On the Road to Emmaus » Epiphany

The Coming Justice of God – The Great Reversal

Richard — Wed, 13 Jan 2010 23:08:27 +0000

Scripture speaks repeatedly of a coming “great reversal” when God will right all wrongs and heal all hurts – the justice or “righteousness of God.” This will affect all areas of life and society – ecological, agricultural, economic, political, physiological, relational, etc. The New Testament tells us this time of God’s favor, though remaining future, has mysteriously broken forth in the present: it has already begun through the life and ministry of Jesus as he healed the sick, raised the dead, cleansed the lepers, welcomed the outcasts and restored the penitent. This restorative nearness is consequently present through the life and ministry of those who follow in the faithfulness of Jesus (cf. Lk. 4:19; 2 Cor. 5:17-6:2). As we begin to taste tokens of this “righteousness of God,” and become agents of it in the lives of others, our hearts swell with hope, anticipation and inexpressible longing for the full advent of God’s Kingdom when the Messiah is fully manifest at his glorious appearing.

The following is simply a list of Bible quotations describing this “great reversal,” meant to fire the prophetic imagination, inspire hope and motivate further study, meditation, compassion and action based on their contents. It is by no means a comprehensive list, so if you have something to add, please mention it in the comments.

You raise up the poor from the dust and lift the needy from the ash heap (1 Samuel 2:7)

They shall beat their swords into ploughshares and their spears into pruning hooks (Isaiah 2)

Nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war anymore (Isaiah 2)

You have shattered the yoke that burdened them, the collar that lay heavy on their shoulders (Isaiah 9)

The wolf shall dwell with the lamb, and leopard shall lie down with the kid (Isaiah 11)

The calf, the lion and the fatling together, with a little child to lead them (Isaiah 11)

They shall not hurt or destroy on all my holy mountain (Isaiah 11)

The Lord of hosts will make for all people a feast of rich food, a feast of well-ages wine, of rich food full of marrow (Isaiah 25)

He will swallow up death forever, and the Lord God will wipe away tears from all faces (Isaiah 25)

the reproach of his people he will take away from all the earth (Isaiah 25)

The wilderness and the dry land shall rejoice, the desert shall blossom and burst into song (Isaiah 35)

The eyes of the blind shall be opened, and the ears of the deaf unstopped (Isaiah 35)

The lame shall leap like a deer, and the tongue of the mute shall sing for joy (Isaiah 35)

Waters shall break forth in the wilderness and streams in the desert (Isaiah 35)

Joy and gladness shall overtake them, and sorrow and sighing shall flee away (Isaiah 35)

Every valley shall be raised up, every mountain and hill made low (Isaiah 40)

The rough ground shall become level and the rugged places a plain (Isaiah 40)

Bring out the captives from the dungeon, from the prison, those who sit in darkness (Isaiah 42)

I will turn the darkness before them into light, the rough places into level ground (Isaiah 42)

Remember not the former things, nor consider the things of old (Isaiah 43)

Behold, I am doing a new thing, now it springs forth, do you not perceive it (Isaiah 43)

I will make a way in the wilderness and rivers in the desert (Isaiah 43)

…to restore the land and to reassign its desolate inheritances (Isaiah 49)

to say to the captives, “Come out,” and say to those in darkness, “Be free.” (Isaiah 49)

They will feed beside the roads and find pasture on every barren hill (Isaiah 49)

They will neither hunger nor thirst, nor will the desert heat or the sun beat upon them (Isaiah 49)

I will turn all my mountains into roads and my highways will be raised up (Isaiah 49)

The LORD will comfort Zion; He will comfort all her waste places. (Isaiah 51)

her wilderness He will make like Eden, And her desert like the garden of the LORD (Isaiah 51)

the mountains and the hills before you shall break forth into singing (Isaiah 55)

all the trees of the field shall clap their hands (Isaiah 55)

Instead of the thorn shall come up the cypress, instead of the briar shall come up the myrtle (Isaiah 55)

