Epiphany – a (nearly) unknown celebration
The date lost its status to the 25th of December. And it actually doesn’t have all that much to do with kings either, because the 6th of January belongs in a context all its own.
The feast of Epiphany is celebrated in many churches on 6 January. Epiphany is a Greek word which means “appearing” or “manifestation”, and this refers to the appearing of God in Jesus Christ.
Until the middle of the fourth century, the birth of Jesus was commemorated on 6 January, but in the ensuing period, this date was replaced by the 25th of December. In pre-Christian Rome, the festival of Sol Invictus—”the invincible sun”—was celebrated on this day.
A return to the past
From then on, the festival of Epiphany faded into the background in the Western Church, while the 6th (or 7th) of January remained the day when the birth of Jesus Christ was commemorated in the Eastern Church, that is, within the Orthodox Churches. In the Catholic Apostolic Church and in the early New Apostolic Church, divine services were held on Epiphany or in the immediate vicinity of this date—in a practice similar to that of the Catholic Church and most Protestant churches.
For several years now, the New Apostolic Church has again commemorated the feast of Epiphany with divine services. On the one hand, it serves as an opportunity to reflect on the Christmas event, the incarnation of God, and on the other hand, the festival marks the end of the Christmas season in the New Apostolic church year.
Why kings?
The popular name for the feast of the appearing is “Epiphany”. However, this also commemorates the visit of the wise men from the East to the baby Jesus, as described in Matthew 2: 1–12. The wise men were actually astrologers, or Magi. In the legendary version of this biblical story, these Magi are transformed into kings, no doubt in order to augment the significance of their visit.
Beyond that, this was likely a reference to Psalm 72, which speaks of the king of Judah—an image for the Messiah—to whom even the kings of the Gentiles would come to pay homage: “The kings of Tarshish and of the isles will bring presents; the kings of Sheba and Seba will offer gifts. Yes, all kings shall fall down before Him; all nations shall serve Him” (verses 10 and 11).
The threefold number of these kings is inspired by the gifts which the wise men bring to the divine child, namely gold, frankincense, and myrrh. These gifts are precious and worthy of a king, and thus constitute a reference to the royal and divine status of the child.
Jesus, the Light
The account of the wise men from the East incorporates some essential elements that refer to the nature and mission of Jesus, which come to expression in the feast of Epiphany:
Light plays an important role in the Christmas message. In the Christmas story according to Luke, it is reported that “the glory of the Lord shone” all around the shepherds in the field (Luke 2: 9b). Light is a sign of the presence of the divine—for example, the star that the wise men follow leads them to the place where God makes His appearing to humankind.
The wise men are not Jews. They are Gentiles who set out to find the child, and once they reach Judea they ask: “Where is He who has been born King of the Jews? For we have seen His star in the East and have come to worship Him [or: to pay homage to Him].” These wise men remind us that the Son of God not only became human for the people of Israel, but for all peoples. The fact that people from non-Jewish traditions showed their devotion to the “King of the Jews” can be understood as an early reference to the later Christian mission to the Gentiles and the conversion of many Gentiles to the gospel of Jesus Christ.
Filled with divinity
The star leads the wise men to Jesus. They go into the house and find Mary and the child there. The behaviour of the wise men towards the child is symbolic: they “fell down and worshipped Him” (Matthew 2: 11a).
Within the Jewish context, only God is worthy of worship. The worship of the Magi—who kneeled before Jesus and prayed to Him—expresses the realisation that God is present in the child. The baby Jesus—not only the Man Jesus—is filled with divinity, He is true Man and true God.
When we celebrate Epiphany, we profess that Jesus Christ is “the only begotten Son of God […] Light of Light, very God of very God” (Creed of Nicaea-Constantinople). He is the presence of God in the world and calls upon people of all nations to follow Him.
Photo: Donald – stock.adobe.com