Our BetterMost Community > The Holiday Forum
The first day of 2009, and it's the last 6 days before 'Little Christmas'--
Front-Ranger:
In church last Sunday I learned that the wise men were Zoroastrian priests who came from the Near East, perhaps Persia/Iran area, and arrived when Jesus was a little less than 2 years old. Interesting, because I've always thought that when he disappeared for a few years, he may have gone to the Near East and learned about those religions.
Marge_Innavera:
--- Quote ---In church last Sunday I learned that the wise men were Zoroastrian priests who came from the Near East, perhaps Persia/Iran area, and arrived when Jesus was a little less than 2 years old. Interesting, because I've always thought that when he disappeared for a few years, he may have gone to the Near East and learned about those religions.
--- End quote ---
There are many stories about what other groups Jesus may have had contact with. It's doubtful we'll ever know but many of the theories have some substance in terms of background, and that's one of them -- Persa wasn't all that far away from Palestine, even in those days and there was a lot of commercial traffic.
Jesus also might have regularly visited the market town of Sepphoris (spelling?) which wasn't too far from Nazareth and was a market town, where Jesus would have encountered a number of people outside the Jewish community. It's also an historic fact that he lived at a time of extraordinary mobility for that era; i.e., if you lived within the Roman Empire and had money to pay (and the Gospels indicate that Jesus had some wealthy 'sponsors') you could get passage on a ship to any port in the Empire. Most, if not all, of the medieval stories about various places where Jesus visited are probably bogus but you never know. It's theoretically possible that Jesus did visit Glastonbury in southwest England when he was young -- etc.....
Front-Ranger:
Interesting, Marcia. I think the reason Zoroastrianism was theorized is because the priests knew astronomy. In the book of Numbers apparently there are prophecies by a pagan priest about the coming of Jesus.
Jeff Wrangler:
--- Quote from: Front-Ranger on January 06, 2010, 12:24:53 am ---In church last Sunday I learned that the wise men were Zoroastrian priests who came from the Near East, perhaps Persia/Iran area, and arrived when Jesus was a little less than 2 years old.
--- End quote ---
If they existed, of course, which may be doubted. Incidentally, their gifts come from Isaiah 60:1--6.
A propos, on New Year's Day evening I was reorganizing a bookcase in my living room, and I came upon an old, yellowed newspaper clipping about some professor who said that the Star of Bethlehem was a conjunction of three planets--I forget exactly which three--that occurred in the year 7 B.C.
Front-Ranger:
--- Quote from: Jeff Wrangler on January 05, 2010, 09:20:08 am ---
:o Be careful you don't fall off!
--- End quote ---
If I ever make it to the class! It's blizzarding in Denver right now!
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