Traditions and signs of the great holiday of baptism. Feast of the Epiphany or Baptism of the Lord

Troparion (tone 1)

In the Jordan, baptized to You, Lord, Trinity worship appeared: For the voice of the parents testified to You, calling Your beloved Son, and the Spirit in the form of a dove made your word affirmation. Appear, Christ God, and enlighten the world, glory to Thee.

Kontakion (tone 4)

Thou hast appeared this day to the universe, and Thy light, O Lord, is signified upon us, in the mind of those who sing Thee: Thou hast come and Thou hast appeared, Light impregnable.

magnificence

We magnify Thee, Life-Giver Christ, for the sake of us now baptized in the flesh from John in the waters of the Jordan.

At present, in the Orthodox Church, Epiphany means a holiday in which the event of the Baptism of the Lord Jesus Christ in the Jordan is remembered and glorified.

The Feast of Baptism, or Theophany, has long been also called the Day of Enlightenment and the Feast of Lights - from the ancient custom to perform the day before, on the eve of the holiday, the baptism of the catechumens, which, in fact, is spiritual enlightenment. The description of the events of Baptism is given by all four Evangelists (; ; ; ). It is also contained in many stichera and troparia of the feast.

“Today, the Creator of heaven and earth comes in flesh to the Jordan, asking for Baptism the Sinless One and is baptized from the servant of the Lord of all.” “To the voice of one crying out in the desert, prepare the way of the Lord (to John), thou hast come, Lord, we accept the form of a slave, asking for baptism, knowing no sin.” The first sacrament was the Incarnation and the Nativity of Christ, the ineffable descent of the Creator (Incarnation), which illuminated the whole world with light. Now Christ Himself, celebrating another sacrament, comes to the Jordan to give the means for the miraculous rebirth of the earthly with the gift of Baptism, the richness of the Spirit, to enrich the impoverished nature of man with Divinity. “Deliverance is coming, Christ is the Baptism of tribute to all the faithful: it cleanses, elevates the fallen, puts to shame the tormentor, opens Heaven, brings down the Divine Spirit and bestows incorruption the sacrament.”

The baptism of the Lord Jesus Christ is in the closest connection with the salvation of people. The Lord comes to the Jordan to be baptized by John the Baptist. Forerunner John, preparing people for the acceptance of Christ, preached repentance and, as a symbol of the cleansing of sins, performed his Baptism. Christ appears at the Jordan, asking for Baptism, one among all sinless in nature, so that, like the Lamb of God, who took upon Himself the sins of the whole world, immerse our multitude of immeasurable sins into the waters of the Jordan, cleanse our sins in Himself, similarly purifying similar things in Baptism. Through His sinless washing, cleansing spread to all sinful mankind. The philanthropist Christ comes to the Jordan in order to renew the world dilapidated by sins, to create for people a miraculous birth and sonship by water and the Spirit, to raise humanity to the primitive state, “renewing the packs with being”. “Renews and edifies (recreates) us with water and the Spirit with a wonderful renewal, the Only Benefactor.”

“Oh, glorious gifts! Oh, Divine grace and unspeakable love! Behold, it cleanses me with water, enlightens me with fire, and the Creator and Master makes me with the Divine Spirit, now in the Jordan, my nature, Sinless, has put on.

Christ the Savior in baptism bestows (with water) grace "decisive soul and bodily."

The baptism of Christ in the entire Divine-human work of the redemption of the human race had a fundamental, salvific effect. Baptism in the Jordan exudes forsakenness, remission of sins, enlightenment, the re-creation of human nature, gives light, renewal, healing, rebirth, and, as it were, a new birth (“re-being”).

“New-creators of the earthly, new being Sodetel, by fire, and by the Spirit, and by water, making a strange rebirth and renewal, except (without) contrition and crucibles, with the baptism of God-giving new-creator” . Thus, the Baptism of Christ in the waters of the Jordan not only symbolized purification, but had the meaning of a transforming, renewing action on human nature.

By His immersion in the waters of the Jordan, the Lord sanctified “the whole nature of the waters” and the whole earth. The presence of divine power in the watery nature transforms our corruptible nature (through Baptism) into incorruptible. The action of Baptism extended to all human nature.

“With the spirit of the soul, renovate, with water you sanctify the body folded, animal edifying (recreating those who have eternal life in themselves) of a person: it is necessary for the pure human nature, akin to human nature, bring healing (necessary treatment) with wise providence, like a Physician of bodies and souls.” The baptism of our Lord and Savior was the actual prefiguration and foundation of the mysteriously gracious way of rebirth by water and the Spirit in the sacrament of Baptism. Here the Lord reveals Himself to people as the Founder of the new grace-filled Kingdom of Christ, which, according to His teaching, cannot be entered without Baptism ().

“If anyone descends with Me and is buried by Baptism, with Me he will enjoy glory and resurrection, Christ now proclaims.” The threefold immersion (of each believer in Christ) in the sacrament of Baptism depicts Christ's, the procession from the water - the communion of the three-day Resurrection. “Greatness to salvation, the path of baptism is given by Christ” . The Lord Savior “from the water (of Baptism) mysteriously by the Spirit made many children, first (formerly) childless.”

At the Baptism of the Lord in the Jordan, true worship of God was revealed to people, the hitherto unknown mystery of the Trinity of the Godhead was revealed, the mystery of the One God in Three Persons, and the “glorification of the Most Holy Trinity” was revealed.

“The voice of (God) the Father,” says another verse, “was from heaven: “This, Whom the Forerunner baptizes with his hand, My beloved Son (and Consubstantial with Me), in whom I am well pleased.” The Holy Spirit, descending in the form of a dove, preached to everyone in the Person of Jesus Christ the incarnate God.

The hymns describe the experiences that the Forerunner experiences when he sees Christ coming to be baptized and demanding Baptism from him. John the Baptist, in front of all the people who listened to him, points to the coming Jesus as the Christ expected by all Israel - the Messiah. “Our Enlightener (Christ the Savior), who enlightens every person, seeing the Forerunner come to be baptized, rejoices in his soul, and trembles, shows Him with his hand, and says to people: This deliver Israel, freeing us from incorruption.”

And when the Lord asked him for Baptism, “The Forerunner trembled and exclaimed loudly: How can a lamp illuminate the Light? How will a servant lay his hand on the Lord? Savior, who took upon Himself the sins of the whole world, You Yourself sanctify me and the waters.

“Although You are the Child from Mary,” says the Forerunner, “but I know You, the Eternal God.” “In whose name do I baptize you? (In the name of) Father? But carry that within you. Son? But thou art incarnated. Holy Spirit? And weigh this (you can give) to the faithful mouth (to those who believe with your mouth) ". The Lord says to John: “Prophet, come and baptize Me, who created you, and who enlightens with grace and purifies everyone: touch My Divine top (head) and do not hesitate. Leave the rest now, for you have come to fulfill all righteousness.”

By being baptized by John, Christ fulfilled “righteousness,” that is, faithfulness and obedience to the commandments of God. The Prophet and Forerunner of the Lord John received from God the command to baptize the people as a sign of cleansing from sins. As a Man, Christ had to fulfill this commandment and therefore be baptized by John. By this He confirmed the holiness and greatness of the actions of John the Baptist, and gave Christians an example of humility and obedience to the will of God.

The hymns used the prophecy (ps. 113) that the Jordan River will stop its flow “from the Face of the Lord”: “Today the Psalm prophecy is the end of acceptance (it is in a hurry to be fulfilled):“ the sea, speech, sight and flight, Jordan return back, from The Person of the Lord, from the Person of the God of Jacob, having come from a servant to receive Baptism. “Jordan, seeing the Lord being baptized, is divided and stops its course,” says the first stichera for the blessing of water.

“If the Jordan River turns back, not daring to serve You: even if you are ashamed of Joshua, how can you not be afraid of your Creator?” . The songwriter, as it were, addresses a question to the Jordan River itself: “What is it that returned your waters, Jordan? Why are you raising (stopping) the jets, and do not go on walking by nature?

And the Jordan River, as it were, answers: “It is not powerful (not able) to endure, speech, the Fire that devours me. I am surprised and horrified by the extreme convergence: as if it were not customary to wash out the Pure (from sins). Do not wipe the sinless one: but cleanse the defiled vessels.

The Church, through the mouths of the creators of stichera, invites believers to go with their thoughts and hearts to that great event of the Theophany that once took place on the Jordan River, in order to give thanks for the “unspeakable kindness” in the “slave eye” of Christ who came into the world to save the human race.

"Come and see the faith where Christ is baptized." “Come, let us imitate the wise virgins”, “come, every filthy passionate and despondent sleep of the soul, shake off with heartfelt vigor we will meet the Master”, “Coming to purify the souls in the streams of Jordan”, “worthy of Baptism, we will accept the Divine image mentally”, “let us assign Him life with purity » .

The Church remembers in the pre-holiday and festive services and the great minister and participant in the event - "The Forerunner and the Baptist, and the prophet, and most honored is the prophet (of the prophets)" John. Finishing the pre-holiday singing and beginning to sing the feast itself, he turns to John the Baptist and asks him to raise up his hands in prayer to the One whose Immaculate head he touched with these hands on the Jordan; The Church asks the Baptist to come and with his spirit be present with us.

“Your hand, which touched the most pure top of the Lady, with a narrow and finger of That, showed us, lift up (stretch out prayerfully) for us to Him, the Baptist, as if having a lot of boldness: for the pain of the prophets of all from Him is testified. Your eyes, having seen the All-Holy Spirit, as if descending in the form of a dove, raise up to Him, the Baptist, and do us mercy: and come, stand with us, seal the singing and begin the celebration.

HISTORY OF THE HOLIDAY

As already mentioned in the chapter on the history of the feast of the Nativity of Christ, the beginning of the feast of the Epiphany dates back to the Apostolic times. It is also mentioned in the “Decrees of the Apostles”, which says: “Let them celebrate the feast of Theophany, because on that day there was a manifestation of the Deity of Christ, who testified to His Father in Baptism and the Comforter of the Holy Spirit, in the form of a dove, showing the forthcoming testified” (book 5 , chapter 42; book 8, chapter 33). In the II century, the celebration of the Baptism of the Lord and the night vigil performed before this feast is indicated by the teacher of the Church, Presbyter Clement of Alexandria. In the 3rd century, the Holy Martyr Hippolytus of Rome and St. Gregory of Neocaesarea mention the event of Theophany in their conversations. The Holy Fathers of the Church of the 4th century: Gregory the Theologian, Gregory of Nyssa, Ambrose of Milan, John Chrysostom, Blessed Augustine and many others left us their teachings delivered by them on the feast of Theophany. In the 5th century, St. Anatoly, Archbishop of Constantinople, in the 7th century, Sts. hymns for the feast of the Baptism of Christ, still sung by the Church on the day of the feast.

