SOME FOLLOW UP THOUGHTS ON THEOPHANY

I have been thinking about Theophany, why do we do all this and what does it do for us.

First lets look at the Feast itself. Jesus is God, there was no need for God to be cleansed of any sin. Yet, Jesus went to John in the Jordan and was given the ritual cleansing for the washing away of sin and uncleanliness.

Yes, Jesus is God, but to show that there is hope for all humanity Jesus/God took the form of a human, and it is necessary for us to understand Jesus as a man, as well as God. In the Feast, Jesus submits to John as our proto-type and in doing this, he is showing us that what he did was good and therefore we ought do the same.

Usually as children we were baptized and for many of us the action ended at that time. Our Baptism is a part of our past. Yet in the Feast we see that this isn’t true, as our baptism continues until we die, or deny it. The Feast shows us that everyday is a Baptism or, ought to be a baptism. The Holy Spirit is waiting to fill us with Baptismal Grace, all we have to do is open ourselves to it. We say it in our prayer…

“O Heavenly King, the Comforter, the Spirit of Truth, who is in all places and fills all things; the Treasurer of Good things and the Giver of Life; come and dwell in us, cleanse us from every stain and save our souls O Gracious Lord.”

Every time we participate in the Mystery of Repentance, we are confirming our Baptism, because in Baptism we are washed clean of all our sins, and in the act of repentance we are cleansed of our sins.

On the day of the Feast, water plays an important part in all the rituals. The water is blessed and we ask the Holy Spirit to come and dwell in it and, we do this because the water must be set apart from other waters. It needs to be “Holy Water” but more than “Holy Water”, because it must be a vehicle for us to unite with the Holy Spirit. The water is a Physical Vehicle, something that we as humans can understand, since Grace is an elusive concept. We can see the out pouring of water and understand that, in the same way Grace is poured out over us. Water is used to cleanse us and repentance does the same thing. We are showered with the Holy Water often mixed with rose water, to represent the Shower of Grace that God send down upon us. We drink the water to understand the indwelling of Grace, the indwelling of the Holy Spirit and how God can come into us.

We use the water to purify ourselves, and our surroundings. When the Priest comes to bless our house, its water that is sprinkled to route evil and make our dwelling pure. When we are ill we can drink the water with the hope that the water will help us to ask God for His mercy.

Celebrating the Feast helps us to understand how God’s Grace operated in the world and, how we can tap into it. It also helps us to relate to Jesus the man/God. Jesus related to water in how it cleansed humanity and, there are many examples in the New Testament of He, Himself using water as a vehicle of curing grace. We need to relate to the humanity of Jesus as much as we must worship Him as Lord and God.

The Feast of Theophany leads us in that direction.

+Elias