The Fourth Wise Man

This Christmas season, I want to share one of my favorite Christmas movies. Like me, you have probably watched Miracle on 34th Street, A Christmas Carol (1951) starring Alastair Sim, and It’s a Wonderful Life. They are classics and fun to watch.  You may have also enjoyed The Snowman, How the Grinch Stole Christmas! (1966), Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer (1964), and The Polar Express. They spark good memories and holiday cheer.

The Christmas film I want to share takes viewers back to the first Christmas and helps us imagine what it was like from the magi’s perspective. The magi were Persian kings-astrologers seeking heavenly signs of a newborn king. The Fourth Wise Man follows a particular magus who never made it to the manger in Bethlehem, but endeavors to find the child. It’s a moving tale that offers a glimpse of the meaning and joy of Christmas.

Christmas is truly a time of joy and celebration. I’m reminded of Charles Dickens’ character Mr. Fezziwig in A Christmas Carol; his Christmas party was so grand and happy that guests had the time of their lives. But the secret of Mr. Fezziwig was not his money or the glamor or the building or the business; it was a heart enlarged by the truth and joy of Christmas.

When paired with the Bible’s story of Christmas in texts such as Isaiah 9 and Luke 2, movies like The Fourth Wise Man can help us get closer to that kind of celebration.

If you watch the movie, I’d love to hear what you thought of it.