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Epiphany
January 6 is the
Feast of the Epiphany.
Epiphany means “showing
forth,” and the feast
commemorates the first showing
forth of Christ to the world,
when His presence was revealed
to the Magi.
In the season of Epiphany we
also remember the revelation of
Christ to John the Baptist, to
the disciples, and to all
Christians; remember Christ’s
baptism and our own, together
with the ways in which Christ
was revealed to humankind,
especially in the healing
miracles; ponder the ways in
which we ourselves are called to
bring Christ to the world.
The predominant symbol of the
season is Light—the light from
the Star of Bethlehem and the
Light of Christ spreading
throughout the world. The
liturgical color of Epiphany is
green. The number of Sundays in
the Epiphany season varies from
four to nine according to the
date of Easter Sunday (which is
a movable feast derived from the
lunar calendar).
The Eastern
Orthodox celebrate both Christ's
birth and His Epiphany on
January 6. The epiphany (or "theophany"
as they choose to call it) they
emphasize, however, is Christ's
baptism.
Epiphany
is worth celebrating because,
regardless of which epiphany is
commemorated (the event of the
magi or Christ's baptism), all
are permeated with grace and
Gospel. In what sense? In the
sense that in every epiphany,
God took the initiative. In
other words, God did not demand
that we discover on our own who
Jesus of Nazareth is. He
condescended to us and revealed
Jesus to us in ways that we
could understand. He sought out
the magi and revealed Jesus'
Person and Mission to them
through the star and Scripture.
They never could have discovered
this on their own if He hadn't
revealed it by grace. He had
mercy on John the Baptist and
others at the Jordan on the day
of Jesus' baptism. No one there
on that day could have possibly
perceived the true identity of
Jesus as John baptized Him. But
God condescended to them and
allowed them to hear and see the
testimony of the Father and the
Spirit. Once again, God took the
initiative by His grace and
revealed Jesus as eternal God as
well as man.
Remembering the Epiphany reminds
us that we also have been sought
out. God has come looking for us
through His Word and Sacraments.
Through these He has revealed
His Son to us personally, so
that through faith we know Jesus
to be the mighty God, the Savior
of the world; and we believe Him
to be our God and our Savior.
Have a blessed Epiphany
celebration!
Adapted from: Pastor
Richard P. Bucher, Evangelical
Trinity Lutheran Church, Clinton
MA
Resources on the web for Epiphany:
Anglicans Online:
http://anglicansonline.org/special/Epiphany/epiphany.html
Textweek:
http://www.textweek.com/epiphany.htm
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