“Then Jesus came from Galilee to John, at the Jordan, to be baptized by him.”(Matthew 3,13)
Before the feast of the Theophany, Holy Church in her services exhorts her faithful: “Leaving the glorious miracle of Bethlehem, let us quickly hasten to the Jordan with an ardent spirit; there we shall witness an awesome mystery…” (Exapostilarion of Matins of the 3rd of January). That awesome mystery is the mystery of the Theophany of the Lord, the self-revelation of God at the baptism of our Lord Jesus Christ in the river Jordan. In this mystery Jesus Christ reveals himself as the Messiah and Saviour. As Christ is baptized, the voice of his heavenly Father bears witness to the divine mission of Jesus: “You are my beloved Son, in you I am well pleased.’ (Mark 1,11) The Holy Spirit bears witness to him by descending upon him in the form of a dove. St. John the Baptist also bears witness as he points to him, saying: “Behold the Lamb of God, who takes away the sins of the world.” (John 1,29)
The feast of the Theophany of our Lord is among the most ancient and greatest feasts of our Ecclesiastical Year. The name of this feast, its history, and the revelation of the mystery of the Most Holy Trinity that accompanied it, deserves special consideration here.
Name of the Feast
In the first centuries of Christianity, the feast of the Theophany was regarded as a collective feast for it embraced other events in the life of Jesus Christ which bore witness to his divinity – namely, his Nativity, the homage of the Wise Men from the East, his baptism, the miracle at Cana of Galilee and the miraculous multiplication of the loaves. Thus our name “Theophany” must be understood in the plural sense for it means a feast of holy Theophanies.
In ancient times, on the feast of the Theophany the solemn baptism of the catechumens took place. This baptism was also called light or enlightenment (illumination), and the catechumens were called “the enlightened”. Hence the feast of the Theophany was called Enlightenment or Illumination, the Feast of Lights and Holy Lights, for Jesus came to enlighten all people, “The people who sat in darkness have seen a great light; and upon those who sat in the region and shadow of death, a light has arisen.” (Matthew 4,16) Some authors are of the opinion that this feast was also called the feast of lights because during the baptism of the catechumens the church was lit up with a great number of candles, symbols of the light of the knowledge of the true God.
St. Gregory the Theologian (+389) entitled his sermon on the Theophany:
“A sermon on the holy lights of the theophanies of the Lord.” He begins it thus: “Again my Jesus and again the mystery…(i.e., again the new feast after the Nativity of Christ), the sublime and divine mystery, which announces to us heavenly light. For the holy day of lights, which has finally arrived and which we have become worthy to solemnize, had its beginning in the baptism of my Christ ‘the true light that enlightens every man that comes into the world.” (John 1,9) In a subsequent sermon on holy baptism he explains more elaborately what he means by enlightenment: “Yesterday we celebrated the glorious day of lights… and today we shall talk about baptism and its beneficent influence upon us… Enlightenment is a help in our weakness, a putting aside of the body, a seeking after the Spirit, a fellowship with the Word, a renewal of creation, a drowning of sin, a partaking of light, and a dispelling of darkness. Enlightenment is the chariot which raises us to God, making us co-travelers with Christ; it strengthens our faith, perfects our mind, entrusts to us the keys of the kingdom of heaven; changes our lives, frees us from enslavement, loosens our chains, and changes our whole being. Enlightenment, must I enumerate more? is the best and most exalted of God’s gifts… This gift, just as its giver, Christ, is called by many names… We call it a gift, grace, baptism, anointing, enlightenment, the garment of incorruptibility, bath of regeneration, a seal and all that is for us worthy of honor.”
The Western Church in ancient times called the Lord’s Theophany the day of the manifestation or manifestations, and in celebrating this day she solemnized the following events: the manifestation of the star, the homage of the Wise Men, the baptism of Jesus and the miracle at Cana of Galilee. St. Augustine (†430) in his sermon on the Epiphany said: “Тоday we celebrate the mystery of the Epiphany on earth. Today God, by means of a star in the heavens, heralded his Nativity; and by baptism in the Jordan, he sanctified water for the renewal of mankind; at a wedding in Cana of Galilee, he changed water into wine; and with five loaves of bread he fed five thousand people.”
The History of the Development of the Feast
In the Eastern Church the feast of the Theophany, except for the feasts of the Pascha and the Descent of the Holy Spirit, is one of the oldest festivals. This feast was first celebrated at the end of the second or at the start of the third century. St. Clement of Alexandria (+215) mentions it in his works. The Apostolic Constitutions, a work of the fourth century, speak of this festival thus: “Let them celebrate the feast of the Theophany, for on that day Christ’s divinity was revealed, which was confirmed by the Father at his baptism, and by the Holy Spirit in the form of a dove pointing to Christ.” In the third century, St. Hyppolitus of Rome (+c235) and St. Gregory the Wonderworker of Neocaesarea (†270) mention it in the church services; and in the fourth century, Gregory of Nyssa, St. John Chrysostom, St. Augustine and other Fathers of the Church preached on this festival.
The feast of the Theophany later spread from the East to the West. The Calendar of Philocalus of the year 354 did not as yet have the feast of the Theophany. In 361 it is already celebrated in Gaul, (modern France); in 383 in northern Italy, then in Spain, in the time of St. Augustine in Northern Africa and about the year 400 in Rome.
