Patrick Comerford
Tomorrow (6 January) is the Feast of the Epiphany, which celebrates three Epiphanies of Theophanies, when God is seen as present among us in the person of Christ:
1, The visit of the Magi (Matthew 2: 1-12);
2, The Baptism of Christ (Matthew 3: 13-17; Mark 1: 9-11; Luke 3: 15-22; John 1: 29-33);
3, The Wedding at Cana (John 2: 1-11).
Alternative names for the feast in Greek include τα Θεοφάνια (ta Theophánia), ‘Theophany’, a neuter plural rather than feminine singular; η Ημέρα των Φώτων (i Iméra ton Fóton), ‘The Day of the Lights’, and τα Φώτα (ta Fóta), ‘The Lights’.
We often describe the moment when something enlightens us or dawns on us as an Epiphany moment. But in theological terms, an Epiphany or Theophany is a moment when God becomes manifest, when people realise who Christ truly is.
In Greece and among Greek speakers, tomorrow (6 January) is Θεοφάνεια (Theophania) and brings the Christmas celebrations to a conclusion. People are going to gather at the nearest seaside, lake or river, where the priest blesses a cross, throws it into the water, and young men dive in to retrieve the cross.
The Feast of the Holy Epiphany or Holy Theophany (Γιορτή των Αγίων Θεοφανείων) is being marked tomorrow (6 January) by the Greek Orthodox Community in Stony Stratford with Orthros (9 am), the Divine Liturgy, the Great Anointing, and the Blessing of the Great Ouse.
But what is the difference between Epiphany and Theophany, in theology, language and culture?
The word Epiphany, from the Koine Greek ἐπιφάνεια (epipháneia), means a manifestation or appearance. It is derived from the verb φαίνειν (phainein), meaning ‘to appear’. In classical Greek it was used for the appearance of dawn or of an enemy in war, for example, but especially of a manifestation of a deity to a worshipper.
In the Septuagint, the word is used of a manifestation of the God of Israel (II Maccabees 15: 27). In the New Testament, the word is used in II Timothy 1: 10 to refer either to the birth of Christ or to his appearance after his resurrection, and five times to refer to his Second Coming.
Epiphanies, or visions of gods, were reported and believed in many cities in ancient Greece. They were most commonly reported on the battlefields and, during moments of crisis, when citizens were most eager to believe that the gods of their poliswere coming to assist them.
An alleged visitation or manifestation of a god was known as an epiphaneia (ἡ ἐπιφάνεια). Sometimes the gods who appeared were prominent deities, but more often, they were minor figures, whose shrines were linked to the location of a particular event or battle. The gods did not always reveal themselves to mortals, but could indicate their presence through physical signs or unusual phenomena.
They could also appear to individuals, particularly in dreams. But epiphanies tend to have been reported more frequently at times of extreme danger, such as the Persian Wars. For example, at the Battle of Marathon in 490 it was said that Pan, Theseus and others fought against the Persians. It was widely said that on the eve of the battle of Marathon the runner Pheidippides met Pan on Mount Parthenion, where the god promised to support the Athenians. After their unexpected victory, the Athenians introduced the cult of Pan to their city.
At the Battle of Salamis, visions of the sons of Aias were reported. Themistokles said that the Greek victory over the Persian fleet at Salamis was aided by gods and heroes.
Accounts of attacks on Delphi, the most sacred Panhellenic sanctuary, attracted reports of battlefield epiphanies. Herodotos says that when the forces of Xerxes attacked the sanctuary in 480 BCE, two giant heroes were seen repelling the Persians. But not all epiphanies were believed. Dionysios of Halikarnassos said that many accounts of epiphanies were ridiculed.
The name Epiphanes was used by the Seleucid and Ptolemaic dynasties who ruled in Hellenised Egypt and in the Hellenistic Seleucid Empire in Syria, both successors to Alexander the Great’s broken empire. In their vanity, they adopted the divine-sounding epithet Epiphanes, meaning ‘god manifest’, to enhance their royal image.
Ptolemy V Epiphanes reigned in 204-181 BCE and took this title in a display of a Hellenistic trend of divine self-presentation.
Antiochus IV Epiphanes reigned as the Seleucid king in Syria from 175 to 164 BCE. He seized power, aggressively promoted Hellenisation, attempted to suppress Judaism, and sparked the Maccabean revolt, recalled in the Jewish festival of Hanukkah. He became a major villain in Jewish history and has been described as ‘the Bible’s most notoriously forgotten villain; equalling Pharaoh of the Exodus and King Nebuchadnezzar, or some of the Israelite monarchs, such as Saul and Ahab, or the great villains in the New Testament, including King Herod the Great and the Roman emperors Nero and Domitian.
By calling himself Epiphanes, Antiochus also claimed to be Zeus incarnate. According to the books of Maccabees and the Jewish historian Josephus, Antiochus plundered the Jerusalem Temple and carried off the sacred vessels to help finance his campaigns.
When Antiochus arrived in Jerusalem, he slaying many innocents and brutally enforcing his cultural and religious policies on the population, outlawing circumcision, burning sacred scriptures, and imposing brutally punishments, including death. Antiochus built a new fortress known as the Acra or ‘the Citadel’ and proceeded to profane the Temple by erecting idols and sacrificing pigs to Zeus on the altar.
The Jewish revolt led by the Maccabees is celebrated at Hanukkah. Soon after, the Seleucid kingdom crumbled as well. The Greek historian Polybius, in a pun in Greek, referred to Antiochus as Ἐπιμανής (Epimanes), ‘the Insane One’.
The word epiphany does not appear in the Greek Orthodox liturgical texts for the feast of the Theophany on 6 January.
