“I Had an Epiphany”
We call a sudden flash of insight an “epiphany.” Broadly used, an epiphany can be anything from finally understanding long division (is that even still taught?) to realizing the fruitlessness of training a cat. But as is often the case, words can have different meanings in Christian community.
Epiphany is both a festival day and a season in the church year. The festival remembers the visit to the newborn Jesus by the wise men of the East. They are credited with being the first gentiles to see and worship Jesus as king. And they brought some amazing gifts.
The season begins with the festival day and ends the day before Ash Wednesday. This year it is longer than usual, lasting from January 6th through March 4th. A major theme of Epiphany is the revelation of Jesus as the light of the world. In the Old Testament or Hebrew Bible, Israel was intended by God to serve as a light to the nations, that the world would come to know Israel’s God by their faithfulness and God’s favor. But Israel fell short on faithfulness to God, and the light was hard to see for many years.
When Jesus is born, he becomes the means of fulfilling God’s promises to Israel, including serving as the light of the world. 2,000 years later, roughly 1/3 of the global population or 2.4 billion people profess Christianity. This is a long way from three wise men, or as more commonly acknowledged, from twelve disciples.
What is the origin story of your own Epiphany? Did you come to see Jesus as the light of the world all at once, or more gradually? If we grew up in the church, as many of us did, it has likely been a more gradual process. We didn’t know a world apart from Jesus until we came to see and appreciate the contrast between his light and its absence. As overall church participation declines in the United States, ironically the contrast will be easier to see. We may find ourselves more clear about our faith, but less supported in the wider world.
The physical world is giving us a daily measure of increasing light. Between January 6th and March 4th, we will gain over two hours of daylight in Rockford. We will be able to see more things more clearly for more of each day. As we gather on Sundays and through the week, may we also see more things more clearly through an increasing awareness of God’s presence in and as Jesus.
Grace and Peace,
Pastor Don Wink