Celebrations

1.2. The Holy Theophany of our Lord, God and Saviour Jesus Christ

The celebration of Theophany is placed on January 6th of the liturgical calendar, since in the Eastern Churches on that date the Epiphany of Jesus is not concerning the Magi who bring the gifts, but the Epiphany of the Trinity during the Baptism of Jesus. The term Theophany (manifestation of God) is therefore preferred, and originally the name of the festivity was Theophanies, in the plural, to indicate the manifestations of the Father, of the Son and of the Holy Spirit to the world, which took place in a manner specific to each person. It is a festivity that has remained unchanged since the fourth century, while in the early centuries it was joined to the festivity of the Nativity of the Lord, then anticipated to December 25th.

The day of Theophany, baptism of Jesus, is one of the great twelve festivities of the Byzantine liturgical year. It is one of the days indicated for the baptism of the faithful. On this day the Great Blessing of the waters takes place, similar to the blessing of the water for the baptism of each faithful. The Cross is immersed in the blessed water, a sign of the baptism of Christ, the paradigm of the baptism of every Christian. This blessing is usually celebrated on the 5th of January at the end of the vespers, in the church, while on the day of the festivity, on 6th January, it is repeated in the village fountain, or in a nearby river, or, where it is, in the sea, in imitation of the baptism of Jesus in the Jordan. With blessed water then, on this day and in the following days, the houses of individual families are blessed, extending God's blessing to the whole community of the faithful and to the environment in which they live. The blessed water on the day of Theophany confirms the proclamation of the faith in the Trinity for the whole community, recalling the veneration that each of the faithful owes to it.

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