Words: Bishop Reginald Heber
Tune: ‘Epiphany’ – Joseph Thrupp

Lord Jesus Christ, who didst humble thyself to take the baptism of sinful men, and wast forthwith declared to be the Son of God: Grant that we who have been baptized into thee may rejoice to be the sons of God, and servants of all; for thy name’s sake, who with the Father and the Holy Spirit livest and reignest ever one God, world without end.

The Baptism of Christ, c. 1600
By El Greco, Domenikos Theotokopoulos, who died 7 Apr 1614 in #Toledo

(Museo Nacional del Prado)

Today is the Feast of the Baptism of Jesus. pic.twitter.com/kiPUg5GHwB

— John McCafferty (@jdmccafferty) January 8, 2023

Almighty God, who at the baptism of thy blessed Son Jesus Christ in the river Jordan didst manifest his glorious Godhead: Grant, we beseech thee, that the brightness of his presence may shine in our hearts, and his glory be set forth in our lives; through the same Jesus Christ our Lord.

The Baptism of Christ, 1605 #baroque #peterpaulrubens https://t.co/sg6Q22ixSQ pic.twitter.com/H8pAVkR5CV

— Peter Paul Rubens (@artistrubens) January 7, 2023

Eternal Father,
who at the baptism of Jesus
revealed him to be your Son,
anointing him with the Holy Spirit:
grant to us, who are born again by water and the Spirit,
that we may be faithful to our calling as your adopted children;
through Jesus Christ your Son our Lord,
who is alive and reigns with you,
in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, now and for ever.
Amen.

Today's the feast of the Baptism of Christ. He emerges from the River Jordan, St John the Baptist behind him, in glass of 2004 by Pippa Blackall at Mileham, Norfolk.

Mileham: https://t.co/2HiPESWzd5 pic.twitter.com/WOqrvJMmMD

— Simon Knott (@last_of_england) January 8, 2023

And we, what excuse shall we have if we come not? If so short and so easy a way we come not, as from our chambers hither, not to be called away indeed? Shall not our non venerunt have an ecce, Behold, it was stepping but over the threshold, and yet they came not?

And these were wise men, and never a whit the less wise for so coming; no never so truly wise in any thing they did, as in so coming. The Holy Spirit records them for wise, in capite libri, even in the beginning of the New Testament. Of Christ, when He came into the world, that is, when He was born, the Psalm saith, In the beginning of the Book it was writ of Him, He said, Ecce venio, Lo I come; of these in the same words, when they came to meet Him so born, it is said here in the beginning of the Gospel, Ecce venerunt, Behold they came.

And we, if we believe this, that this was their wisdom, if they and we be wise by one Spirit, by the same principles, we shall follow the same star, tread the same way, and so come at last whither they are happily gone before us.

Nay, not only that come, but this withal; to think and set down with ourselves, that to come to Christ is one of the wisest parts that ever these wise men did, or we or any else can do in all our lives.

And how shall we that do? I know not any more proper way left us, than to come to that which Himself by express order has left us, as the most special remembrance of Himself to be come to. When He came into the world, saith the Psalm, that is at His birth now, He said, Ecce venio. What then? Sacrifice and burnt-offering Thou wouldst not have, but a body hast Thou ordained Me. Mark, saith the Apostle, He takes away the first to establish the second, that is, to establish His body, and the coming to it. By the offering, breaking, and partaking of which body, we are all sanctified, so many as will come to it. For given it is, for the taking away of our sins. Nothing is more fit than at the time His body was ordained Him, and that is to-day, to come to the body so ordained.

And in the old Ritual of the Church we find that on the cover of the canister, wherein was the Sacrament of His Body, there was a star engraven, to shew us that now the star leads us thither, to His body there.

And what shall I say now, but according as St. John saith, and the star, and the wise men say, Come. And He, Whose the star is, and to Whom the wise men came, saith, Come. And let them who are disposed, Come. And…let whosoever will, take of the Bread of Life, which came down from Heaven this day into Bethlehem, the house of bread. Of which Bread the Church is this day the house, the true Bethlehem, and all the Bethlehem we have now left to come to for the Bread of life,of that His life which we hope for in Heaven. And this our nearest coming that here we can come, till we shall by another venite come, unto Him in His Heavenly Kingdom, to which He grant we may come, That this day came to us in earth that we thereby might come to Him and remain with Him for ever, Jesus Christ the Righteous.

