"But they that wait upon the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as EAGLES. They shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint."
– Isaiah 40:31
About the Author
Kathy Schiffer is the wife of a deacon and mother of three grown children, and currently works as Communications/ Media Relations Coordinator for Guest House, the treatment center for Catholic clergy and religious.
Today we remember the Magi- those wise kings from the East who visited the infant Jesus, bearing gifts of gold, frankincense and myrhh.
American-born playwright, literary critic and poet T. S. Eliot wrote his famous poem “Journey of the Magi” in 1927, following his conversion to Christianity and his confirmation in the Church of England. The dramatic monologue tells the story from the viewpoint of one of the magi. Tired and discouraged, the magus complains that the journey has been painful and
levitra without perscription tedious—and as he trudges along, he hears a voice in his ears telling him that “this was all folly.” Even when he sees the newborn Christ Child, he is unimpressed; and yet he realizes that the Incarnation changes everything.
“Were we all led that way,” he asks, “for Birth or Death?”
In his poems, Eliot frequently writes in the voice of an elderly speaker—someone who is world-weary, reflective, sad. In “Journey
of the Magi,” the narrator has lost his spiritual bearings; yet by God’s grace, he is a witness to historical change.
Eliot is a master of symbolism. When the narrator speaks of “three trees against a low sky,” he is glimpsing into the future. The trees symbolize the crucifixion, and our spiritual release as the heavens are opened.
Here is a rare recording of the poet himself reading his work.
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Today we remember the Magi- those wise kings from the East who visited the infant Jesus, bearing gifts of gold, frankincense and myrhh.
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