Who were the three Kings?
The following quotes on what is known about the Three Kings are taken from the 1877 edition of THE LIFE OF THE BLESSED VIRGIN MARY MOTHER OF GOD, printed by Thomas Kelly:
“For our part we adopt the opinion of St. Thomas, who teaches (3.p.2.36. art.5) that the birth of Christ was manifested by a star to the Wise men, devoted to the contemplation of heavenly bodies; because, says St. John Chrysostom in his sixth homily on St. Matthew (in verva Ecce Stella), God wished to call them by the things which they were accustomed to see. ..
“Were they kings? Without mentioning the ancient paintings which represent them crowned with Phrygian [in this ancient painting, they look like Eastern turbans, not phrygian caps.] mitres, and the prophecy of David inviting kings to adore the Messias, they are commonly believed such, on the opinion of the
The three Kings as depicted in the Roman Catacombs, site of St. Priscilla.
most illustrious and ancient Fathers, such as St. John Chrysostom, St. Gregory the Great, Theophylact, and many others…All these [those who say they were not kings] are brought forward by Hardouin, the ancient defender of every paradox.”
“The learned ask what kind of star was the luminous body which appeared to the Wise men; whether it was a meteor, a comet, or a star expressly created. Saint Ambrose, Saint Augustine, Saint Leo, with many other Fathers of the Church, hold for certain that it was a star then created…They believe it then a star newly created by God, placed not in heaven, but near the earth, and moved by the Divine will. The Fathers generally think that its mover was an angel, and some believe with St. Thomas, that it was the same one sent from Heaven to announce to the shepherds the birth of the Redeemer.
“For us on the faith of the most credible writers, we think that they were Arabians, disciples and perhaps descendants of the prophet Balaam, who had foretold this star, long expected by them. In thirteen days [riding camels – not horses!] they could reach Bethlehem…
“All the country, in further Arabia, such as the land of Median and Epha, was called Saba (St. Jerome.De locis heb.), and if the Wise men dwelt there, the prophecy of Isaias was fulfilled to the letter….”
“If this journey was of thirteen days’ duration, as we have said, it is probable that the house over which the star stopped is that where the Saviour was born; the more, as the Hebrew language, in which St. Matthew wrote his Gospel, calls any inhabited place a house, be it a cabin or a grotto….as Father Hyacinth Serry shows (Serry. Exercitat xxxvi. n. 6.)and many examples prove.”
It is believed that the bodies of the Three Kings were brought to Milan from Constantinople in the 4th century, and from there brought to Cologne where they are still venerated.