Violence will no more be heard in your land, ruin or destruction within your borders (Isaiah 60)

He has sent me to bring good news to the oppressed, to bind up the broken-hearted (Isaiah 61)

To proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to those who are bound (Isaiah 61)

To proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor (Isaiah 61)

To give them a garland instead of ashes, the oil of gladness instead of mourning, the mantle of praise instead of a faint spirit (Isaiah 61)

They will rebuild the ancient ruins and restore the places long devastated; they will renew the ruined cities that have been devastated for generations. (Isaiah 61)

You shall no more by termed Forsaken and your land shall no more be termed Desolate, but you will be called “My Delight is in Her” (Isaiah 62)

I am creating a new heavens and a new earth, and the former things shall not be remembered or come into mind (Isaiah 65)

No more shall be heard in it the sound of weeping and the cry of distress (Isaiah 65)

The wolf and the lamb shall graze together, the lion shall eat straw like the ox (Isaiah 65)

I will turn their mourning into gladness; I will give them comfort and joy instead of sorrow (Jeremiah 31)

I will abolish the bow, the sword and war from the land, and I will make you lie down in safety (Hosea 2)

Do not be afraid, you wild animals, for the pastures in the wilderness are becoming green. The trees are bearing their fruit; the fig tree and the vine yield their riches. (Joel 2)

The threshing floors will be filled with grain; the vats will overflow with new wine and oil. (Joel 2)

And it will come to pass in that day that the mountains shall drip with new wine, the hills shall flow with milk, and all the brooks of Judah shall be flooded with water; A fountain shall flow from the house of the LORD and water the Valley of Acacias. (Joel 3)

“The days are coming,” declares the LORD, “when the reaper will be overtaken by the one who plows and the planter by the one treading grapes. (Amos 9)

New wine will drip from the mountains and flow from all the hills, (Amos 9)

They will rebuild the ruined cities and live in them. They will plant vineyards and drink their wine; they will make gardens and eat their fruit. (Amos 9)

I will gather those of you who mourn, so that you will no longer suffer reproach (Zephaniah 3)

I will deal with all your oppressors, I will save the lame and gather the outcast (Zephaniah 3)

I will change their shame into praise and renown in all the earth (Zephaniah 3)

I will take away the chariots and the war horses, and the battle bow will be broken. He will proclaim peace to the nations (Zechariah 9)

A father to the fatherless, a defender of widows, is God in his holy dwelling. (Psalm 68)

God sets the lonely in families, he leads out the prisoners with singing (Psalm 68)

The LORD upholds all who are falling, and raises up all who are bowed down. (Psalm 145)

[the Lord] executes justice for the oppressed; and gives food to the hungry. (Psalm 146)

The LORD sets the prisoners free; the LORD opens the eyes of the blind. (Psalm 146)

The LORD lifts up those who are bowed down; the LORD loves the righteous. (Psalm 146)

The poor will receive the kingdom (Matthew 5)

Those who mourn will be comforted (Matthew 5)

Those who are lowly will inherit the earth (Matthew 5)

Those who hunger for justice will be satisfied (Matthew 5)

Those who are persecuted will receive the kingdom (Matthew 5)

…the blind receive their sight, the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the poor have good news brought to them (Matthew 11)

He has cast down the mighty from their thrones and has lifted up the lowly (Luke 1)

He has filled the hungry with good things and the rich he has sent away empty (Luke 1)

In the tender compassion of our God, the dawn from on high shall break upon us (Luke 1)

To shine on those who dwell in darkness and the shadow death, and to guide our feet into the way of peace (Luke 1)

Just as one trespass led to condemnation for all, so one vindication [the resurrection of Jesus] leads to the rectification of life for all (Romans 5)

Where sin abounded, grace abounds all the more, so that, just as sin reigned in death, grace also might reign through righteousness leading to eternal life (Romans 5)

…in hope that the creation itself will be set free from the bondage to decay and will obtain the freedom of the glory of the children of God (Romans 8

…he must reign until he has put all his enemies under his feet (1 Cor. 15)

