Sunday, January 8, 2012

The Magi Journal

My name is Melchior and I am a scholar. I work with two best friends at U.O.P. – University of Persia. We direct the departments of astronomy and philosophy. We are truth seekers. We seek truth and his sister wisdom whenever they might reveal themselves. We’ve spent years in a search for truth from amongst a sea of lies. I want to share my journal with you on the night we found not only truth and wisdom, but love and majestic power in fragile weakness, in a baby.

December 7, 6 B.C.
Did not sleep last night. I believe we have found our answer after all these years. I had wondered if it was even possible to find truth. But last night when my colleagues, Gaspar and Balthazar, and I spotted the alignment of a star with Jupiter and Venus we knew something unique and wonderful had taken place. I won’t bore you with our precise and detailed calculations, other than to say their sum pointed to a new king in Israel. Not just another king but one who would rule this world with trust, wisdom, justice, mercy, and love. There was no choice but to pack up and travel to Israel.

December 9, 6 B.C.
What will this journey bring? Will we recognize this king? Will he accept us? We must bring gifts that demonstrate our whole-hearted search for truth. We decided we would each pick a costly gift to bring to this king. Tomorrow at dawn we leave.

December 10, 6 B.C. 5 am
We packed. Gaspar took 3 camels. He always over packs but he always has more treats and delicacies, which we are grateful for. So I won’t criticize him. A beautiful sunrise began to appear. Balthazar commented this is a sign on our journey – a son of righteousness will rise up on the earth to bathe it in healing light. Balthazar was the mystical one of the three of us. I have learned that logic and rationality are not the only ways to truth. Balthazar has taught us that imagination, attentiveness, and reflection will bring us at truth’s doorstep also.

February 15, 5 B.C. Evening
Exhausted. We still have weeks to go. I reminded my friends that our journey to the home of this king will demand faithfulness and perseverance. It will demand all of our energies and effort to reach our destination. It demands the committing of our very lives. Gaspar wondered if it would be worth it. Balthazar chimed in saying that when we meet the son of righteousness, nothing else but He shall be worth it. We laid down our weary heads confident we are on the right road. All I had to do was look in the heavens to see the star of magnificence guiding us.

May 24, 5 B.C Afternoon Jerusalem
There are incidents in every journey you’d rather forget. Meeting Herod in Jerusalem was the one that troubled us most. We felt it important to pay our respects to Israel’s king before we sought the newborn king.\

Herod was very gracious; even friendly. But there was something about him that disturbed us. He questioned us and we could not help but feel he had ulterior motives. Charming on the outside, but there was a stench that he could not hide. All of us were quite discerning and we knew something was not right. He was evil wearing clothing of righteousness.

We left him after he implored us to return once we found this new king so he could worship him with us. I almost laughed because I think the only thing Herod had ever worshipped was himself. He is only the king of narcissism.

May 25, 5 B.C. Bethlehem
As dusk came, we began our travels following the star. Balthazar said it was a great light heading us to the Light of the World. As we came to the outskirts of Bethlehem the star came to a halt over a very modest house.

The rays of the great star shone on a young woman gathering her toddler to go inside. Our approach startled her and the little one instinctively ran to his Imma finding security in her skirts. She was beautiful even with a very hesitant, protective look on her face. She had her hands around the young one’s face and shoulders. She looks like a mother lioness ready to protect her cub.

I admit we looked a bit intimidating. You know our big caravan and all. As we stopped a young man approached us. “My name is Joseph. What can I do for you?” He was kind, and strength emanated from him.

I smiled warmly back and replied, “My name is Melchior. This is Gaspar and Balthazar. This may sound strange to you but we have been led here by a star. We have come to worship the newborn King!”

Silence. The young woman smiled at us warmly. She said, “No, it is not strange. My name is Mary. Let me tell you about my child, my story and the wonders of God. We listened as we sat around the fire hearing the miraculous story of this simple young woman. And with everything she told us we were increasingly sure of our journey. As she talked, the child played throwing sticks on the fire and laughing while running back and forth from his father. Mary smiled and took him onto her lap and kissed him twice. She looked at us knowingly and quietly. The depths I felt from this young woman were extraordinary. I felt she was like us; one who ponders deeply. Her words are not frivolous. They come from a deep well of attentiveness and meditation. She reminded me a lot of Balthazar.

Then she spoke as she held the child with piercing eyes. He is the Prince of Peace. She kissed him. Wonderful Counselor. Kiss again. Everlasting Father. Kiss. And Almighty God. One more kiss. “These are the words of our prophet. But to me he is Yeshua. My child. My little prince,” she held him tightly, to Yeshua’s delight.

We sat in silence. Gaspar arose and went to our caravan. We followed him. We unpacked our gifts and lined up to present them. These gifts made more sense now that we listened to the young woman’s story.

I came and bended my knee to place gold before the child. I looked into Mary’s beautiful eyes and said, “It’s a gift befitting for the King of Kings”.

Gaspar knelt next to me and laid down a jar of frankincense. Looking at me and back to Mary he said, “For the High Priest of all nations who will bring people’s prayers to God”.

And then Balthazar knelt beside us. He very hesitantly, with a tear in his eyes, said, “This is a gift of myrrh for this child will make a supreme sacrifice for the world, which will be your costly sacrifice as well”. Tears began to flow from Mary’s eyes.

The rest of the evening we played with this delightful child. We slept near the house. I was caught up in overwhelming joy. We found truth and so much more. Such majestic power displaced in such fragility. We left the next morning to warm embraces from Joseph, Mary, and the affectionate child.

As we left I said to my colleagues, “Truth”. Gaspar said, “Wisdom”. Balthazar was silent for the next hour and then quietly said, “Emmanuel, God with us! The defeat of death!”

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