The Theophany of Our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ
January 6 (Julian calendar); January 19
Dates follow the calendar tradition used by this project. Parishes using the new calendar celebrate fixed feasts on different civil dates.
Theophany, also called the Baptism of the Lord, celebrates Christ’s Baptism by Saint John the Forerunner. The feast proclaims the revelation of the Holy Trinity and invites the faithful to remember the grace of their own Baptism.
Meaning of the feast
Theophany commemorates the Baptism of the Lord Jesus Christ in the Jordan by Saint John the Forerunner. The Gospel accounts describe the Father speaking from heaven concerning the Son, the Son receiving Baptism, and the Holy Spirit descending upon Him in the form of a dove. For this reason, the feast reveals the mystery of the Holy Trinity: one God in three Persons—Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. From ancient times it has also been called the Day of Illumination and the Feast of Lights. God, who is Light, appeared to enlighten those in darkness and to save fallen humanity by grace.
History and Church witness
The feast’s origin reaches back to Apostolic times, and it is mentioned in the Apostolic Constitutions. From the second century comes Saint Clement of Alexandria’s testimony to the celebration of the Lord’s Baptism and a night vigil before the feast. A third-century dialogue concerning services for Theophany is associated with the holy martyr Hippolytus and Saint Gregory the Wonderworker. Between the fourth and ninth centuries, major Fathers including Gregory the Theologian, John Chrysostom, Ambrose of Milan, and John of Damascus wrote about the feast. Joseph the Studite, Theophanes, and Byzantios composed liturgical hymns still sung in Orthodox worship.
Spiritual meaning today
Saint John of Damascus taught that Christ was baptized not because He needed cleansing, but to fulfill the Law, reveal the Holy Trinity, sanctify the nature of water, and offer the pattern of Baptism. In the ancient Church, catechumens were baptized at the Vespers of Theophany; Baptism was thus shown as humanity’s spiritual illumination. The feast calls Christians to confess and glorify the undivided Trinity, to give thanks for the illumination and cleansing received in holy Baptism, and to preserve this gift through a faithful life. It reminds believers that salvation and cleansing from sin come through the grace of the Holy Spirit. All foods are permitted on the feast, even when it falls on Wednesday or Friday.
In the Bible
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Sources: Orthodox Church in America