Introduction to the Season after Epiphany

The Season after Epiphany is a fairly short season of the Christian Calendar found between Christmas and Lent. It is sometimes referred to as the Season of Epiphany.

The Season after Epiphany is one of two sections of the Christian Calendar also known as “Ordinary Time.” The other Ordinary Time in the Christian Calendar is the Season after Pentecost. Ordinary Time refers to the two times of the liturgical calendar that falls outside of the two “great” seasons of Christmas and Easter and the preparatory seasons that precede them - Advent and Lent. The word ordinary does not mean mundane, but rather originates from the ordinal numerals that are used to label the liturgical weeks during this time. For example: Proper 11, 17, 31, etc.

The liturgical colour used for the Season after Epiphany is green.

The Season of Christmas ends with the Epiphany of Jesus, celebrated on January the 06th every year. Epiphany translates as revelation. It is the feast day when Christians celebrate the revelation of the incarnation of God in the person of Jesus Christ. The readings for Epiphany focus on the visit of the Magi, symbolysing the revelation of Christ to the Gentiles.

The first Sunday after the Epiphany is Baptism of the Lord Sunday which inaugurates the Season after Epiphany. The Season after Epiphany carries on until Ash Wednesday which begins the following 40-day season of Advent.

The length of the Season after Epiphany varies depending on which day of the year Ash Wednesday falls on. In 2023, there are seven weeks during this season.