In establishing the date for the celebration of the Baptism of the Lord, there were no disagreements between the Eastern and Western Churches, similar to those regarding the Nativity of Christ - in the East and West, the holiday was always celebrated with equal solemnity on January 6.

So, until the 4th century, Epiphany and the Nativity of Christ were celebrated everywhere on January 6th. The separation of the holidays and the transfer of the date of the celebration of the Nativity of Christ to December 25 occurred in the 4th century.

The ancient Church on January 6, in addition to these events, recalled others that reflected the Divine dignity and mission of Jesus Christ, both at His birth and when He went out to preach after Baptism. This is, firstly, the adoration of the Magi as a revelation to the pagan world about the coming of Jesus Christ, miraculously accomplished through a star. From this memory, the very feast of Baptism in the Western Church received the name "feast of the three kings." In the Eastern Church, this event, although it was remembered in the divine service of the feast, was not expressed in any way in the nature of the feast. Secondly, this is the manifestation of the Divine power of Jesus Christ in His first miracle at the marriage in Cana of Galilee. Thirdly, the miraculous feeding of five thousand people by Jesus Christ.

PRE-FESTIVAL OF ENLIGHTENMENT (January 2/15 to 5/18)

SATURDAY AND THE WEEK BEFORE THE ENLIGHTENMENT (EPOPHIVATION)

The day of the Epiphany of the Lord has been among the great twelfth holidays since ancient times. Even in the "Decrees of the Apostles" (book 5, ch. 12) it is said: "May you have great respect for the day on which the Lord revealed to us the Divinity." This holiday, like the feast of the Nativity of Christ, is celebrated in the Orthodox Church with special solemnity. Both of these holidays, between which there is a period of Christmas time (from December 25 to January 6, old style), constitute a single celebration.

Almost immediately after the celebration of the feast of the Nativity of Christ, starting on January 2/15, he prepares us for the equally solemn feast of Baptism with troparia and stichera specially dedicated to him (at Vespers), the canons of the feast (at Matins) and triodes (at Compline). And church singing in honor of the Epiphany begins already on January 1/14: on the feast of the Circumcision of the Lord, the irmos of the canons of the Epiphany are sung in the form of katavasia.

With his sacred memoirs, following from Bethlehem to the Jordan and meeting the event of Baptism, in the pre-holiday stichera he calls on the believers: “Let’s go from Bethlehem to the Jordan, there the Light is already beginning to illuminate those who are in darkness.” “Come, we will see, faithful, where Christ was baptized, with pure lips and changed souls, come, secretly leaving Bethlehem.” “Angelic, go ahead, forces, from Bethlehem to the streams of the Jordan; and come, John, leave the wilderness”; “Get ready, Jordan River, get ready, Zebulun, and show off, Naphtali, let the whole earth rejoice.”

Contemplating in the Nativity of the Lord Jesus Christ His saving appearance to the world, and in Baptism - His entry into the service of the salvation of the world, comparing these two holidays, he says: ..He is shedding blood, as if Bethlehem is sobbing without a child; and this blessed waters of many children know the font. Then raise a star with a sorcerer, now the Father will show you to the world. “The past holiday is clear, the most glorious present day: on it bowed to the Savior of the Volsvi, in this same Vladyka, the servant is glorious to baptize. There is a shepherd, scribbling, seeing and wondering, here is the voice of the Father's Only Begotten Son of the sermon.

“In the preceding feast of the Infant You saw: in the present, we see You perfect (mature, adult), ”says St. Sophronius, Patriarch of Jerusalem.

As for the feast of the Nativity of Christ, the nearest Saturday and Sunday before Epiphany are called Saturday and the Week before Theophany (or before the Enlightenment). On the named Saturday, according to the Charter, a special Apostle and the Gospel are relied upon, and on the Week before Theophany - a special prokeimenon, the Apostle and the Gospel, dedicated to the upcoming holiday (see Typikon, research on December 26 and January 2). Saturday and the Week before Enlightenment always come after the celebration of the feast of the Nativity of Christ.

THE EVENING OF THE APPOINTMENT

The eve of the holiday (January 5/18) is called the eve of the Epiphany, or Christmas Eve. The service of the eve and the service of the feast itself are in many respects similar to the service of the feast of the Nativity of Christ.

On Christmas Eve of Theophany (January 5/18), a strict fast is prescribed, as on Christmas Eve of the Nativity of Christ: eating once. If the eve happens on Saturday and Sunday, fasting is facilitated: instead of once, eating is allowed twice: after the Liturgy and after the blessing of the water (see Typikon, liturgy on January 6). If the reading of the Great Hours from the eve that happened on Saturday or Sunday is transferred to Friday, then there is no fast on that Friday.

FEATURES OF THE SERVICE ON THE EVE OF THE HOLIDAY

On all weekly days, except Saturday and Sunday, the service on the eve of the Epiphany consists of great hours, Vespers with the Liturgy of St. Basil the Great, and the great consecration of water following them.

If Christmas Eve happens on Saturday or in the Week, then the Great Hours are celebrated on Friday, and there is no Liturgy on that Friday. The Liturgy of St. Basil the Great is transferred to the day of the feast. On the very day of Christmas Eve, the Liturgy of John Chrysostom takes place at its proper time, and in the afternoon, Vespers is served, after which the Great Blessing of Water takes place.

GREAT CLOCK

The scheme for constructing the great clock and the pictorial clock, as well as the order in which they are performed, are the same as on the eve of the Nativity of Christ (see above the feast of the Nativity of Christ).

In the 1st hour, in special psalms 31 and 26, he depicts the Lord who was baptized as a Shepherd, who, according to the prediction of the king and prophet David, “shepherds me and deprives me of nothing,” who is “my enlightenment and my Savior.”

The Troparias tell how the prophet Elisha divided the Jordan from the mercy of the prophet Elijah. This represented the true Baptism on the Jordan of Christ, by which the watery nature was sanctified and during which the Jordan stopped its natural flow. The last troparion depicts a feeling of reverent fear that took possession of John the Baptist when the Lord came to him to be baptized.

In paroemia 1 o'clock, with the words of the prophet Isaiah, he announces the spiritual renewal of those who believe in Jesus Christ (Is., ch. 25). By reading the Apostle and the Gospel, the Church proclaims the Baptist and Forerunner of the Lord, who testified to His eternal and Divine greatness (; ).

At the 3rd hour, in Psalms 28 and 41, the prophet depicts the power and power of the baptized Lord over water and all other elements of the world: “The voice of the Lord is on the waters: we will thunder with glory, the Lord is on many waters. The voice of the Lord in the fortress; the voice of the Lord in splendor."

At the 6th hour, in Psalms 73 and 76, David prophetically depicts the Divine greatness and omnipotence of the One who came to be baptized in the form of a slave: “Who is great, like our God? You are God, do miracles. Seeing You the water, O God, and fearful: the abyss was troubled.

The troparia contains the answer of the Lord to the Baptist in the Jordan and indicates the fulfillment of the Psalm prophecy, when the river stops its waters when the Lord descends into it to receive Baptism.

In paroemia, the prophet Isaiah proclaims salvation in the waters of Baptism and calls on the believers: “Draw water with joy from the source of salvation” (); The apostolic reading commands those baptized into Christ Jesus to walk in newness of life (); The gospel reading announces the Theophany of the Holy Trinity at the Baptism of the Savior, about His forty-day feat in the wilderness and the beginning of the preaching of the Gospel ().

At the 9th hour, in Psalms 92 and 113, the prophet proclaims the royal majesty and omnipotence of the baptized Lord. “Wonderful are the heights of the sea, marvelous in the lofty Lord! The sea was seen and fled, Jordan returned back. What are you, the sea (what is the matter with you, the sea), how did you run away? And to you (and with you), Jordan, how did you return back?

Troparia depict Christ who appeared to the world as the Savior of the world, delivering him from sins and corruption, sanctifying humanity with the water of Divine Baptism and giving adoption to God instead of the former slavery to sin. In the last troparion, concluding the pre-holiday chant, the Church turns to the Forerunner and Baptist of the Lord and asks him to lift up prayers to the one who was baptized by him.

In paroemia, the prophet Isaiah depicts the inexpressible mercy of God to people and the grace-filled help for them that appeared in Baptism (). The apostle announces the manifestation of the grace of God, saving for all people, and the abundant outpouring of the Holy Spirit on the believers (). The Gospel tells about the Baptism of the Savior and the Epiphany ().

The end of the reading of the great and pictorial hours is the same as on the eve of the Nativity of Christ.

THE CHORD OF THE VESSEL OF THE APPOINTMENT MADE ON THE EVE OF THE FESTIVAL

Vespers on the eve of the feast of the Epiphany is celebrated similarly to the one that happens on the eve of the Nativity of Christ: entrance with the Gospel, reading proverbs, the Apostle, the Gospel, and so on (see the Rite of Christmas Vespers). But only the proverbs at Vespers of Theophany are read not 8, but 13. The pronouncement of the troparion with the singing of its final words happens, as on the eve of the Nativity of Christ: after the first three and three paroemias following them. After the first three paroemias, the singers sing to the troparion in voice 5 “May you enlighten in the darkness of the sitting, Lover of mankind, glory to Thee” (during the singing, the royal doors open). After the 6th paroemia, the refrain to the 6th tone is “Where would Thy light shine, only on those who sit in darkness, glory to Thee.”

If, on the eve of Theophany, Vespers is combined with the Liturgy of Basil the Great (on Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday), then after the reading of paroemias, a small litany follows with the exclamation “For Thou art holy, our God,” then the Trisagion is sung and the Liturgy is celebrated in the usual order. At Vespers, which is celebrated separately from the Liturgy (on Saturday and Sunday), after paroemia and a small litany, the prokeimenon is pronounced, the Apostle and the Gospel are read (those that are laid on Saturday and the Week before the Enlightenment). Then - the litany "Rzem all" and other follow-up of Vespers.