Read it all.

Today the Church of England celebrates The Epiphany https://t.co/ITcE3hpB6V

Image: Medieval window in Canterbury Cathedral depicting the Visit of the Magi. Photo by Lawrence OP, CC BY-NC-ND 2.0, via flickr pic.twitter.com/ERkTZ2G8nx

— The Anglican Church in St Petersburg (@anglicanspb) January 6, 2023

O God, who by the leadings of thy providence didst bring wise men from far to give homage to Jesus, born to be King of all: Help us, who by various ways are led to Christ, humbly and thankfully to adore him with our gifts, and as our costliest treasure to present before him ourselves for his honour and service, now and always.

O God, by the leading of a star you manifested your only Son to the peoples of the earth: Lead us, who know you now by faith, to your presence, where we may see your glory face to face." Join us this Sunday (8th January) at 8am, 10am and 5pm as we celebrate the feast of #Epiphany pic.twitter.com/o4adskLU1H

— St Mary's Potters Bar (@StMarysPB) January 6, 2023

Look through them all.

(CBC) 13 pictures of #Epiphany2023 celebrations around the world https://t.co/ndXTh1Rjh3 #epiphany #photos #christianity #globalisation

— Kendall Harmon (@KendallHarmon6) January 6, 2023

Dear friends, this is the question that the Church wishes to awaken in the hearts of all men: who is Jesus? This is the spiritual longing that drives the mission of the Church: to make Jesus known, his Gospel, so that every man can discover in his human face the face of God, and be illumined by his mystery of love. Epiphany pre-announces the universal opening of the Church, her call to evangelize all peoples. But Epiphany also tells us in what way the Church carries out this mission: reflecting the light of Christ and proclaiming his Word. Christians are called to imitate the service that the star gave the Magi. We must shine as children of the light, to attract all to the beauty of the Kingdom of god. And to all those who seek truth, we must offer the Word of God, which leads to recognizing in Jesus “the true God and eternal life” (1 John 5:20).

—Benedict XVI.

Adoration of the Magi, painted in ‘grisaille’ or shades of grey. From a fifteenth-century North Netherlands manuscript. #Epiphany https://t.co/x62n3UbS4a pic.twitter.com/Jzudz2GnKR

— Cambridge UL Special Collections (@theULSpecColl) January 6, 2023

Almighty and everlasting God, who hast made known the incarnation of thy Son by the bright shining of a star, which when the wise men beheld they adored thy majesty and presented costly gifts: Grant that the star of thy righteousness may always shine in our hearts, and that for our treasure we may give to thy service ourselves and all that we have; through the same Jesus Christ our Lord.

In Eastern Christianity, the Feast of Epiphany commemorates the baptism of Jesus in the Jordan River.

Russian icon of the Theophany (Kirillo-Belozersky Monastery, 1497) pic.twitter.com/rqXMOtPntz

— 🌿_ (@rebeca6169) January 6, 2023

How could they have known not to come
On what amounted to pretense? Everything
Their learning held, all their beliefs
Said regal gifts were needful for a king.

The things they brought were left behind,
Doubtless; or maybe traded for bread:
Impecunious Joseph with a family
To feed, a roof to put over his head.

Read it all.

Epiphany is the feast when we remember the visit of the Magi (or the three Kings) to the infant Christ.
This beautiful image is from Scenes of the Nativity, 19th century. [MS 1563] pic.twitter.com/VwL6QAWseC

— LambethPalaceLibrary (@lampallib) January 6, 2023

…that this star was not of the common sort, or rather not a star at all, as it seems at least to me, but some invisible power transformed into this appearance, is in the first place evident from its very course. For there is not, there is not any star that moves by this way, but whether it be the sun you mention, or the moon, or all the other stars, we see them going from east to west; but this was wafted from north to south; for so is Palestine situated with respect to Persia.

In the second place, one may see this from the time also. For it appears not in the night, but in mid-day, while the sun is shining; and this is not within the power of a star, nay not of the moon; for the moon that so much surpasses all, when the beams of the sun appear, straightway hides herself, and vanishes away. But this by the excess of its own splendor overcame even the beams of the sun, appearing brighter than they, and in so much light shining out more illustriously.

