Rosslyn Treasury

by P. L. Snow

  The people were amazed, but Jezebel the queen was stricken with cold rage. She resolved there and then that she would have her revenge on this prophet. Elijah could read her heart, and, as the time of his mission was not yet done, he left the city and went south to Sinai, to commune with his God.

  The journey took forty days and nights, during which time Elijah was fed through the help of an angel, who woke him to show him where food was lying waiting for him. Once arrived at the mountain where Moses had received the Tablets of the Law, he climbed to a high place. Here he experienced the fury and rage of the elements, but the voice of God was not in the whirlwind or the hurricane; the earthquake or the storm clouds or the thunder and lightning that crashed and rolled around him. Instead, when the storm was stilled, he heard a still, small voice speaking to him in the calm of his soul. He covered his face and went into the cave to listen, for this was the true voice of his God. After this, Elijah was transformed and his mission took on a new and sombre power.

  What was revealed to Elijah in the cave in that holy place remains a secret, but what was revealed to the writers of the Scriptures was that he should go to Damascus and anoint Hazael to be king of Aram and Jehu to be king of Israel. Then he was to appoint Elisha as his successor. Terrible wars were to follow the appointments of these men as kings, but those who had not worshipped Baal were spared.

  Naboth’s vineyard and the end of Elijah

  Now there lived in Jezreel a man by the name of Naboth who had inherited a vineyard that Ahab coveted, as it lay close to his palace grounds, and the soil was good and the vine plentiful and healthy. However, Naboth had no wish to sell his vineyard. The queen Jezebel had discovered something about Naboth. As an initiate of Asherah, she knew that Elijah sometimes spoke through Naboth; that he was inspired by the mighty spirit of Elijah, and was at times his spokesman. In a spirit of revenge, she colluded with Ahab on a plan that would send Naboth to his death. A feast was arranged at which Naboth should be the guest of honour, but two men were suborned to accuse him of cursing God and the king.

  So it all took place as Jezebel had arranged. The feast went forward, and suddenly, the two criminals arose and accused Naboth of cursing God and Ahab. The crowd in a rage dragged Naboth out and stoned him to death.

  Ahab was walking in his newly acquired vineyard some time later when Elijah appeared to him.

  ‘Are you there again, my enemy? Have you found me?’ said Ahab, much afraid. He knew that the vision of Elijah before him betokened his imminent death.

  ‘I am here. I have found you indeed. And know that where the blood of Naboth was spilled; where the dogs licked it up; there shall your blood be licked up by the dogs. Your household shall perish and your queen be devoured by the dogs on the ramparts of Jezreel.’

  Ahab was smitten with shame, and donned sackcloth and ashes and did penance before the Lord. This meant that though he was spared the destruction that Elijah had foretold, he still had not long to live, and the punishment later fell upon his son Ahaziah when he, though king of Israel, worshipped Baal, turning against the religion of his forefathers and his people.

  It was Elisha who told of the end of Elijah. He had asked him that the greater part of his spirit should come to him when the time came for him to take up Elijah’s mantle of prophecy. Elijah answered that this was a hard thing to promise, but that if Elisha saw him before he died, it would come to pass that he would inherit the greater part of his spirit.

  Elisha was beside the River Jordan when he saw Elijah in a chariot all of fire, drawn by horses all of flame. Elisha knelt before this vision, and as Elijah rode overhead, he dropped his mantle so that it fell upon the shoulders of Elisha.

  In a loud voice, Elisha cried: ‘My father! Oh, my father!’

  ***

  The spirit of Elijah lived on in Elisha, but was seen again in a different form when John the Baptist came to make straight the path of the Saviour. It is no coincidence that Elijah is seen above the baptistery that was added to Rosslyn in the nineteenth century. Just as his spirit lived again in John the Baptist, so his image is just discernible over the place of baptism in the chapel.

