Taken from National Geographic

The Feast of the Three Kings is commonly called "Epiphany," a Greek word meaning "manifestation," in the sense that God reveals himself and makes himself known. This feast is celebrated on January 6th in different parts of the world.

three manifestations of the life of Jesus as Epiphanies :

• The Epiphany before the Magi from the East (manifestation to the pagans).

The term "magi" referred to "wise men" in ancient times. In this case, they were wise men who came "from the East." This could have been a reference to places like Arabia, Mesopotamia, or somewhere further east of Palestine.

• Epiphany of the Baptism of the Lord (manifestation to the Jews).
• The Epiphany at the wedding at Cana (manifestation to his disciples).

The Gospel of Matthew tells that "After Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea, in the days of Herod the king, wise men from the East came to Jerusalem, saying, 'Where is he who has been born king of the Jews? For we saw his star when it rose and have come to worship him.'".

Experts say that the fact that they were guided by a star suggests that they were instructed in astrology or in the science of navigation and in calculating time by means of star configurations.

In ancient astrology, Jupiter was considered the star of the Prince of the world.

The Magi , in their earliest period, appear as a priestly caste from Media and Persia . They were also dedicated to the study of wisdom. It was the 3rd-century writer and theologian Origen , one of the three pillars of Christian theology, who first proposed that there were three Magi, based on the three gifts offered to the child .

In the paintings of the Catacombs of Priscilla, from the beginning of the 2nd century, they were depicted only as Persian nobles. On the other hand, in art they began to be portrayed as kings from the 8th century onwards.

From the 8th century , the Three Wise Men were given names, with some variations. The first were Bithisarea, Melchior, and Gathaspa. By the Middle Ages, they were even venerated as saints.

The names Melchior, Gaspar and Balthasar were given to them in the 9th century by the historian Agnello, in his work "Pontificalis Ecclesiae Ravennatis".

How are the three Wise Men represented?

• Melchior is generally depicted as an old white man with a beard by people from the European area and offers the Child gold for the kingship of Christ.
• Gaspar represents the Asian region and carries the incense for the divinity of Jesus.
• Balthazar is black, representing Africa, and gives the Savior myrrh, a substance used to embalm corpses and a symbol of the Lord's humanity.

At the time they began to be depicted with these characteristics, there was no knowledge of America. Furthermore, the three figures represent the ages of humankind: youth (Gaspar), maturity (Baltazar), and old age (Melchor).

The scene of the Magi adoring the infant Jesus became a favorite theme in bas-reliefs, miniatures, and stained glass. In many homes today, the Three Wise Men are part of the Christmas decorations.