The last enemy to be destroyed is death (1 Cor. 15)

…this corruption must put on incorruption, and this mortality must put on immortality… (1 Cor. 15)

…then the saying that is written will be fulfilled: “Death has been swallowed up in victory” (1 Cor. 15)

He will wipe every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more (Rev. 21)

Neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain any more, for the former things have passed away (Rev. 21)

No longer will there be any curse (Rev. 22)

The Baptism of Christ – He Comes to Bury Sinful Humanity in the Waters…and Begin a New Creation through the Spirit and Water

Richard — Sun, 10 Jan 2010 07:45:08 +0000

Christ is bathed in light; let us also be bathed in light. Christ is baptised; let us also go down with him, and rise with him.

John is baptising when Jesus draws near. Perhaps he comes to sanctify his baptiser; certainly he comes to bury sinful humanity in the waters. He comes to sanctify the Jordan for our sake and in readiness for us; he who is spirit and flesh comes to begin a new creation through the Spirit and water.

The Baptist protests; Jesus insists. Then John says: I ought to be baptised by you. He is the lamp in the presence of the sun, the voice in the presence of the Word, the friend in the presence of the Bridegroom, the greatest of all born of woman in the presence of the firstborn of all creation, the one who leapt in his mother’s womb in the presence of him who was adored in the womb, the forerunner and future forerunner in the presence of him who has already come and is to come again. I ought to be baptised by you: we should also add, “and for you,” for John is to be baptised in blood, washed clean like Peter, not only by the washing of his feet.

Jesus rises from the waters; the world rises with him. The heavens, like Paradise with its flaming sword, closed by Adam for himself and his descendants, are rent open. The Spirit comes to him as to an equal, bearing witness to his Godhead. A voice bears witness to him from heaven, his place of origin. The Spirit descends in bodily form like the dove that so long ago announced the ending of the flood and so gives honour to the body that is one with God.

Today let us do honour to Christ’s baptism and celebrate this feast in holiness. Be cleansed entirely and continue to be cleansed. Nothing gives such pleasure to God as the conversion and salvation of men, for whom his every word and every revelation exist. He wants you to become a living force for all humankind, lights shining in the world. You are to be radiant lights as you stand beside Christ, the great light, bathed in the glory of him who is the light of heaven. You are to enjoy more and more the pure and dazzling light of the Trinity, as now you have received – though not in its fullness – a ray of its splendour, proceeding from the one God, in Christ Jesus our Lord, to whom be glory and power for ever and ever. Amen.

From a sermon by St Gregory Nazianzen

Calling Not the Clean But the Unclean – Thoughts and Prayer for Epiphany 3

Richard — Sun, 27 Jan 2008 07:22:10 +0000

The Gospel reading for today (in the Revised Common Lectionary) centers on Jesus calling his first four disciples. It is noteworthy for several reasons that these initial disciples were fishermen. One reason will suffice for now. Early Rabbinic literature specifically mentions two professions in which it was virtually impossible to follow the Torah’s purity laws. The first was that of fishermen, because by virtue needing to sort mixed catches of aquatic creatures, they were constantly touching unclean animals. The four fishermen Jesus called were very much so, on the fringes of religious society – virtually untouchable because of the transferable impurity necessarily acquired from their subsistence occupation. In Luke’s version of the story of Peter’s calling, Jesus instructs Peter to let down his fishing nets which leads to a miraculously large catch of fish. There are three notable aspects of what follows:

1) Peter is overwhelmed at the revelation of Jesus and falls at his feet
2) Peter confesses his own sinfulness, “Go away from me, Lord, for I am a sinful man”
3) Jesus commissions Peter to ministry: “Do not be afraid; from now on you will be catching people.” (Luke 5:8-10)

These three happenings remarkably parallel Isaiah’s prophetic commissioning when he:

1) Sees the glory of God on his throne (Isaiah 6:1-4)
2) Confesses his own sinfulness: “I am a man of unclean lips.” (Isaiah 6:5)
3) Is commissioned by God to ministry (Isaiah 6:8ff.)

