Sybil MacBeth guides us
through the celebration of
Epiphany and delivers both
the history behind it and
some fun crafts and activities
to honor this fine tradition
Text and Photo : Sybil MacBeth
Arise, shine; for your light has
come, and the glory of the Lord
has risen upon you. For darkness shall cover the earth, and
thick darkness the peoples; but
the Lord will arise upon you,
and his glory will appear over
you. Nations shall come to your
light, and kings to the brightness of your dawn. (Isaiah
60:1-3 NRSV)
Whenever I read this passage
from Isaiah I think of the Nativity Season.
Darkness covered the earth
and people longed for a savior
—Advent.
Jesus was born and his glory
shone about
—Christmas.
Kings and nations from far
away became aware of the
light of Jesus the Savior
—Epiphany.
The Nativity Season is like a
triptych, a three-paneled painting, with Christmas in the middle flanked by Advent on the
left and Epiphany on the right.
This triptych tells the three-part
story of the Incarnation, how
God was willing to become human, to experience the blood,
sweat, and fears of God’s hurting and despairing creatures.
I love the word Incarnation
because right in the middle of
it are the letters “carn” which
mean flesh or meat. Jesus is
meat; Jesus is flesh. God in
Jesus knows what it is like to
be a human.
’
Pray for others
during Epiphany with
stars or candles
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