  9. The Three Kings

  In the Lady Chapel of Rosslyn, at the eastern end of the chapel, there are four pendent bosses. These are stalactite-like pieces of stone, carved for the most part with floral or plant motifs, but one shows the Mother and Child, looking southwards, towards the feminine side of the chapel, while the Three Kings face the congregation, looking westward. On the eastern side of the boss are the Shepherds who kept watch over their flocks on the hills where the terebinth trees of Mamre once grew. On the underside of the boss is an eight-pointed star, known in Rosslyn as the Star of Bethlehem. An ominous aspect of the boss is that, at the left shoulder of the Mother is the figure of Death, robed like a monk, holding a scythe. It seems that Death, too, came to worship at the cradle of the Christ-child, knowing that here was the One who would overcome him.

  Rosslyn is the Collegiate Chapel of Saint Matthew, and it is in Matthew’s Gospel that we read of the Three Kings of the Orient, who saw the Star in the east and came to worship the child born King of the Jews. It is their story that we shall now tell according to an old version of the legend.

  The vision of the star

  In the land of Morn, at the top of a high tower, built for observing the stars and their movements, stood Melchior, priest of Zarathustra. High above him, in the eastern skies, was a constellation of stars that had aroused in him deep wonder and a dawning hope, but he wanted to be perfectly sure that he truly understood what he saw.

  Long years before Melchior, the priesthood of Zarathustra had been kings in the land. It had been in the full flame of its activity five thousand years before Troy fell to the Hellenes. Some said their wisdom and teaching was older than that of Egypt. In the time of Melchior, they were advisors and counsellors to kings, and highly revered men. But now, a star had appeared that promised the fruition of a long-held hope; the birth of a child of royal blood, in whom the mysteries of Ahura Mazdao would be fulfilled for all the world.

  He looked again through the long optic tube — not a telescope, but a device designed to concentrate the observer’s vision on one part of the sky — and confirmed in his own mind what it was he was looking at.

  Then, all at once, his soul was filled with a vision: a woman who looked southwards in deep serenity, held at her breast a child, who turned his eyes to the east, so that the rising sun was reflected in his eyes. He knew from his familiarity with the ancient mysteries of Egypt that the woman was Isis, and the child Horus, but now the spouse of the widowed Isis was reborn in this child; it was as if she was no longer a widow.

  He summoned the scholar Viligratia, who now came hastening up the stairs, laden with scrolls.

  ‘What can you tell me of this star?’ asked Melchior, as soon as Viligratia had got his breath back.

  ‘Alas, I can tell you nothing from my own wisdom, but my learning informs me that this is indeed the sign that you think it is. The old books all agree.’

  ‘Do they agree where the child shall be born?’ demanded Melchior. To this, Viligratia was ready with an answer. The scriptures all agreed that it should be in the Land of Judah.

  ‘I must seek out this child,’ said Melchior. ‘He must be recognized and welcomed into the world as a king.’

  ‘But what shall you take as an offering?’ asked Viligratia. This question had been occupying Melchior’s mind, too. Finally he decided upon gold in the form of a finely-wrought crown, and leaving Viligratia to take over his duties during his absence, he set out, wrapping his red cloak about his shoulders, to find the place where the child had been born.

  The constellation had been seen in Saba by a younger man of the same priesthood, an African by the name of Caspar. He had at once recognized what the star portended, and a blissful joy flooded his whole being that he had been alive to see the birth of the child of kingly blood.

  ‘Look! See,’ he told his
servants gathered around him. ‘The star itself calls me forth to seek the child and offer him my homage and reverence.’

  The night before he set out, he dreamed of the destiny of the child, and awoke in a more solemn mood. Putting aside the gift that he had first thought to take, he chose instead myrrh, the bitter herb that was symbol of the death and resurrection of Osiris; the death of the lower life and the resurrection of the higher life through mastery of the deep mysteries of the will. Though a priest of Zarathustra, as an African he knew the meaning and universality of the mysteries of Egypt. Then, wearing his finest green robe, he set out.

