The Epiphany, or the Manifestation of Christ to
the Gentiles.
Psalm 96
Cantate Domino
O SING unto the Lord a new song : sing unto the Lord, all the whole
earth.
2. Sing unto the Lord, and praise his Name : be telling of his
salvation from day to day.
3. Declare his honour unto the heathen : and his wonders unto all
people.
4. For the Lord is great, and cannot worthily be praised : he is more
to be feared than all gods.
5. As for all the gods of the heathen, they are but idols : but it is
the Lord that made the heavens.
6. Glory and worship are before him : power and honour are in his
sanctuary.
7. Ascribe unto the Lord, O ye kindreds of the people : ascribe unto
the Lord worship and power.
8. Ascribe unto the Lord the honour due unto his Name : bring presents,
and come into his courts.
9. O worship the Lord in the beauty of holiness : let the whole earth
stand in awe of him.
10. Tell it out among the heathen that the Lord is King : and that it
is he who hath made the round world so fast that it cannot be moved; and how
that he shall judge the people righteously.
11. Let the heavens rejoice, and let the earth be glad : let the sea
make a noise, and all that therein is.
12. Let the field be joyful, and all that is in it : then shall all the
trees of the wood rejoice before the Lord.
13. For he cometh, for he cometh to judge the earth : and with
righteousness to judge the world, and the people with his truth.
The Collect.
O GOD, who
by the leading of a star didst manifest thy only-begotten Son to the Gentiles:
Mercifully grant, that we, which know thee now by faith, may after this life
have the fruition of thy glorious Godhead; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
[Old
Testament Reading: Isaiah 60.1-9]
Psalter:
Psalm 96
Epistle
Reading: Ephesians 3.1-11
Gospel
Reading: St. Matthew 2.1-12
Toon: “The Feast of the EPIPHANY, the twelfth day
after Christmas, begins the season of EPIPHANY, which continues in the Church
Year to the beginning of Lent. The Book of Common Prayer (1928) makes provision
for up to six Sundays in Epiphany, depending on the date of Easter.
If we think that the Feast (or even the season) of
the Epiphany is only about the visit of the (three) kings or magi or wise men
"from the east" then we only partially appreciate it! There is much
more to it.
The word EPIPHANY is Greek and means MANIFESTATION
or APPEARANCE. It is a Greek name because the Festival was in origin, and for
its first period of celebration, an Eastern Mediterranean Christian feast, not
a Roman one. Originally the Greek-speaking Church celebrated both the Birth of
Christ and the Manifestation on one and the same day, January 6th, while the
Latin-speaking Church celebrated Christmas on December 25.
From the early fifth century, both East and West
celebrated both Christmas Day (Dec 25) and the Epiphany (Jan 6) but with
different emphases. The West celebrated the Nativity on December 25th and the
Manifestation to the Gentiles on January 6. Possibly the focusing of the feast
in the West of the Manifestation particularly on the visit of the magi/kings is
related to the moving of their relics from Constantinople to Milan in the
fourth century, when Milan was capital of the western half of the Roman Empire.
Related to the Epiphany/Manifestation of the Son of
God incarnate to the Gentiles are two other central Manifestations of God
observed at this time - very particularly so in the East on the feast day, Jan
6, but also in the West during the season of Epiphany.
These other two are (a) the Manifestation of the
Holy Trinity at the Baptism of Jesus when the Father speaks to the Son and the
Spirit from the Father descends upon the Son (Mark 1:1-11), and (b) the
Manifestation of Jesus as the One Person made known in two Natures when he
performed the "sign" at Cana of Galilee - the miracle of water into
wine (John 2:1-11). (For the use of these two Events in the West see the
Gospels for Epiphany 2 & 3 in the 1928 BCP.)
If we put these three Manifestations together we
have in its primary, biblical, narrative form what was achieved dogmatically by
the first four Ecumenical Councils of the Church up to AD 451. That is, the
setting forth by Gentile Christian bishops the dogma of the One, Blessed, Holy
and Undivided Trinity and of the One Person of Christ Jesus made know in two
natures, divine and human.
Returning to the Western celebration of the
Epiphany feast proper on January 6, it is an old tradition that states that
there were three visitors (because three gifts) and that they were kings. In
fact prophecy encouraged the idea that they were kings, "The Gentiles
shall come to thy light and kings to the brightness of thy rising" (Psalm
72:10 & Isaiah 60:3). That the new king should be born in Canaan was seen
in the prophecy of Balaam (Num. 24:17) and so the magi took the main road from
Persia to Jerusalem, and from there to Bethlehem in particular, because of the
clear prophecy in Micah 5:2 that the Messiah would be born in the city of
David.
The Manifestation to mankind by Jesus Christ &
the Holy Trinity has for its ultimate purpose the deification of man through
salvation, sanctification and glorification. Thus the Collect for the Feast in
the BCP itself prays that "we may have the fruition (= enjoyment) of thy
glorious Godhead" - the beatific vision, the seeing of the glory of the
Father in the face of the Incarnate Son. ( . . . )
This Collect in its original Latin wording is based
upon (a) the biblical narrative of the visit of the magi as recorded in Matthew
2; and (b) the thought that "we walk by faith and not by sight" on
earth ( 2 Corinthians 5:7).
The translation provided in the BCP of 1549 and
thereafter, however, does not bring out as clearly as possible, the second of
these themes, the walking by faith now towards the future contemplation by
sight in heaven. The petition in Latin may be more literally translated:
"Mercifully grant that we, which know thee now by faith, may be led
onwards until we come to gaze upon thy Exaltation [Majesty] by sight..."
It seems that in 1549 Archbishop Cranmer had in
mind the writings of St. Augustine of Hippo and others, who had written of the
beatific vision in heaven as "the fruition of thy glorious Godhead."
So he used this expression rather than literally translating the Latin before
him. The translation provided above points to the same glorious conclusion as
Augustine & Cranmer had in mind, but it picks up more clearly on the theme
of "being led onwards" (in the case of the magi by a star and of
ourselves by faith) and of "contemplation/gazing" (the magi gazed at
the heavens and then upon the Only-Begotten Son Incarnate, while we shall see
the glory of the Father in the face of the exalted Jesus Christ).
What this Collect actually prays for in Latin or in
English is of course the important thing. The people of God make petition for
divine assistance so that, after being faithful sojourners and pilgrims here on
earth in this evil age, they will experience the full realization of Christian
hope and see the Glory of the Father in the face of Jesus Christ in the
glorious age to come. But we must first walk by faith in order later by grace
to walk by sight! This is a message for the whole of the season of the
Epiphany” (http://www.pbs.org.uk/bcp/commentary_detail.php?CommentaryID=9).