The Holy Fathers and preachers of the Western Church such as Paulinus of Noli, Chrysologus of Ravenna, and Isidore of Seville, on the feast of the Theophany emphasize more and more the homage of the Wise Men. In time, in the West the 6th of January became the feast of the Three Kings, and the commemoration of the baptism of Christ was transferred to the 13th of January.
Regarding the history of the celebration of the feast of the Theophany in the East, we may distinguish three periods. In the first period, throughout the third century, the feast included the Nativity of Christ, his Baptism, the homage of the Wise Men and the miracle in Cana of Galilee. In the second period, during the fourth century, among the abovementioned events, the Nativity of Christ held first place. During the third period, toward the end of the fourth century, the feast of the Nativity of Christ and the homage of the Wise Men became separated from the feast of the Theophany and were transferred to the 25th of December. January 6th became the day on which only the Baptism of Christ was commemorated. The feast of the Theophany during the reign of Theodosius the Younger (†450) became a state holiday.
In the Eastern Church this feast is one of the twelve principal feasts. The Apostolic Constitutions say in regard to the Theophany: “Let the day on which the Lord revealed his divinity be held among you in high respect.” It has a four-day pre- and an eight-day post-feast. Anatolus of Constantinople (5c), Sophronius of Jerusalem (7c), Cosmas of Maiuma, John Damascene, Germanus of Constantinople (8c) and Joseph the Studite (9c), all contributed to the liturgy for this feast.
The Feast of the Theophany and the Mystery of the Holy Theophany
The feast of the Baptism of our Lord places before our eyes one of the greatest and most profound truths of our holy faith – the mystery of the Most Holy Trinity. At the baptism of Christ, the Most Holy Trinity was clearly revealed and bore witness to the divinity of Christ. In the Third Hour (Terce) of the Vigil of the feast we read:
“The Trinity, our God, revealed himself to us today as free from division; for the Father uttered the clear testimony to his Son, the Spirit descended from heaven in the likeness of a dove, and the Son bowed his pure head to the Forerunner, and being baptized, saved mankind from bondage, since he is the Lover of mankind.”
In one of the sticheras in the Lytiya service of the feast we sing:
“Seeing you, O Christ God, coming to him in the river Jordan, John said: ‘Why do you, who are undefiled, come to a servant, O Lord? In whose name shall I baptize you? Of the Father? But you bear Him within You! Of the Son? But You are this Son made flesh! Of the Holy Spirit? But You know that through Your own mouth You give Him to the faithful! O Triune God, here revealed, have mercy on us.’
Our Slavonic Prologue on the 6th day of January contains a profound sermon on the Baptism of Jesus Christ by St. Proclus, Patriarch of Constantinople. He puts into the mouth of St. John the Baptist, the following words expressing the faith of holy Church in the divinity of Christ:
“How dare I stretch forth my hand and place it on the head of Him who sustains all things? How dare I touch Him before whom the choirs of angels tremble? How dare I approach him whom the Seraphim dare not come near? Hence with awe they cry: holy, holy, holy. Truly heaven is filled with your glory and the earth with your wonders. How dare I approach the Unapproachable One before whom tremble the Cherubim and all the heavenly hosts? How dare I baptize the Creator of nature? How dare I baptize him to whom the Pure Virgin Mary gave birth and after giving birth remained a virgin?… I can only say: You, O Lord, are the Master, I, the servant; You are the Creator, I, the creature. You are the Sun, I the star; You are the Shepherd, I the sheep; You are the King, I the soldier; You are the light, I the candlestick. You are the Archpriest, and I an earthling… I am a mortal, but you are Immortal… And John touching the most pure head of the Lord, baptized One of the Holy Trinity. Immediately he saw heaven opened and the Holy Spirit descending and coming upon him.”
St. Gregory the Theologian in a sermon on the holy lights of the Lord’s theophanies gives a sketch of the mystery of the Most Holy Trinity:
“God is divided, so to speak, in an undivided manner, and unites in a divided manner because the Divinity is one in Three Persons and the One is Three, in which Three is the Divinity, or to be more exact, which Three are the Divinity… The Father is the Father and is eternal because he has no beginning from another. The Son is the Son, and is not without beginning because he is from the Father. However, if you understand beginning in relation to time, then the Son also is without beginning because the Creator of time is not subject to time. The Spirit is indeed the Holy Spirit who emanates not through birth but through origin.”
St. John Chrysostom encourages us to have faith in the Most Holy Trinity:
“Our faith is the throne of the soul, the foundation of life, the immortal root. The life-giving root of faith is the Father; the unwithering branch – the Son; the immortal fruit – the Holy Spirit; that is, the Trinity – simple, uncomplicated, unspeakable, incomprehensible, undivided in identity, in dignity, action, Divinity and grandeur; however, divided in Persons and names, but One in essence and powers. The Trinity exists from eternity. Its existence had no beginning. It is without beginning; it is eternal, ageless, immortal, without end.”
Each day our holy Church begins Matins service with a sublime doxology in honor of the Most Holy Trinity: “Glory be to the holy, consubstantial (one in substance) Life-giving and Undivided Trinity, always, now and ever, and forever.”