EVE OF THE THEOPHANY

The Feast of the Theophany, which is also called the Baptism of the Lord, is celebrated by the Russian Orthodox Church on January 19. On the same day, Epiphany is celebrated by the Serbian, Georgian, Jerusalem, Polish Orthodox Churches, as well as on Mount Athos. All of them adhere to the Julian calendar in their liturgical practice. Therefore the preliminary celebration of this holiday, which in the language of the liturgical charter is called “forefeast”, begins already on January 15. The day before the holiday, the Eve of the Baptism of the Lord or Theophany Eve, has a special solemnity. Second only to Easter in its duration, the Feast of the Theophany lasts for nine whole days and ends on January 27 with the Leavetaking. Such details often go unnoticed by believers. However, it is precisely they that allow us to understand the meaning and importance of this or that holiday for the life of the Church.

Figuratively speaking, we can say that the Lord gave His Church, as a Society of Believers, the Feast of the Theophany. In deep Christian antiquity, this was the first holiday after Easter that actually united all the celebrations and meanings, except for the events of the Glory of the Cross and the Resurrection.

After all, neither the Nativity of Christ nor other great days of remembrance of the Lord’s deeds, except for the “little Easter” of Sundays, were celebrated yet. The fact is that the early Christians called the days of remembrance, that is, the martyrdom of martyrs, “birthdays”. In this context, the true “Nativity of Jesus” would be “Good Friday”! So, it was Epiphany that united everything that God revealed for our salvation in Christ Jesus in history. The Lord appeared, revealing a multitude of meanings. All of them, some more obviously, some less, are celebrated and continue to be celebrated in Epiphany.

“Today You have shown forth to the world, O Lord, and the light of Your countenance has been marked on us. Knowing You, we sing Your praises. You have come and revealed Yourself, O unapproachable Light,” - is sung in one of the main hymns of this holiday, its kontakion. It is interesting that the Fathers of the Church and their contemporaries literally called the Roman Empire the “ecumene,” or “the Universe”, with which they then identified the inhabited civilized world. The manifestation of light, reason, the gift of the ability to praise and sing to God, whom we know through Revelation, became an important component of the Epiphany celebration. Over time, with the advent of Christmas and other celebrations, one of the most important themes of the Epiphany in Orthodoxy became the baptism of the Lord Jesus by John in the Jordan, His coming out to preach, while in Western Christianity the main theme was the adoration of the Magi.

“When You, O Lord were baptized in the Jordan the worship of the Trinity was made manifest, for the voice of the Father bore witness to You and called You His beloved Son. And the Spirit, in the form of a dove, confirmed the truthfulness of His word. O Christ, our God, You have revealed Yourself and have enlightened the world, glory to You,” is sung in the main hymn of the holiday, the troparion. It is important that in ancient times the holiday was also called Enlightenment, or the Day of Lights. At the Liturgy, instead of the Trisagion hymn, another hymn is sung, which is a short early Christian confession of faith, cited in the Epistle to the Galatians by Apostle Paul: “For as many of you as were baptized into Christ have clothed yourself with Christ” (Gal. 3:26). Obviously, in ancient times, when the Nativity of Christ was not yet celebrated, but only the Day of the Theophany, baptism of those coming to baptism was performed. Hence the name of the holiday, associated with light.

Like Easter and Christmas, on the eve of the day of the Epiphany, depending on the day of the week on which the celebration falls, it may be the Eve of the Feast, or the preceding day, a special service called the “Royal Hours” is held in the church. Historians of worship tell us that this service received its name because the Byzantine Emperor himself once attended the service in Constantinople. The usual service of the hours, the first, third, sixth and ninth, is of an everyday nature. In some Local Orthodox Churches, it is generally read by believers independently at home. Unlike the usual ones, the Royal Hours contain special festive hymns, at each of the hours a biblical Old Testament prophecy about the meaning of the holiday is read, as well as the Apostle and the Gospel, and therefore the incensing of the church is performed. Therefore, it is possible that the name “Royal” is associated not only and so much with the presence of the emperor, but with the special, biblical character of this exceptional service, which believers, unfortunately, often simply miss, especially if it is celebrated separately, without the liturgy. According to the charter, the liturgy is not celebrated if the Epiphany falls on Sunday, and the Royal Hours are sung separately on Friday.

At the very beginning of the Gospel of Mark, chapter 1, verses 9-11, which are the shortest of the Gospel readings dedicated to the Baptism of the Lord, it says how “Jesus came from Nazareth of Galilee and was baptized by John in the Jordan” (1:9). “And as he came up out of the water, immediately John saw the heavens opening, and the Spirit like a dove descending upon him” (10). The baptism of the Lord Jesus meant His coming to preach, His appearance as the Messiah, the beginning of His public ministry. He came to gather a New People, a Church chosen by Himself, which until the end of history will be called to gather “those who believe in Him as King and God,” as it is said in the Orthodox sacrament of baptism.

“And a voice came from heaven: You are My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased” (11). In the Baptism of the Lord, the Holy Spirit descends upon Him from the Father and God, His personal Pentecost is celebrated, as a sign of the beginning of His public ministry, and, at the same time, as a prophetic indication of what will happen to the Holy Apostles, Mary, and the disciples after His death on the Cross and Resurrection, when the Holy Spirit will descend, thus signifying the birth of the Church. Thus, the Feast of the Theophany becomes part of Holy Easter and the manifestation of the Spirit of God at Pentecost. Finally, this is an eschatological holiday of the last times, and a prophecy pointing to the Lord Jesus, and allowing us to imagine a wonderful future in Jesus for each person and all people.