We’ll start with those in the foreground, in and around the stable. Some of the people in this crowd are clearly part of the Magi’s retinue, but others seem to be locals, just intrigued to find out what these extraordinary visitors have come to see. They are crammed together so tightly, straining forward to get a better look, that it almost looks dangerous. Some of the crowd have found their way into the stable and peer out of the door and window.
This little group appears as a motif in other Medieval and Renaissance painting, and they may symbolise those who are, or consider themselves to be, “insiders”, Jewish religious and secular leaders, who assumed they would have privileged access to the Messiah. Hieronymus Bosch’s “Adorationof the Magi” now in Madrid, shows a figure in exactly the same pose as Brueghel’s, peering round the doorway, but he is half-naked, and dressed as a sort of parody of a king. Brueghel’s message is less pointed, but these figures straining to be near the action do lead us to reflect on the fickle nature of crowds, which surrounded Jesus throughout his earthly ministry, and the mixed motivation people may have for being part of them. They invite us to ask ourselves whether we might sometimes think we “own” God’s story and have a right to tell others how to interpret and understand it.
For Reflection
And great crowds followed him from Galilee, the
Decapolis, Jerusalem, Judea, and from beyond the Jordan. Matthew 4.25
Have you ever turned out to see a celebrity or for a
special event? What was it like being part of the crowd? Look at the faces of
the people in this crowd. Why do you think each of them is there?
The whole picture:
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