Here Peter has a commissioning to prophetic ministry in which the glory of God is revealed to him, but not in a vision. Rather, it occurs right in the midst of the most banal surroundings of Peter’s life: his fishing boat. Rather than Peter being transported to another realm, the Divine has become incarnate, embodied in the very stuff of Peter’s life. It is there that he beholds the Divine Glory, has a revelation of his own inadequacy and is nevertheless told not to fear and is commissioned to the prophetic ministry. This is stunning because the recognized prophet of God, who had been confirmed already by many miracles, was choosing his followers, not from the religious elite, but amidst the unequivocally unclean, thereby extending the favor of God to them. That Jesus, the prophet, had accepted them symbolized to them and to all, that God had in fact accepted, those whom the religious elite had written off and the political and cultural elite had absolutely no concern for.

This is even more incredible by virtue of the fact that the second profession noted by Rabbinic writings as essentially unclean was carpentry, because they doubled as undertakers. Part of Jesus’ very own profession was that of regularly handling dead bodies. God incarnate was perpetually ritualistically unclean. This testifies to the depths of the humility of God. Not only does he reach out and embrace the disenfranchised and rejected, he identifies with them by living in their status of categorical rejection. He does not reach out from an untouchable pedestal, but embraces us from within our own downcast condition. He enters the world of our internalized and long forgotten reproach that we resignedly grow accustomed to. He carries within his own soul the humiliations and life-denying negations of shame and disdain which we reconcile with. He feels the sting of death in the isolation we have concluded is our portion. In doing so, he invites us to follow him, abolishing the wisdom of this age and bursting apart the categorical designations that had bound us to a cycle of despair. His acceptance liberates us into our true humanity and empowers us to leave our former unrighteousness, our previous beaten-down, bent-over posture. We abandon a playing and laying-low that abdicates the responsibility to rise into our glorious identity as divine image-bearers. In his invitation we find a way out. In his friendship we are free.

And so we pray:

It is right, and a good and joyful thing,
always and everywhere to give thanks to you,
Father Almighty, Creator of heaven and earth,

Because your Son, our Lord the Messiah
Calls to himself not the clean but the unclean
Not the well but the sick
Not the righteous but the unrighteousness
Not the wise but the foolish,
Not the strong but the weary,
To be His disciples and friends, and to follow him in his works.
In thus, he destroys the wisdom of the powers of this age
For your foolishness is wiser than human wisdom
And your weakness is stronger than human strength.
You have chosen the foolish to confound the wise
And the weak to confound the strong.
In befriending the lowly and despised,
those accounted as nothing
he has reduced the kingdoms
and powers of this world to nothing
manifesting his glory as
one who is gentle and humble in heart
the friend of sinners and the hope of the poor.

Therefore we praise you, joining with Angels and Archangels
And with all the company of heaven
Who for ever sing this hymn to proclaim the glory of your Name:

Holy, holy, holy Lord, God of power and might,
Heaven and earth are full of your glory.
Hosanna in the highest.
Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.
Hosanna in the highest.

Behold the Lamb of God – Prayer for Epiphany 2

Richard — Sun, 20 Jan 2008 07:43:12 +0000

In a few posts I’ve included prayers for the current season that have been taken from established liturgies. The following is my first hand at writing my own prayers in a liturgical style. It is based on the readings that are in the Revised Common Lectionary (a three year cycle of scheduled readings which is followed by dozens of denominations) for this week (Epiphany 2 year A) including Isaiah 49 and John 1:29-42.

The Lord be with you
(All) and also with you.

Lift up your hearts.
(All) We lift them to the Lord.

Let us give thanks to the Lord our God.
(All) It is right to give thanks and praise.

