Christian Holidays · Epiphany and after
Epiphany
Three Kings' Day: the visit of the Magi, and in the East the baptism of Jesus.
When: 6 January (in some countries the Sunday after 1 January); 19 January in Eastern churches that keep the Julian calendar
Origin and history
Epiphany means 'appearing' or 'showing'. In Western churches the feast remembers mainly the visit of the Magi, the wise men from the East who brought gifts to the Christ Child, seen as Christ being shown to the Gentiles (the non-Jewish world). Eastern churches call the feast Theophany and remember chiefly the baptism of Jesus in the River Jordan. The feast also recalls the wedding at Cana, where the Gospel of John records Jesus's first miracle. In many Western churches the evening before, 5 January, is Twelfth Night.
Customs
- Chalking the door: in parts of central Europe a priest blesses chalk, and families write the initials of the three Magi, traditionally named Caspar, Melchior and Balthasar, above the door with the year.
- Eating a Three Kings cake, and in some places Epiphany singing and house blessings.
- In Italian folklore an old woman called the Befana brings gifts to children on Epiphany.
- Orthodox churches perform the Great Blessing of Waters, sometimes at rivers or the sea.
How traditions differ
In the West the emphasis is on the Magi, and the feast is sometimes called Little Christmas; in the East it is above all the feast of the baptism of Jesus. Churches on the Julian calendar keep it on what is 19 January in the civil calendar.
In the library
Works: Journey of the Magi · The Bible
Great Lives: T. S. Eliot
More in Epiphany and after
Sources checked: Epiphany (holiday) (Wikipedia).