Photos: Celebrating Epiphany around the world

Posted Jan 07, 2013

The Epiphany day, is a joyous day for Catholics in which they recall the journey of the Three Kings or Magi to pay homage to Baby Jesus. Epiphany which traditionally falls on January 6, is a Christian feast day that celebrates the revelation of God the Son as a human being in Jesus Christ. Eastern Christians commemorate the baptism of Jesus in the Jordan River, seen as his manifestation to the world as the Son of God. Western Christians commemorate principally (but not solely) the visitation of the Biblical Magi to the Baby Jesus, and thus Jesus’ physical manifestation to the Gentiles.

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A swimmer lifts a wooden cross retrieved from the Black Sea after an Epiphany religious service in Constanta, Romania, Sunday, Jan. 6, 2013. Thousands attended the celebration in the Black Sea port town. (AP Photo/Vadim Ghirda)
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Romanian gendarmes distribute bottled holy water to worshipers after an epiphany religious service in Constanta, Romania, Sunday, Jan. 6, 2013. Thousands attended the celebration in the Black Sea port town. (AP Photo/Vadim Ghirda)
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Romanian gendarmes distribute bottled holy water to worshipers after an epiphany religious service in Constanta, Romania, Sunday, Jan. 6, 2013. Thousands attended the celebration in the Black Sea port town. (AP Photo/Vadim Ghirda)
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Romanian gendarmes distribute bottled holy water to worshipers after an epiphany religious service in Constanta, Romania, Sunday, Jan. 6, 2013. Thousands attended the celebration in the Black Sea port town. (AP Photo/Vadim Ghirda)
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Swimmers race to retreive a wooden cross during an Epiphany ceremony to bless the water in Greece's northern port city of Thessaloniki, on Sunday, Jan. 6, 2013. The traditional ceremony marks the Epithany, and similar ceremonies are held across Greece on river banks, seafronts and lakes, when an Orthodox priest throws a simple wooden cross into the water and swimmers race to be the first to retrieve it. (AP Photo/Nikolas Giakoumidis)
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A Romanian orthodox priest stands, backdropped by the Black Sea before an epiphany religious service in Constanta, Romania, Sunday, Jan. 6, 2013. Thousands attended the celebration in the Black Sea port town. (AP Photo/Vadim Ghirda)
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Swimmers try to catch a cross after throwing from a priest into the sea during an Epiphany ceremony to bless the waters in southeastern coastal resort of Ayia Napa, Cyprus, Sunday, Jan. 6, 2013. In the traditional Epiphany ceremony to bless the water, an Orthodox priest throws a cross into the water and swimmers race to be first to retrieve it. (AP Photo/Petros Karadjias)
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An icon depicting the baptism of Jesus leads the procession from St. Nicholas to Spring Bayou during the 107th annual Epiphany celebration, Sunday, Jan. 6, 2013, in Tarpon Springs, Fla. Thousands of people descended on the quiet city of Tarpon Springs to celebrate the Epiphany, which honors Jesus' baptism by St. John the Baptist in the River Jordan. (AP Photo/The Tampa Bay Times, Will Vragovic) TAMPA OUT; CITRUS COUNTY OUT; PORT CHARLOTTE OUT; BROOKSVILLE HERNANDO TODAY OUT; USA TODAY OUT
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Vassilios Harding, 16, receives a blessing from Archbishop Demetrios after finding the cross during the 107th annual Epiphany celebration, Sunday, Jan. 6, 2013, in Tarpon Springs, Fla. Thousands of people descended on the quiet city of Tarpon Springs to celebrate the Epiphany, which honors Jesus' baptism by St. John the Baptist in the River Jordan. (AP Photo/The Tampa Bay Times, Will Vragovic) TAMPA OUT; CITRUS COUNTY OUT; PORT CHARLOTTE OUT; BROOKSVILLE HERNANDO TODAY OUT; USA TODAY OUT
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Faneroneni Parker, 10, joins in the procession from St. Nicholas during the 107th annual Epiphany celebration, Sunday, Jan. 6, 2013, in Tarpon Springs, Fla. Thousands of people descended on the quiet city of Tarpon Springs to celebrate the Epiphany, which honors Jesus' baptism by St. John the Baptist in the River Jordan. (AP Photo/The Tampa Bay Times, Will Vragovic) TAMPA OUT; CITRUS COUNTY OUT; PORT CHARLOTTE OUT; BROOKSVILLE HERNANDO TODAY OUT; USA TODAY OUT