…[Later in the narrative] it did not, remaining on high, point out the place; it not being possible for them so to ascertain it, but it came down and performed this office. For ye know that a spot of so small dimensions, being only as much as a shed would occupy, or rather as much as the body of a little infant would take up, could not possibly be marked out by a star. For by reason of its immense height, it could not sufficiently distinguish so confined a spot, and discover it to them that were desiring to see it. And this any one may see by the moon, which being so far superior to the stars, seems to all that dwell in the world, and are scattered over so great an extent of earth,””seems, I say, near to them every one. How then, tell me, did the star point out a spot so confined, just the space of a manger and shed, unless it left that height and came down, and stood over the very head of the young child? And at this the evangelist was hinting when he said, “Lo, the star went before them, till it came and stood over where the young Child was.”

Read it all.

'Wise men from the East came to Jerusalem, asking, 'Where is the child who has been born king of the Jews? For we observed his star at its rising, and have come to pay him homage''
Matthew 2: 1-3#Epiphany pic.twitter.com/9XSbMs7DES

— Westminster Abbey (@wabbey) January 6, 2023

O God,
who by the leading of a star
manifested your only Son to the peoples of the earth:
mercifully grant that we,
who know you now by faith,
may at last behold your glory face to face;
through Jesus Christ your Son our Lord,
who is alive and reigns with you,
in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, now and for ever.
Amen.

As we prepare to celebrate the Feast of the Nativity, we pray blessings upon sisters and brothers around the world celebrating #Epiphany today, and pray that our Incarnate Lord fills our world with the Hope, Light and Joy that can only come from Him.#DifferentCalendarsOneFaith pic.twitter.com/eHbqxTP7gI

— Archbishop Angaelos (@BishopAngaelos) January 6, 2023

O God, fountain of love, pour thy love into our souls, that we may love those whom thou lovest with the love thou givest us, and think and speak of them tenderly, meekly, lovingly; and so loving our brethren and sisters for thy sake, may grow in thy love, and dwelling in love may dwell in thee; for Jesus Christ’s sake.

Hello Monday!
Seabrook Island SC pic.twitter.com/yA15E1hnRK

— Glen Cox (@GQCOP45) February 14, 2022

God our creator,
who in the beginning
commanded the light to shine out of darkness:
we pray that the light of the glorious gospel of Christ
may dispel the darkness of ignorance and unbelief,
shine into the hearts of all your people,
and reveal the knowledge of your glory
in the face of Jesus Christ your Son our Lord,
who is alive and reigns with you,
in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, now and for ever.
Amen.

Good morning from #scarborough Slightly later than usual for this #mondaythoughts photo 🥰 A sunrise photo in Peasholm Glen, low sun, bare trees, blue sky. Have a lovely day! pic.twitter.com/8eLHemKCxF

— Faith Young Writer (@FYoungWriter) January 31, 2022

O God, you know that we are set in the midst of many grave dangers, and because of the frailty of our nature we cannot always stand upright: Grant that your strength and protection may support us in all dangers and carry us through every temptation; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

Sunrise on Cnicht pic.twitter.com/n4UxgHd55v

— Cito Lapram (@BloodNelsons) January 30, 2022

We beseech thee, O Lord, to perfect within us the work of grace which thou hast begun; grant us always to think, speak and do what is pleasing to thee; and keep us from falling back into the sins we have repented of; that we may live as in thy presence, and finish our lives in thy fear; through Jesus Christ our Lord.

A Frozen Morning. -1°C and dappled cloud. A heron in the beck. pic.twitter.com/A9P34Nhsf5

— Yorkshire Wolds Weather (@WeatherWolds) January 21, 2022

Almighty God, the giver of strength and joy: Change, we beseech thee, our bondage into liberty, and the poverty of our nature into the riches of thy grace; that by the transformation of our lives thy glory may be revealed; through Jesus Christ our Lord.

2nd Place, Landscape, in our 7th Annual Reader Photo Contest, photographed by Karen Kurkjian.

See the rest of this year's winning Reader Photo Contest images, including contest sponsor @NRCMenvironment's pick, here. ➡️ https://t.co/ptrQAh4Oyu pic.twitter.com/ak8gZyjQ0E

— Down East Magazine (@MagazineofMaine) January 20, 2022

Make us adept, Lord,
at reading the signs
of your working among us;
help us to be unencumbered
by the priorities and possessions
of the world;
rather help us to be free
for the purposes and promises
of your kingdom,
that we may always be ready
to follow your call.

