The text (2.1) says that they came from the east (ἀπὸ ἀνατολῶν) while no exact place of origin is named, the phrase may refer to Persia or Babylon.
Since in this text the Magi direct their attention to the rising of a star it seems evident that we are to take them to be professional astrologers. The portrayal of the Magi in Matt 2.1-12 is remarkably positive there is no hint of explicit or implicit criticism of them in this pericope. Celles-ci fournissent autant d’indices de l’ambivalence de l’attitude chrétienne face à l’astrologie.
Cet article examine les thèmes des Mages et de l’étoile en Matthieu 2,1-12, ainsi qu’un certain nombre d’exégèses anciennes de la péricope. Les interprétations de la péricope matthéenne permettent de prendre la mesure de ces opinions divergentes. Certains auteurs chrétiens de l’époque répudiaient absolument l’astrologie alors que d’autres cherchaient à l’accommoder jusqu’à un certain point aux croyances et aux pratiques chrétiennes. Ces réactions reflètent, chez les premiers chrétiens, une diversité d’attitudes envers l’astrologie, qui était un aspect fondamental et omniprésent de la religion et de la culture gréco-romaines. La péricope matthéenne (2,1-12) sur les Mages et l’étoile de Bethléem a suscité des réactions variées chez les commentateurs chrétiens du ii e au v e siècle. This paper examines the motifs of the Magi and of the star in Matthew 2.1-12 as well as a number of early Christian interpretations of the pericope as evidence of a pattern of ambivalence in early Christian attitudes toward Greco-Roman astrology.
Interpretations of the Matthean pericope offer an index to the range of such views. Some early Christian writers repudiated astrology absolutely, while others sought to grant it some degree of accommodation to Christian beliefs and practices. These responses reflect a range of attitudes among the early Christians towards astrology, which was a fundamental and pervasive aspect of ancient Greco-Roman religion and culture. The Matthean pericope (2.1-12) of the Magi and the star of Bethlehem prompted a variety of responses among early Christian commentators of the second to the fifth centuries.