Theophany 2025

On Monday, January 6, the Church will celebrate the Feast of the Holy Theophany of Our Lord, God, and Savior, Jesus Christ. The word “Theophany” means “Manifestation of God” and it refers to the fact that the Lord has manifested Himself to all of creation in three Persons.

​The Father testifies from on high to the Divine Sonship of Jesus, the Son receives this testimony from the Father, and the Holy Spirit descends from the Father in the form of a dove, and rests upon the Son from all eternity. This is the first manifestation of the greatest of all mysteries- the Holy Trinity “one in essence and undivided”–a doctrine unique to Christianity. Our Lord’s public ministry commenced with His Baptism in the River Jordan at the hands of the Prophet, Forerunner, and Baptist John. Baptism is the symbol of death and resurrection, and Christ became incarnate in order to die and rise from the dead. Baptism is a symbol of repentance and forgiveness, and Christ came as the Lamb of God who takes upon Himself the sin of the world. Baptism is a symbol of sanctification, and Christ has come to sanctify the whole of creation. Baptism is a symbol of radical renewal. Whenever one is baptized, the old has passed and the new has come. Christ has appeared in order to make all things new. The act of baptism, therefore, contains in symbol the entire mystery of Christ, the whole purpose of His coming. Every year on the Feast of Theophany, a great miracle is performed in our churches. The Holy Spirit comes down upon the water and changes its natural properties. It receives the grace to heal illnesses, to drive away demons and every evil power, to preserve people and their dwellings from every danger.