It is right, and a good and joyful thing,
always and everywhere to give thanks to you,
Father Almighty, Creator of heaven and earth,

For the glory of your Son
Was revealed to us as the Passover lamb
Who takes away the sins of the world,
Ending the exile of fallen humanity.
Even when we turned from you,
Each of us going our own way,
You saw our wanderings.
You took note of our lamentation.
You heard the cry of our groaning world,
beholding our affliction, our toil and our oppression.
Like a mother you could not forget your nursing infant,
or fail to have compassion on the child of your womb.
Brooding over this bent and broken world,
you sent forth your Son as the light to the nations
so your salvation might reach the ends of the earth,
That through his life he might render powerless the power of death
And save us from slavery to the fear of the same,
Leading us out of bondage and everlasting night
Through the waters of baptism and the wilderness of life
To the glorious new creation of all things:
Your new heavens and new earth
Where justice is at home.

Therefore we praise you, joining with Angels and Archangels
And with all the company of heaven
Who for ever sing this hymn to proclaim the glory of your Name:

Holy, holy, holy Lord, God of power and might,
Heaven and earth are full of your glory.
Hosanna in the highest.
Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.
Hosanna in the highest.

Prayer for the Baptism of our Lord

Richard — Sun, 13 Jan 2008 07:48:41 +0000

From the Liturgy of the Church of England:

The Lord be with you
(All) and also with you.

Lift up your hearts.
(All) We lift them to the Lord.

Let us give thanks to the Lord our God.
(All) It is right to give thanks and praise.

It is truly right and just,
our duty and our salvation,
always and everywhere to give you thanks,
holy Father, almighty and eternal God.
You celebrated your new gift of baptism
in signs and wonders at the Jordan.
Your voice was heard from heaven
to awaken faith in the presence among us
of your Word made flesh.
Your Spirit was seen as a dove,
revealing Jesus as your servant,
and anointing him with the oil of gladness
to preach the good news to the poor.
Therefore, as we celebrate the union of earth and heaven,
we rejoice to echo the song of the angels in heaven
for ever praising you and saying:

Holy, Holy, Holy,
Lord God of Hosts
Heaven and earth are full of your glory
Glory be to you oh Lord most high
Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord
Hosanna in the highest.

Jesus calls us out of darkness into his marvelous light.
Washed clean by the waters of baptism,
let us pray that we may live the life to which he has called us.

Lord Jesus, eternal Word,
proclaimed as the Messiah by John the forerunner,
hear us as we pray for all who proclaim your word …
Lord of truth,
hear our prayer.

Lord Jesus, baptizing with the Spirit and with fire,
strengthen us to withstand all the trials of our faith …
Lord of truth,
hear our prayer.

Lord Jesus, bringing forgiveness to all who repent,
teach your Church dependence on your grace …
Lord of truth,
hear our prayer.

Lord Jesus, fulfillment of the promises of old,
give hope to all who suffer or are ignored …
Lord of truth,
hear our prayer.

Lord Jesus, beloved Son of the Father,
anoint us with the gifts of your Holy Spirit …
Lord of truth,
hear our prayer.

Lord Jesus, bringer of hope,
share with all the faithful the riches of eternal life …
Lord of truth,
hear our prayer.

Lord Jesus the Messiah,
in you the Father makes us and all things new.
Transform the poverty of our nature
by the riches of your grace,
and in the renewal of our lives
make known your heavenly glory.
Amen.

The Baptism of Our Lord

Richard — Sun, 13 Jan 2008 06:51:36 +0000

Today is the First Sunday after Epiphany: The Baptism of Our Lord. Today we commemorate with joy and thanksgiving the baptism of Jesus in the Jordan River by John the Baptist. As I am gathering that you may have never even heard of such a holiday or may not have thought of celebrating the baptism of Jesus, I intend to give a few thoughts on the significance of the event.

