“They entered the house and saw the child with his mother, Mary, and they bowed down and worshiped him. Then they opened their treasure chests and gave him gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh. “ Matthew 2:11
Fit for a King
by Shannon Pederson
One of the three biblical gifts that the wise men bestowed on the infant Jesus was the frankincense plant. Considered the holiest plant of the Christmas season, it is a raggedy shrub with peeling bark that seems to grow well in dusty backyards here in Arizona.
An architect who lives in Tempe, Arizona (a Phoenix suburb), which is in the middle of the Sonoran desert, obtained a bag of frankincense seeds in Yemen. What is strange is that this architect is from Iran, born Muslin, has the given name Mohammad, married a Mormon, and now practices the Bahai faith. He has now become a guardian to the sacred plants of Christendom. This is very much an American Christmas story.
What makes this tree special is the valuable, fragrant resin. Harvesters slash the trunk with a hatchet and collect the dried beads of sap. When the trees are fully mature and fully tapped of the resin, they become firewood.
In the history of baffling Christmas presents, none may be stranger than the three gifts of the Magi: gold, frankincense, and myrrh. The gold, in traditional interpretations, represented God’s splendor and power. The frankincense, burned for purification, suggested divinity. Myrrh, a funeral spice, represented the crucifixion and anointing of the dead.
Odd presents to bring to a baby. But, maybe not so odd to bring to a King.
“Now when Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judaea in the days of Herod the king, behold, there came wise men from the east to Jerusalem, …” Matthew 2:1
One of the three biblical gifts that the wise men bestowed on the infant Jesus was the frankincense plant. Considered the holiest plant of the Christmas season, it is a raggedy shrub with peeling bark that seems to grow well in dusty backyards here in Arizona.
An architect who lives in Tempe, Arizona (a Phoenix suburb), which is in the middle of the Sonoran desert, obtained a bag of frankincense seeds in Yemen. What is strange is that this architect is from Iran, born Muslin, has the given name Mohammad, married a Mormon, and now practices the Bahai faith. He has now become a guardian to the sacred plants of Christendom. This is very much an American Christmas story.
What makes this tree special is the valuable, fragrant resin. Harvesters slash the trunk with a hatchet and collect the dried beads of sap. When the trees are fully mature and fully tapped of the resin, they become firewood.
In the history of baffling Christmas presents, none may be stranger than the three gifts of the Magi: gold, frankincense, and myrrh. The gold, in traditional interpretations, represented God’s splendor and power. The frankincense, burned for purification, suggested divinity. Myrrh, a funeral spice, represented the crucifixion and anointing of the dead.
Odd presents to bring to a baby. But, maybe not so odd to bring to a King.
“Now when Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judaea in the days of Herod the king, behold, there came wise men from the east to Jerusalem, …” Matthew 2:1