A Little "Secret" About Epiphany
Did you know that the great Solemnity of the Epiphany actually celebrates three mysteries?
In the Western Church, we are most familiar with Epiphany as a celebration of the Magi coming to visit the Christ Child. In the Eastern Church, however, this feast primarily commemorates the Baptism of the Lord. And if you look at the antiphons for today’s Liturgy of the Hours, you find a THIRD mystery mentioned: the Wedding Feast at Cana! (Sharp-eyed singers might also notice the three mysteries listed in the Epiphany hymn “Songs of Thankfulness and Praise”!)
So why link these three seemingly disconnected events in the life of Christ? The answer is simple: each one is a revelation, an epiphany, of Christ. (The Greek word “epiphany” literally means “appearance.”) The visit of the Wise Men represents His first revelation to the Gentiles; the event of the Baptism contains the Father’s proclamation “This is My Beloved Son”; and the Wedding at Cana is the first public miracle of Jesus, which “manifested His glory” and caused His disciples to begin believing in Him.
As a little prayer exercise on this beautiful feast, why not spend some time thinking of the “epiphanies” of Christ in your own life? When Has He made Himself known to you in a new ways?
“Today the Bridegroom claims his bride, the Church,
Since Christ has washed her sins away in Jordan’s waters;
The Magi hasten with their gifts to the royal wedding;
And the wedding guests rejoice, for Christ has changed water into wine.
Alleluia!”
“Three mysteries mark this holy day:
Today the star leads the Magi to the infant Christ;
Today water is changed into wine for the wedding feast;
Today Christ wills to be baptized by John in the river Jordan to bring us salvation.”