Day 8: The Magi

The eighth day of the Saint Andrew Christmas Novena turns to the second great encounter at Bethlehem: the visit of the Magi from the East, traditionally celebrated on 6 January (the Solemnity of the Epiphany of the Lord). The Magi represent the gentile nations brought into communion with the God of Israel through the Christ Child, and their gifts (gold, frankincense, and myrrh) are read by the Catholic tradition as the universal offering of human creativity, worship, and suffering at the feet of the Incarnate Word.

Today's prayer (recite fifteen times)

Hail and blessed be the hour and moment in which the Son of God was born of the most pure Virgin Mary, at midnight, in Bethlehem, in piercing cold. In that hour vouchsafe, O my God, to hear my prayer and grant my desires, through the merits of Our Saviour Jesus Christ, and of His blessed Mother. Amen.

Today's meditation

The Gospel of Saint Matthew records the visit of the Magi in chapter two, verses 1 to 12. "Now when Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king, behold, wise men from the East came to Jerusalem, saying, 'Where is he who has been born king of the Jews? For we have seen his star in the East, and have come to worship him.'" The Greek word magoi (Magi) refers to a class of priest-astronomers from Persia or Babylonia, learned in the celestial sciences and capable of recognizing the appearance of an unusual star as a sign of an extraordinary event. The Catholic tradition has long honored them as the first gentiles to come to Christ.

The Catholic devotional tradition has, since the patristic age, named the Magi as three kings, given them the names Caspar, Melchior, and Balthasar, and assigned to each a particular gift: gold (for the king), frankincense (for the priest), and myrrh (for the One who would die). The Gospel itself does not specify the number of the Magi (though the three gifts have been traditionally read as suggesting three Magi); it does specify the gifts, and the Catholic theological tradition has read them as a complete profession of faith in the Christ Child:

• Gold acknowledges Christ as King.
• Frankincense (used in temple worship) acknowledges Christ as God.
• Myrrh (used in burial preparation) acknowledges Christ as the suffering Redeemer who would die for our sins.

The Magi, on adoring the Child, were warned in a dream not to return to Herod (who had asked them to inform him of the Child's location, with the secret intention of murdering Him); they returned to their country by another way. The Catholic theological tradition has read this return by another way as an image of the soul's return after its Catholic conversion: the encounter with Christ changes the route of the soul's life.

Today's intention

Today, in addition to your principal intention, bring to the Christ Child your own gifts. Lord Jesus, the Magi brought You gold, frankincense, and myrrh. I bring You my own gold (whatever I have of material goods, which I dedicate to Your service), my frankincense (whatever I have of prayer and worship), and my myrrh (whatever I have of suffering, joined to Your Cross). Be specific in each category.

For Catholics with material wealth, the day is a fitting occasion to consider one's almsgiving for the year. The Catholic tradition has long observed that the gold offered at Bethlehem extends, in the Catholic centuries since, to the alms given to the poor at Christmas in the name of the Christ Child. Plan today the Christmas almsgiving for your family in the days remaining before the feast.

Reflection

The Catholic theological tradition has read the Magi as the patrons of every gentile soul brought into the Catholic Church by the gradual workings of grace. The Magi did not have the revelation of the Old Testament; they had only the natural light of reason and the grace of the providential star. The Catholic Church has consistently held that grace is offered to every soul, not only to those born within the visible boundaries of the Catholic Church, and that the Lord can lead souls to Christ by paths the Catholic faithful do not always understand. The Magi are the proof of this Catholic universalism.

The Saint Andrew Christmas Novena, with its meditation on the Magi on the eighth day, is a Catholic prayer for the gentile nations of our own time: for the unevangelized, for the agnostic and the secular, for the souls of other religions who are seeking the Lord under different names. Lord Jesus, who drew the Magi to Yourself by the star, draw the souls of our own time to Yourself by the means You choose.

Closing

Conclude with the Our Father, the Hail Mary, and the Glory Be.

Lord Jesus, the Magi brought You gold, frankincense, and myrrh. We bring You ourselves.