Epiphany,
also Theophany, or Three Kings' Day, is a Christian feast day that celebrates
the revelation of God incarnate as Jesus Christ. In Western Christianity, the
feast commemorates principally (but not solely) the visit of the Magi to the
Christ child, and thus Jesus' physical manifestation to the Gentiles. Moreover,
the feast of the Epiphany, in some Western Christian denominations, also
initiates the liturgical season of Epiphanytide. Eastern Christians, on the
other hand, commemorate the baptism of Jesus on both sides of the Jordan River,
seen as his manifestation to the world as the Son of God. Qasr el Yahud in the
West Bank, and Al-Maghtas in Jordan on the east bank, Al-Maghtas is considered
to be the original site of the baptism of Jesus and the ministry of John the
Baptist.
The
traditional date for the feast is January 6. However, since 1970, the
celebration is held in some countries on the Sunday after January 1. Eastern
Churches following the Julian calendar observe the feast on what for most
countries is January 19 because of the 13-day difference today between that
calendar and the generally used Gregorian calendar. In many Western Christian
Churches, the eve of the feast is celebrated as Twelfth Night. The Monday after
Epiphany is known as Plough Monday.
Popular
Epiphany customs include Epiphany singing, chalking the door, having one's
house blessed, consuming Three Kings Cake, winter swimming, as well as
attending church services. It is customary for Christians in many localities to
remove their Christmas decorations on Epiphany Eve (Twelfth Night), although
those in other Christian countries historically remove them on Candlemas, the
conclusion of Epiphanytide. According to the first tradition, those who fail to
remember to remove their Christmas decorations on Epiphany Eve must leave them
untouched until Candlemas, the second opportunity to remove them; failure to
observe this custom is considered inauspicious.
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