I mentioned in a previous post that a week ago, January sixth was The Epiphany, which in fact begins a season (stunningly called the Season of Epiphany). This season extends until Lent and commemorates and celebrates the saving significance of Jesus’ life. His life does not serve only to lead up to the cross where salvation is wrought. The Gospels show us Jesus actually bringing salvation through his life on earth. This sounds strange to us because we often conceive of salvation as “going to heaven,” while such an idea, save a few verses, is remarkably absent from the Bible and entirely absent from the Old Testament. In the Old Testament, salvation always means earthly deliverance, often from enemies. It never means escape from the earth, but refers to the transformation of earthly circumstances and the renewal of the quality of life. The earthy, embodied and grounded spirituality of the Psalms bears this out over and over. A few examples will suffice for now:

Psalm 3:7-8 – “Arise, LORD! Deliver me, my God! Strike all my enemies on the jaw; break the teeth of the wicked. Salvation belongs to the LORD; Your blessing be upon Your people!”

Psalm 9:13-14 – “Be gracious to me, O LORD; See my affliction from those who hate me, You who lift me up from the gates of death, That I may tell of all Your praises, That in the gates of the daughter of Zion I may rejoice in Your salvation.”

Psalm 14:7 – “Oh, that the salvation of Israel would come out of Zion! When the LORD restores His captive people, Jacob will rejoice, Israel will be glad.”

Psalm 18:2 – “The LORD is my rock and my fortress and my deliverer, My God, my rock, in whom I take refuge; My shield and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold.”

As you can see above, I simply picked the first few verses that came up in my Bible program when I searched for “salvation” in the Psalms. It would have been easy to find dozens of additional verses in the Psalms (and hundreds elsewhere) to affirm the same conclusion: the hope of Israel was not a disembodied escape from earth, but the renewal of life on earth. That is how they understood salvation. With this conception of salvation, it is much easier to see how Jesus’ life does in fact bring salvation to the people. He heals the sick, restores the crippled, feeds the hungry, liberates the demon-oppressed, raises the dead, welcomes the outcast and returns dignity to the despised. He proclaims the kingdom of God, where all things will be made new and is in himself, the “Kingdom-of-God-in-person.” Jesus is the presence of God’s future salvation for the world in many diverse settings and applications. If we get over the medieval shackling of the concept of salvation to a disembodied, anti-earthly heavenly escape, we can see the vast continuity between Jesus’ earthly ministry, the Old Testament concept of salvation and the prophetically declared future for the world in God’s Kingdom.

How does this relate to Jesus’ baptism? Several happenings within the larger episode demonstrate the salvific significance of the baptism of Jesus. First, Jesus submits to John’s baptism. John is often called the last of the Old Testament prophets. By Jesus own words, John was the returning of the spirit of Elijah as prophesied by Malachi (Malachi 4:5-6; Matthew 11:14). As Jesus submits to John’s baptism, he puts himself in direct continuity with John’s ministry and the entire Old Testament history of promise and expectation related to his ministry.

Second, the Spirit descends on Jesus and thereafter becomes the determinative principle of his life. Third, the Father speaks from heaven saying, “This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased (Matthew 3:17). Taken together, these show the baptism to be Jesus’ sending forth in his Messianic mission. Growing out of Biblical expectation, at the time of Jesus, hope for salvation was increasingly focused on the person called the Messiah. The Messiah would be a person who would lead the people of God in triumph over all their enemies, liberate them from oppression and be a conduit through which God would lead the entire world into a new age of peace, justice, freedom and joy.

The word Messiah comes from the Hebrew word for anointing, specifically with the Holy Spirit. The Spirit, which was understood as the agent of the restoration of Israel (Ezek. 36:25ff; 37:14; 39:29) and the entire creation (Isa. 32:15; Joel 2:28ff; Ps. 104:30), was also understood to rest specifically on one person, the Messiah. When the Father spoke over Jesus, He was alluding to two Old Testament passages. In saying “this is my Son,” he is alluding to Psalm 2 and the commissioning of the Davidic King, which was a type of the Messiah. In saying “in whom I am well pleased,” he is alluding to Isaiah 42:1, which speaks of the Messianic figure, endued with the Spirit who will bring justice to the entire earth. In the midst of this declaration, the Spirit descends on Jesus, in very fact anointing him as the Messiah.

