Tuesday, January 06, 2015

Epiphany


We celebrate Epiphany, the manifestation of Christ to the Gentiles, at our house. I used to decorate as much for this holiday (using stars and Wise Men figures) as I did for Christmas. I don't decorate as much for anything now as I did when The Kids were little, but we do still observe it. Here's the story as found in Matthew 2: 1-12:
Now when Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king, behold, wise men from the East came to Jerusalem, saying, “Where is he who has been born king of the Jews? For we have seen his star in the East, and have come to worship him.” When Herod the king heard this, he was troubled, and all Jerusalem with him; and assembling all the chief priests and scribes of the people, he inquired of them where the Christ was to be born. They told him, “In Bethlehem of Judea; for so it is written by the prophet:
‘And you, O Bethlehem, in the land of Judah,
are by no means least among the rulers of Judah;
for from you shall come a ruler
who will govern my people Israel.’”
Then Herod summoned the wise men secretly and ascertained from them what time the star appeared; and he sent them to Bethlehem, saying, “Go and search diligently for the child, and when you have found him bring me word, that I too may come and worship him.” When they had heard the king they went their way; and lo, the star which they had seen in the East went before them, till it came to rest over the place where the child was. When they saw the star, they rejoiced exceedingly with great joy; and going into the house they saw the child with Mary his mother, and they fell down and worshiped him. Then, opening their treasures, they offered him gifts, gold and frankincense and myrrh. And being warned in a dream not to return to Herod, they departed to their own country by another way. (RSV)
And, of course, there's We Three Kings:



We always include a breakfast with our celebrations, including coffee. Here's my new fancy coffee cup:


We'll be putting away the Christmas decorations now and getting out some snowman-themed things. Placemats will be black for a while, and most of the winter cups are black as well. The dark and cold days of Winter are here, but Spring will come in its own good time.

Please join the T(ea) Tuesday link gathering over at Bleubeard and Elizabeth's blog.

The picture at the top of the post is of the Adoration of the Magi (1423) by Gentile da Fabriano. The work is now in the Uffizi in Italy.

14 comments:

  1. Your new coffee cup is stunning. We don't celebrate Epiphany but I enjoyed reading about it and and the fact that you do celebrate.

    Darla

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  2. Thank you for the information. Your cup is very beautiful indeed. Happy T Day!! :D

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  3. I attended a Greek ceremony on January 6 one year, but, since everything was sung (and in something other than English) I had no idea it was called Epiphany. What a surprise to learn I didn't know what I should have known. Youth and wisdom is truly wasted on the young.

    As many times as I've heard that song, I had no idea there were that many verses. What a great way to celebrate today. Thanks for sharing Epiphany and your gorgeous new cup and saucer with us for T this Tuesday.

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    1. The Greek Orthodox church calls it " Theophany" but celebrates it as the same event on the same day, so the word "Epiphany" might not have appeared in their service. I've never been to a Greek Orthodox worship service, but I've heard you don't soon forget them.

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  4. Anonymous6:13 AM

    love the Fabriano and beautiful coffee cup and yes I remembered it was Epiphany too

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  5. Beautiful post today
    Happy T Day
    oxo

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  6. thanks for sharing about Epiphany which I was not too familiar with. Your coffee set is gorgeous and looks very royal. Happy T Day!

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  7. Stunning coffee cup this week. We don't celebrate Epiphany either, but thanks for sharing the information. I guess I just never thought about the time element in the Christmas story.

    Happy T-day

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  8. LOVE your new coffee cup! I've managed to put away all the Christmas........ well i've managed to pack it all away in boxes...now i have to figure out
    how in the heck i got all those boxes to fit in the closet they came out of...lol Happy New Years! and Happy First Tday of 2015!! Hugs! deb

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  9. Never even heard of the Epiphany celebration. Lovely idea and lovely cup. :)
    Happy T-Day! :)

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  10. We celebrate Epiphany at our house. To me, it always feels like the REAL start of the new year...the 12 days of Christmas are over, and we talk about the changes we want to make in our lives for the coming year ("going home a different way," like the 3 Wise Men).

    Your cup definitely looks fit for a King, and you've shared a gorgeous rendition of "We Three Kings"--thanks. Happy Epiphany!

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  11. Hello and Happy T Day! Thank you for sharing about your Epiphany holiday, so neat to read. Sounds wonderful also and your cup is gorgeous!! We only have a our tree up with lights only, waiting for a non windy day so we can burn it outside.

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  12. That cup is very suitable for this celebration, I think. Looks fit for a king! We celebrate Epiphany too, but we call it Trettondagen (the thirteenth day, Twelfth Day for the English who count from Christmas Day and not Eve like we do) and I don´t think most people even know why it is a holiday, they just enjoy a day off work (it´s a Sunday in our calendar). I wish I was as good at celebrating as you are, but truth is, I´m just always so happy when the holidays are over. I want Monday...

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    1. I;m never ready for the holidays to be over lol.My Snowman and Wise Men decorations used to stay out 'til Candlemas on Feb 2. These last few years I've pared way down, but back in the day.... I do plan on getting the snowmen out this year.

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