Epiphany 2025: God Made Manifest in Jesus (not Antiochus Epiphanes)

 In the traditional Christian calendar, the season of Epiphany runs from the Feast of the Epiphany on January 6 until Ash Wednesday (March 5 in 2025).  

The English word epiphany comes from the Greek epiphaneia, which means "manifestation."  Epiphany focuses on events that "make manifest" or "show forth" the divine identity of Jesus.  These include 

• the visit of the magi, commemorated on the Feast of the Epiphany;
• the baptism of Jesus;
• the wilderness temptation that followed this baptism;
• the miracles of Jesus;
• the transfiguration.

Epiphany comes shortly after Hanukkah, highlighting the contrast between the evil Selucid king Antiochus Epiphanes, who falsely claimed to be God made manifest; and Jesus of Nazareth, who actually is.    

The final downfall of Antiochus is described in 2 Maccabees 9.  As the king hurried toward Judea to have more Jews killed, he was struck with pains in his bowels and later was seriously injured in a fall from a chariot.  Verse 8 comments, "So he who thinks himself equal to the waves of the sea because of his superhuman arrogance, and imagining he could set in a balance the heights of the mountains, was now coming down to earth and was being carried on a sedan, displaying clearly to everyone the power of God."  In other words, what was made manifest in Antiochus was the power of the true God, not the greatness of the foolish ruler.