About the Solemn Feast of the Epiphany
Among the wonderful stories about Jesus shared during the Masses of the Christmas season, probably none have inspired more Christmas card designs, art, hymns, legends and poetry than the Feast of the Epiphany. The dreamy vision of camel caravans carrying richly clad astrologers from the east, following a star and bearing their three symbolic gifts, sparks the depths of the human imagination. But there is much more here than just a beautiful story that is often forgotten once our manger sets with the Three Kings and their camels are packed away.
As most of you know, the word “epiphany” means a manifestation, illuminating discovery or disclosure. For Christians, the Great Epiphany we celebrate at this time of the year means that this infant born of the Virgin Mary in a manger in Bethlehem was revealed (manifested) as God’s Son (the Word Made Flesh). This great Gift was recognized as the Messiah, first by the poor (the Jewish shepherds) and then for all the nations (represented by the Gentile astrologers). These Gentiles acknowledged Jesus as the King of the Nations (the gift of gold), that He was a human who would taste death (the gift of myrrh—a spice used to anoint the dead) and that He was Divine (the gift of frankincense—lighted during prayers offered to God).
A very significant verse in the story can be found in Matthew 2: 1-12: “They returned to their country by another route.” Yes, they were warned not to report back to King Herod, but there is deeper significance here. Once encountering the Christ, things were not the same anymore. They could not return to their old lives anymore. This is hopefully true for all who encounter Christ and realize the gift He is to the world.
How we “see” life begins to change us … it is the journey of conversion. In his classic poem, The Journey of the Magi, T.S. Eliot reflects on the journey of these astrologers and how the encounter with the Lord changed them forever. As the poem nears conclusion, these kings note: “We returned to our places, these Kingdoms, But no longer at ease here, in the old dispensation…”
Actually, there are many “epiphanies” in the Gospels. During the Christmas season, we celebrate the Nativity of Christ (a manifestation, or epiphany, of the Word made Flesh), the promised Messiah of God’s chosen people, the Jews, and the Feast of the Epiphany itself (the manifestation of the Messiah for the entire world—Jew and Gentile alike).
Another epiphany story, which formally brings the Christmas season to a close, is the Feast of the Baptism of the Lord, when Jesus is baptized in the Jordan River by John the Baptist. As He emerges from the water, a voice from heaven declares Jesus as God’s beloved Son.
Yet another epiphany story is that of the Wedding Feast at Cana (John 2:1-12). Jesus works His first miracle by turning water into wine. He is thereby manifested, revealed, to be God’s chosen one. These four epiphany stories are reflected in a popular hymn, Songs of Thankfulness and Praise, by Jakob Hintze and Christopher Woodsworth, that includes a melodic recounting of these and other epiphany moments in the life and ministry of Christ.
By the time the Church celebrates Epiphany, many decorations are already taken down and packed away. We go back to life as it was, almost relieved it’s all over.
But we shouldn’t be returning to the same way of living! Encounters with Christ, the celebration of His Nativity and Epiphany, should be helping us to renew our Christian commitment—to live our baptismal call to active discipleship. In each epiphany moment of Christ’s life, those encountering Jesus were somehow changed—whether it was the shepherds at the manger, the Magi, the observers of His baptism at the Jordon River or the wedding guests at Cana. Our encounters with the Lord during the Christmas season should renew us as well, as we enter this new year of 2025.
