,
Sent for the wise men and questioned them,
And said, "Go down unto Bethlehem,
and bring me tidings of this new king."
So they rode away and the star stood still,
The only one in the gray of morn, Yes it stopped, it stood still,
Of its own free will, Right over Bethlehem on the hill.
The City Of David where Christ was born.
And the three kings rode through the gate and the guard,
Through the silent street till their horses turned,
And nayed as they entered the great in-yard,
But the windows were closed and the doors were barred,
And only a light in a stable burned.
And cradled there in the scented hay,
In the air made sweet by breath of kine,
The little child in the manger lay,
The child that would be King one day,
Of a kingdom not human but divine.
His mother, Mary of Nazareth,
Sat watching beside his place of rest,
Watching the even flow of his breath,
For the joy of life and the terror of death,
Were mingled together in her breast.
They laid their offerings at his feet,
The gold was their tribute to a king,
The frankincense with its odor sweet,
Was for the priest, the Paracleet,
The myrrh for the body's burring.
And the mother wondered and bowed her head,
And sat as still as a statue of stone,
Her heart was troubled yet comforted,
Remembering what the angel had said,
Of an endless rain and of David's throne.
Then the kings rode out of the city gate,
With a clatter of hoofs and a proud array,
And they went not back to Herod The Great,
For they knew his malice and feared his hate,
And returned to their homes by another way
PRINCIPALS OF THE THREE WISEMEN
First seeking and worshipping the Son of God was their highest priority. The wise men were seekers. They had a passion to follow this new star and discoverfor themselves where this “new” king might be. For them it was a long, tough,taxing journey. It took many months and more resources than we can even imagineto find their way. At the same time they had a sense of gratitude for the way inwhich God intervened in the world. Having reached their goal they returned homewith a new sense of appreciation for the wonder of God
The more we seek and search, the more we discover the scope of God’s creation. The more we seek themore we uncover the vastness of His love for each of us, His love for you and Hislove for me!
Second The wise men humbled themselves and paid tribute to the Christ child!They paid respect to the Christ child! They paid love to the Christ child. Theygave and presented gifts to the Christ child! Now lest you think that these were thetypes of presents purchased at the Bethlehem Wal-Mart, please remember that theseweren’t token items, they were extremely precious and rare.
God received the very best that they couldoffer. Therefore when we make a decision that requires a sincere effort we will feel goodabout that decision because we are able to give it our all.
First we seek and secondwe make a commitment only when we can give our very best effort, our bestoffering!
3. They allowed God time to work!A very wise man once told me that major decisions need a waiting period. We haveto apply all our strength, but then give God a chance to work. The answer willcome. Or at least new evidence, new information will emerge that will enable us tomake a sound decision
As we begin this journey, I believe we can remember the journey of the wise menand apply these three principles to ourselves. To be seekers and not sitters.To base our decisions not on what we can get out of it, but rather what we can giveto it.and finally:to give God time to work on our behalf!
The Golden Carol Of The Three Kings
Melchior, Balthazar And Gaspar
We saw the light shine out afar,
On Christmas in the morning,
And straight we knew Christ's Star it was,
Bright beaming in the morning,
Then did we fall on bended knee,
on Christmas in the morning,
And praised the Lord, who'd let us see
His glory at its dawning.
Oh! Every thought be of His name,
On Christmas in the morning,
Who bore for us the grief and shame,
Affliction's sharpest scorning.
And may we die, when death shall come,
On Christmas in the morning,
And see in Heav'n, our glorious home,
The Star of Christmas morning.
Old English Carol
After Jesus was born in Bethlehem in Judea, during the time of King Herod, Magi from the east came to Jerusalem and asked, 'Where is the one who has been born king of the Jews? We saw his star in the East and have come to worship him.
Matthew 2:1
We are familiar with the song that begins, "On the first day of Christmas my true love sent to me a partridge in a pear tree." But did you ever wonder why they sang about 12 days of Christmas, when we only celebrate one? It is because there is a tradition that there are 12 days between Christmas Day and Epiphany, which is considered to be the day on which the three Wise Men came to worship Jesus.
