The Epiphany of the Lord
Feast day: January 6
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The Lord shows himself to all nations through the Magi (06/01; in Vietnam, the Sunday between 2 and 8 Jan)
What is this feast?
The Epiphany celebrates Jesus showing himself to the peoples who were not Jewish, through the Magi (learned men who studied the stars) who came from the East. They were the first non-Jews to come and adore the Lord. This feast tells you that Jesus is the Savior of everyone, of every country and every skin color.
The story
When Jesus was born in Bethlehem, some Magi came to Jerusalem and asked: “Where is the newborn king of the Jews?” They had seen his star rising. When King Herod heard this, he was troubled, because he was afraid of losing his throne (cf. Mt 2:1-8).
The star then led them right to the place where the Child was. “They were overjoyed at seeing the star” (Mt 2:10). They went into the house, bowed down to adore the Child, then opened their treasures and offered gold, frankincense and myrrh. After that, warned in a dream, they went back to their country by another way (cf. Mt 2:11-12).
The Gospel does not say how many of them there were, does not call them kings, and does not give their names. Because there were three gifts, tradition speaks of three of them, calls them the Three Kings, and names them Caspar, Melchior and Balthasar. Following tradition, the Fathers of the Church explained the three gifts this way: gold for a King, frankincense (a sweet-smelling incense that is burned) for God, and myrrh (a fragrant resin used to prepare the dead for burial) as a sign that he would die for us.
Why does the Church celebrate it?
The Church celebrates because the light of Jesus shines on all peoples, including our own Vietnamese people. This feast also reminds every Christian: you too are invited to be a “star” that leads your friends to the Lord. In Vietnam, the feast is kept on the Sunday between 2 and 8 January so that everyone can take part.
A lesson for you
- Like the Magi, take the trouble to look for God: go to Mass, read God’s Word, and study your catechism carefully.
- Offer God your own gifts: your prayers, your schoolwork, and one good deed every day.
- Be friendly to everyone, even those from another place or with a different skin color, because the Lord came for all.
Identifying marks
- An old king with white hair and beard kneeling, offering an open chest of gold: he gives gold to the Child, who is King; he has put his own crown on the ground to adore the true King.
- Two kings behind him holding jars of gifts, one of them African: according to tradition, they bring frankincense and myrrh, and they stand for all the peoples of the world.
- Mary seated, holding the Child on her lap: “they saw the child with Mary his mother” (Mt 2:11).
- The Child raising his hand to bless the king: Jesus welcomes and blesses every nation.
- A halo with a cross behind the Child’s head; no halos on the kings: every eye is turned toward the Son of God.
- A small star in the sky: the star that guided the Magi.
The text on this page is the card in the Catholic Information app, word for word.
Compiled by i-Catholic · About