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Vassilios Harding, 16, is carried on the shoulders of other divers after grabbing the cross during the 107th annual Epiphany celebration, Sunday, Jan. 6, 2013, in Tarpon Springs, Fla. Thousands of people descended on the quiet city of Tarpon Springs to celebrate the Epiphany, which honors Jesus' baptism by St. John the Baptist in the River Jordan. (AP Photo/The Tampa Bay Times, Will Vragovic) TAMPA OUT; CITRUS COUNTY OUT; PORT CHARLOTTE OUT; BROOKSVILLE HERNANDO TODAY OUT; USA TODAY OUT
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Vassilios Harding, 16, is carried on the shoulders of fellow divers on Tarpon Avenue after retrieving the cross during the 107th annual Epiphany celebration, Sunday, Jan. 6, 2013, in Tarpon Springs, Fla. Thousands of people descended on the quiet city of Tarpon Springs to celebrate the Epiphany, which honors Jesus' baptism by St. John the Baptist in the River Jordan. (AP Photo/The Tampa Bay Times, Will Vragovic) TAMPA OUT; CITRUS COUNTY OUT; PORT CHARLOTTE OUT; BROOKSVILLE HERNANDO TODAY OUT; USA TODAY OUT
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Divers launch themselves into Spring Bayou in search of the cross during the 107th annual Epiphany celebration, Sunday, Jan. 6, 2013, in Tarpon Springs, Fla. Vassilios Harding retrieved the cross. Thousands of people descended on the quiet city of Tarpon Springs to celebrate the Epiphany, which honors Jesus' baptism by St. John the Baptist in the River Jordan. (AP Photo/The Tampa Bay Times, Jim Damaske) TAMPA OUT; CITRUS COUNTY OUT; PORT CHARLOTTE OUT; BROOKSVILLE HERNANDO TODAY OUT; USA TODAY OUT
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Vassilios Harding, 16, celebrates grabbing the cross during the 107th annual Epiphany celebration, Sunday, Jan. 6, 2013, in Tarpon Springs, Fla. Thousands of people descended on the quiet city of Tarpon Springs to celebrate the Epiphany, which honors Jesus' baptism by St. John the Baptist in the River Jordan. (AP Photo/The Tampa Bay Times, Jim Damaske) TAMPA OUT; CITRUS COUNTY OUT; PORT CHARLOTTE OUT; BROOKSVILLE HERNANDO TODAY OUT; USA TODAY OUT
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A young caroler girl arrives with other carolers inside German President Joachim Gauck's residence Bellevue palace in Berlin on Epiphany, Sunday, Jan. 6, 2013. Traditionally around epiphany about 500.000 carolers in Germany collect money for children aid projects around the world. (AP Photo/Markus Schreiber)
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Swimmers race as Lukas Kokinis from Greece retrieves a wooden cross which was thrown into the waters by Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew I during a ceremony to bless the water at the Golden Horn in Istanbul, Turkey, Sunday, Jan. 6, 2013. The traditional ceremony marks the Epithany in Istanbul, Turkey when Bartholomew I or an Orthodox priest throws a simple wooden cross into the water and swimmers race to be the first to retrieve it. (AP Photo)
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Giorgos Ypsilantis, holds up the wooden cross after being the first to retrieve it, during an Epiphany ceremony to bless the water in Greece's northern port city of Thessaloniki, on Sunday, Jan. 6, 2013. The traditional ceremony marks the Epithany, and similar ceremonies are held across Greece on river banks, seafronts and lakes, when an Orthodox priest throws a simple wooden cross into the water and swimmers race to be the first to retrieve it. (AP Photo/Nikolas Giakoumidis)
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Giorgos Ypsilantis, kisses the wooden cross after being the first to retrieve it, during an Epiphany ceremony to bless the water in Greece's northern port city of Thessaloniki, on Sunday, Jan. 6, 2013. The traditional ceremony marks the Epithany, and similar ceremonies are held across Greece on river banks, seafronts and lakes, when an Orthodox priest throws a simple wooden cross into the water and swimmers race to be the first to retrieve it. (AP Photo/Nikolas Giakoumidis)
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Orthodox worshipers wait, backdropped by the Black Sea, for the start of an epiphany religious service in Constanta, Romania, Sunday, Jan. 6, 2013. Thousands attended the celebration in the Black Sea port town. (AP Photo/Vadim Ghirda)
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A girl pets a donkey wearing a pretzel and national colors decorations before an epiphany religious service in Constanta, Romania, Sunday, Jan. 6, 2013. Thousands attended the celebration in the Black Sea port town. (AP Photo/Vadim Ghirda)
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Orthodox worshipers gather at the Black Sea shore for an epiphany religious service in Constanta, Romania, Sunday, Jan. 6, 2013. Thousands attended the celebration in the Black Sea port town. (AP Photo/Vadim Ghirda)
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An orthodox priest attends an epiphany religious service in Constanta, Romania, Sunday, Jan. 6, 2013. Thousands attended the celebration in the Black Sea port town. (AP Photo/Vadim Ghirda)
