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Epiphany–The Third Piece of the Nativity Triptych

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Advent, Christmas, and Epiphany are the three pieces of the Nativity Triptych. Epiphany, whether it is considered a day or a season, is the often slighted third part of the triptych. But without Epiphany the Christmas story would have stayed in the manger in a tiny town in a small country in the Middle East.

The three main Scripture readings for Epiphany let us know that God is up to something special in Jesus:

  • The visit of the magi and their impressive gifts indicate the specialness of this child. When the magi return to their distant lands they scatter the first seeds of the amazing birth story. (Matthew 2)
  • At the wedding at Cana in Galilee, Jesus turns water into wine–fine wine, no less. This manifestation or “shining forth” of Jesus’ identity tells the first of his many miracles. (John 2)
  • At Jesus’ Baptism by Jesus, God announces, “This is my Son, the Beloved, with whom I am well pleased.” (Matthew 3:13-17)

Tryptich Resized

Here are a couple of things I do to remember that Epiphany celebrates the exponential movement of the Gospel story throughout the world:

  • Remove the Christmas ornaments from my tree and cover it with stars 
  • Turn the magi away from the crèche and move them further and further each day 
  • Read the Epiphany stories.
  • Think about how my story intersects with the Gospel Story.Epiphany Bush

 

The Feast of the Epiphany

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Brightest and best of the stars of the morning,
Dawn on our darkness, and lend us thine aid;
Star of the East, the horizon adorning,
Guide where our Infant Redeemer is laid.*

Epiphany Manger Resized

Epiphany: the twelfth day after Christmas, the arrival of the Magi at the manger, the culmination of the Nativity Season. The Nativity Season celebrates the wonderful three-piece mystery of the Incarnation: Christ is predicted (Advent), Christ is born (Christmas), and Christ will spread like wildfire (Epiphany). The Feast of the Epiphany is not just the single day when the church honors the arrival of Magi who followed the “Star of the East” to the manger. And it is not just the finale of the Christmas story for another year. Epiphany means “shining forth” and foretells the journey of faithful followers away from the infant Jesus in the safety of his crib to the unpredictable and scandalous manifestation of God in and around the world.

If nothing had happened after the prediction and birth of Jesus, we would not be having this Nativity Season celebration or this conversation at all. The story of the wisemen coming to see Jesus and dispersing to faraway places to share the news of his birth is an invitation for all people far and wide to be part of the miracle of what happened in a tiny town in a tiny part of the Roman Empire.

Epiphany is really about another “E” word, that scary word called Evangelism. With the Magi as the first parade leaders, Epiphany invites us to join the procession of millions of other people before us. Sharing what they and we have heard and experienced in the literal or cosmic presence of Jesus is the way we shine forth. When we spread the stories of Jesus’s birth, ministry, teaching, preaching, miracles, rabble rousing, crucifixion, death, and resurrection we become part of the growing constellation of star-struck evangelists. Epiphany is a celebration of how the Word of God and the Good News of God’s Love in Jesus Christ continues to shine and spread like wildfire.

Epiphany--Carleton Bakkum Resized

Thanks to Carleton Bakkum for his starry Epiphany painting.

*Reginald Heber, an Anglican bishop, 1811 “Brightest and Best of the Sons of the Morning.”  In the first line the original word is “sons,” not stars.

Still Christmas

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It’s still Christmas and many signs of its enduring presence are visible:

  • Church with poinsettias
  • Kings and camels approaching the mantel manger
  • Winter blooms
  • White Lights
  • Manger awaiting the arrival of the magi

Christmas collage ResizedMatthew 2: 1-8

1 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.” (NRSV)