What's on Top of Your Christmas Tree?
A Star on Top of the Tree - Day 71 - Daily Content Challenge
The little wooden tree I brought with me to Banff Gate had a star on top of the tree.
Why a star? The Christmas Star represents the Star of Bethlehem. In the Biblical story, the Star of Bethlehem guided the wise men to the baby Jesus. The Star also stands for hope.
So what was the Star?
The wise men or Magi came from an area that was known as Persia, Arabia or Sheba (now in either Iraq, Iran, Saudi Arabia, or Yemen). The Magi are often called the Three Kings but the Bible doesn’t say they were Kings or exactly how many there were. The number three comes from the three gifts they brought - gold, frankincense and myrrh.
They were ‘wise men’ who studied the patterns of the stars. Today we would have called them astrologers. They would have been held in high esteem in their own society and would have also probably been very rich.
The Magi had seen an unusual new star in the sky, and knew that it told of the birth of a special King in Israel. The Bible says they ‘saw it in the east’. An accurate translation of ‘saw it in the east’ is ‘in the first light of dawn’. So not just in the East, but early in the morning. When the Magi were in Jerusalem, the star went ahead of them until it stopped over the place where the child was. This was over Bethlehem which is south of Jerusalem.
For the wise men this star was a sign for something very new and unusual. In their astrology it meant there was a new King in Israel and that it was worth travelling to find him! They had to travel from Persia to Israel, meet with King Herod in Jerusalem and then on to Bethlehem.
Do you put a star on the top of your Christmas tree?
