Epiphany

Baptism of Christ

Epiphany

January 6

 Troparion for the Baptism of Christ

"At your Baptism in the Jordan, O Lord, the worship of the Trinity was revealed; for the Father’s voice bore witness to You by calling you His ‘Beloved Son’, and the Spirit in the form of a dove confirmed the truth of these words, Christ God. You appeared and enlightened the world. Glory be to you."

    Today, we celebrate the Baptism of Christ, which is also called Epiphany or Theophany, on January 6. Originally, the Feast of Epiphany also included the celebration of Christ’s birth; the visit of the wise men, and Christ’s presentation to the temple. It was not until the 4^th century that the Church decided to separate these feast days. The baptism of Christ and the birth of Christ were celebrated together because they both shared the same meaning: God revealing Himself, once as a child, and once at His baptism.

    Today we celebrate the Baptism of Christ by John the Baptist, in the River Jordan on January 6. The main feature of this feast is the Great Blessing of Water. Today the priest blesses the water in a special service at the end of Divine Liturgy. Special hymns are sung including hymns which are heard at Baptisms. After the service, the priest sprinkles all the people in the church with blessed water and offers water, the symbol of life, to the faithful in containers to take home to bless their homes or to save for times of trouble and illness.

   The Feast of the Baptism of Christ celebrates the first appearance of the Trinity – Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. In Greek, Theophany means "the appearance of God" and Epiphany means "to show" or make happen. Since God appeared in the form of the Holy Trinity on Christ’s Baptism Day, we also call this feast Epiphany or Theophany.

Read the story of Christ’s Baptism in Mark 1: 1- 11.

    The celebration of the Feast of Epiphany or Theophany reminds us of our Baptism, or rebirth in Christ. Baptism was the first sacrament we received when we became a member of the Christian Church.