179 Today Is January 6th. The Day Marking The Epiphany of Our Lord

   (Note: This blog entry is based on the text for “Today is January 6^th The Day Marking The Epiphany of Our Lord”, originally shared on January 6, 2022. It was the 179^th video for our YouTube Channel, Streams of Living Water (https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCB7KnYS1bpHKaL2OseQWCnw), co-produced with my wife, Rev. Sally Welch.) 

   Today is January 6^th, the day marking the Epiphany of Our Lord in the Church Year.

   Today we will focus on the meaning of this day, and we hope that you will share its meaning widely, and why we celebrate it, so that the insurrection at our capital on January 6^th last year doesn’t overshadow one of the greatest events in human history.

   Toward this end, this blog is subtly titled, “Today is January 6^th, The Day Marking the Epiphany of Our Lord”. 😊

   Have you ever seen a cartoon character thinking really hard? They think. And they think. And then an idea comes.

   And what appears over their head? A beaming light bulb!

   That’s an epiphany. A solution to a problem suddenly comes. It’s made manifest. It’s like light shining in the darkness.

   Today is a day of celebrating the light that is Jesus and his manifestation of hope for the whole world. It’s one of the oldest festivals of the Christian Church, as old as Christmas and Easter.

   The world will take little note of it. Many will remember it only as the date of last year’s civil insurrection, one of the worst days in United States history.

   We mark it as the end of Christmas . Or do we? This is very confusing to me, but here’s what I think it is. The day of the Epiphany of Our Lord happens every year on January 6^th and is the end of Christmas. But it’s not one of the 12 days of the Christmas. It’s the day of the Epiphany of Our Lord. The season of Epiphany is the time after the day of the Epiphany of Our Lord and continues until Ash Wednesday, the beginning of Lent. Clear? No.

   Advent is preparation. Christmas is the event itself. And Epiphany is the season in the Christmas Cycle of reflection on what it means that God became manifest in Jesus Christ.

   The season of Epiphany is about the manifestations of Jesus, or the events that clearly show who Jesus is. In the next 8 weeks, we’ll hear about Jesus’ baptism, his first miracle, his miraculous healing, his calling of his disciples, his proclaiming the reign of God, and his Transfiguration. His manifestation.

   If you’ve ever sung the hymn “Songs of Thankfulness and Praise”, you’ve sung a list of them, including these:

Songs of thankfulness and praise, Jesus, Lord, to thee we raise;

Manifested by the star to the sages from afar,

Branch of royal David’s stem in thy birth at Bethlehem:

Anthems be to thee addressed, God in flesh made manifest.

   The day of the Epiphany of Our Lord, today, focuses on the magi, or wise men, or sages, who were the first gentiles, or non-Jews, to whom Jesus, the Jewish Messiah, descended from King David as the prophets foretold, was made manifest, signaling the gift of God in Jesus Christ for all people. The star that the wise men followed in order to find him is a manifestation of Jesus, the light of the world.

   We read about it in Matthew 2:1-12, the Gospel Reading for today,

2 In the time of King Herod, after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea, wise men from the East came to Jerusalem, ² asking, “Where is the child who has been born king of the Jews? For we observed his star at its rising, and have come to pay him homage.” ³ When King Herod heard this, he was frightened, and all Jerusalem with him; ⁴ and calling together all the chief priests and scribes of the people, he inquired of them where the Messiah was to be born. ⁵ They told him, “In Bethlehem of Judea; for so it has been written by the prophet:

⁶ ‘And you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah,
    are by no means least among the rulers of Judah;
for from you shall come a ruler
    who is to shepherd my people Israel.’”

⁷ Then Herod secretly called for the wise men and learned from them the exact time when the star had appeared. ⁸ Then he sent them to Bethlehem, saying, “Go and search diligently for the child; and when you have found him, bring me word so that I may also go and pay him homage.” ⁹ When they had heard the king, they set out; and there, ahead of them, went the star that they had seen at its rising, until it stopped over the place where the child was. ¹⁰ When they saw that the star had stopped, they were overwhelmed with joy. ¹¹ On entering the house, they saw the child with Mary his mother; and they knelt down and paid him homage. Then, opening their treasure chests, they offered him gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh. ¹² And having been warned in a dream not to return to Herod, they left for their own country by another road.

   Santa is pretty much out of the picture now, especially the more negative aspects that his character has taken on.

   Don’t you find it creepy when a 4^th century saint, Nicholas of Myra, known for his theological integrity, generosity, and concern for the poor and powerless, is portrayed as, well, as:

You better watch out
You better not cry
You better not pout
I'm telling you why
Santa Claus is coming to town

He's making a list
He's checking it twice
He's gonna find out who's naughty or nice
Santa Claus is coming to town

He sees you when you're sleeping
And he knows when you're awake
He knows if you've been bad or good
So be good for goodness sake

   Is there anything in that song that’s not threatening or creepy? Is there ANYTHING in that song that has anything to do with Christmas, with the good news of Jesus Christ?

   Epiphany focuses on what Christmas means. The word “Epiphany” comes from the Greek word “epiphaneia”, which means “manifestation”.

   A manifestation is an action or a sign that shows something clearly.

   God is made plain for us in Bethlehem.

   What is our response to the birth of Jesus? How to we live the good news by receiving it? How do we share it? We mark the day and celebrate it.

   Today is January 6^th, the day marking the Epiphany of Our Lord. Don’t let the world have this date. Talk about it. Say it as often as you can, and especially when the subject of the insurrection comes up. Share the meaning of this day for Christians. God in flesh made manifest.

   Read the Bible texts that highlight the meaning of this day: Isaiah 60:1-6; Psalm 72:1-7, 10-14; Ephesians 3:1-12, and Matthew 2:1-12, the one I read earlier.

   Spend some time today considering how God has been made manifest, revealed and made plain, in your life. Consider the presence of God and the work of God in you in the Holy Spirit.

Practice or renew the presence of prayer, of praise, and of thanksgiving in your life.

   Seek the power of the Holy Spirit to engage you in the Word and the Sacraments and transform you.

   May we, like the Magi, reject the political violence around us and go another way. May we focus on what is important about this day for the world, God in flesh made manifest. And like the wise men, may we be overwhelmed with joy.