Camel Caravan Sculpture at Avdat Archeological Site, Israel
In the time of King Herod, after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea, magi from the east came to Jerusalem, asking, “Where is the child who has been born king of the Jews? For we observed his star in the east and have come to pay him homage.”
Matthew 2:1-2 NRSVue
Radiant God, light for all people and all places,
by the guidance of a star you led the Magi
to worship the Christ Child.
By the light of faith
lead us to worship you in peace and love,
and guide us in your way.
We pray in the name of Christ,
light of the world. Amen.
Voice United 86 An Epiphany Prayer
We were in Israel last April for a wonderful couple of weeks of exploration, literally from one end of the country to the other. As we travelled south with our gracious hosts, Ruth's sister and her husband, we stopped at a national park in the Negev desert. We'd never heard of the archeological site called Avdat, one of the Nabatean town on the ancient Incense Route from Saudi Arabia which brought frankincense and myrrh -- sound familiar? It was early in the morning so we were the only people there, exploring the hilltop ruins which include the remains of several churches from later eras. The view was 360 degrees and amazing.
Today is January 6th, the Feast of the Epiphany in the Christian liturgical calendar and the time to consider the Magi, the astronomers and astrologers who made the demanding journey following a heavenly body, in search of a promised child. While its long been thought they came from Persia along a route from the east and north, some scholars speculate they could have been using the established Incense Route from the south and east.
We'll never know for sure if "our" Magi passed through Avdat, but it was fun to be in that place and to imagine the caravans passing through. Little did we know that only a few months later this land would be in turmoil and that Gaza, just to the west of our travels through the Negev, would be virtually destroyed. We could benefit from a few epiphanies, some wise ones, and some light in this gloomy time.
Avdat from above
I enjoyed the map David. It caused me to dig a little remind myself about what frankincense was and how it was harvested. Also it's powers......
ReplyDeleteFrom the map, it seems as though it could have been harvested in today's Yemen or Somalia -- as with modern-day Israel and Gaza, countries with conflict and disputed territories. Did the Magi come from that area and travel north or was it transported to the east where they obtained it?
What a long and difficult trip for the Magi. And then going home, they took an alternate route to avoid being implicated in Herod's infanticide plot. Imagine what navigators they must have been --and also how afraid.-K
You would be a good candidate to do a guest blog, Kathy, after your research. I do wonder whether the Magi came from Persia, since Zoroastrians were astrologers and astronomers, but followed that southern route. Something I saw mentioned Saudi Arabia and Yemen. It would have been an arduous journey, especially since men tend not to be inclined to ask for directions.
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