It used to be the custom to celebrate the 12 days by giving a gift on each day, rather than placing all the gifts under the Christmas tree. I imagine that today we are much too impatient for that.
But it would be wonderful to continue to celebrate Christ's unselfish love for others long after Christmas Day is over. We don't have to do that with actual gifts, but we can give even better gifts -- "love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control" (Galatians 5:22).
Wouldn't it be a magnificent world if all of us did that?
Almighty Father, thank you for your gifts to us. Show us ways to pass these gifts on to others throughout all the days of the year. Amen.
http://www.ourprayer.org
The mystery of this feast goes far deeper than the imagery of three kings following the star. It celebrates in mystical poetry the bursting of divine life through death-bound human existence.
Three wise men from the East are led by the star over Bethlehem to recognize the King of Kings in a little baby. An astounding mystery is proclaimed today: two natures are made anew. The Divine becomes human: what God was, God remains; what God was not, God takes on, suffering neither confusion nor division. Alleluia!
Go now in the light that surrounds us, the light of the Child of Bethlehem. Place your hope in him; rest in his peace; receive his love; celebrate him with joy!
The legend of the Three Wisement
Melchior, the King of Ind, Balthazar, the King of Chaldea and Jasper, the King of Jasper were glad to be informed of the sacred Christmas Star by their astronomers. They lived thousands of miles away, yet they saw the Star that was prophesized about, at the same time. Since they knew that Star was there to inform them about the newborn King and Lord of Jews, they decided to go and search for Him and worship Him.
Unbeknownst to each other at the time, they set out on their path with rich gifts for the baby and trains of mules, camels and horses, accompanied by several people to assist them during the journey. The Star acted as a faithful guide and shone brightly all the way for each of the Kings and his people. It even stopped where they halted and started moving again when they wanted to continue their journey.
There was peace throughout the world at the time of Christ's birth, so the gates of the cities and towns were readily opened for the new visitors. The royal appearance of the Three Wise Men was enough to win them respect, awe and admiration of the people on the way. Star showed them the easiest way to Bethlehem as they meandered over hills, waters, valleys, plains and forests without much difficulty. It was only at Jerusalem, where the clouds hid their divine Star; Kings met and greeted each other with great reverence and joy and learned that they had common pursuit.
So, they decided to travel together for rest of the way.They inquired in Jerusalem about the whereabouts of the Christ, as the Star was lost to them. Herod was alarmed on hearing of the three royal personages arriving in his kingdom and inquiring about the newborn King of Jews. He invited them to his palace and guided them to Bethlehem, requesting them to contact him when they have found the Child. The Three Wise Men set out again.
Once they were out of Jerusalem, the Star again appeared and they followed it to Bethlehem. Its brightness increased as they reached the Holy Child and at the sixth hour of the day, they reached Bethlehem. However, they were not little surprised when the Star stood light in all its glory and brightness over a lowly stable. The radiance of the divine Star made it look like a second Sun in the sky.
First, Melchior went in the stable. He was an old man and found a wise old man of his age full of knowledge there. Balthazar, the middle-aged man, entered the stable to find a man of his own age who looked quite calm and peaceful meditating there. Jasper, the youngest of the three, found a man in his youth full of passion inside the stable. Then, they entered together to find Virgin Mary and Baby Jesus and they wept with joy and reverence.
They came with great gifts but the sight of the Holy Child so awed them that they gifted Him the first gifts that came in their hands from the treasure.Melchior drew out a round apple of gold and thirty gilt pennies; Balthazar offered incense and Jasper offered myrrh to the Child. They traveled back to their kingdoms together without going back to Herod, heeding the advice of the angel they dreamt that night. At the Hill of Vaws in Ind, they made a fair chapel to worship the Child and decided that it was to be the place of their burial.
Then, they took leave of each other and went to their own kingdoms with gladness in their hearts
May all who come to your door encounter Jesus in the heart of your home
God is shining forth
God is shining forth
in the most unwanted
and unsuspected places
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