Epiphany among Western Christians (06/01)

Feast of Epiphany (Greek. Θεοφάνια), along with Easter and Pentecost, is the oldest Christian holiday. It is dedicated to the birth of Jesus Christ and the events that accompanied it, and is celebrated by the Roman Catholic Church on January 6. The older name of this holiday is — Phenomenon (Greek). Επιφάνια — Epiphany).

The Feast of Epiphany entered the church calendar in the middle of the 2nd century and was first celebrated along with the Nativity of Christ (the Armenian Church still adheres to this tradition) and with the Baptism of Jesus in the Jordan. In the 4th century, the celebration of Christmas by the Catholic Church was moved to December 25, and the Feast of Epiphany retained the previous date — on January 6.

Subsequently, the meaning of the holiday acquired different meanings in Orthodoxy and Catholicism. Thus, in Orthodoxy, the holiday of Epiphany was increasingly linked in meaning with Epiphany, and in Catholicism — with the evangelical events after Christmas, mainly by the worship of the Magi. Epiphany is celebrated on the Sunday after Epiphany.

And currently, among Catholics, the central content of the Feast of Epiphany is the church legend about the worship of the baby Jesus by the pagan kings — magicians Caspar, Melchior and Belshazzar, who came with gifts to Bethlehem. Therefore, the Feast of Epiphany was also called Festum magorum (Feast of the Magi) or Festum regum (Feast of Kings).

In memory of the appearance of Christ to the pagans and the worship of the three kings, prayer services of gratitude are performed in churches: gold is sacrificed to Christ as a king, as incense to God, as to man — myrrh.

The celebration of Epiphany includes attending a solemn mass in the church and a family dinner after midnight by the fireplace with a «Christmas log». According to Western tradition, on the day of Epiphany, incense and chalk are consecrated in churches, with which believers write the initial letters of the names of the Magi at the entrance to their homes: «K+M+V». They believe that these letters drive away evil forces and evil thoughts from the home and from the well-being of the family living in it. Chalk is stored all year, just like water among Orthodox Christians. There is still a tradition of burning fires — «epiphanian lights», illuminating the «path of the Magi».

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