Epiphany is an ancient celebration in the Church Year.
The first certain reference to it was made by Clement of Alexandria in about
the year 200. He reports that it is
already an established festival. (He also writes about Jesus’ birth, “there are
those who have determined not only the year of our Lord's birth, but also the
day; and they say that it took place in the twenty-eighth year of Augustus, and
in the twenty-fifth day of Pachon..”)
By the year 385 Epiphany had become a major eight day
festival in Jerusalem. On Epiphany Eve (January 5) a procession left Jerusalem
for Bethlehem and returned the following morning for an elaborate service. A
woman who attended the procession and service writes, “It would be superfluous
to describe the adornment … of the church … on that day; you see nothing but
gold and gems and silk. For if you look at the veils, they are made wholly of
silk striped with gold, and if you look at the curtains, they too are made
wholly of silk striped with gold. The church vessels too, of every kind, gold
and jeweled, are brought out on that day, and indeed, who could either reckon
or describe the number and weight of the candles or of the lamps or of the
lanterns …”
The nightly procession from Jerusalem to Bethlehem and
back continued for each of the eight days with the morning service taking place
at a different location in Jerusalem each day.
Why would the early Church make Epiphany such an
elaborate celebration? They were rejoicing in the wonderful message that Jesus
is not only a man but God incarnate. The coming of the wise men, the words
“This is my beloved Son” at Jesus’ baptism, and Jesus’ miracles such as turning
water into wine all point to this awe inspiring truth. This is the truth that
God’s only-begotten Son became flesh and dwelt among us. This is the truth that God’s only-begotten
Son died on the cross and rose again from the dead for our salvation.
Pastor Quardokus
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