While January 6 recalls the visit of the Magi to the Christ Child, July 24 recalls the Magi themselves and their potential resting place.
The Magi mentioned in the Gospel of Matthew are very mysterious, "Now when Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king, behold, wise men from the East came to Jerusalem." (Matthew 2:1)
Relatively little is known about them outside of the Gospel account, but tradition claims there were three magi, based on the fact that they gave Jesus three gifts.
These three magi are even known by the names Balthasar, Melchior, and Caspar; these are names that were later associated with the magi but are not listed in the Bible.
Some traditions claim they were baptized by St. Thomas the Apostle and spread the Gospel in the East until their death.
Relics of the Holy Magi
With all of this in mind, the Catholic Encyclopedia explains that, "The cathedral of Cologne contains what are claimed to be the remains of the Magi; these, it is said, were discovered in Persia, brought to Constantinople by St. Helena, transferred to Milan in the fifth century and to Cologne in 1163."
Since then the cathedral of Cologne has held a large reliquary containing the bones of the Holy Magi and the Roman Martyrology honors them each year on July 24:
At Cologne in Lotharingia, in Germany, translation of the Three Magi, who, as wise men of the East, came to Bethlehem bringing gifts to contemplate in the Child the mystery of the glory of the Only Begotten Son of God.
When Pope Benedict XVI visited Cologne in 2005, he reflected on their memory and connection to the city:
The city of Cologne would not be what it is without the Magi, who have had so great an impact on its history, its culture and its faith. Here, in some sense, the Church celebrates the Feast of the Epiphany every day of the year! And so, before addressing you, dear inhabitants of Cologne, before greeting you, I wanted to pause for a few moments of prayer before the reliquary of the three Magi, giving thanks to God for their witness of faith, hope and love.
He then connected it to World Youth Day and the fact that youth from around the world were coming to see the Christ Child:
Now you yourselves are here, dear young people from throughout the world. You represent those distant peoples who came to know Christ through the Magi and who were brought together as the new People of God, the Church, which gathers men and women from every culture.
While its difficult to scientifically verify the relics of the Magi are connected to the actual wise men of the Bible, the fact remains that these distant travelers were forever changed by their encounter with the Infant King and their legacy has had a tremendous impact on the faithful of all generations.
So even if you are facing unbearable July heat, it is a perfect time to reflect on the beauty of Christmas and the incarnation of Jesus Christ and how he unceasingly draws us closer to him.
