Theophany

Theophany
by Sarah McKee (Jan. '01)

January 6th is the feast day of Theophany. It was one of the first feast days of the early church.

Originally the feast of  Theophany included the birth of Christ, the adoration of the Magi and his presentation into the temple. Separate feast days were not adopted until the fourth century.

Now the feast day celebrates the baptism of Jesus Christ by John the Baptist in the Jordan River. It is especially significant because it is commemorating the first appearance of the Holy Trinity in the New Testament. The Holy Trinity appeared to Abraham and Sarah in the Old Testament, and announced the birth of Isaac, the long awaited son who was the start of the nation of Israel.

The Greek meaning of the word Theophany is "the appearance of God." Epiphany in Greek means "to show forth" or "to manifest." That is why these two words are used interchangeably for this feast of the Orthodox Church. The feast day is tied to the baptism which is our initiation to the Christian family. (Do you know anyone named Tiffany? It is the anglicized version of Theophany!)

Now the main feature of this feast is the Great Blessing of Water. In the ancient Church, there were two blessings: one for the blessing of water intended for baptism and the other of outside bodies of water. This was the Christian imitating the custom of the Christians in Jerusalem who went to the Jordan River to celebrate the feast.

"And Jesus, when He was baptized, went up straightway out of the water, and lo, the heavens were opened up to Him, and He saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove, and lighting upon him. And lo, a voice from heaven, saying, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased." (Matthew 3:16-17)

In St. John Chrysostom's Homilies, he stated, "The heavens were opened to show us that our baptism will open the heavens for us. God is made accessible to us. We can know the Unknowable. We can be changed. A good work is done in us, and we have the means to have the promise fulfilled in us."