"Balthazar Of Bhagdad: A Magi's Story"

Bethlehem was a village of about 4,000 people only 5 miles South West of Jerusalem. Compared to the hundreds of miles we had already traveled, it was a very short distance.

The star I had first seen reappeared in the early evening and seemed to guide us along our way, even to a stable that had been built in a small cave where we found people scurrying about in a beehive of activity.

The first thing to strike us odd was the shepherds. As we approached the cave, four shepherds walked out as though they were in a daze. I couldn’t believe they didn’t notice us, but they walked right past us. They wouldn’t have to recognize our faces and know our names to know we were men of wealth and power. Such commoners always bowed in the presence of people like us. But these shepherds walked by like we were as common as they.

Gaspar reached for his sword and said something about teaching them some manners, but Melchoir, moving with speed and agility that amazed me, grabbed his arm with strength I would have thought had fled him years ago, and said: "No. Not here. Not now."

We proceeded in with our gifts and beheld the newborn babe.

My knees buckled and I feel without thinking. Gaspar was disturbed and just stood there. He would have bowed to any king, but it seemed to him this child’s own people didn’t know he was a king. He wasn’t in a castle. He wasn’t clothed in fine lines or silk. There was nothing to suggest royalty in the house. And Gaspar wasn’t going to be the first to bow to anyone.

But I wish you could have seen old Melchoir; his story is the most exciting. The clouds on his eyes dissolved and he could see! He started singing praise to God in hymns he had learned from the Hebrew holy men and dancing like a commoner!

Gaspar simply set down his gift of gold and retreated. "Come," he ordered us--us who were his Seniors!--"This ’king’ will be no threat to our King Phraataces. Our work here is done."

Melchoir opened his box of fragrant myrrh and gave it to the child’s father.

I had brought frankincense, an incense people in my day, both Hebrew and Zoroastrian, burned in worship to our gods. I had hoped this knew king could offer it in worship to his god. But I felt the strangest urge to burn it in offering to him. For some unknown reason I suddenly remembered every bad thing I had ever done: every lie I had told, every hateful thing I had said, every sin I had committed, and I wept. I wept in sorrow until as if by magic my tears turned to joy. It wasn’t for many years that I finally understood both my sorrow and my joy.

We learned later our gifts had been sold and the money given to the poor. We thought these people were poor! But it didn’t matter.

Melchoir and I stayed for what seemed like minutes but must have been hours, for it was day light when we left. We were exhausted from being up all night and we immediately feel into a deep sleep. It was then that we had dreams warning us not to return to Herod but to travel home another route.

Gaspar never really accepted this baby as a king. He continued to be an arrogant and bitter man all his life. But Melchoir and I devoted our selves to the study of the Hebrew Scriptures for the rest of our lives. But I must admit, old Melchoir continued to be a showoff for the rest of his life. Always saying things like: "Do you see that fly over there about twenty yards--the one holding two crumbs of bread?"