As the children of the English speaking world wait for Santa Claus, in Mexico and the Spanish speaking Catholic world, they wait for Melchor, Gaspar, and Baltazar’s arrival on January 6
The holidays aren’t over on New Year’s day in Mexico. Children wait excitedly for the arrival of the “Three Kings” who come bearing gifts. They leave the gifts early on the morning of January 6, the day that Catholics celebrate the Three Kings.
These mysterious characters are mentioned in the Bible story about the birth of Jesus; the mystery lies in how they got there by following the star of Bethlehem to see the newborn king of the Jews. Upon seeing him they knelt down and offered him three gifts: gold because of his title as king, incense recognizing his divinity, and myrrh, alluding to his future crucifixion.
Although the Bible doesn’t mention that they were kings, nor that there were three of them, every January 6 we celebrate Melchor, Gaspar, and Baltazar, the Three Kings represented riding on a camel, a horse, and an elephant. They bring toys to all the children who were good throughout the year, in remembrance of the gifts they brought to Baby Jesus.
On this day, following the tradition brought from Spain, family and friends are invited to share the rosca de Reyes, a sweet bread with dried, candied fruits. Inside the rosca is a “lucky charm”, in tiny plastic (or porcelain) figurine in the shape of a baby, alluding to Baby Jesus. The person who gets the slice of the rosca with the doll is considered to have good luck in the coming year and also has the obligation to host a party on February 2, the Feast of Candelaria and provide all the guests with tamales.