THE FOLLOW-UP OF THE "GREAT BLESSING OF THE WATER OF HOLY APPOINTMENTS"

The memory of the Jordanian event renews with a special rite of the great blessing of water. On the eve of the feast, the great blessing of the water takes place after the prayer beyond the ambo. If Vespers was celebrated separately, without connection with the Liturgy, then the consecration of water takes place at the end of Vespers, after the litanies: “Let us perform the evening prayer” and the exclamation of the priest. The consecration of water is also performed on the feast itself, after the Liturgy (after the prayer behind the ambo).

Since ancient times, the Orthodox Church has been performing a great consecration of water, both on eve and on the feast itself. The grace of consecrating water is the same - both on the eve and on the very day of Theophany. On eve, the consecration of water is performed in remembrance of the Baptism of the Lord, who sanctified the nature of water, as well as the baptism of the catechumens, which in ancient times took place on the eve of Theophany (“Apostolic Regulations”, book 5, ch. 13. Testimonies of historians: Blessed Theodoret of Cyrrhus, St. Nicephorus Callista); on the very day of the feast, the consecration of water is performed in remembrance of the Baptism of Christ the Savior.

The consecration of water on the feast of the Epiphany began in the Jerusalem Church, and in the 4th-5th centuries it was performed only in this Church: they went to the Jordan River for the blessing of water, which was a remembrance of the Baptism of the Savior. Therefore, on the feast of the Epiphany, the consecration of water is usually performed on rivers, springs and wells (“walking on the Jordan”), for Christ was baptized outside the temple. On the eve, the consecration of water is performed in churches (see the definition of the Moscow Council of 1667 on this).

The great consecration of water began in the early days of Christianity. The consecration of water on the feast is mentioned by Tertullian and Saint Cyprian of Carthage. The "Decrees of the Apostles" also contain prayers that were said at the consecration. So, in the book 8 says, "The priest will call on the Lord and say, 'And now sanctify this water, and give it grace and power.' Saint Basil the Great writes: “According to what scripture do we bless the water of Baptism? - from the Apostolic Tradition, according to the succession in the mystery" (91 canon). St. John Chrysostom writes about the special property of water consecrated on the day of Baptism: it does not deteriorate from a long time (“Christ was baptized and sanctified the nature of the waters; and therefore, on the feast of Baptism, everyone, having drawn water at midnight, brings it home and keeps it all year long. And so the water in its essence does not deteriorate from the continuation of time, but drawn now, for a whole year, and often two or three years, remains fresh and undamaged, and after so much time is not inferior to water just drawn from sources ”- Conversation 37; See . also: Typicon, January 5).

The follow-up to the Great Blessing of Water, both on eve and on the feast itself, is one and the same, and in some parts has similarities with the follow-up of the small blessing of water. It consists of a recollection of the prophecies relating to the event of Baptism (paroemia), the event itself (the Apostle and the Gospel) and its signification in litany and prayers, from the invocation of the blessing of God on the waters and the threefold immersion in them of the life-giving Cross of the Lord.

The rite of consecration of water is performed as follows. After the prayer beyond the ambo (at the Liturgy) or the litanies “Let us perform the evening prayer” (at Vespers), all the clergy in full vestments go out through the royal gates to the sacred font into the porch or to the springs. Ahead are the singers singing the troparions "The Voice of the Lord" and others, in which the circumstances of the Savior's baptism are remembered. The singers are followed by priests with candles, a deacon with a censer and a priest carrying an honest Cross on an uncovered head (usually the Cross relies on air). At the place of consecration of water, the Cross rests on a table, on which there should be a bowl with three candles. During the singing of the troparia, the rector and the deacon incense the water prepared for consecration, and if the consecration takes place in the temple, then the altar, clergymen, singers and people.

At the end of the singing of the three troparions, the deacon proclaims: “Wisdom,” and three proverbs are read from the Book of the Prophet Isaiah, which depict the blessed fruits of the Lord’s coming to earth and the spiritual joy of all who turn to the Lord and partake of the Life-giving sources of salvation.

Then the prokimen is sung, the Apostle and the Gospel are read. The Apostle speaks of the mystical Baptism of the Jews in the midst of the cloud and the sea, of their spiritual food and drink, given by God through the prayers of the prophet Moses. The Gospel tells about the Baptism of the Lord. After this, the deacon pronounces the great litany with special petitions. During the litanies, the rector secretly reads a prayer for the purification and sanctification of himself: “Lord Jesus Christ” (without a cry). The litanies contain prayers for the consecration of water by the power and action of the Holy Trinity, for sending the blessing of the Jordan to the water and for granting it grace to heal mental and bodily infirmities, to drive away any slander of visible and invisible enemies, to sanctify houses and for every benefit. Then the priest reads a prayer aloud: “Great art thou, O Lord, and marvelous are thy works” (three times). Then - the continuation of this prayer: "You are more willing from those who carry" (and so on).

CHARACTER OF GLOWING THE HOLIDAY

After the dismissal of Vespers or the Liturgy, on the pulpit (or in the middle of the church, instead of an lectern with an icon), a lamp is supplied, in front of which the clergy and singers sing the troparion, and on “Glory, and now” - the kontakion of the holiday. The candle here means the light of Christ's teachings - Divine enlightenment, bestowed in Theophany. After that, the priest gives the worshipers a cross and sprinkles them with holy water.

GREAT AGIASMA

Epiphany water - water consecrated on the feast of Epiphany, is called in the Orthodox Church the great hagiasma and is a great shrine. Christians have had great reverence for holy water since ancient times. He prays at the litany of the great consecration of water - “for the hedgehog to be sanctified by these waters ... and to be granted to them the grace of deliverance (salvation), the blessing of the Jordan, by the power and action and influx of the Holy Spirit”, “for this hedgehog to be this water, sanctification to the gift, sins to be delivered: for the healing of the soul and body ... for those who draw and receive for the consecration of houses, ... and for every good (strong) benefit, ... leading to eternal life", "O hedgehog, let us be filled with the blessing of these waters by communion, the invisible manifestation of the Holy Spirit."

In the petitions at the litany and in the priest's prayer for the blessing of water, he testifies to the manifold actions of the grace of God, given to all, with faith "drawing and partaking" of this shrine. So, in a prayer for the consecration of water, the priest prays: “You, O Lover of mankind to the King, come and now by the influx of Your Holy Spirit and sanctify this water. And give her the grace of deliverance (salvation); Blessing of the Jordan, create (her): a source of incorruption, a gift of sanctification, resolution of sins, healing of ailments; demons omnipotence; impregnable to opposing forces, filled with angelic fortresses. Yes, all those who draw and partake, have it for the purification of passions, for the consecration of houses, and for every good benefit”, “Give to all those who touch it, and partake, and smear it with sanctification, health, purification and blessing.”

He uses Epiphany water for sprinkling temples and dwellings, for healing, blesses it to drink to those who cannot be admitted to Holy Communion. On the feast of the Epiphany, the clergy, taking a vessel with water and the Cross, with the singing of the troparion of the holiday, visit the dwellings of their parishioners, sprinkling the houses and those living in them. Sprinkling begins with the temple of God, in which, after the Liturgy on the eve, the clergy glorify Christ, who was baptized on the day of Theophany.

On Epiphany Christmas Eve, a strict fast is established, when either eating food before Epiphany water is not allowed at all, or a small amount of food is allowed. However, with proper reverence, with the sign of the cross and prayer, one can drink holy water without any embarrassment and doubt, both for those who have already tasted something, and at any time as needed. in the liturgical Rule (see the Menaion and the Typicon under January 5) gives a clear and definite instruction on this matter and explains: those who excommunicate themselves from holy water because they have eaten food before - "do not do good." “Not for the sake of eating for the sake of eating (food) there is impurity in us, but from our bad deeds: cleansing (for cleansing) of these, we drink without a doubt this holy water” (Typicon, January 6 “see”).

ALL-NIGHT VIGIL OF THE HOLIDAY

The All-Night Vigil on the Feast of Epiphany, no matter what day of the week it occurs, begins, as on the Feast of the Nativity of Christ, with Great Compline, because Vespers of the feast is celebrated earlier, especially. The scheme of Great Compline is the same as for the Nativity of Christ. Great Compline ends with a litia. Then Matins is served.

In the morning, according to the polyeleos, the magnification is sung: “We magnify Thee, the Life-Giver of Christ, for the sake of us now baptized in the flesh by John in the waters of the Jordan”, then sedate - the first antiphon 4 voices, 50 psalm, “Glory”: “Let everyone rejoice in Christ today appeared in the Jordan"; "And now": the same, the verse: "Have mercy on me, O God," and the verse: "God the Word to the flesh of the human race." There are two canons: St. Cosmas of Maiumsky “The depths have been opened there is a bottom” and St. John of Damascus “A sea storm is moving”.

"The most honest Cherubim" is not sung. A deacon with a censer in front of the local image of the Mother of God sings the first refrain: “Magnify, my soul, the most honest of the mountain hosts, the Most Pure Virgin Theotokos.” The choir (sometimes repeating the chorus) sings the irmos: “Every tongue is perplexed to praise according to its property, but the mind and the most peaceful sing to Thee, Mother of God, both Good beings, accept faith, for weigh our divine love; You are the representative of Christians, we magnify you. In Russian translation: “No language (human) is able to praise You on your dignity, and even the mountainous (angelic) mind is perplexed how to sing You, Mother of God: but You, as Good, accept faith, and our divine (fiery) love You you know; for you are the representative of Christians; We praise you." This irmos, with the indicated first refrain of the 9th song, is a meritorious at the Liturgy (up to and including the celebration of the feast). To the troparia of the canon for 9 songs, their own refrains are sung.

At the end of Matins - the dismissal of the holiday (see the Missal).