–The Rev. Bill Braviner is a Vicar and Diocesan Disability Adviser in the Diocese of Durham, UK

"Dawn of a January Day"#AlmostHeaven #WestVirginia #Highlands #Stormhour #ThePhotoHour pic.twitter.com/oqrDQLn6hA

— Thomas R Fletcher (@ThomasRFletcher) January 19, 2022

Almighty God,
in Christ you make 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;
through Jesus Christ your Son our Lord,
who is alive and reigns with you,
in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, now and for ever.
Amen.

Fantastic in every way, especially if you love gold skies: Adoration of the Magi by Lorenzo Monaco, 1422. Today is his day. pic.twitter.com/w6aRUKqEk8

— Dr. Peter Paul Rubens (@PP_Rubens) November 21, 2021

Almighty God, who hast set in thy Church some with gifts to teach and help and administer, in diversity of operation but of the same Spirit: Grant to all such, we beseech thee, grace to wait on the ministry which they have received in the body of Christ with simplicity, diligence, and cheerfulness; that none may think of himself more highly than he ought to think, and none may seek another man’s calling, but rather to be found faithful in his own work; to the glory of thy name in Christ Jesus our Lord.

–The Rev. H. J. Wotherspoon [1850-1930], Kyrie eleison (“Lord, have mercy”): A Manual of Private Prayers (Philadelphia: Westminster, 1905)

#Waiting4Christmas con l'Adorazione dei Magi di Jacopo #Pontormo del 1523c. eseguita dall'artista per l'anticamera del palazzo della famiglia Benintendi. Pontormo raffigura nella scena anche Sant'Anna, protettrice di Firenze, accanto a Maria.#GalleriaPalatina #PalazzoPitti pic.twitter.com/wCaD4PkgLT

— Gallerie Uffizi (@UffiziGalleries) December 18, 2018

Almighty God, whose Son our Savior Jesus Christ is the light of the world: Grant that your people, illumined by your Word and Sacraments, may shine with the radiance of Christ’s glory, that he may be known, worshiped, and obeyed to the ends of the earth; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who with you and the Holy Spirit lives and reigns, one God, now and for ever.

The Adoration of the Magi, Leonardo da Vinci, 1482 pic.twitter.com/B6XC05R6ni

— Jeremy Wayne Tate (@JeremyTate41) December 24, 2021

Almighty God, who to wise men who sought him didst manifest the Incarnation of thy Son by the bright shining of a star: Grant that, as they presented unto him gifts, gold and frankincense and myrrh, so we also out of our treasures may offer to him ourselves, a living sacrifice acceptable in thy sight; through him who for our sakes was born on earth as a little child, Jesus Christ our Lord.

Adoration of the Magi, 1482 #botticelli #sandrobotticelli pic.twitter.com/YQRQOKyl7q

— Sandro Botticelli (@artbotticelli) December 18, 2021

Words: Bishop Reginald Heber
Tune: ‘Epiphany’ – Joseph Thrupp

O Thou, in whom we live and move and have our being: We offer and present unto thee ourselves, all that we are and have, our thoughts and our desires, our words and our deeds, to be a living and continual sacrifice. We are not our own; therefore we would glorify thee in our bodies and our spirits, which are thine; through Jesus Christ our Lord.

Like a kind of Hitchcock avant la lettre Dürer often pops up in his paintings – here in the Adoration of the Magi as one of the magi. pic.twitter.com/JsqlnsZZ3k

— Rembrandt's R👀m 🖌 (@RembrandtsRoom) August 9, 2019

O Almighty God, who by thy holy Apostle hast taught us to present our bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto thee, as our reasonable service: Hear us, we beseech thee, as we now come to thee in the name of Jesus Christ; and give us grace that we may dedicate ourselves wholly to thy service, and henceforth live only to thy glory; through the same Jesus Christ our Lord.

The Adoration of the Magi is a painting by Portuguese artist Domingos Sequeira, dated to 1828. It shows the common subject in the Nativity art of the visit by the Three Kings to the infant Jesus. (National Museum of Ancient Art, Lisbon). pic.twitter.com/vYuwrVVmWo

— EUROPEAN ART 💭 (@EuropeanArtHIST) June 17, 2020

Epiphany is the season in the Church year when we celebrate the coming of the light of Christ into a very dark world. It is a world-changing event that we can never fully comprehend. Epiphany is sometimes referred to as the manifestation of Christ to the Gentiles – represented by the Magi, that rather odd set of characters introduced to us in Matthew’s Gospel (2:1-12). While tradition has promoted them to be Kings of the Orient and even given them names – Melchior, Gaspar and Balthazar – we really know very little about them from the scriptures.