The word theophany derives from the Ancient Greek θεοφάνεια (theopháneia), meaning ‘appearance of a god’ from θεός (theós), ‘divinity’, and φαίνειν (phainein), ‘to show’ or ‘to appear’. A theophany was an ‘appearance of a deity’, or an encounter with a deity that manifests in a visible, observable and tangible form. But they are not considered theophanies unless the deity reveals itself in a visible form.
While the Iliad is the earliest source for descriptions of theophanies in classical antiquity, the first description appears in the Epic of Gilgamesh.
These appearances of deities to humans could be in anthropomorphic form or as other phenomena, such as light, fire, or cloud, and often served to affirm the deity’s favour, deliver a message, or enact divine will. In the Hebrew Bible and related literature, theophanies are often characterised by awe-inspiring phenomena such as thunder, fire, clouds, or bright light.
In ancient Greek religion, theophanies typically occurred through visions or dreams, either spontaneously or as the result of ritual preparation. Although rare in historical accounts, mythological literature contains numerous examples of gods appearing to mortals in anthropomorphic form. These include Zeus appearing to Semele, Athena guiding Odysseus, or Apollo communicating with seers and prophets.
In cult practices, theophanies were reenacted and commemorated in ritual settings. The theophania (θεοφάνια) at Delphi was an annual spring festival celebrating the return of Apollo from his winter sojourn.
The Theophany is one of the Great Feasts of the Orthodox Church, celebrated on 6 January. This feast recalls the Baptism of Christ by Saint John the Baptist or Saint John the Forerunner in the River Jordan, marking the beginning of Christ’s earthly ministry and revealing God as Trinity: the Father’s voice is heard above, the Son is incarnate and standing physically in the Jordan, and the Holy Spirit descends on him.
On this day, the day before Theophania, children go house-to-house singing kalanta (carols) and are given coins or sweets in return. In churches, on the eve of the feast, the Mikros Agiasmos (the Lesser Blessing of the Waters) is celebrated, where a bowl of water is blessed and distributed among people.
The Feast of the Theophany tomorrow is the culmination of the Christmas Season, starting on 25 December and ending on 6 January. The traditional celebrations include the Great Blessing of Water, Μέγας Αγιασμός (Megas Agiasmos). In Rethymnon, the ceremony takes place at the Venetian Harbour, with hundreds of people lining the harbour front to see the celebrations.
After the final prayer, the priest raises his arm and throws a wooden crucifix out across the water. As he does this, swimmers dive headfirst, and thrash frantically to find where the cross has landed. Stretching out to grab the holy prize, the winner clutches the cross before kissing it, and holding it high above their head. One man is said to have retrieved the cross in Rethymnon on 11 consecutive years.
Retrieving the cross was traditionally reserved for men. But in 2018 in the village of Platanias, west of Chania, Maria Varouxaki became the first woman in Crete to take part and beat her all-male competitors.
Previous words in this series:
1, Neologism, Νεολογισμός.
2, Welcoming the stranger, Φιλοξενία.
3, Bread, Ψωμί.
4, Wine, Οίνος and Κρασί.
5, Yogurt, Γιαούρτι.
6, Orthodoxy, Ορθοδοξία.
7, Sea, Θᾰ́λᾰσσᾰ.
8,Theology, Θεολογία.
9, Icon, Εἰκών.
10, Philosophy, Φιλοσοφία.
11, Chaos, Χάος.
12, Liturgy, Λειτουργία.
13, Greeks, Ἕλληνες or Ρωμαίοι.
14, Mañana, Αύριο.
15, Europe, Εὐρώπη.
16, Architecture, Αρχιτεκτονική.
17, The missing words.
18, Theatre, θέατρον, and Drama, Δρᾶμα.
19, Pharmacy, Φᾰρμᾰκείᾱ.
20, Rhapsody, Ραψῳδός.
21, Holocaust, Ολοκαύτωμα.
22, Hygiene, Υγιεινή.
23, Laconic, Λακωνικός.
24, Telephone, Τηλέφωνο.
25, Asthma, Ασθμα.
26, Synagogue, Συναγωγή.
27, Diaspora, Διασπορά.
28, School, Σχολείο.
29, Muse, Μούσα.
30, Monastery, Μοναστήρι.
31, Olympian, Ολύμπιος.
32, Hypocrite, Υποκριτής.
33, Genocide, Γενοκτονία.
34, Cinema, Κινημα.
35, autopsy and biopsy
36, Exodus, ἔξοδος
37, Bishop, ἐπίσκοπος
38, Socratic, Σωκρατικὸς
39, Odyssey, Ὀδύσσεια
40, Practice, πρᾶξις
41, Idiotic, Ιδιωτικός
42, Pentecost, Πεντηκοστή
43, Apostrophe, ἀποστροφή
44, catastrophe, καταστροφή
45, democracy, δημοκρατία
46, ‘Αρχή, beginning, Τέλος, end
47, ‘Αποκάλυψις, Apocalypse
48, ‘Απόκρυφα, Apocrypha
49, Ἠλεκτρον (Elektron), electric
50, Metamorphosis, Μεταμόρφωσις
51, Bimah, βῆμα
52, ἰχθύς (ichthýs) and ψάρι (psari), fish.
53, Τὰ Βιβλία (Ta Biblia), The Bible
54, Φῐλοξενῐ́ᾱ (Philoxenia), true hospitality
55, εκκλησία (ekklesia), the Church
56, ναός (naos) and ἱερός (ieros), a church
57, Χριστούγεννα (Christougenna), Christmas
58, ἐπιφάνεια (epipháneia), θεοφάνεια, (theopháneia),
Epiphany and Theophany
59, Ζέφυρος (Zéphuros), the West Wind
60, Series to be continued.
Updated: 6 January 2026 with a photograph of the day’s celebrations in Rethymnon
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