LITURGY OF THE FESTIVAL

Liturgy on the day of Theophany, as on the day of the Nativity of Christ, is St. John Chrysostom, if the holiday happens on Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday and Saturday, or the Liturgy of St. Basil the Great if the holiday happens on Sunday or Monday, since on the eve of these days (on Saturday and Sunday) on the eve of the feast, the Liturgy of St. John Chrysostom was celebrated, and the Liturgy of Basil the Great, laid on the eve, was transferred to the very day of the holiday. At the Liturgy, the antiphons of the feast are sung. Input: "Blessed is he who comes in the Name of the Lord, bless you from the house of the Lord, Lord, and appear to us."

Instead of the Trisagion - “They were baptized into Christ” - as a reminder to the newly enlightened, who were baptized in antiquity on the eve of the holiday, “put on” Christ. Worthy. Participated in the holiday: "The grace of God, saving all man, appears."

VESSEL ON THE DAY OF THE FESTIVAL

The day after the feast of the Epiphany, the Cathedral of St. John the Baptist is celebrated. At Vespers on the day of the feast (under January 7 - Old Style) there is an entrance with a censer and a great prokeimenon: "Our God in heaven and on earth, all the Christmas tree will please, create." If the holiday happens on Saturday, then the great prokeimenon is sung on the eve of the holiday (on Friday).

CELEBRATION AND PAYMENT OF THE HOLIDAY

The afterfeast lasts eight days; The celebration of the holiday takes place on January 14/27. On all days after the feast, along with the stichera and the canon to Saint Menaia, the stichera of the feast are sung, and the canon of the feast is read first.

At the Liturgy, on all the days of the afterfeast, up to and including the celebration, after the entrance, the ending is sung: “Save us, Son of God, who was baptized in the Jordan, singing to Ty: Alleluia.”

On the day of the celebration of the feast, the entire Enlightenment service, except for the entrance, proverbs, polyeleos - at Vespers and Matins, and except for the antiphons and the entrance verse - at the Liturgy. "Most Honorable Cherub" is not sung on January 7/20 and 14/27, except on Sunday, when "Most Honorable Cherub" is sung. Matins for surrender - with "great doxology".

The Charter indicates the features of the divine services of the days after the feast of the Epiphany, when, starting from January 11/24, they coincide with the Week of the Publican and the Pharisee (see Typicon, following January 11 and January 14).

SATURDAY AND WEEK (SUNDAY) OF EDUCATION

The Saturday and Sunday following the feast of the Epiphany are called Saturday and the Week of Enlightenment. On these days, special prokimen, the Apostle and the Gospel are read, related to the holiday (see Typikon, following on January 7).

Priest Theodore Ludogovsky - about the course and the most striking places of the divine service of the Epiphany.

Initially, the Epiphany was a two-pronged holiday, the content of which consisted, firstly, of the event and, secondly,. Later, as we know, Christmas separated from Epiphany and became an independent holiday (the ancient unity is preserved only in the Armenian Church). But even now these two major Lord's feasts of the fixed annual circle remain closely connected with each other.

The prefeast of the Epiphany lasts four days, beginning immediately after the one-day feast of the Circumcision of the Lord, which takes place, in accordance with the gospel chronology, on the eighth day after Christmas. However, we come across one of the first mentions in the liturgical texts of Theophany nine days before the start of the feast - on Christmas Eve. At the ninth hour, the stichera sounds (at the direction of the Menaion, it is sung by the canonarch, “in the middle of the church”):

Today is born from Virgo
support the creature with the whole hand.
Swaddled, as if earthly, weaves
Even as a being, God is inviolable.
Reclining in the manger
establishing Heaven with a word in the beginning.
It feeds on milk from the nipples
Even in the desert manna rainy people.
Magi calls
church groom,
accepts these gifts
Son of the Virgin.
We bow down to Your Nativity, Christ;
we worship Your Nativity, Christ;
We worship Your Nativity, Christ:
Show us also Your Divine Theophany.

As we can see, this stichera, obviously written on the model of the famous Good Friday stichera “Today it hangs on a tree ...”, considers Christmas as an event, in its meaning and significance closely connected with the Epiphany, just like in the Great Heel hymn in as such an event in relation to the crucifixion is considered.

The Divine Liturgy on the eve of Theophany has the same structure as on the eve of Christmas: the hours are pictorial, and in the afternoon (such is the requirement of the charter) - the liturgy of St. Basil the Great, beginning with the reading of proverbs.

An experienced parishioner may add that the service of Great Saturday is organized according to a similar scheme - with the difference that the pre-feast of Easter, which is Passion Week, has a longer duration, and because what is nearby in the services of Christmas Eve and Theophany, is spaced apart here. different days: the hours are read on Great Friday (but the liturgy is not performed on this day), and the liturgy of St. Basil the Great, preceded by Vespers with 15 paroemias, is served in the evening on Great Saturday.

After the liturgy, on the eve of the Epiphany, a great consecration of water is performed. As a matter of fact, the feast has already arrived: the festive vespers and the first, most solemn, liturgy have been served. Therefore, there is no violation of logic in the fact that the charter prescribes to bless water before the vigil (and, even more so, before the liturgy). However, the established parish practice is such that the hours, and with them the vespers and liturgy of St. Basil, we serve on the morning of January 5/18, and therefore this service is not perceived as a holiday service. From this naturally follows the desire to bless the water twice: once - "as expected", and the other - "for the holiday itself."

The All-Night Vigil on Theophany, as well as on the Nativity of Christ, consists of Great Compline, which includes litia, and Matins. In the morning there are two festive canons inscribed with the names of the greatest Byzantine hymnographers: the first belongs to St. Cosmas, Bishop of Mayum (Comm. 12/25 October), the second - St. John of Damascus (December 4/17). (Note that the canons for Christmas are the same authors).

After the sixth ode of the canon, as usual, kontakion and ikos. We have become so accustomed to this fact that for us these two hymns (and along with them the sedalen or ipakoi after the third ode and the luminary or exapostillary after the ninth) have already become an integral part of the canon. Meanwhile, our "modern" kontakion and ikos are in many cases remnants, fragments of a hymn belonging to another genre, which is also called kontakion.

In the case of Theophany (as well as in many other cases), the kontakion has a very definite author - the famous Roman the Melodist (Comm. 1/14 October). The stanza “Thou hast appeared today as the universe ...”, which we now call kontakion, is the introductory stanza (proimium) to his poem “On the Baptism of Christ”, and the ikos “Galilee of pagans ...” is the first of the ikos (stanzas) of this poem.

The afterfeast of the Epiphany, not counting the first day of the feast, lasts eight days, the giving takes place on January 14/27. And after a little over two weeks - prefeast, which again brings us back to the event of the Nativity of our Savior.

On the eve of great holidays and Sundays, it is served all-night vigil, or, as it is also called, all-night. The church day begins in the evening, and this service is directly related to the event being celebrated.

The All-Night Vigil is an ancient divine service, it was performed in the first centuries of Christianity. The Lord Jesus Christ himself often prayed at night, and the apostles and the first Christians gathered for night prayers. Previously, all-night vigils were very long and, starting in the evening, continued all night.

Vespers begin with Great Vespers

In parish churches, Vespers usually begins at seventeen or eighteen o'clock. Prayers and hymns of vespers are related to the Old Testament they prepare us for matins, which is mainly remembered new testament events. The Old Testament is a prototype, a forerunner of the New. The people of the Old Testament lived by faith - by the expectation of the Coming Messiah.

The beginning of Vespers brings our mind to the creation of the world. The priests burn the altar. It signifies the Divine grace of the Holy Spirit, Who hovered during the creation of the world over the still unorganized earth (cf. Gen 1:2).

Then the deacon calls on the worshipers to rise before the start of the service with an exclamation "Get up!" and asks for the blessing of the priest at the beginning of the service. The priest, standing before the throne in the altar, utters an exclamation: "Glory to the Holy, Consubstantial, Life-Giving and Indivisible Trinity, always, now and forever and forever and ever". The choir sings: "Amen."

While singing in chorus 103rd psalm, which describes the majestic picture of God's creation of the world, the clergy incense the entire temple and those praying. Incense marks the grace of God, which our forefathers Adam and Eve had before the fall, enjoying bliss and communion with God in paradise. After the creation of people, the doors of paradise were opened for them, and as a sign of this, the royal doors are open during incense. After the fall, people lost their original righteousness, distorted their nature and closed the gates of paradise for themselves. They were expelled from paradise and wept bitterly. After incense, the royal doors are closed, the deacon goes to the pulpit and stands in front of the closed gates, just as Adam stood before the gates of paradise after the exile. When a man lived in paradise, he did not need anything; with the loss of heavenly bliss, people have needs and sorrows, for which we pray to God. The main thing we ask God for is the forgiveness of sins. On behalf of all those who pray, the deacon pronounces peaceful or great litany.

After the peaceful litany, the singing and reading of the first kathisma follows: Blessed is the husband,(which the) do not go to the council of the wicked. The path of returning to paradise is the path of striving for God and avoiding evil, ungodliness and sins. The Old Testament righteous, who waited in faith for the Savior, kept the true faith and shied away from communication with godless and ungodly people. Even after the fall, Adam and Eve were given the promise of the Coming Messiah, that the seed of the woman will wipe out the head of the serpent. And a psalm Blessed is the husband also figuratively tells of the Son of God, the Blessed Man, who did not commit sin.

Further sing verses on "Lord, cry". They alternate with verses from the Psalter. These verses also have a repentant, prayerful character. During the reading of the stichera, the entire temple is incensed. “May my prayer be corrected, like a censer before Thee,” the choir sings, and we, listening to this hymn, repent of our sins like the sinful forefathers.

The last stichera is called the Theotokos or dogmatic, it is dedicated to the Mother of God. It reveals the church teaching about the incarnation of the Savior from the Virgin Mary.

Although people sinned and fell away from God, the Lord did not leave them without His help and protection during the entire history of the Old Testament. The first people repented, which means that the first hope for salvation appeared. This hope is symbolized opening of the royal doors and input at the evening The priest and the deacon with the censer come out of the northern, side doors and, accompanied by the priests, go to the royal doors. The priest blesses the entrance, and the deacon, drawing a cross with a censer, says: "Wisdom, forgive me!"— which means “stand up straight” and contains a call for attention. The choir sings a hymn "Light Quiet", which speaks of the fact that the Lord Jesus Christ descended to earth not in majesty and glory, but in a quiet, Divine light. This hymn also speaks of the fact that the time of the birth of the Savior is near.