  The oldest of the priests of Zarathustra to celebrate the birth of the child was Balthazar, also of Saba. He had been alerted to wonders about to befall by watching the flight of birds, of listening to the wind in the trees and the waters of the streams in the mountains. All of nature was telling him to be ready for a great change. He listened to the sounds of the world around him, and sniffed the air. When he, too, looked up and saw the movement of the stars, it confirmed what he had suspected through the evidence of his senses.

  There was no question for him in his mind about what he should take as an offering; his journeys in India had prepared him for this moment. Frankincense would be his gift. Dressed all in blue, he, too, set out to find the child.

  The three kings meet

  They had not travelled very far before Caspar and Balthazar met on the road. They did not, at first, give the true reason for their journey, yet they travelled onwards together, as two priests of the same mysteries.

  It was not until they saw in the distance, a little after sunset one day, a small group of people camped round a fire by a well of sweet water. As they drew closer, Balthazar noticed the way the leader of the group looked at the fire, and occasionally looked up at the star in the east. Almost at once, he knew him for one of their own.

  A servant boy came to Melchior to tell him of the approach of strangers, and the red-cloaked magus stepped forward to meet them. Caspar and Balthazar made their camp with Melchior, and the three sat by the fire and began to talk together of their journey and why they had each set forth. Melchior at once gave his reasons for travelling so far from home.

  ‘The holy scriptures all agree that a child shall be born of a royal household, in whom the mysteries shall be fulfilled for all to witness. But see that star in the sky to the eastward? That is surely the sign that the child’s birth is due. And so I am travelling to find the child to do him homage.’

  ‘I, too, follow that star,’ said Balthazar, ‘and when I contemplate it, before my mind’s eye there arises a vision of a maidenly girl with a child at her breast.’

  Caspar felt the joy rising in his soul again. When he spoke, the words almost burst out of him.

  ‘Why, sirs, this is most marvellous! I, too, have been summoned from my home by this star. We must be stirring with the very break of dawn to seek this child. And are we agreed where we should look?’

  Balthazar spoke, saying that they should be searching in the Land of the Children of Israel, for it was among the Sons of King David that the child would be born. Melchior agreed, saying: ‘We must make our way to Judea, and enquire at the royal palace in Jerusalem, for there is surely our journey’s end.’

  The next morning, with the enthusiasm of Caspar as the spur to busy activity, the caravan set off towards Judea, to find the son of the royal house of David. The journey was long, and over difficult country, but most difficult of all was that the nearer they drew to Jerusalem, the more obscured by dark clouds the star constellation in the east became.

  Herod’s court

  It was the day upon which King Herod heard the pleas of the people, setting himself up in the seat of Solomon to pass judgment on those who came before him. His servant came to him quite discomposed in manner, nervous and flustered, to announce that three noblemen had arrived from far countries, seeking special audience with the king. Though normally at ease in his own surroundings, Herod felt a spasm of fear crush his heart for a second.

  ‘Who are they? What are they like? Bring me more information,’ he ordered his servant, who ran to do Herod’s bidding. During his absence, Herod felt the fear in his heart grow and recede, grow and recede with each heartbeat. At last the servant returned, apparently reassured.

  ‘They are three priests of the Fire Mysteries of their God, Ahura Mazdao; two from Saba, one from Morn. They look for your help, Your Majesty, in a matter that they feel you alone can arrange for them.’

  Herod’s fear gave way to simple curiosity. Here, then, was no threat; simply another opportunity to demonstrate his power and munificence. He gave orders for them to be admitted, and sat in his judgment seat, composing himself.

  The three entered, looking about them with interest. One, the eldest, the white-bearded man in blue, looked at Herod, and held back a little from the royal greetings, watching the King of Judea closely. It was Caspar who spoke for all three.

