“Three kings, three kings, give me a new hat.” For example, during Epiphany, children go door to door singing in exchange for candy. Yet this Christian festival is not originally about that. But what do we actually celebrate with Epiphany? And which traditions are associated with that?
On Epiphany, January 6, the arrival of the three wise men from the East at the manger of Christmas child Jesus in Bethlehem is celebrated. But who were those three wise men and why did they go to Jesus?
“We actually don’t know more than that, because the Bible doesn’t say anything more. Nowadays we talk about three kings, but the Bible only says that they were three wise men. No one knows exactly who they were,” says Plebaan Vincent Blom, the pastor of St. John’s in Den Bosch. “Precisely because there is so little information, many things have been filled in or invented over the centuries.” They were only later given the names Balthasar, Caspar and Melchior.
What the Bible does say is that they followed a star in search of Jesus, ‘the newborn king of the Jews’. As gifts they brought gold, frankincense and myrrh (a nice-smelling resin oil).
“To do something good for someone else, the children raised money for the poor.”
According to pleban Vincent Blom, centuries-old traditions often arise during sacred festivals. One of these is the Epiphany. The three wise men travel on camels through the city or village, followed by a large procession of children with a lantern in their hand.
Blom: “The wise men from the east followed the star of Bethlehem to get to Christmas child Jesus. We think it wasn’t actually a star, but two planets that gave off light. By walking in the procession with a lantern, we refer to the light that the kings followed.”
Epiphany has become an important celebration, especially for children. They go door to door singing dressed as the kings to raise money for charity. Just like their parents did years ago.
“To do something good for someone else, the Christmas spirit, the children raised money for the poor. But increasingly they also received candy or a mandarin as a thank you for singing. That has now also become a tradition.”
“It would be crazy to take the kings away before they even reach Jesus”
According to tradition, the Magi from the East arrived in Bethlehem on January 6. This holiday therefore represents the end of Christmas celebrations, so only then can the Christmas tree be removed from the living room.
“It is customary to place your nativity scene under the Christmas tree. Of course, it also includes the three kings. It would be crazy to remove the nativity scene with kings before you celebrate that they have arrived with Jesus,” says the plebaan. “In fact, there are still believers who only put the kings down on January 6 before emptying the Christmas tree.”
An age-old tradition that is increasingly disappearing is baking a special cake for Epiphany. The mother of the family used to make a cake in which she hid one bean. And the child who found the bean in his pie slice was allowed to be the king of the house that day.
“Folk traditions arise around many sacred festivals that sometimes have little or nothing to do with the story in the Bible,” says Blom. “This is such an age-old tradition that has emerged from the people over the years. But if they stop doing it, the tradition can disappear again.”
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Johan has been King Melchior during the Epiphany procession for 40 years