History Main / TheThreeWiseMen

* In MikeRoyko's humorous column "Mary and Joe: Chicago Style," the Nativity is set in 1960s [[TheWindyCity Chicago]], where the Magi are mistaken for hippies and detained for illegal possession of gold and suspicious herbs. Meanwhile, there's no room for a poor couple from out of town in any of the city's social services, and Mary gets treated for post-partum delusion when she mentions who the baby's father is...

* In MikeRoyko's humorous column "Mary and Joe: Chicago Style," the Nativity is set in 1960s [[TheWindyCity Chicago]], where the Magi are mistaken for hippies and detained for illegal possession of gold and suspicious herbs.

* In ''{{The X-Files}}'' episode "Existence", which likens Baby William's birth heavily to the birth of Christ (including a prominent StarOfBethlehem), the Lone Gunmen step into this role, bringing gifts and admiring the baby.

According to Matthew, the magi followed a star which came to be known as the StarOfBethlehem. As they approached Jerusalem, Herod tried to trick them into revealing where Jesus was, so that he might be put to death. Upon finding Jesus, they gave him three symbolic gifts: gold, frankincense and myrrh. The tradition of gift giving for Christians dates back to this story. In many countries, they're the equivalent of SantaClaus.

* In the ''EdEddNEddy'' ChristmasSpecial "Jingle Jingle Jangle", the Kanker sisters take on the role, bringing the Eds the gifts of "mold, franks and cents, and fur."

* Played by Quagmire, Joe and Cleveland in the recent ''FamilyGuy'' parody.

* In UmbertoEco's novel ''{{Baudolino}}'', the Magi are thought to have come from the legendary kingdom of Prester John. In order to get Emperor Frederick's support for an expedition to the kingdom, the protagonist produces the relics of the Magi, found in a church in Constantinople, though he and the canon he gets the relics from both acknowledge that they're not the real remains.

* The TomHolt novel ''Grailblazers'' reveals that Santa Claus was one of the Wise Men, doing community service to expiate the sin of ConvenienceStoreGiftShopping for the Messiah; unlike his colleagues who planned ahead, he left things until the last minute and couldn't come up with anything better than a pair of socks.

According to Matthew, the kings, for whom the Eastern church gives a variety of different names for (in the West the names have been settled since the 8th century as Caspar, Melchior and Balthasar) followed a star which came to be known as the StarOfBethlehem. As they approached Jerusalem, Herod tried to trick them into revealing where Jesus was, so that he might be put to death. Upon finding Jesus, they gave him three symbolic gifts: gold, frankincense and myrrh. The tradition of gift giving for Christians dates back to this story. In many countries, they're the equivalent of SantaClaus.

!Tropes involving the Magi:

!Appearances of the Magi in Fiction:

* The Magi themselves do not appear in O. Henry's TheGiftOfTheMagi, but they inspired the characters to give each other presents.

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* The three Magi arrive with gifts for Brian at the start of ''MontyPythonsLifeOfBrian'', though it turns out that the real Messiah had been born across the street.

* The Three Sages in ''ChronoTrigger'' are named after the Magi, at least in the English version.

<<|ChristmasTropes|>>

* In the ''EdEddNEddy'' ChristmasSpecial "Jingle Jingle Jangle", the Kanker sisters take on the role, bringing the Eds franks and cents, fur and mold.

* The Three Sages in ChronoTrigger are named after the Magi.

[[caption-width-right:334:I think we should go to that town...]]

* In the short story "The Fourth Wise Man" the titular character arrives too late to meet baby Jesus, as he had stopped along the way to help people in need. He only finds Jesus on the day he was crucified, and fails to rescue him because, again, he stopped to help someone. A voice (presumably Jesus') tells him however that his kindness to others was just the kind of real gift he wanted from people.

According to Matthew, the kings, for whom the Eastern church gives a variety of different names for (in the West the names have been settled since the 8th century as Caspar, Melchior and Balthasar) followed a star which came to be known as the StarOfBethlehem. As they approached Jerusalem, Herod tried to trick them into revealing where Jesus was, so that he might be put to death. Upon finding Jesus, they gave him three symbolic gifts: gold, frankincense and myrrh. The tradition of gift giving for Christians dates back to this story. In many countries, they're the equivalent of SantaClaus.