  ‘We are searching for the child who is born the King of the Jews, for we have seen his star rising in the eastern skies.’

  Herod’s expression betrayed his ignorance of the events that Caspar described. Caspar leaned forward, entreating the king to listen carefully to what he had to say.

  ‘And we have come to do Him homage and reverence in His own country,’ he concluded. Herod bowed, and excused himself for a minute or two, as he drew his servant aside, out of the hearing of the three.

  ‘What do we know of this? And why is it known to these foreigners? Why, above all, is it not known to me?’

  The servant was unable to answer, as much from fear of the king as his own ignorance in the matter. Herod whispered in his servant’s ear again.

  ‘Fetch me some priests who can tell me something of this, as quick as you can! Go!’

  The servant left, and Herod turned again to the three.

  ‘Sirs,’ he began, ‘I confess I know as little of the newly born king as you do yourselves. What can you tell me of him, and his star?’

  Caspar and Melchior told Herod as much as they could of the star, of what their scriptures, and others from other ancient traditions indicated of this child and His destiny. Balthazar kept as silent as he could, watching Herod with reserve. Herod asked particularly when the star appeared, and how long they could expect to see it in its present form, weighing their answers carefully. He kept the three at his palace for some days, asking them questions, and comparing their answers with what the priests that he had summoned had to say. The priests, he noticed, could only parrot what their scriptures said, and showed no penetration of their meaning, as opposed to these three foreign noblemen, who clearly understood what study and observation had revealed to them. What he did manage to glean from the priests, however, was that their parrotings of the prophets and the testimony of the three eastern noblemen agreed in the principal matter: a child was due to be born of the royal house of David, who would be a great king, and that the signs and portents indicated that His time was come.

  At last Herod dismissed the three, saying: ‘When you have found Him and offered Him your gifts, return and let us know where He is to be found, as we, too would welcome Him and do Him reverence.’

  No sooner had the three left Herod’s presence than the king began to rail and shout, roundly abusing his servants and household. Here was a threat to his crown, and it took a party of foreign priests to alert him to the fact. He paced the corridors of the royal palace, desperately trying to think of a way to deal with this menace. At last, he summoned the Captain of the Guard.

  The finding of the child

  Melchior spoke as the three made their way out of the city of Jerusalem: ‘Herod is not of the House of David. We must seek the descendants of Jesse, David and Solomon, for it is among them that we shall find the child.’

  A group of men went past, dressed all in white, unbleached clothes. These were members of the Essenes; devout people who generally maintained their existence apart from the world, in
communities that ate no flesh and drank no strong drink. Balthazar approached these men and began to question them as the shadows lengthened through the city and night began to fall. After a short conversation, he rejoined Caspar and Melchior.

  ‘We should make our way to Bethlehem, to the house of a pious and righteous man who is descended directly from Solomon, David and Jesse. His name is Joseph bar Jacob, and his wife has recently given birth to their son.’

  Bethlehem lay a little way south of the city of Jerusalem, and the nearer they drew to the small township, the brighter the star shone, now no longer obscured by the dark clouds. Once arrived in the town, they took their beasts to the stable of an inn; a cave hewn out of the rock for the purpose. Balthazar looked curiously at the hay-filled manger.

  ‘But this cannot be the place!’ he mused to himself, lost in his inner visions, until the others called him to join them in looking for the house of Joseph bar Jacob.

  It was Joseph bar Jacob himself who welcomed them into his house. He was a man of substance and proud bearing, though without the haughtiness that they had felt in the presence of Herod. Dismissing his servants, he led them himself into a room where his wife sat in measureless calm, with the child at her breast.

  It seemed to Caspar that the woman radiated a deep and penetrating warmth of soul, while Melchior, gazing at the child, felt that here was the source of all the light in the room. Indeed, he felt as though all the light of the world shone from this infant. Balthazar looked at the mother and the child and felt at once joy and sorrow. Compassion welled up in him for the child and His destiny.