A few note on The Revelation of the Magi
In 2010 Brent Landau, Professor of Religious Studies at the University of Oklahoma, published Revelation of The Magi, which is based on his translation of a (possibly) 2nd or 3rd century AD Syriac text of the same name. Although the text has been dated to as late as the 8th century AD, Landau says that it could be as old as having been written less than 100 years after the Gospel of Matthew, which is the only other source (common source) for the story of the 3WM. Revelation of The Magi provides a much richer version of the story of The Star of The Magi, purportedly from the perspective of The Magi themselves.
-When the star does appear only The Magi, the selected 12 (at least) can see it, it descends in a column of light hovers over the water of the prepared sanctuary and blinds The Magi, ultimately resolving itself as a child called by Landau in his translation as, you guessed it, The Star-Child who tells the Magi this before leading them on the journey to His birthplace "far away"...
Numerous articles can be found on the web that analyze the contents of Landau's book, and I will provide links. Here is some of what we learn about The Magi from Landau's translation:
-There were at least 12 of them. Not 3. Landau has suggested there may have been many more if animal trains (caravans) are considered.
-They say they came from a land called Shir, which was by the ocean in "the extreme east of the world"; where silk is made. This is beginning to lead some scholars to look away from Babylon and ancient Persia when trying to understand the story and towards China and its environs, of all places.
-The text claims that their name means "Those that pray in silence", which has gotten scholars looking even harder at the east for a possible place of origin for these guys as their name seems to suggest that they engaged in spiritual practices similar to Buddhist spiritual practices. This sort of flies in the face of what has always been held as nearly solid evidence that they had been Zoroastrian and from ancient Persia.
-The Magi claimed to be descendants of Seth, the righteous third son of Adam and Eve, and say that they were the guardians of an age-old prophecy that a star of never-before-seen brightness would someday appear "heralding the birth of God in human form."
-Their story tells that 12 were selected from their society, son replacing father as the generations continued. They waited, maintaining a high-mountain sanctuary, The Mountain of Victories, so that they could look out for the "Star" that their ancient texts told them would appear so they could make their journey and deliver their gifts.
-They say they came from a land called Shir, which was by the ocean in "the extreme east of the world"; where silk is made. This is beginning to lead some scholars to look away from Babylon and ancient Persia when trying to understand the story and towards China and its environs, of all places.
-The text claims that their name means "Those that pray in silence", which has gotten scholars looking even harder at the east for a possible place of origin for these guys as their name seems to suggest that they engaged in spiritual practices similar to Buddhist spiritual practices. This sort of flies in the face of what has always been held as nearly solid evidence that they had been Zoroastrian and from ancient Persia.
-The Magi claimed to be descendants of Seth, the righteous third son of Adam and Eve, and say that they were the guardians of an age-old prophecy that a star of never-before-seen brightness would someday appear "heralding the birth of God in human form."
-Their story tells that 12 were selected from their society, son replacing father as the generations continued. They waited, maintaining a high-mountain sanctuary, The Mountain of Victories, so that they could look out for the "Star" that their ancient texts told them would appear so they could make their journey and deliver their gifts.
-When the star does appear only The Magi, the selected 12 (at least) can see it, it descends in a column of light hovers over the water of the prepared sanctuary and blinds The Magi, ultimately resolving itself as a child called by Landau in his translation as, you guessed it, The Star-Child who tells the Magi this before leading them on the journey to His birthplace "far away"...
-The Star-Child led them by day and night on their journey of two years, protecting them and replenishing their supplies.
-When The Child is born, he is born in a cave, which incidentally was a belief held by some of the early church fathers, according to Landau's book.
-The Star-Child, so-called by Landau is never referred to explicitly as Christ by The Magi, but as the Incarnate Son of The Father. It is much later in the text, after The Magi are visited by the Apostle Thomas that The Child is referred to as Christ.
-The Star-Child, so-called by Landau is never referred to explicitly as Christ by The Magi, but as the Incarnate Son of The Father. It is much later in the text, after The Magi are visited by the Apostle Thomas that The Child is referred to as Christ.
-Much later parts of the text of Revelations of The Magi, which is written in first person, have the narrator confiding that The Magi reminded the Apostle Thomas, when he came to convert them, that they had been Christians before the birth of Christ.
The thing that stands out the most about the message of The Star Child as revealed in Revelations of The Magi is the very reason that Brent Landau thinks that the text may have been "ignored" by the English speaking world for so long, The Star-Child's message is insistently one of universality, as demonstrated in the above quote. The Magi reinforce this by telling Herod when they meet him that The Star-Child has "worshipers in every land" (17:5), they also tell Mary and Joseph that, "forms of him are seen in every land, because he has been sent by his majesty [God the Father] for the salvation and redemption of every human being" (23:4).
The thing that stands out the most about the message of The Star Child as revealed in Revelations of The Magi is the very reason that Brent Landau thinks that the text may have been "ignored" by the English speaking world for so long, The Star-Child's message is insistently one of universality, as demonstrated in the above quote. The Magi reinforce this by telling Herod when they meet him that The Star-Child has "worshipers in every land" (17:5), they also tell Mary and Joseph that, "forms of him are seen in every land, because he has been sent by his majesty [God the Father] for the salvation and redemption of every human being" (23:4).
references:
 | If you have ever wondered if there is more depth involved in the story of the Three Wise Men (3WM) you are in for a Christmas treat. In this thread I would like to share some mysteries with you all about a very old interest of mine that has just recently received an update of sorts. www.abovetopsecret.com |
 | The legend of the magi has fired the imagination of Christians since the earliest times. In art, the adoration of the magi appeared earlier and far more frequently than any other scene of Jesus' birth and infancy, including images of the babe in a manger. www.biblicalarchaeology.org |
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