Epiphany Archives - Catholic Herald

Epiphany

Notes from the Holy Land: Epiphany in Bethlehem with the Franciscans (Part 2)

January 08, 2024

Fr Luke Gregory OFM is a Franciscan friar based in Rhodes who journeys frequently to the Holy Land and is a director of the charity Pro Terra Sancta, which assists Christians and others in the region. Here is the second instalment (written 7 January 2024) of reflections from his diary of his time in Bethlehem

Star with royal beauty bright

January 07, 2023

Before the 16th century, Christians generally assumed that the Star of Bethlehem must have been some kind of astrological miracle. For instance, the Church Father St John Chrysostom believed that the Star of Bethlehem literally came down from heaven and stood over the manger where Jesus lay.

The Epiphany: Rise and shine

January 06, 2023

English-speakers call it “The Epiphany”, but the Germans say Heilige Drei Könige: the Three Holy Kings. And yet St Matthew doesn’t tell us that they were kings or even that there were three of them. “Kings” comes from the prophecy of Isaiah 60:3, read on the feast: “Nations shall come to your light and kings

On the Eleventh Day of Christmas: Journeying with the Magi

January 04, 2023

The Herald’s Deputy Editor joins the Magi as they make their way to Bethlehem, and takes the opportunity to reflect on their journey – and ours. Snow really does bring out my inner imp. I’ve known it in Wales, in London, in Oxford, in the United States – the impulse to mischief has always been

Pope Francis calls for peace in Central African Republic after disputed election

January 06, 2021

In his Angelus address on Jan. 6, the Solemnity of the Epiphany of the Lord, the pope expressed concern about the turmoil following a Dec. 27 vote to elect the country’s president and National Assembly.

Portuguese town encourages children to smoke at Epiphany

January 09, 2018

Locals say the practice has been passed down for centuries, but no one is sure what it symbolises

Revealed: the true identity of the Magi

January 06, 2018

When I investigated the story of the Three Wise Men, I found something more profound than the popular legend

Despite what some adults say, young people love religious ritual

January 05, 2018

There is a craving by young Catholics to have access to the Church's forgotten rituals