Reflection of the Week - 15 July 2025
It is very important, friends, not to think of the soul as dark. We are conditioned to perceive only external light. We forget that there is such a thing as inner light, illuminating our soul.
What is Epiphany, anyway?
Posted in Faith
This Wednesday (6 January, 2016) is Epiphany – you can see it marked in this year’s Uniting Church SA calendar (soon to be available online) and in the Uniting Church in Australia’s lectionary readings for 2015-2016.
But what is Epiphany, anyway?
Epiphany, which is also known as Theophany or Three Kings’ Day, is an occasion where Christians celebrate the revelation/manifestation (epiphany) of Christ. It particularly commemorates the occasion of the Magi visiting Christ as a child; this represents the physical manifestation of Jesus to the Gentiles.
The traditional date for these celebrations is 6 January. For many, it marks the end of a 12-day festival – known as the Twelve Days of Christmas (like the song!) or Christmastide – which begins on Christmas Day.
Epiphany is mainly celebrated in Orthodox, Catholic and Anglican churches, but other Christian congregations will sometimes choose to mark the occasion. There are a number of different traditions observed for Epiphany, which tend to vary between denominations.
If your congregation or faith community has a special Epiphany tradition, please contact the New Times editorial team – we’d love to hear about it! Please leave a comment or email us at Turn on Javascript!
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Reflection of the Week - 08 July 2025
Paul tries to create some “audiovisual aids” for this big message, which he calls “churches” (a term Jesus used only twice, found in Matthew 16:18 and 18:17). Paul knows we need living, visible models of this new kind of life to make evident that Christ’s people really follow a way different from mass consciousness.
Reflection of the Week - 01 July 2025
Paul tries to create some “audiovisual aids” for this big message, which he calls “churches” (a term Jesus used only twice, found in Matthew 16:18 and 18:17). Paul knows we need living, visible models of this new kind of life to make evident that Christ’s people really follow a way different from mass consciousness.
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