Decolonising wisdom: Re-reading the Magi as professional knowers beyond Israel in Matthew 2:1–12

Abstract

This article offers a decolonial rereading of the Magi in Matthew 2:1–12 as legitimate professional knowers whose epistemic authority is affirmed within the biblical text. Often regarded as marginal figures, the Magi nonetheless play a decisive role by recognising Christ’s birth through disciplined cosmological knowledge, even before Jerusalem’s elites do. Drawing on decolonial theory, postcolonial biblical interpretation and epistemic justice, the study critiques dominant Israel-centred epistemologies that marginalise non-Israelite and Indigenous knowledge. It argues that Matthew presents the Magi as trained experts whose ways of knowing are guided, not rejected, by divine revelation. In dialogue with African and Basotho epistemologies, the article shows that epistemic plurality is intrinsic to scripture. The Magi thus challenge theological monopolies and open space for Indigenous knowledges as partners in contemporary theology and religious education. This rereading calls for inclusive pedagogies that honour epistemic diversity and foster intercultural dialogue. The study contributes to decolonial biblical scholarship by demonstrating how both scripturally affirmed and theologically necessary forms of epistemic plurality challenge inherited monopolies of theological authority.
Contribution: This article advances decolonial biblical scholarship by reframing the Magi in Matthew 2:1–12 as divinely affirmed professional knowers. It foregrounds epistemic plurality within the biblical text and brings this insight into dialogue with African, particularly Basotho, epistemologies.