There are details of the Christmas story in the modern imagination that come to us from sources other than Scripture, details which may or may not be accurate.
So, it is true we do not know the exact number of the Magi who came. Many presume the number three, since three gifts are mentioned: gold, frankincense and myrrh. But there may have been two Magi, four or more, we just don't know for sure. Likewise, the modern imagination tends to bring the Magi to the creche the very night of Jesus’ Birth. Yet Scripture implies that their visit took place, likely, at a later time. This is because the text speaks of them finding Mary and the child in a house (Matt 2:11), not at the creche. Thus, liturgically we distinguish the two events and emphasize as well in Epiphany the “manifestation” (which is what “Epiphany” means) of Christ to the Gentiles and the call of the nations to faith and worship of Christ. |
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April 2024
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