After the deacon proclaimed verses from the psalms called prokimnom, two litanies are pronounced: pure and pleading.

If the All-Night Vigil is celebrated on the occasion of a major feast, after these litanies lithium- a service containing special prayer petitions, at which the blessing of five wheat loaves, wine and oil (oil) takes place in memory of Christ's miraculous feeding of five thousand people with five loaves. In ancient times, when the All-night service was served all night, the brethren needed to refresh themselves with food in order to continue serving Matins.

After the lithium are sung "poetry on verse", that is, stichera with special verses. After them the choir sings a prayer "Now let go". These are the words spoken by the holy righteous Simeon, who with faith and hope for many years awaited the Savior and was honored to receive the Christ Child in his arms. This prayer is pronounced as if on behalf of all the people of the Old Testament, who with faith awaited the coming of Christ the Savior.

Vespers ends with a hymn dedicated to the Virgin Mary: "Virgin Mary, rejoice". It was the Fruit that the Old Testament mankind cultivated in its depths for thousands of years. This most humble, most righteous and purest Maiden, the only one of all the wives, was honored to become the Mother of God. The priest ends Vespers with the exclamation: "God bless you" and bless those who pray.

The second part of the vigil is called Matins. It is dedicated to the remembrance of the events of the New Testament.

At the beginning of Matins, six special psalms are read, which are called the Six Psalms. It begins with the words: “Glory to God in the Highest, and on earth peace, good will towards men” - this is a hymn sung by the Angels at the birth of the Savior. The Six Psalms is dedicated to the expectation of Christ's coming into the world. It is an image of the Bethlehem night, when Christ came into the world, and an image of the night and darkness in which all mankind was before the coming of the Savior. Not without reason, according to custom, all lamps and candles are extinguished during the reading of the Six Psalms. The priest in the middle of the Six Psalms in front of the closed Royal Doors reads special morning prayers.

Then a peaceful litany is celebrated, and after it the deacon loudly proclaims: “God is the Lord, and appear to us. Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord". Which means: “God and the Lord appeared to us”, that is, he came into the world, the Old Testament prophecies about the coming of the Messiah were fulfilled. Then comes the reading kathisma from the Psalter.

After reading the kathisma, the most solemn part of Matins begins - polyeles. Polyeleos translated from Greek as mercifully, because during the polyeleos, laudatory verses from the 134th and 135th psalms are sung, where the multitude of God's mercy is sung in a constant refrain: as His mercy is forever! According to the consonance of words polyeles sometimes translated as abundance of oil. Oil has always been a symbol of God's mercy. During Great Lent, the 136th psalm (“On the rivers of Babylon”) is added to the polyeleos psalms. During the polyeleos, the royal doors are opened, the lamps in the temple are lit, and the clergy, leaving the altar, perform a complete incense of the entire temple. During censing, Sunday troparia are sung "Angelic Cathedral" telling about the resurrection of Christ. At the vigils before the feasts, instead of the Sunday troparion, they sing the glorification of the feast.

Then read the Gospel. If they serve vigil on Sunday, they read one of the eleven Sunday Gospels dedicated to the resurrection of Christ and His appearances to the disciples. If the service is dedicated not to the resurrection, but to a holiday, they read the festive Gospel.

After the reading of the Gospel, a hymn is heard at the Sunday All-Night Vigils "Seeing the Resurrection of Christ".

The worshipers venerate the Gospel (on the feast - to the icon), and the priest crosswise anoints their foreheads with consecrated oil.

This is not a Sacrament, but a sacred rite of the Church, serving as a sign of God's mercy to us. From the most ancient, biblical times, the fir tree has been a symbol of joy and a sign of God's blessing, and with the olive tree, from the fruits of which oil was obtained, the righteous is compared, on whom the favor of the Lord rests: And I, like a green olive tree, in the house of God, and I trust in the mercy of God forever and ever(Ps 51:10). The dove released from the ark by the patriarch Noah returned in the evening and brought a fresh olive leaf in his mouth, and Noah knew that the water had descended from the earth (see: Gen. 8, 11). It was a sign of reconciliation with God.

After the exclamation of the priest: "By grace, generosity and philanthropy ..." - the reading begins canon.

Canon- a prayer work that tells about the life and exploits of the saint and glorifies the celebrated event. The canon consists of nine cantos, each beginning irmosome- a chant sung by the choir.

Before the ninth ode of the canon, the deacon, having shaken the altar, proclaims before the image of the Mother of God (to the left of the royal doors): “We will exalt the Mother of God and Mother of Light in songs”. The choir begins to sing a chant "My soul magnifies the Lord...". This is a touching prayer-song composed by the Holy Virgin Mary (see: Luke 1, 46-55). A refrain is added to each verse: “The most honest Cherubim and the most glorious Seraphim without comparison, without the corruption of God the Word, who gave birth to the real Mother of God, we magnify You.”

After the canon, the choir sings psalms "Praise the Lord from Heaven", "Sing a new song to the Lord"(Ps 149) and "Praise God in His Saints"(Ps 150) along with "praise stichera". At the Sunday All-Night Vigil, these stichera end with a chant dedicated to the Theotokos: "Blessed be Thou, Virgin Mother of God..." After that, the priest proclaims: "Glory to Thee, who showed us the Light," and the great doxology. Vespers in ancient times, lasting all night, captured the early morning, and during matins the first morning rays of the sun really showed up, reminding us of the Sun of Truth - Christ the Savior. The praise begins with the words: "Gloria..." Matins began with these words and ends with these same words. At the end, the whole Holy Trinity is already glorified: “Holy God, Holy Mighty, Holy Immortal, have mercy on us.”

Matins ends purely and pleading litanies, after which the priest pronounces the final vacation.

After the all-night vigil, a short service is served, which is called the first hour.

Watch- this is a service that sanctifies a certain time of the day, but according to the established tradition, they are usually attached to long services - to matins and liturgy. The first hour corresponds to our seven o'clock in the morning. This service sanctifies the coming day with prayer.

Or Epiphany- one of the twelfth holidays, celebrated on January 19 (N.S. or January 6 according to the old style). The baptism of the Lord Jesus Christ is also called the Day of Enlightenment and the Feast of Lights - from the ancient custom to perform the baptism of the catechumens on the eve.

Video of the Baptism of the Lord from the series "Summer of the Lord"

The description of the event of Baptism is given by all four Evangelists (Matt. 3:13-17; Mark 1:9-11; Luke 3:21-23; John 1:33-34), as well as in many stichera and troparia of the feast . “Today, Heaven and earth, the Creator comes in flesh to the Jordan, asking for the baptism of the sinless ... and is baptized from the servant of the Lord of all ...”. “To the voice of one crying in the wilderness: prepare the way of the Lord, thou hast come, O Lord;

The baptism of the Lord Jesus Christ is in the closest connection with all His Divine-human work of saving people; it constitutes the decisive and complete beginning of this service. Christ the Savior in Baptism bestows grace "resolute in soul and body." The Baptism of the Lord in the redemption of the human race was of great saving significance. Baptism in the Jordan exudes forsaken mortals, remission of sins, enlightenment, the restoration of human nature, light, renewal, healing, and, as it were, a new birth.

The baptism of Christ in the waters of the Jordan had not only the meaning of a symbol of purification, but also a transforming, renewing effect on human nature. By plunging into the waters of the Jordan, the Lord sanctified “the whole nature of the waters” and the whole earth. The presence of Divine power in the watery nature transforms our corruptible nature into incorruptible.

Baptism had a beneficial effect on the whole dual human nature - on the body and soul of man. “With the Spirit of the soul you create new things, with water you sanctify the body, which is built, building up the living creatures ... those who have eternal life in themselves.”

The baptism of Christ the Savior was in fact a prefiguration and foundation given after His Resurrection and Ascension of the mysteriously grace-filled way of rebirth by water and the Spirit in the sacrament of Baptism. Here the Lord reveals Himself as the Founder of a new, gracious Kingdom, into which, according to His teaching, one cannot enter without Baptism (Matthew 28:19-20). “If anyone descends with me and is buried by baptism, he will enjoy glory and resurrection with me, Christ now proclaims.”

The threefold immersion in the sacrament of Baptism depicts the death of Christ, and the coming out of the water is the communion of His three-day Resurrection. Christ the Savior "from the water (by baptism) mysteriously made by the Spirit ... the many-children Church, first childless."

At the Baptism of the Lord in the Jordan, true worship of God was revealed to people, the hitherto unknown mystery of the Trinity of the Godhead, the mystery of the One God in three Persons, was revealed, the worship of the Most Holy Trinity was revealed. “The Trinity, our God, reveal to us today inseparably: for the Father, with the manifest evidence of kinship, proclaim, the Spirit descend from Heaven in a dove-like manner, bow down the Most Pure Son of His Forerunner ...”.

The hymns comprehensively and touchingly describe the experiences that the Forerunner experiences when he sees Christ coming to be baptized by him. John the Baptist, to the people listening to him, points to the coming Jesus as the Christ expected by all Israel - the Messiah: "This, deliver Israel, free us from destruction." And when the Lord asked him to be baptized, “The Forerunner trembled and exclaimed loudly: how can a lamp shine light? How will a servant lay his hand on the Lord? Savior, who took upon himself the sins of the whole world, You Yourself sanctify me and the waters. “Although You are the Child of Mary,” says the Forerunner, “but I know You, the Eternal God.” And then the Lord says to John: “Prophet, come and baptize Me, who created you, and who enlightens with grace and purifies all. Touch My Divine top and do not hesitate. Leave the rest now, for I have come to fulfill all righteousness.”

By being baptized by John, Christ fulfilled “righteousness,” that is, faithfulness and obedience to the commandments of God. Saint John the Baptist received from God the command to baptize the people as a sign of the cleansing of sins. As a man, Christ had to "fulfill" this commandment and therefore be baptized by John. By this He confirmed the holiness and greatness of John's actions, and gave Christians for eternity an example of obedience to the will of God and humility. The prophecy of St. Psalmist (ps. 113) that the Jordan will stop its flow "from the Face of the Lord." “Today, the Psalm prophecy is in a hurry to accept (fulfill) the end: the sea is more, speech, sight and flight, the Jordan returns back, from the Face of the Lord, from the Face of the God of Jacob, having come from the servant to receive Baptism.”

