Photo: palomnic.org The three Magi, after venerating the babe, set out to return, but not by the way they had gone before. Their hearts, illumined by the new truth, full of light not of this world, could no longer follow the old path. And so, when they stopped at night in their tent to rest, the star disappeared, but a new sign appeared before them—in a dream they received a revelation that they should not return to King Herod.
And thus they realized that their mission was not over, but only beginning, for the One Born is the Son of God Himself, the only true God. “We will no longer take on ourselves the burden of the kings of the world, we will no longer allow ourselves to be deceived. We will not go to Herod, for he is a servant of darkness,” said Melchior, the eldest of them. He remembered how Herod, believing that the Babe would prove a threat to his power, had plotted treachery. “We have seen the Truth, and now our path is different. We cannot worship the Fire that does not save, we cannot serve that which blinds but does not purify.”
“We must return to Media, not to worship fire again, but to bring to our peoples the light of the True Fire—faith in Christ the Savior, the only and Eternal Shahinshah of all the nations of the earth.”
And they went to Media by another road, wandering through the steppes and mountains. Along the way, they talked about how ridiculous it was to worship only fire, which could neither purify the soul nor heal pain. They remembered how they had been servants of fire, how they had worshipped Ahura Mazda, considering him the source of everything bright and pure. But now they saw that the true fire, the fire that gives life, is not the one that burns in the mouth of stones, but the one that ignites hearts and cleanses from sins.
“Our peoples,” Kaspar said, “believe in the fire of Ahura Mazda, but this fire does not save. It can warm, but not cleanse. It can give light, but not illuminate the soul. It is time to tell our people about the One Who has brought light to the dark world. This is a true fire of grace that burns in the heart and makes it possible to unite with God.”
So they returned to Media, having found the path that led to the Lord. But God has not forgotten them: Christ himself commanded His Apostle Thomas to go to the East and preach about Him to the peoples of the Medes, Parthians, Elamites and other Eastern peoples. The three Magi received Thomas gladly.
He knew that the Median Magi were the first who had come to worship the Christ Child and had confessed Him to be the King and Savior of mankind. “You saw Him,” said Thomas, “you saw the One who brought the light. Now, brothers, don’t just worship, but go and tell the people that He died on the Cross for our sins and rose from the dead to justify and save us. Tell the people how He came to bring fire to the earth so that the cleansing flame of saving faith would be ignited in people.”
And when they were baptized, they saw tongues of fire descending on them, and from that moment on they became zealous ministers of the gospel. But they did not just receive baptism, but became living examples of how Christ changes everything—hearts, lives and nations. They became preachers, spreading the Word among their peoples.
The Medes, Persians, Parthians, Elamites, Sogdians, Bactrians, all these peoples who lived in the shadow of old religions and pagan beliefs, began to listen to the Magi’s preaching. More and more people were turning to the True Fire—the Baptism of Fire in the Holy Spirit. But their path was not easy. Those who had previously followed the fire of Ahura Mazda, those who were bound up with Magic and ancient rituals, saw the Magi as a threat.
Soon they were caught and brought to Vonones, the king of Media, and to the priests of fire worship. The Magi stood before their tormentors, who demanded that they renounce the faith of Christ. “You are blasphemers!” shouted one of the priests who stood before them. “Do you, the servants of fire, now believe in some Jesus who was crucified as a criminal? Give Him up, worship only Ahura Mazda, our god, or you will die.” Melchior, standing in front of them, did not tremble. His eyes were full of fire, but it was another fire, the fire of faith.
“We worshipped a fire which could not purify the soul. But now we know the Truth. The Son of God has brought down the true Fire from heaven, the fire that cleanses from sins, that forgives and gives life. We will not reject Him. We know that through Him we become children of God,” proclaimed Kaspar, his voice firm and confident: “The time will come when the fire of Ahura Mazda will go out forever. This fire, which only serves to warm one’s body, will go out and disappear. And all your worship, all your rituals will be forgotten.
But Christ, as the true God, will always be with us.” At these words, King Vonones of Media himself jumped up and violently threatened Kaspar for his blasphemies.
And yet, despite threats and torture, the Magi did not renounce their faith in Christ. They were taken to the main square of Ecbatana and publicly tortured for three days. But since the holy day of Navruz was soon to come, the Zoroastrian priests persuaded the king to kill these three “priests of the Crucified” that evening. So, on the eve of Navruz, on April 20, in the thirty-fifth year of Our Lord, three Median sages were killed—their heads were cut off.
They were killed, but their death became a seed that sprouted forth in the hearts of many.
Their tormentors could not understand how those who had been Magi could now worship One who came with love and not with power.
They gave their lives for Christ, but in their torments they became a light for others.
And so the three Magi, three sages who had once served fire, have now become martyrs, witnesses and sages of the incarnate God Christ and His True Blessed Fire, which burns in the hearts of people by faith. And in their sacrifice, as in their preaching, a seed is ripening, which will grow and in its time bear great fruit in Media, Parthia and throughout the Eastern land.