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Romanian orthodox worshippers are backdropped by the Black Sea while waiting for an Epiphany religious service in Constanta, Romania, Sunday, Jan. 6, 2013. Thousands attended the celebration in the Black Sea port town. (AP Photo/Vadim Ghirda)
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A swimmer lifts a wooden cross retrieved from the Black Sea after an Epiphany religious service in Constanta, Romania, Sunday, Jan. 6, 2013. Thousands attended the celebration in the Black Sea port town. (AP Photo/Vadim Ghirda)
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An orthodox priest arranges items on a table before an Epiphany religious service in Constanta, Romania, Sunday, Jan. 6, 2013. Thousands attended the celebration in the Black Sea port town. (AP Photo/Vadim Ghirda)
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Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew I, center, arrives before the Orthodox swimmers race to retrieve a wooden cross which he will throw into the waters during a ceremony to bless the water at the Golden Horn in Istanbul, Turkey, Sunday, Jan. 6, 2013. The traditional ceremony marks the Epithany in Istanbul, Turkey, when Bartholomew I or an Orthodox priest throws a simple wooden cross into the water and swimmers race to be the first to retrieve it. (AP Photo)
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The Orthodox Christians light candles during an Epiphany ceremony at the Patriarchate in Istanbul, Turkey, Sunday, Jan. 6, 2013. The traditional ceremony marks also the Epithany in Istanbul, Turkey, when the Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew I or an Orthodox priest throws a simple wooden cross into the water and swimmers race to be the first to retrieve it. (AP Photo)
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Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew I conducts an Epiphany ceremony at the Patriarchate in Istanbul, Turkey, Sunday, Jan. 6, 2013. The traditional ceremony marks also the Epithany in Istanbul, Turkey, when Bartholomew I or an Orthodox priest throws a simple wooden cross into the water and swimmers race to be the first to retrieve it. (AP Photo)
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Swimmers celebrate after Lukas Kokinis from Greece, obscured second left, retrieved a cross which was thrown into the waters by Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew I during a ceremony to bless the water at the Golden Horn in Istanbul, Turkey, Sunday, Jan. 6, 2013. The traditional ceremony marks the Epithany in Istanbul, Turkey, when an Orthodox priest throws a wooden cross into the water and swimmers race to be the first to retrieve it. (AP Photo)
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Swimmers celebrate together after Lukas Kokinis from Greece, second right, retrieved a wooden cross which was thrown into the waters by Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew I during a ceremony to bless the water at the Golden Horn in Istanbul, Turkey, Sunday, Jan. 6, 2013. The traditional ceremony marks the Epithany in Istanbul, Turkey, when an Orthodox priest throws a wooden cross into the water and swimmers race to be the first to retrieve it. (AP Photo)
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Pope Benedict XVI delivers his blessing as he leaves at the end of an Epiphany mass he celebrated in St. Peter's Basilica at the Vatican, Sunday, Jan. 6, 2013. The Epiphany day, is a joyous day for Catholics in which they recall the journey of the Three Kings or Magi to pay homage to Baby Jesus. (AP Photo/Andrew Medichini)
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From left to right, Angelo Vincenzo Tani, of Italy, Fortunatus Nwachukwu, of Nigeria, Georg Ganswein, of Germany, and Nicolas Marie Denis Thevenin lie on the ground as they are named bishops during an Epiphany mass celebrated by Pope Benedict XVI in St.Peter's Basilica at the Vatican, Sunday, Jan. 6, 2013. The Epiphany day, is a joyous day for Catholics in which they recall the journey of the Three Kings or Magi to pay homage to Baby Jesus. (AP Photo/Alessandro Di Meo, Pool)
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From bottom to top, Angelo Vincenzo Tani, of Italy, Fortunatus Nwachukwu, of Nigeria, Georg Ganswein, of Germany, and Nicolas Marie Denis Thevenin lie on the ground as they are named bishops during an Epiphany mass celebrated by Pope Benedict XVI in St.Peter's Basilica at the Vatican, Sunday, Jan. 6, 2013. The Epiphany day, is a joyous day for Catholics in which they recall the journey of the Three Kings or Magi to pay homage to Baby Jesus. (AP Photo/Alessandro Di Meo, Pool)