“Jordan, seeing the Lord being baptized, is divided and stops its course,” says the 1st stichera for the blessing of water. Return the Jordan river back, not daring to serve You. Even if you are ashamed of Joshua, how your Creator will not be afraid of your name ”The Church, through the lips of the creators of stichera, invites believers to be transported in thought and heart to that great event of the Theophany that once took place on the Jordan River in order to give thanks for the “unspeakable goodness” of Christ, in the “slave eye” who came into the world to save the human race.

In the pre-holiday and festive service, the Church did not forget the great servant of Christ and participant in the event - "Forerunner and Baptist, and Prophet, and most honored prophet" - John. Finishing the pre-holiday singing and beginning to sing the great event of the holiday itself, the Church turns to John the Baptist and asks him to raise up his hands in prayer to the One, whose most pure head he touched with these hands on the Jordan; The Church asks the Baptist to come and with his spirit to be present with us, to stand with us, "seal the singing and begin the celebration."

Prefeast on the Eve of the Epiphany

Theophany has long been among the great twelfth feasts. Even in the Decrees of the Apostles (book 5, ch. 12) it is commanded: "May you have great respect for the day on which the Lord revealed to us the Divinity." This holiday in the Orthodox Church is celebrated with equal grandeur, like the feast of the Nativity of Christ. Both of these holidays, connected by "Christmas" (from December 25 to January 6), constitute, as it were, one celebration. Almost immediately after the celebration of the feast of the Nativity of Christ (since January 2), the Church begins to prepare us for the solemn feast of the Baptism of the Lord with stichera and troparia specially dedicated to the upcoming feast (at Vespers), triodes (at Compline) and canons (at Matins), and church hymns in The honor of Theophany has been heard since January 1: on the morning of the feast of the Circumcision of the Lord, the hyrmos of the canons of Theophany are sung for katavasia: “The depths have opened, there is a bottom ...” and “A sea storm is moving ...”. With her sacred memoirs, following from Bethlehem to the Jordan and meeting the events of Baptism, the Church in the pre-holiday stichera calls on the faithful: “Let’s go from Bethlehem to the Jordan, there the Light is already beginning to illuminate those who are in darkness.” The nearest Saturday and Sunday before Epiphany are called Saturday and the Week before Theophany (or Enlightenment).

Eve of the Epiphany

The eve of the holiday - January 18 (NS or January 5, old style) - is called the Eve of the Epiphany, or Christmas Eve. The services of the eve and the feast itself are in many ways similar to the service of the eve and the feast of the Nativity of Christ.

On Christmas Eve of Theophany (as well as on Christmas Eve of the Nativity of Christ) is prescribed by the Church strict post: eating once after the consecration of water. If Eve takes place on Saturday and Sunday, fasting is facilitated: instead of once, eating is allowed twice - after the liturgy and after the blessing of the water. If the reading of the Great Hours from Eve, which happened on Saturday or Sunday, is transferred to Friday, then there is no fast on that Friday.

Features of worship on the eve of the holiday

On all weekly days (except Saturday and Sunday) the service of the Eve of Theophany consists of the Great Hours, pictorial and Vespers with the Liturgy of St. Basil the Great; after the liturgy (after the ambo prayer) there is the blessing of the water. If Christmas Eve happens on Saturday or Sunday, then the Great Hours are celebrated on Friday, and there is no Liturgy on that Friday; the liturgy of St. Basil the Great is transferred to the day of the holiday. On the very day of Christmas Eve, the liturgy of St. John Chrysostom happens in due time, and after it - Vespers and after it the blessing of water.

Feast of the Baptism of the Lord

The feast of the Baptism of the Lord is otherwise called Theophany, because on this day there was the appearance of the Most Holy Trinity and, in particular, the appearance of the Divinity of the Savior, who solemnly entered into His saving ministry.

The feast of the Baptism of the Lord is celebrated in the same way as the feast of the Nativity of Christ. On the eve, the Royal Hours, the Liturgy of Basil the Great and the All-Night Vigil, beginning with Great Compline, are celebrated. The peculiarity of this Feast consists of two great blessings of water, so-called in contrast to the small, because the small blessing of water can be performed at any other time.

The first great consecration of water takes place on the eve of the Feast in the temple, and the other - on the Feast itself in the open air on rivers, ponds, wells. The first, in ancient times, was performed for the baptism of the catechumens and already, later, it was turned into a remembrance of the baptism of the Lord; the second, probably, came from the ancient custom of Jerusalem Christians, on the day of Theophany, to go to the Jordan River and here remember the baptism of the Savior. That is why the Epiphany procession in our country is also called the procession to the Jordan.

Icons of the Feast of the Baptism of the Lord

Epiphany is one of the most ancient holidays of the Christian calendar, originally constituting, together with the Nativity of Christ, a single celebration that honored the Incarnation of the Word and the beginning of His earthly Dispensation. The images of the Theophany, which appeared already in the first centuries of Christianity, captured not only the Baptism of the Savior in the Jordan from John the Baptist, but, above all, the appearance to the world of the incarnated Son of God as One of the Persons of the Holy Trinity, to whom the Father and the Holy Spirit descended on Christ in the form of a dove. This is emphasized in the hymns of the holiday: “In the Jordan, baptized to Thee, O Lord, the Trinity appeared worship ...” (Troparion of the holiday). One of the oldest images of Baptism has been preserved in the Roman early Christian catacombs. Here, as in other monuments of the 4th-5th centuries (for example, the mosaic of the Arian baptistery in Ravenna), Christ being baptized from the Forerunner was depicted as a young beardless youth. However, in the future, in accordance with church tradition, the image of the Baptism of the Savior in adulthood will become widespread. The images of the Epiphany contain elements not borrowed from the narrative of the holy evangelists. So, in the scenes of the Baptism, the artists placed personifications of the Jordan River in the form of a gray-haired old man and the sea in the form of a floating woman. These images were based on the text of the psalm: “The sea has seen and fled, the Jordan has returned back ...” (Ps. 113, 3). In addition, the Gospel does not tell us about the presence of angels at the Lord's Baptism, although their figures, starting from the 6th-7th centuries, are always depicted standing on the opposite from St. John the Baptist on the banks of the Jordan, usually occupying the right side of the composition. Most often, three angels were depicted, bowing to Christ and, like recipients from the font, holding covers on their hands. Since ancient times, a segment of the sky has been depicted above the Savior standing in the water, from which a dove descends to Christ - a symbol of the Holy Spirit and rays of the “trinitarian light”. Thus, the moment of the appearance of the Deity, the theophany, is emphasized.

The greatest attention in all the images of the Epiphany is attracted by the figures of the Savior and St. John the Baptist, who places his right hand on the head of Christ. In the hymnography of the holiday, as in the icons, the theme of the Lord's acceptance of Baptism from His servant is accentuated: "how the servant lays his hand on the Lord" - is sung in the troparion at the consecration of water. The posture of Christ is different. In early monuments, His figure often appeared strictly frontally; later on, images in a slight turn and movement become the most popular, as if Christ is taking a step. This is directly related to the gospel text, which says that, having been baptized, Jesus "ascended abie from the water" (Matt. 3:16).

Church in honor of the Baptism of the Lord in Kashin

In honor of the Baptism of the Lord (Theophany) in the city in 1774-1787, a stone two-story church was built. In 1929, the temple was devastated, and in 1936 it was finally destroyed.

Troparion of the Feast of the Baptism of the Lord

In the Jordan, I am baptized by You, Lord, / a trinity worship appeared, / For the voice of your parents testified to You, / calling Your beloved Son, / and the Spirit in the form of a dove, / your word affirmation. / Appear to Christ God, / and enlighten the world, glory to Thee.

Kontakion Feast of the Baptism of the Lord

Thou hast appeared today to the universe, and Thy light, O Lord, is signified upon us, in the mind of those who sing Thee: Thou hast come and Thou hast appeared, Light impregnable.

References:

1. Archpriest Seraphim Slobodskoy, Law of God

"Kashin Orthodox", since 2010 from R.Kh.

Epiphany. Mosaic, Osios Loukas monastery, 11th century.

Holiday Baptism of the Lord(another name is St. Epiphany) is an Orthodox holiday that takes place annually January 19(January 6 old style). The feast of the Baptism of the Lord is set to commemorate the event of the gospel story - the Baptism of Jesus Christ in the Jordan by John the Forerunner. The Baptism of the Lord is preceded by several days of pre-feast, and after it - after-feast. Everyone knows that on this day and the day before, on Christmas Eve, it happens consecration of water. Usually on these days even those who usually do not attend services come to the temple - “for water”.

John the Baptist was six months older than Jesus Christ. Tradition says that during the beating of the babies by Herod, Elizabeth hid with her son John in the desert, and his father, the high priest Zacharias, was killed in the temple, because he did not give his son to Herod's soldiers. In memory of this, in every Orthodox church from the Altar, through the Royal Doors to the pulpit and down the stairs, a red carpet is laid out, as a symbol of the shed blood of the righteous.

More helpful reading:

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Commemoration of the holy Theophany of the Lord and our God Jesus Christ.

The history of the celebration of the Baptism of the Lord

Holiday Theophany of the Lord already known in the II-III centuries. Then they celebrated Him at the same time Baptism. Starting from the 4th century, the Nativity of Christ is celebrated on December 25, and on January 6 - the Baptism of the Lord. The second name of the holiday, Epiphany, indicates the appearance of the Trinity. When the Lord Jesus Christ emerged from the waters of the Jordan, all those present heard the voice of God the Father and saw the Holy Spirit descend in the form of a dove. The feast of the Baptism of the Lord, as well as the Nativity of Christ, is preceded by Christmas Eve- a day of strict fasting. If Christmas Eve coincides with Sunday, then the Royal Hours are transferred to the previous Friday, and the Liturgy of Basil the Great is celebrated on the very day of the holiday.

John the Forerunner (i.e. walking in front) preached in the wilderness of Judea, preparing people to accept the teachings of the Lord Jesus Christ. “Repent,” he said to the people who came, “the Kingdom of Heaven has come!” Many people came to listen to his sermon, repented of their sins and were baptized in the waters of the Jordan. Jesus Christ came from Galilee to John asking for baptism. John answered him: I should be baptized by You, and You require me to be baptized! But the Lord commanded the Forerunner to perform baptism. When Jesus Christ came out of the water, the heavens opened, and the Holy Spirit descended in the form of a dove, and the voice of God the Father was heard:

This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased (Matthew 3:17).

