Epiphany is the after party of Christmas. If you’re looking for an excuse to keep the Christmas party going in your CCD classroom, lessons on the Epiphany are the answer.
The Epiphany is celebrated January 6, which is the 12th day after Christmas. In the song “The Twelve Days of Christmas,” Epiphany is the conclusion of that 12-day season.
The term “epiphany” means “to make known” or “to reveal.” In the Catholic Church it is believed that the coming of the wise men revealed Jesus to the world as Lord and King. Later, the church included Christ’s baptism and His first miracle at the wedding in Cana as two additional key points in the Epiphany.
In Latin American countries, the Epiphany celebration is known as Three Kings’ Day or La Fiesta de Reyes, where the celebration can be even more festive than Christmas.
On or near Epiphany, make a special display on your classroom prayer table. Set a small treasure box stuffed with crinkled gold tissue paper, fool’s gold rocks, and elixir bottles to represent the gifts that the Magi brought to Jesus.
You may also want to display the three wise men from a nativity set.
Tell your students that the kings’ gifts – gold, frankincense and myrrh – were precious offerings. Frankincense is a resin used in religious ceremonies and for embalming. Myrrh is another resin that was rare and expensive. The symbolic nature of the gifts is that they were fit for royalty and they were being given to a child who was known to be the savior of the world.
Lead an Epiphany House Blessing
An Epiphany house blessing is a traditional Catholic custom in which the three Magi’s initials and the year are written in chalk above the doorway of the home.
In your class, lead your students in a small Epiphany service in which you bless the doorway of your classroom. You can bless other classroom doors, too, and tell other students about the story of the Magi.
Send a piece of chalk home with each child, with instructions on how to conduct an Epiphany house blessing at home with their families.
The Epiphany inscription is always the current year separated by “CMB,” the initials of Caspar, Melchior and Balthasar, the three wise men who traveled from the East to see the baby Jesus.
Epiphany House Blessing
- Leader: “Peace be in this place.”
- All: “And with all who enter here.”
- Leader: “During these days of the Christmas season, we keep this feast of Epiphany, celebrating the manifestation of Christ to the Magi, to John in the River Jordan, and to the disciples at the wedding at Cana. Today Christ is manifest to us. Today this home is a holy place. Listen to the words of the Holy Gospel according to Matthew.”
- Leader reads Matthew 2:1-12.
- One person makes the inscription with chalk above the door. The inscription is:
20 + CMB + 08
(The “08” is the current year. In 2009, the inscription would be 20 + CMB + 09.”)
Three Kings’ Cake
A traditional celebration of Epiphany in some cultures is to make a King’s Cake. SimpleLiving.org suggests making king’s cakes for your students and placing three beans in the cakes. Whoever gets a bean in their piece of cake is “crowned” Caspar, Melchior and Balthasar.
Epiphany crossword puzzles for younger children and for older kids, and coloring sheets, all from Domestic-church.com, are good gathering activities or time-fillers for your class on Epiphany.
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