Sunday Trivia Answer

(The Journey of the Magi, James Tissot. Public Domain.)

There's just no fooling some people. Hal got this one right off the bat: Scripture does not tell us how many Wise Men (or Magi) came to visit the newborn Christ-child, only that they brought three gifts with them: gold, frankincense, and myrrh. Lore quickly developed around these mysterious figures, one of the most persistent being that because their gifts numbered three, so too did the Magi themselves. The other persistent tradition is that the Magi arrived in Bethlehem 12 days after the birth (or two years and 12 days), thus setting the length for the litugical season of Christmas and the date of Epiphany.

The Wikipedia article on the Wise Men is really pretty exhaustive, and is worth a look. The other wonderful sources for reflections on the visitors from the east are the Christmas sermons of Martin Luther. For example:

These Magi, or Wise Men, were not kings, but learned men in the art of nature. Without doubt they dabbled also in superstition, for they allowed themselves to be guided entirely by the course of the star. They were like philosophers in Greece, or priests in Egypt, or the professors in our universities. Hidden away in their lore is something of Christ and the way of life.

Or again:

We can present our gifts in much the same way [as the Magi did]. He who gives of his goods to help the poor, to send children to school, to educate them in God's Word and other arts that we may have good ministers - he is giving to the baby Jesus.