Epiphany is the day we celebrate the arrival of the three wisemen to honor the baby Jesus…or should I say the toddler Jesus? (We don’t actually know how many wisemen came to pay homage, but we do know that it was actually a year or two after his birth.) Epiphany is January 6th, but in some countries, including the US, it is moved to the Sunday that falls between January 2 and January 6th. In many countries Epiphany is a widely celebrated holiday, with many special traditions. I feel like I’m the US the day can often go unnoticed, because it is moved to Sunday.
I really like the Solemnity of Epiphany and want to start some fun traditions to celebrate the day. I also think celebrating Epiphany can be a great way to close out the Christmas season.
Here is a round up of some fun ideas I’ve seen to celebrate the day. Hopefully there are one or two that you might enjoy doing with your family!
- Traveling Wisemen- A fun way to mark the days between Christmas Day and Epiphany is to move the wisemen from your nativity each day, getting them closer to the Nativity and making their arrival on epiphany.
- Listen- Lately, I’ve been really into making/finding playlists for special feast days. Of course, We Three Kings is a give me, but it’s fun to find other songs that fit the day. Here’s a link to my Spotify playlist.
- Go with a star theme. The star is such a big piece of the wisemen’s journey and would be a fun focus for the day. You could make star shape cookies or white chocolate dipped rice Krispy treats, sprinkled with gold sprinkles. This star cookie cutter would be perfect for the day. Another fun idea would be a snack board with star shaped cheese and other munchies. I also think this star bread would be a delicious and beautiful treat to recognize the day.
- Craft. Sticking with the star theme you could make these fun origami stars. Or, here’s a free download to make paper crowns, which would be fun.
- Star gazing. I think spending a little time star gazing as a family would be an awesome opportunity to talk about the wisemen and their journey to find Jesus. It was full of difficulty and obstacles (Herod) but they persevered.
- Read books. Children’s books are always a great way to learn about and celebrate a feast day. For Epiphany try:
- King for a day. The last few years we have had cinnamon rolls shaped into crowns with a plastic infant Jesus hidden inside one of them. The person who finds the baby Jesus is then crowned King for the day and gets to choose the dinner and activities for the day. My boys really look forward to this tradition.
- Give gifts. This isn’t something we traditionally do, but I know that many families give 3 small gifts to represent the gifts brought by the magi. Another spin on the gift giving would be to give 3 gifts that you want to give Jesus during the year. Like the gift of time in adoration or prayer, or a spiritual or corporal work of mercy.
- Home blessing. Blessing your home is common tradition on Epiphany. Here’s a great resource for doing this in your home.
- Coloring pages. If coloring is an activity your kids enjoy. Here are some free epiphany coloring pages!
I hope you found some inspiration for celebrating Epiphany in your home!
Cheers!
Megan
