Holy Theophany

THE HOLY THEOPHANY OF OUR LORD AND SAVIOR JESUS CHRIST .

LITURGY:
Titus 2:11-14; 3:4-7
Matthew 3:13-17

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Titus 2:11-14; 3:4-7 (Epistle)

For the grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to all men, teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly in the present age, looking for the blessed hope and glorious appearing of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ, who gave Himself for us, that He might redeem us from every lawless deed and purify for Himself His own special people, zealous for good works.
But when the kindness and the love of God our Savior toward man appeared, not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to His mercy He saved us, through the washing of regeneration and renewing of the Holy Spirit, whom He poured out on us abundantly through Jesus Christ our Savior, that having been justified by His grace we should become heirs according to the hope of eternal life.

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Matthew 3:13-17 (Gospel)

Then Jesus came from Galilee to John at the Jordan to be baptized by him.
And John tried to prevent Him, saying, “I need to be baptized by You, and are You coming to me?”
But Jesus answered and said to him, “Permit it to be so now, for thus it is fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness.” Then he allowed Him.
When He had been baptized, Jesus came up immediately from the water; and behold, the heavens were opened to Him, and He saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and alighting upon Him.
And suddenly a voice came from heaven, saying, “This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.”

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Homily for Holy Theophany  (6 January 2024)
Fr. Peter Choi

In the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.  Amen.  Christ is baptized!  In the Jordan!

Today, we commemorate the baptism of Jesus Christ.  In the gospel readings on the eve of Theophany for the Sixth Hour (Mk 1.9-15) and on the feast today at the Divine Liturgy (Mt 3.13-17), the Evangelists Mark and Matthew recount His baptism.  Jesus, the Son of God who is without sin, humbles Himself and asks his cousin, John the Baptist, to immerse Him in water as a precursor to His burial.  And when He rises from the water, the Holy Spirit descends in the form of a dove and the voice of the Father is heard declaring Jesus to be His Son.  The Holy Trinity of God is revealed, which is why we call this event Theo-phany.

In western Christianity, this day is called Epiphany and the visit of the three wise men is celebrated instead of Jesus’ baptism.  But we don’t do that.  The visit of the three wise men is recounted at the feast of Nativity.  We specifically celebrate the baptism on today’s feast.  Indeed, the celebration of Theophany was established before the feast of Nativity was celebrated as a separate feast.  So why do we place so much emphasis on the baptism of Christ?  Why do we bless water on this feast?

The thirteen Old Testament readings of the Vespers of Theophany (celebrated last night) are all related in some way to the subject of water and they reveal some important truths.  First, water was created by the source of life to sustain life.  Water is essential.  The human body is 60 percent water.  We can last for weeks without food but we will die in a few days without water.

In Genesis (1.1-13), before God commanded the earth to put forth vegetation, He separated the waters into the sky and the seas to create land.  Precipitation from the sky and water in the soil is needed for the land to bear fruit.  In the prophecy of Isaiah (49.8-15), God made a covenant with His chosen people that they would not hunger or thirst.  Water sustains life.

Through water, God reveals His power over life.  When the Israelites were being pursued by the Egyptians, God divided the Red Sea so the Israelites could pass safely across, and then He returned the sea to its natural state to drown Pharaoh and his army (Ex 14.15-18, 21-23, 27-29).  God divided the Jordan River to enable Joshua and the Israelites to cross into the Promised Land (Josh 3.7-8, 15-17).  To the judge Gideon, God showed that He is the God who will fulfill whatever He promises by making the dew fall only on the fleece one morning and then only on the threshing floor the next morning (Judges 6.36-40).  God consumed the offering of Elijah, which had been thoroughly soaked three times with water, with a fire that was so powerful that it burnt the offering, the wood, the altar, the dust to a crisp and not a drop of water remained (1 Kings 18.30-39).  When the prophet Elijah was taken up to heaven, God conferred the mantle of prophecy on Elisha by dividing the Jordan River again when Elisha struck the water with the mantle of Elijah (2 Kings 2.6-14).  Water reminds us of life and God’s power over water reveals Him as the source of life.

Second, water cleanses and is a symbol of cleansing.  Elisha tells the leper Naaman, “Go, wash in the Jordan seven times, and your flesh shall be restored and you shall be clean.”  And when he did this, “his flesh was restored like the flesh of a young boy, and he was clean” (2 Kings 5.9-14).  God, through His prophet Isaiah, exhorted His people to wash themselves of the scarlet stain of their sins, that is, “to cease to do evil, learn to do good; seek justice, correct oppression; defend the fatherless, plead for the widow” (Isa 1.16-20).  The baptism of John the Forerunner was the baptism of repentance, a physical response to the exhortation of Isaiah.

But if we take baptism in vain, if we pollute the water, we are sickened.  After the Israelites escaped the Egyptians, they were in the wilderness of Shur without water.  When they arrived at the water of Marah, it was bitter and undrinkable until God purified it.  God’s action was practical and symbolic because He then promises the Israelites that He would not afflict them with the diseases experienced by the Egyptians if His chosen people listened and followed His commandments (Ex 15.22-16.1), if they kept themselves pure like the water He had just purified.  Polluted water does not bear life until it is purified.  Elisha purified the water in the city of Jericho and declared, “Thus says the LORD, I have made this water wholesome; henceforth neither death nor miscarriage shall come from it” (2 Kings 2.19-22).  Water must be pure to cleanse.

Third, the passage through water marks a new beginning.  In Genesis, the patriarch Jacob returned to the land of his forefathers by crossing the Jordan River.  In Exodus, the beginning of the salvation of the Israelites began with the birth of Moses, who was drawn out of the waters of the Nile and became the son of Pharaoh’s daughter (Ex 2.5-10).  The name Moses means “the one who draws out” and just as Moses was drawn out of the water, He would be called to draw out the people of Israel.  The Israelites passed through the Red Sea at the beginning of their exodus to the Promised Land and then passed through the Jordan River to enter the Promised Land at the end of their exodus.

The source of life, the purification of soul and body, the beginning of a new life – these are symbolized in water.  The baptism of Christ is an example to us.  In our baptism, we imitate Christ.  We humble ourselves and are immersed.  Our old self is drowned and dies but to our surprise, this drowning purifies us and we emerge from the water alive to start a new life as a member of His chosen people in the kingdom of the new age.  But baptism is merely the initiation of our exodus, our journey to union with God.  The Holy Spirit has descended on us and sealed us in chrismation.  And if we continue to follow Christ, if we continue to purify ourselves through asceticism and practice in the process of theosis, then we too shall hear God declare us to be his children.  We too will experience the fullness of the love and communion of the Holy Trinity.  We too will see the uncreated light of Mt Tabor.  We will ascend and enter into the Kingdom of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.  Christ is baptized!  Amen.