Epiphany: "the mystery was made known"

... to me by revelation.

-- Saint Paul's Letter to the Ephesians

"Arise, shine; for your light has come, and the glory of the Lord has risen upon you."(Is 60:1) Isaiah the prophet describes the glory of Jesus Christ, who is "full of grace and truth; we have beheld his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father"(Jn 1:14), our Messiah. The prophet also foretells the reality of those first three wise men, who represent the kings and the peoples of the whole earth, all of whom are called to realize their full dignity as sons and daughters of God in worship and praise of him for his glory and goodness. "Above you the Lord now rises and above you his glory appears. The nations come to your light and kings to your dawning brightness." (Is 60:2-3)

"The Father's only Son, conceived as man in the womb of the Virgin Mary, is 'Christ,' that is to say, anointed by the Holy Spirit, from the beginning of his human existence, though the manifestation of this fact takes place only progressively: to the shepherds, to the magi, to John the Baptist, to the disciples. Thus the whole life of Jesus Christ will make manifest 'how God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and with power.' (Acts 10:38)" (Catechism of the Catholic Church 486)

Meeting Christ in the Liturgy offers a reflection for the Feast of the Epiphany.

Art: Fra Angelico and Fra Filippo Lippi,The Adoration of the Magi, c. 1440/1460. Samuel H. Kress Collection 1952.2.