Unexpected Gifts About two weeks ago, Fr. Sandquist and I did a short video on “The Gift That Jesus Wants” (check it out on our parish Facebook page). The question we raised in the video was what gift are you giving to Jesus this Christmas. After all, we reminded the audience, it is His birthday. In today’s Gospel, we hear of the three Magi (Wise Men) who brought gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh to Jesus. We are perhaps so used to hearing this story that we don’t think much of these gifts. We don’t ask ourselves why these particular gifts were given. The Magi believed that Jesus was going to be a king someday. The gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh would have been costly gifts and therefore fitting for a king. Yet, there is more to it than this. Some Christian saints have seen spiritual significance to these gifts. The spiritual significance of the gold is basically the same as its natural significance. It is a symbol of royalty and so points to the kingship of Jesus. The other two gifts are a bit different. Frankincense was commonly used (and still is today—this is a certain kind of incense) to be burned as part of ritual worship of God. Therefore, although the Magi may not have suspected this, Christian writers have interpreted the gift of frankincense as pointing to Jesus’ divinity. Finally, myrrh (a kind of oil) was used for various purposes. One of them was to anoint the body of a deceased person before they were buried. For example, in John’s Gospel, it states that Nicodemus brought with him myrrh as he accompanied Joseph of Arimathea to retrieve the body of Jesus from the cross (JN 19:39). Therefore, Christian writers have interpreted this gift as pointing to the death that the great king Jesus would undergo for our salvation. Whatever meaning we attribute to the gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh, it is clear that the Magi brought Jesus gifts of great value. What are we willing to give to Jesus during this Christmas season? What is the gift that He truly wants from you?
God bless you all! Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!