"A cold coming we had of it, just the worse time of the year". So begins T.S. Elliot's famous poem Journey of the Magi which imagines the journey of the wise men, or three kings, to Bethlehem. The wise men get only a brief mention in the Bible, but down the centuries people have seen their journey as a symbol of the journey of faith through life. They have inspired countless poems, paintings and music. The wise men stepped into the unknown, leaving behind the comforts of home and the security of what is familiar. So their journey was like any pilgrimage, whether a long journey or a visit to a local religious building. For Christians, the wise men's arrival in Bethlehem (known as the Epiphany) shows that God welcomes all people. The wise men were foreigners and strangers but they offered their gifts to Jesus. The season of Epiphany lasts through the coldest time of the year until Candlemas (2nd February) and like the wise men, all people are welcome at St. Edmundsbury Cathedral