Oration on Holy Theophany (St. Proclus of Constantinople)

Oration on Holy Theophany

By Saint Proclus, Patriarch of Constantinople

Christ appeared in the world and adorned the joyless world with boundless gladness. He took upon Himself the sin of the world and forever trampled down the enemy of the world. He sanctified the springs of the waters and enlightened the souls of human beings. Wonders were mingled with even greater wonders. 

Today, from the joy brought by our Savior Christ, land and sea were set apart, and from end to end the world was filled with gladness. 

Today’s feast reveals greater miracles than those of the night of the Nativity. For on that night only the earth rejoiced, as it bore upon itself, in the embrace of the manger, the Almighty God. 

Today, however, as we celebrate Theophany, the sea rejoices as well, for through the Jordan it too takes part in the blessing of sanctification.

At the feast of the divine Nativity, God appeared as a small, newborn infant, thus showing our own infancy. Today, however, we see Him as a perfect man, the perfect Son, begotten of the perfect Father. There the divine Child was revealed by the star that rose in the East; here God the Father bears witness to Him from heaven, from whom He was begotten before the ages. There the Magi, who journeyed on foot from the East, offered Him gifts as to a king; here angels sent from heaven offer Him the service that belongs to God alone. There He was wrapped in swaddling clothes; here by His baptism He loosens the chains of our transgressions and the bonds of our sins. There the King of heaven clothed the world like a royal purple robe; here the Fountain of Life clothes Himself all around with the river’s waters. Come, therefore, and behold paradoxical wonders.

The Sun of righteousness bathes in the waters of the Jordan. Fire plunges in and mingles with water. And God is sanctified by man. Today all creation cries out with a mighty voice and hymns:

“Blessed are You who come in the name of the Lord!”

You who come through Your Providence among all Your creatures;

You who uphold the height of the firmament and skillfully guide, like a gentle steed with a bridle, the course of the sun;

You who set in order, without confusion, the multitudes of the stars and grant us rich air so that we may breathe life unceasingly;

You who warm and give life to mother earth so that she may grant us her fruits throughout the year;

You who tame and restrain the surging sea, girding it all around with a tiny bridle of sand;

You who drive the waters from the depths of the earth and fashion the springs;

You who guide the riverbanks to proceed without loss or wandering toward the sea.

Reflecting on all these wonders, a cry rises from the depths of our being:

“Blessed are You who come in the name of the Lord!”

Tell us then, blessed David, who is this One?"The Lord and our God, who has appeared to us in human form." And it is not only the Prophet David who says this; the Apostle Paul also proclaims it, agreeing with him and teaching: “The grace of God that brings salvation to all people has appeared and instructs us all.” Not some, but all of us. To all — Jews and Greeks alike — He grants salvation through baptism, and He presents this saving washing as a benefaction freely given to every human soul that seeks it. 

Come and behold an unprecedented flood, far greater and more powerful than that which occurred in the days of Noah. There the water drowned human beings; here the water of baptism, by the power of God who today was baptized, brought back to life those who had died spiritually. There Noah built an ark of solid wood; here Christ, the spiritual Noah, took from the incorrupt Virgin Mary the ark of His body. There Noah coated the ark outwardly with pitch; here Christ strengthened and guarded the ark of His body with the anointing of faith. There a dove bearing an olive branch foretold the fragrance of the Master Christ; here the Holy Spirit appeared in the form of a pure white dove and revealed to all the merciful Lord. 

Yet I am astonished by the exceeding humility of the Lord. For He who was begotten as the perfect Son of the perfect Father was not content merely to be born on earth as a perfect infant from the womb of a woman. He who is enthroned with God the Father was not content to take the form of a servant, but comes to be baptized as though He were the last of sinners. Yet let this common benefaction for all humanity not become a stumbling block for those who hear me now. For Christ, the Master of all, is baptized not because He has need of purification of soul, but in order to provide for the benefit of our souls in two ways: to grant us sanctifying grace through the water and to urge each of us to be baptized. As the holy Evangelist tells us, Jesus came from Galilee to the Jordan, where John was, to be baptized by him. What then occurred, my brothers, no human mind can comprehend. What took place there surpasses every sight and sound; the mind trembles.

Speech fails, not daring to recount the ineffable. Therefore, when John saw our Master Christ approaching him, with great trembling of heart he fell and embraced His feet and implored Him, saying: 

“Why does my Almighty God compel me, a weak man, to do what exceeds my strength? I am not able to attempt such a thing. How shall I dare to baptize You? When has fire ever been cleansed by dry grass? When has mud washed the spring? How shall I baptize You, the Judge of the whole world, I who am responsible for so many sins? How shall I baptize You, my Master? I see no sin upon You. You have not fallen under the curse of our forefather Adam. You have not been stained by sin at all. Though You bowed the heavens and came down, You have transgressed none of the will of God the Father.

What are You doing, my Master? Why do You force me to do what exceeds my strength? I have never dared to do anything that provokes Your goodness. Like a faithful servant filled with love and reverence for his master, I hastened ahead and proclaimed Your coming to the world. While still in my mother’s womb, I borrowed her tongue and proclaimed You as God of the world. I prepared all to receive You and to go out to meet You. Tell me then, my Lord, how will the sun endure to see the Almighty God thus humbled by the daring of His servant, and not cast down burning rays to consume me, as it once did the lawless Sodomites? How will the earth endure to see Him who sanctifies the angels being simply baptized by the hand of a sinful man, and not open its depths to swallow me, as it did Abiram and Dathan? How shall I baptize You, my Master, You who were not defiled even by the stain of natural birth — ‘from a seedless womb came forth a seedless Fruit’? How then shall I, a man defiled a thousand times by sin, purify God — the sinless God? I have need to be baptized by You, and You come to me? You sent me, my Lord, to baptize, and I have not disobeyed Your command. I urged all toward baptism, saying to them: ‘Confess your sins before the Lord, for He alone is good. He who comes after me is not harsh or stern; He is good and the Son of a good Father. He does not show kindness only for a time and then change His disposition toward the sinner, but His mercy endures forever. And because His mercy is immeasurable, the heavenly powers hymn Him, saying: Blessed are You who come in the name of the Lord.’”

The Lord and our God has been revealed to us. The Sun of righteousness has appeared and dispelled the darkness of ignorance that enveloped us. The heavenly Shepherd has appeared and driven away the wolves of the devil from the flock of His children. The Only-begotten Son of the Father has appeared and through baptism granted adoption to the faithful. The Life of the whole world has appeared, and by His death He destroyed death, being immortal, and deemed worthy of immortal life those who had fallen into corruption and death.

And while all this was taking place, God the Father, rejoicing in the exceeding humility of the Son, opened wide the gates of heaven and, with a thunderous voice overflowing with the feelings that fill a fatherly heart, cried out: “This is My beloved Son.” And so that the minds of those who heard might not be confused — whether the son was the Baptist or Christ — the Holy Spirit came in the form of a white dove and pointed out the One who was being baptized, whom God the Father bore witness to as His only-begotten Son. To Him belong glory, dominion, honor, and worship, now and ever and unto the ages of ages. Amen.

Source: Translated by John Sanidopoulos.