The story of the Magi’s search for the One who was born the King of the Jews has inspired generations. The story begins in the East, as they study the heavens looking for messages. They conclude that something, or someone, remarkable is about to be born and make a perilous journey to investigate further. Along the way they consult with King Herod and finally make their way to Bethlehem, where they find the infant Jesus with his family. After offering their extravagant gifts that have been the subject of many sermons and Epiphany pageants, they are warned in a dream about Herod’s ulterior motives and return home “by another way.” It is a story that never gets old with the retelling and appeals to all ages. It combines elements of a fascinating adventure story and of supernatural revelations that stretch the mind, no matter how sophisticated we think we have become.

Epiphany season is a good time to remember the many ways in which God still reveals himself to us. For some, those revelations are dramatic and life changing …

One of the classic moments of personal revelation was recorded by John Wesley in his journal of May 24, 1738:

In the evening I went very unwillingly to a society meeting in Aldersgate Street, where one was reading [Martin] Luther’s preface to the Epistle to the Romans. About a quarter before nine, while he was describing the change which God works in the heart through faith in Christ, I felt my heart strangely warmed. I felt I did trust in Christ, Christ alone, for salvation; and an assurance was given me that He had taken away my sins, even mine, and saved me from the law of sin and death.

Thus the Methodist movement was born and the course of Christianity in England, the US, and beyond was changed for good!

Read it all.

Today's art: The Adoration of the Magi – El Greco https://t.co/EeTO8EC1EG pic.twitter.com/JgXXJZQhrj

— Art and the Bible (@artbible) August 23, 2019

Listen to it all.

O Lord Jesus Christ, who didst sit lowly in the midst of the doctors, both hearing them and asking them questions: Give unto thy servants that humility of heart, and willingness to learn, without which no man can find wisdom; to the glory of thy holy Name.

—Daily Prayer, Eric Milner-White and G. W. Briggs, eds. (London: Penguin Books 1959 edition of the 1941 original)

Catching an early swim on the loch – hope you have a wonderful, calm Wednesday friends #ScotlandisNow #StormHour #photography #photooftheday #landscape #OutAndAboutScotland #landscapephotography @VisitScotland @ScotsMagazine #friends #PhotoHour #stvsnaps #NatureBeauty pic.twitter.com/ghWPgRJrZW

— Mike Wood (@MikeMikwd) January 12, 2022

Everybody knows that Christmas is a season of joy. For one, it has at its heart a birth story. A new and healthy child came into the world, and his family rejoiced. Every birth is a new beginning, a fresh hope. Christmas joy overlaps with the most common of humanity’s great joys.

We tend not to associate joy with Epi­phany. In Epiphany, Christians re­member the visit that the sages from the East made to Bethlehem to honor the newborn Jesus, an act of gentile recognition of Christ’s divinity and mission (Matt. 2:1–12). In this season we also commemorate the first miracle Jesus performed—at the wedding in Cana of Galilee, when Jesus revealed his glory and his disciples believed in him (John 2:1–11). Each of these seemingly unrelated events highlights a crucial aspect of joy.

Read it all.

The Feast of the #Epiphany, celebrating the arrival of the Magi, occurs on 6th January. This stained glass window, designed by Sir Edward Burne -Jones & created by William Morris’s company, was installed in the Epiphany Chapel at #WinchesterCathedral in 1910. #FolkloreThursday pic.twitter.com/yUn2T6Muzb

— Maude Frome (@frome_maude) January 5, 2022

O Blessed Lord, who in the days of thy earthly childhood didst earnestly desire to be about thy Father’s business: Give us the grace of thy Holy Spirit early to seek thee and evermore to follow thee; that being continuously aided by thy grace, we may be exercised in thy service; who livest and reignest with the Holy Spirit, world without end.

The word ‘epiphany’ means ‘manifestation’ or ‘appearance’.

The Feast of the Epiphany traditionally falls 12 days after Christmas Day, and marks the visit of the Magi.

During Epiphany, Jesus is revealed as the Saviour of the world, who calls us to follow him. pic.twitter.com/P11gnjJkbD

— The Church of England (@churchofengland) January 6, 2022