The feast marking the end of Christmas is called “Epiphany.”

In the Latin Rite of the Catholic Church, Epiphany celebrates the revelation that Jesus was the Son of God. It focuses primarily on this revelation to the Three Wise Men, but also on his baptism in the Jordan and at the wedding at Cana. In the Eastern rites of the Catholic Church, Theophany – as Epiphany is known in the East – commemorates the manifestation of Jesus' divinity at his Baptism in the River Jordan.

While the traditional date for the feast is Jan. 6, celebration of Epiphany is moved to the Sunday between Jan. 2 and Jan. 8.

Origins of Epiphany

While the Western church celebrates The Feast of Epiphany, (which comes from Greek, meaning “revelation from above”), and the Eastern Church celebrates the Feast of Theophany (meaning “revelation of God”), of which these feasts share more than the same day.

The Feast of Epiphany, or the Feast of Theophany, is a very, very early feast. In the early Church, Christians, particularly those in the East, celebrated the advent of Christ on Jan. 6 by commemorating Nativity, Visitation of the Magi, Baptism of Christ and the Wedding of Cana all in one feast of the Epiphany. By the fourth century, both Christmas and Epiphany had been set as separate feasts in some dioceses. At the Council of Tours in 567, the Church set both Christmas day and Epiphany as feast days on the Dec. 25 and Jan. 6, respectively, and named the twelve days between the feasts as the Christmas season.

Over time, the Western Church separated the remaining feasts into their own celebrations, leaving the celebration of the Epiphany to commemorate primarily the Visitation of the Magi to see the newborn Christ on Jan. 6. Meanwhile, the Eastern Churches' celebration of Theophany celebrates Christ’s baptism and is one of the holiest feast days of the liturgical calendar.

Roman Traditions

The celebration of the visitation of the Magi – whom the Bible describes as learned wise men from the East – has developed its distinct traditions throughout the Roman Church.

The celebration of Epiphany in some of Europe like Poland is marked by taking chalk – along with gold, incense, and amber – to be blessed at Mass. Back at home, families will inscribe the first part of the year, followed by the letters, “K+M+B+” and then the last numbers of the year on top of every door in the house.

The letters stand for the names traditionally given to the wise men – Casper, Melchior, and Balthazar – as well as for the Latin phrase “Christus mansionem benedicat,” or, “Christ, bless this house. The gifts the wise men brought – frankincense, myrrh, and gold –gifts that point not only to Christ’s divinity and his revelation to the Magi as the King of Kings but also to his crucifixion.