Happy Feast of the Epiphany!

Adoration of the Magi, by Domenico Ghirlandaio, 1488

The feast of manifestation, or Epiphany, is traditionally celebrated the 12th day after Christmas, January 6th. In the dioceses of the United States this feast has been moved to the Sunday between January 2 and January 8.

Epiphany is Greek for "to manifest" or "to show ". The Feast of the Epiphany marks the first manifestation of the birth of Christ to the Gentiles. The Three Kings – Melchor, Gaspar, and Balthazar — had come from the East in search of the Christ child.

The Three Kings, also known as the Magi or the Wise Men, brought with them gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh – gold signifying that Jesus is King; frankincense, the symbol of prayer, signifying that Jesus is the Son of God, and myrrh, which is used to anoint the dead, signifying that Jesus would die for the salvation of all.

Deacon Greg Kandra shares an inspiring homily on this special feast day.

"If the Magi had come in search of an earthly King, they would have been disconcerted at finding that they had taken the trouble to come such a long way for nothing. Consequently they would have neither adored nor offered gifts. But since they sought a heavenly King, though they found in Him no signs of royal pre-eminence, yet, content with the testimony of the star alone, they adored: for they saw a man, and they acknowledged a God."

~St. John Chrysostom

A Reflection for Epiphany



Music for this Feast Day

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Comments

  1. LuisLiviaLuisa1/4/09, 8:01 PM

    Nice Videos!

    A Holy and Happy Feast of the Epiphany!
    I invite you to listen a special episode of the podcast “Levántate y Sal a Caminar…” ( this week in an English version) dedicated to the Feast of the Epiphany of the Lord.
    32 minutes of Christmas carols in many languages, meditations and more…
    Jesus loves you and Mary too.
    Luisa from Lima - Peru
    You can listen to it in: http://levantateysalacaminar.podomatic.com
    “God is shining forth in the most unwanted and unsuspected places…” St. Anthony Messenger

    ReplyDelete

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