The moment of Jesus’ baptism is not merely Jesus honoring John, or giving us a model for us to follow, therefore “fulfilling all righteousness.” This is the inauguration of his mission as the Messiah. His reception of the Spirit is the beginning of the Messiah’s mission of life in which he will set captives free, restore the dead to life, and bring forth justice all over the earth. Here we understand Jesus as the one who will restore the earth, liberate us from all our enemies and free us to live before Him without fear all the days of our life (Luke 1:74). On this day, Jesus emerges out of thirty years of complete obscurity, rises from the waters of baptism anointed with the Spirit and begins to bring forth the new creation of all things. On this day, a door opened that will expand wider and wider into eternity filling the earth with justice, eradicating the curse from the planet and flooding creation with love, truth and joy. This is the Jesus we love and this is what we celebrate on this day.

A Prayer for Epiphany

Richard — Mon, 07 Jan 2008 07:56:36 +0000

The Lord be with you
(All) and also with you.

Lift up your hearts.
(All) We lift them to the Lord.

Let us give thanks to the Lord our God.
(All) It is right to give thanks and praise.

It is indeed right, it is our duty and our joy,
at all times to give you thanks and praise,
for today the grace of the Holy Spirit
in the form of a dove descended upon the waters.

Today the sun that never sets has risen
and the world is filled with splendor
by the light of the Lord.
Today the clouds drop down upon all people
the dew of righteousness from on high.
Today the Uncreated of his own will
accepts the laying on of hands from his own creature.
Today the waters of the Jordan
are transformed for healing by the coming of the Lord.
Today the blinding mist of the world is dispersed by the Epiphany of our God.
Today things above keep feast with things below,
and things below commune with things above.

Therefore, heavenly Father,
accept our sacrifice of praise,
and by the power of your life-giving Spirit
bring forth your new creation,
and grant that we,
with all who have been born anew
by water and the Spirit,
may be renewed in your image,
walk by the light of faith,
and serve you in newness of life.
Through your anointed Son, Jesus Christ our Lord,
to whom with you and the Holy Spirit
we lift our voices of praise:

(All) Blessed be God, our strength and our salvation,
now and for ever. Amen.

The Epiphany

Richard — Sun, 06 Jan 2008 08:03:06 +0000

I know I’m getting ahead of myself, but I cannot help but to comment on the significance of today. As I mentioned yesterday, I plan over the next few months to be sharing from my recent experiences of exploring the Church’s rich liturgical tradition. One dimension of this is the celebration of the Christian year. The Christian year in essence is the annual remembrance of the primary redemptive acts of God in Christ throughout the year. Our normal day-to-day time is punctuated (and then defined) by the major events described in the New Testament: the incarnation, life, death and resurrection of Jesus and the outpouring of the Spirit. Together with preceding preparatory seasons and consequent celebratory seasons we have the overall shape of the Christian year:

Advent – season beginning the fourth Sunday before Christmas
Christmas (Dec. 25) – twelve days celebrating the incarnation
Epiphany (Jan. 6) – begins the season celebrating Jesus life and ministry as the light of the world and the light to the Gentiles (continues until Ash Wednesday)
Lent – 40-day season of preparation for the death and resurrection of Jesus – begins with Ash Wednesday
Holy Week (final week of lent) – beginning with the remembrance of Jesus’ entrance into Jerusalem (Palm Sunday) through his death (Good Friday and Holy Saturday)
Easter – begins fifty days of celebrating the resurrection of Jesus
Ascension Day (40 days after Easter) – remembering Jesus’ ascension to heaven to reign at the right hand of the Father
Pentecost (50 days after Easter) – celebrating of the outpouring of the Spirit
Ordinary Time – from Pentecost until the next Advent

As Christians, we believe that the Christ-event indeed started a “new time,” inaugurated a “new age” (cf. 1 Cor. 15:20ff; Romans 5.14ff; 2 Cor. 5.17). Through certain specific historical moments, the power and life of the age to come has invaded our present time. One of the ways we commemorate and experience this is through the celebration of the Christian year, allowing the historical moments of God’s work in Christ to define the seasons of our lives.

