The Magi, or “Three Kings’” took a treacherous journey to search for the newborn King. They came from the East, most likely from the countries of Persia or Arabia. They faced many obstacles along the way. These included harmful elements on the road. They also encountered extreme weather conditions in the deserts and mountains. They traveled in a cold wintertime through snow.  The distance between Persia and Jerusalem is almost 2,000 miles, like walking from New York to Orlando, Florida.   We may not be capable of feeling the difficulty of their journey. When we sing joyful Christmas carols about the Magi bringing gifts, we might imagine that they just travel from the Boca Mall to St. Vincent Church.

As we celebrate the new year with Mary, the mother of God, I remember specific words from the Gospel. It describes Mary as pondering all the things that happened to her.  I say the same thing about the Magi.

They pondered, kept the mysteries in their heart, prayed about them, and connected them to the Lord.   To ponder means to think or consider deeply. It involves meditation or contemplation. It means to wonder and bring whatever happens in our life into prayer, and not acting in haste.

Upon reaching Jerusalem, the Magi stopped in the palace. They believed the child would naturally be born in the royal palace. After all, the child was the king. They encountered a challenge and an apparent temptation in the palace. King Herod deceived them. He welcomed them and offered them a warm reception ‑fitting to unique visitors. He tried to make them believe that he, too, was searching for the child.  Herod offered the Magi fabulous rewards to help him locate the child.  They managed to overcome this obscurity by listening to the promptings of the Holy Spirit. They could have been quickly taken by the trappings and comfort of the palace.  Still, they were spiritually wise enough to know that it was not the place. Herod was not the man. 

The Magi resumed their journey. They found the Child with Mary in the cave, surrounded by animals. Upon seeing the newborn child in the manger, their next temptation might have been to doubt whether the child was the King. His appearance did not suit a royal birth. He appeared extraordinarily ordinary. The Magi accepted this smallness and ordinariness. They know that the baby is the new King, the Messiah.  Why ponder and put things into the heart? 

The Magi recognize that God’s criteria are different from men’s. God does not manifest Himself using the extravagant powers of this world. The Incarnation tells us that God appears through ordinary human beings in ordinary ways and circumstances. They passed from human calculations to the Divine mysteries. They entered the realms of God.  

 Let us ask the Lord to help us undergo that same journey of conversion by the Magi.