The Baptism of Our Lord God and Saviour Jesus Christ — Theophany

This is the day when our Lord Jesus Christ in humility received baptism from John the Baptist in the River Jordan, and sanctified the water from corruption, so as to grant us forgiveness of sins through it.

The Saviour did not Himself receive holiness, nor, being sinless, did He need cleansing; but He was baptised to help us, crushed the devil, and washed away our lawlessness with sanctified water.

In baptism, by the mystical action of the Holy Spirit, a Christian is united to the Body of Christ, the Church. The Mystery consists in the invisible action of grace: the water cleanses the body, while the Holy Spirit, in a way the mind cannot grasp, washes the soul itself. Is this surprising? Let us take a simple example: when fire enters the thickness of iron, the whole becomes fire. Then what is cold becomes hot, and what is black becomes bright. If material fire acts so unhindered when it penetrates iron, what is surprising if the Holy Spirit penetrates the depths of the soul? (Cyril of Jerusalem).

This day is called Theophany, because it was then that the Trinity was first revealed: the Son was being baptised, the Holy Spirit appeared in the form of a dove, and from heaven sounded the voice of the Father: “This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.”