Epiphany. Festive Divine Service

Holiday services for Epiphany several days last: on the eve - eve ("Christmas Eve"), then the feast of Epiphany itself, on the third day a service is performed. The texts of divine services contain not only a story about the events of the holiday, but also an explanation of its meaning, as well as a recollection of all the prototypes, predictions and prophecies. So, the prototype of the Baptism of the Lord in the Jordan was the division of the river waters, which the prophet Elisha made with the mantle (clothes) of the prophet Elijah. Isaiah prophesied about Baptism: Wash yourself and be clean"(Is. 1, 16-20). The Psalms of King David, which contain prophecies about the Baptism of the Lord, are also read during the festive service.

In ancient times, on the feast of the Theophany of the Lord, the baptism of the catechumens was performed, who had been preparing for the reception of the Sacrament for a long time. Many moments of the service are reminiscent of this custom: more than usual, the number of proverbs, passages from the prophetic and narrative books of the Old Testament, during the reading of which the Sacrament of Baptism was performed, the singing of “The Elders were baptized into Christ ...” and even the blessing of water itself.

The service for the feast of Epiphany is performed especially solemnly; in ancient times it lasted all night. The All-Night Vigil begins with the Great Vespers, at which the song of the prophet Isaiah “God is with us!” is sung. This is followed by a lithium - a series of stichera, which speak of the events that took place in the Jordan 2000 years ago. Prayers become witnesses of the Baptism of the Lord.

Here John the Forerunner, knowing Whom he is to baptize, does not dare to approach Him: “How can hay touch the fire?” Seeing the Lord, Forerunner « rejoices z dsh7eyu ​​and trembling with his hand. will show є3go2, and 3 denial of people, this and 4th saves sz and ї) lz, freedom of us t and 3 stlenіz ".

Another verse tells how the hand of the Baptist trembled and the river waters flowed back - they did not dare to touch the Lord : « The hand of the kr1televa trembles, even more than the top2 kosnu1sz. return 1sz їwrdan8skaz rekA in 8 sleep, do not dare to approach you».

John the Baptist fulfills the commandment of God and baptizes the One whose messenger, predecessor, Forerunner is. « E $ same t two doors of the sun, vi1dz and4 even t unfruitful lamps of light. in їwrdane sssscha krchenіz. with horror and 3 joy in the spirit of him, you».

(Translation: The lamp, born of a barren mother, seeing the Sun, born of the Virgin, the Lord, asking for baptism in the Jordan, with horror and joy says to him: “Sanctify me, Master, by Your appearance”).

The canons for the holiday were written by hymnographers who lived in the 8th century - St. Cosmas of Maium and John of Damascus. The texts of the canons are quite difficult to understand; they explain the spiritual meaning of the holiday. The Apostle (Tit. II, 11-14; III, 4-7) says that with the coming of the Savior, the grace of salvation was brought to earth. The Gospel (Matthew III, 13-17) tells of the baptism of the Savior by John the Forerunner.

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On the feast of the Baptism of the Lord, two blessings of water are performed. One is performed on the eve of the feast in remembrance of the Baptism of the Lord, and the other on the feast itself. Usually the consecration of water takes place in the center of the temple, but in some parishes, mostly rural, the custom has been preserved to go to the nearest reservoir, where an ice-hole has been prepared in advance - “Jordan”. The custom of consecrating water on the day of Epiphany was already known in the 3rd century. The consecration of water on the eve of the feast of Epiphany is performed as follows: the clergy leave the altar, the primate holds the holy Cross on his head in the presentation of lamps. At this time, the singers sing: The voice of the Lord is crying out on the waters, saying and other troparia. Then three proverbs are read, the Apostle and the Gospel, which tell about the baptism of Jesus Christ. After the Gospel, the deacon pronounces the litany; then the priest reads a water-blessed prayer, in which he asks the Lord to grant sanctification, health, purification and blessing to all who partake and smear themselves with holy water. After the prayer, the priest immerses the Cross three times in water while singing the troparion: “ Baptized in the Jordan, Lord". Then the priest sprinkles the temple with consecrated water, all those present. On the holiday itself, the blessing of water is preceded by the singing of the canon-prayer of the holiday, according to the 6th song of which the blessing of water is performed according to the same rite.

Troparion to the holiday. Church Slavonic text

In the їwrdane baptizing gDi, trbcheskoe kvi1сz bowing, parents for the voice of your testimony, in love with tS sn7a and 3menyz, and 3 d¦b in 8 visions of the dove, and 3d your word2 affirmation. kvleisz xrte b9e, and 3 mjr enlightenment, glory to you.

Russian text

Lord, when you were baptized in the Jordan, the worship of the Holy Trinity appeared: for the voice of the Father testified of you, calling you the beloved Son, and the Spirit, in the form of a dove, confirmed the truth of the words (of the Father): Christ God, who has appeared and enlightened the world, glory to you.

Holiday kontakion. Church Slavonic text

I vi1lsz є3si2 today the universe, and 3 your light gD and banners on us, and 4 even in the 8 mind singing tS, when u1de and 3 kvi1sz the light is inviolable.

Russian text

Now You, O Lord, have appeared to the universe, and the light has been revealed to us, who intelligently sing to You: "The unapproachable Light, You have come and appeared to us."

Holy water, great Agiasma

According to the Church Charter, the consecration of water takes place five times a year: on the eve and on the day of the feast of Baptism, on the feast of Mid-Pentecost (between Easter and the Trinity), on the feast of the origin of the Holy Cross (“first Savior”, August 1/14) and on the patronal, temple holiday. Of course, the consecration of water can be performed more often, as needed, on the treb. Epiphany holy water is considered "annual".

Water consecrated on the eve of the Epiphany is called Great, it can be sprinkled in all, even unclean places at home and household. It is allowed to drink even after eating food. But the Charter commands to use it for a limited time - three hours after the consecration or, for the distance of the journey - one hour after arrival. After this time, it is strictly forbidden to use the Great Water for any needs. Moreover, if it accidentally spills, this place should be burned or cut down so as not to trample it underfoot (as in the case if Communion was spilled). From time immemorial, those who have been excluded from communion of the Body and Blood of Christ due to some sins have been communed with great water. You can read more about this in the article by Gleb Chistyakov "".

Water consecrated on the day of the feast of the Epiphany is reverently kept by Christians. It is drunk only on an empty stomach, after the morning prayers.

There is an erroneous opinion that on the feast of the Epiphany of the Lord, all water in rivers, lakes, and even in taps becomes holy. This is not true! Holy water becomes only after the completion of the church rite, the actions and prayers of the priest determined by the Charter.

Celebration of the Baptism of the Lord. Folk traditions and customs

Festive worship and blessing of water on the eve of Theophany in Russia were performed especially solemnly. It was a national holiday. Everyone went in procession to the "Jordan", arranged on rivers and lakes. A divine service was celebrated especially solemnly in the Dormition Cathedral of the Moscow Kremlin, where the Tsar and the Patriarch prayed. The blessing of water on Christmas Eve was performed in the cathedral, and on the feast of Epiphany itself, a procession was made with the singing of the festive canon to the Moscow River, where a hole in the shape of a cross was prepared. The blessing of water was performed very solemnly, with a large gathering of people. This ceremony had not only church, but also state significance.

The peasants spent the whole day on the eve of Epiphany in the strictest fast (even children and teenagers tried not to eat “to the star”), and during Vespers, small village churches usually could not accommodate the entire mass of worshipers. The crush was especially great during the blessing of water, as the peasants remained convinced that the sooner they draw the blessed water, the holier it is. Upon returning from the water blessing, each householder with his whole family reverently drank a few sips from the brought dish, and then took the sacred willow from behind the icon and sprinkled the whole house, outbuildings and all property with holy water, in full confidence that this protects not only from troubles and misfortunes, but also from the evil eye. In some provinces, it was considered a rule to pour holy water into wells so that unclean spirits would not climb there and pollute the water. At the same time, they strictly observed that no one took water from the well until the morning of January 6, that is, until the water was blessed after mass.

After the completion of all these rites, holy water was usually placed next to the icons, since the peasants not only believed in the healing power of this water, but were just as firmly convinced that it could not deteriorate, and that if you freeze the water of the Epiphany in any vessel, then on the ice you will get a clear image of the cross. Approximately the same sacred meaning was attributed by the peasants not only to water consecrated in the church, but also simply to river water, which on the eve of Epiphany receives special power. According to popular belief, on the night of January 5-6, Jesus Christ himself bathes in the river, therefore, in all rivers and lakes, the water “sways”, and in order to notice this wonderful phenomenon, you only need to come to the river at midnight and wait at the hole, until the “wave passes” (a sign that Christ sank into the water). This widespread belief created a custom among the peasantry, by virtue of which it was considered a great sin before the expiration of a week to wash clothes in the river on which the Epiphany blessing took place.

On the day of Epiphany, as soon as the bell tolled for matins, a movement began in the villages: people hurried to light bundles of straw in front of the huts (so that Jesus Christ, who was baptized in the Jordan, could warm himself by the fire), and special amateur craftsmen, asking for a blessing from the priest , bustled on the river, arranging a "yerdan". With extraordinary diligence, they carved a cross, candlesticks, a ladder, a dove, a semicircular radiance and around all this a grooved recess for the flow of water into the “cup”. A clergy stood near the cup during the divine service, and when reading the litanies, a special knowledgeable person pierced the bottom of this cup with a strong and deft blow, and the water burst out of the river in a fountain and quickly filled the radiance (depression), after which the long eight-pointed cross exactly floated above the water and matte silver shone on its surface. A mass of people usually flocked to this celebration, both old and young - everyone is in a hurry to "yerdan", so that thick ice, one and a half arshins, cracked and bent under the weight of the worshipers. The parishioners were attracted not only by the beauty of the spectacle and the solemnity of the divine service, but also by the pious desire to pray, drink the blessed water and wash their faces with it. There were daredevils who even swam in the hole, remembering that a person cannot catch a cold in consecrated water.