In a later post, I’ll comment more on the Christian year and how exciting it has been for me as I have begun to celebrate it. For now I want to comment on Epiphany, one of the if not the least celebrated of all major Christian holidays. The Book of Common Prayer lists Epiphany as one of the seven “Principal Feasts,” up there with Christmas Day, Easter Day and the Day of Pentecost (never mind what the remaining three are for now, we’ll get to them at some point). Yet for most of my life I never knew what Epiphany was or had even heard of it. If the same is true for you, count yourself in good company.

This may be surprising, but in fact, Epiphany marks the end of Christmas. That’s right, the end of Christmas. This is because Christmas is actually a twelve day celebration. The only remaining vestige most of us can cling to in this regard is the hackneyed classic “The Twelve Days of Christmas” – you know, the one about the partridge in the pear tree. I know this is strange, but stay with me – the twelve days of Christmas are actually religious rather then secular. The secular celebration of Christmas would have you think it begins the day after Thanksgiving (or earlier) and Santa leaves his station at the mall the moment Christmas Day arrives. On the contrary, the Christian celebration of Christmas does not begin until Christmas Day (the anticipatory season of Advent precedes it) and continues for twelve days until Epiphany.

The word epiphany means “manifestation.” Epiphany remembers the manifestation of Jesus as the light of the world, particularly to the Gentiles. There are four events commonly commemorated on Epiphany and during the ensuing season: 1) the visit of the Magi to see Jesus, in which Gentiles bring the Jewish king gifts; 2) the baptism of Jesus, in which he is “manifested” in his Messianic calling and sent forth in the power of the Spirit; 3) the miracle of water turning to wine at the wedding in Cana (John 2) in which the Gospel tells us his glory was “manifested” and 4) the Transfiguration.

Since the season following Epiphany lasts for the next month (which because Easter is so early this year, it is an uncommonly short Epiphany season), I plan to comment more on its significance in the next few weeks. For I now I just want to give a brief comment on why I am happy to celebrate Epiphany today, and why I think we should expend some effort to restore the celebration of the Epiphany season. Epiphany reminds me of the saving significance of the life and ministry of Jesus. A full understanding of the salvific work of God in the Messiah must take into account the incarnation, life, death, resurrection and giving of the Spirit.

I love reading the Gospel stories, not simply as introductions to the crucifixion but to actually see Jesus bringing salvation to humanity by his life. In celebrating Jesus as the light of the world we remember a person who saves by drawing near. He does not scorn the human frame, despise the malfunctions of our brokenness, nor cringe at the sight of our poverty. Instead he stoops low to bring the good news of his Kingdom near, setting captives free. He touches the lepers and frees them from their deplorable untouchable status. He gives food to the hungry and endues hope to those despairing for life itself. He speaks face to face with women, dignifying those who have been abused and treated as disposable by cruel husbands and unjust legal systems. He eats joyfully with tax collectors and sinners, bursting the bonds of culturally enslaving shame and social stratification. He opens the eyes of the blind, restores the crippled, heals the brokenhearted, welcomes the outcast, esteems the despised, forgives the sins of the crushed, and raises the dead to life. In doing so he has “manifested” his glory – “the Lord has made known His salvation; He has revealed His righteousness in the sight of the nations” (Ps. 98:2).

Happy Epiphany!

On the Road to Emmaus » Epiphany

The Coming Justice of God – The Great Reversal

Related posts

The Baptism of Christ – He Comes to Bury Sinful Humanity in the Waters…and Begin a New Creation through the Spirit and Water

Related posts

Calling Not the Clean But the Unclean – Thoughts and Prayer for Epiphany 3

Related posts

Behold the Lamb of God – Prayer for Epiphany 2

Related posts

Prayer for the Baptism of our Lord

Related posts

The Baptism of Our Lord

Related posts

A Prayer for Epiphany

Related posts

The Epiphany

Related posts