Unfortunately, in addition to pious traditions, in ancient times and at the present time there are many superstitions and almost pagan customs. Among such customs, one can, for example, point to the “consecration of cattle” by the peasants themselves, to a special type of fortune-telling, and to brides’ brides dedicated to this day.

There are also people who regard holy water as a talisman. Many come to the temple not for prayer, but "for water." It often happens that the service has not yet ended, and people are already crowding and making noise near the font with holy water. Often there are resentments, quarrels.

Many people believe that it is imperative to swim in the hole at Epiphany. Not without alcohol here. This far from Orthodox custom is becoming more and more widespread. Fr. John Kurbatsky in the article "".

From time immemorial, there has also been a pious custom to call a priest with holy Epiphany water into their homes on the days of the feast of the Epiphany. At present, this custom, unfortunately, is almost lost.

Icons of the Baptism of the Lord

The images of the Epiphany appeared already in the first centuries of Christianity. One of the oldest images of Baptism has been preserved in the Roman early Christian catacombs, where Christ being baptized by the Forerunner was portrayed as a young man.

In the future, in accordance with church tradition, the image of the Baptism of the Savior in adulthood will become widespread.

Three angels were often depicted, bowing to Christ and, like recipients from the font, holding covers on their hands.

Churches of the Epiphany

There were relatively few temples consecrated in the name of the Theophany of the Lord in Russia. Perhaps this is due to the long series of continuous services before and after the holiday.

It is known that the Epiphany was the oldest monastery in Moscow, in Kitay-gorod. It was founded in 1296 by the son of the right-believing Grand Duke Alexander Nevsky - the first Moscow prince Daniel. One of his first abbots was Stefan, the elder brother of St. Sergius of Radonezh. The Church of the Epiphany was originally wooden, the stone one was built in 1342 by Protasius of the Thousand. In 1624, the temple began to be rebuilt. It consists of two tiers. The church of the lower tier is the oldest and dates back to 1624, with the main altar in honor of Our Lady of Kazan. The upper church in honor of the Theophany and the Savior Not Made by Hands was built in 1693. In Soviet times, there was a hostel in the cathedral. In the early 1980s, restoration work began. Divine services resumed in the early 1990s.

In the name of the Epiphany of the Lord, a church in Pskov was consecrated. First mentioned in 1397; the current temple was erected in 1495 on the site of the earlier one, as the main temple of the Epiphany end in Zapskovye. The interior is four-pillared, cross-domed, with elevated girth arches. The northern aisle had a pillarless ceiling structure. The facades of the temple are divided by shoulder blades, ending with lobed arches, the apses and the drum are decorated with traditional, beautifully laid out rows of the “Pskov necklace”: “curb - slider - curb”. In ancient times, the temple was painted; Fragments of fresco painting have now been discovered.

In the name of the Epiphany, the church of the Joseph-Volotsky Monastery near Volokolamsk was consecrated. This church was founded in 1504 by Saint Joseph. The church was built with the money of Prince Semyon Ivanovich Belsky and the nobleman Boris Kutuzov, a childhood friend of St. Joseph.

In the name of the Epiphany, Abraham's Monastery in Rostov the Great was consecrated. Epiphany Cathedral was built between 1553 and 1554. The eastern facade of the cathedral has retained its historical appearance, intact narrow windows (in the first tier decorated with a kind of portals) allow us to assess the thickness of the walls of the sub-church and understand how all the window openings of the quarter looked like - some of them were hewn during repairs in the 17th and 18th centuries. The cathedral is crowned with a heavy five-domed head - the current form of the head was received after the renovation of 1818, instead of helmet-shaped ones. The temple stands on a high basement, therefore, stairs were originally leading to the three entrance, highly located portals. The western entrance to the cathedral ran through the porch with a front porch attached to it with three shoots (not preserved). A stone gallery led to the southern portal, also with a porch (not preserved).

In the name of the Epiphany, the Cathedral of the Epiphany-Anastasya Convent in Kostroma was consecrated. The Cathedral of the Epiphany is the oldest stone monumental building preserved in Kostroma. It was founded in 1559. It is an example of an old cathedral type building, distinguished by the grandeur of forms and proportions.

Church of the Epiphany in the village. Krasnoe-on-Volga of the Kostroma region has a rich history. The temple was built in 1592 at the expense of Boris Godunov's uncle - Dmitry Ivanovich, with the blessing of the first Patriarch of Moscow and All Russia Job. The Church of the Epiphany in Krasnoye is the only stone hipped temple of the 16th century in the Kostroma region. In Soviet times, the church served as a grain warehouse, a vegetable store, a library and a club. In the late 1950s, under the guidance of architect I. Sh. Shevelev, repair and restoration work was carried out in the Church of the Epiphany. In 1990, the church was given to the Kostroma and Galich diocese of the Russian Orthodox Church.

In honor of the Epiphany, a church was consecrated in the village. Chelmuzhi of the Republic of Karelia. The temple was built in 1605. The church has an unusual composition: a large tent is not located on the walls of the quadrangle of the main church building, as usual, but partly above the refectory, partly above the main building of the temple, that is, the axis of the tent falls approximately on the inner wall of the church. Thus, the outer walls of the quadrangle, western and eastern, do not rest on the walls, but on a system of beams that transfer the load from them to the southern and northern walls of the church. A very peculiar porch with two shoots, with carved pillars.

The Church of the Epiphany in the village of Pyanteg, Perm Region, is the oldest wooden building in the Urals. This is a unique architectural monument, as the hexagonal wooden churches are no longer preserved. Built in 1617. The basis of the church is a log hexagonal frame. Its top is covered with a flat six-pitched roof with a small cupola and a cross. From the east, a rectangular altar apse is cut into the shesterik, the top of which is expanded with troughs and covered with a gable roof. Square and rectangular windows were cut through the walls for illumination. The described view of the church is not original. The shesterik on the basement (it was removed at the beginning of the 20th century) ended with an open tier of ringing and a high tent.

In the village of Kodlozero, Arkhangelsk region, there was the Church of the Epiphany. The parish was located on both banks of the Puksa River, which flows into the Mehrenga, and along the Mehrenga River, 200 versts from Kholmogor. The church was probably built simultaneously with the appearance of the desert here in 1618. In 1933 the temple was destroyed.

The Church of the Epiphany of the Lord was located in the city of Mtsensk, Oryol region. The first mention of the temple is contained in the Scribe Book of the scribe Vasily Vasilyevich Chernyshev and the clerk Osip Bogdanov in 1625-1626, where two churches that stood on this site are mentioned:

The Church of the Epiphany of the Lord and the Church of Pyatnitsa Paraskovei are wooden dumplings, and in them are the images of God's mercy and the images of the local people and books and robes and bells and any church building of the same church of priest Eufimy Ivanov.

Later, in the Budget Books and the Painted Lists of the city of Mtsensk in the second half of the 17th century. only one wooden church is mentioned here - Epiphany. In the 18th century, the wooden temple was replaced by a stone one. The Church of the Epiphany was closed in the 30s of the XX century. The temple was badly damaged during the Great Patriotic War, and soon after it ended, the ruins of the church were demolished.

On the shore of Lake Elgoma in the basin of the Mosha River in the Kargopol district (now the Nyandoma district of the Arkhangelsk region), at the confluence of the Elgoma river into the lake, the Elgoma hermitage was located. The exact appearance of the monastery is unknown. The first mention dates back to the middle of the 17th century and is associated with the builder of desert temples, the elder Tarasy Moskvitin (1631-1642). In the book “Russian Wooden Architecture” (1942) in the Elgomskaya Hermitage, among the temples of the desert, the Church of the Epiphany, built in 1643, is mentioned, among other things. The Elgom desert with its temples has not been preserved to this day.

Also, the church in the name of the Epiphany was located on the Krasnovsky churchyard, in the village of Trufanovskaya, Arkhangelsk region. The structure of the Krasnovsky churchyard, along with the five-domed Epiphany Church built in 1640, included the Church of Paraskeva Pyatnitsa.

In the name of the Epiphany, one of the temples of the Ferapontov Monastery, which is located in the village of. Ferapontovo, Vologda region. The temple dates back to 1649. The church is a typical example of hipped buildings of the 17th century. Adjacent to it is the church of St. Ferapont.

In the city of Orsha of the Republic of Belarus in 1623, the Epiphany Monastery was founded on the lands donated by the Stetkevich noble family. The monastery was located in Kuteino - the southwestern outskirts of Orsha at the confluence of the Dnieper and Kuteinka rivers. The wooden Epiphany Cathedral was built in 1623-1626. It was five-domed, with a five-tiered iconostasis, had two floors and a hidden tomb. The walls of the cathedral were decorated with murals depicting 38 scenes from the New Testament. The wooden Cathedral of the Epiphany burned down from a lightning strike in 1885 and was no longer restored. The Epiphany Kuteinsky Monastery was revived in 1992.

In the name of the Epiphany, a church was consecrated in the city of Ostrog (Ukraine). There is no direct information about the time of construction. Most researchers attribute the construction of the church to the first half of the 15th century, others - to the first half of the 16th century. On the stone frames of the four embrasures of the northern defensive wall of the structure there are carved inscriptions indicating the date of 1521. Some researchers associate this date with the time the church was adapted for defense, others consider it to be the time of foundation. In 1887-1891. restored from ruins with a change in the original architectural forms, representing an expressive combination of traditional forms of ancient Russian architecture with Gothic-Renaissance features. Today it is a cathedral.

Also, in the name of the Epiphany of the Lord, the chapel (between 1537 and 1542) of the Transfiguration Cathedral of the Spaso-Prilutsky Monastery in the city of Vologda and the chapel (1648) of the Ascension Church in the city of Veliky Ustyug were consecrated.

The Vygovskaya monastery, the Old Believer center of the Pomeranian consent, also bore the name of the Epiphany: All-Honorable and God-saving Kenovia, Father and Brothers of the All-Merciful Savior of the Lord and Our God Jesus Christ of Theophany. Founded by the surviving monks of the Solovetsky Monastery, the monastery existed until the middle of the 19th century.

At present, there are few Old Believer Epiphany churches. Patronal feast today in Belokrinitsky parish with. New (Romania). Two Pomeranian communities - in Latvia and in the Vitebsk region (Belarus) also celebrate a temple holiday today.