Generally speaking, an epiphany is the moment of awareness, realization, or revelation, often triggered by a particular person, object or situation. It is a condition in which what used to be obscure, esoteric, or incomprehensible, suddenly gathers clarity and becomes obvious and defensible, even if not entirely logical or believable. It also refers to Paul’s revelation of Christ to the Gentiles, who were initially outside the chosen group.

One of the most confusing concepts in the Bible is the concept of Three Persons in One God which appears to be contradictory and inexplicable. The Holy Trinity remains shrouded in mystery, but there are specific events which have opened our inner eyes to the possibility or reality of trinity in oneness, or uniqueness in tripartite existence. You complicate matters for the diehard atheist who is still struggling to come to terms with the reality of one God, when you further ask him to believe that that single God actually has Three Persons in Him. That would be stretching his credulity too far!

But the reality of the Holy Trinity is not meant to be subjected to logical disputation; it is one peculiar situation in which faith and belief go their separate ways, and you are expected to have faith without believing. The logical sequence in the expression of faith is first to believe, based on ocular, tactile, or logical evidence, and then go ahead to exercise one’s faith. Belief always insists on proof, but faith is ready to accept without an iota of proof, depending essentially on the degree of credibility of the source of information. “You have seen me,” Jesus tells the sceptical Thomas, “so you have believed. Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed” (John 20:29).

The earliest epiphany in the Bible was the manifestation of the birth of Infant Jesus to three Magi (the Three Wise Men), who were led by the revelatory star to the location of the divine cradle to perform their homage, offering him significant gifts of gold and frankincense and myrrh. This was during the time of King Herod the Great who learnt of a newborn King, and felt his own position threatened and thus sought to destroy the Infant Jesus. Having been deceived by the Magi who could have led him to the newborn baby, Herod decided to commit genocidal infanticide by ordering the execution of all babies two years and below in and around Bethlehem. The resultant calamity was totally unimaginable! But God spared the Baby Jesus by getting his parents to flee with him to Egypt out of the reach of murderous Herod (Matthew 2:1- 12).

Since then, several revelations and manifestations have taken place in relation to different aspects of the Holy Trinity. The Holy Trinity was there from the beginning of time when God, the First Person, created the World with the Word, and the other Persons assisted in actualizing the verbal command. “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and God was the Word” (John 1:1), This riddle of the Word is, in fact, the riddle of the Holy Trinity, Three Persons who are inextricably interwoven.

Nevertheless, there were occasions of individual manifestation. For instance, during the baptism of Jesus Christ by John the Baptist, the Holy Spirit descended on Christ, and a voice was heard from heaven saying: “This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased” (Matthew 3:16-17). The Voice of the First Person, and the descent of the Third Person on the Second Person, all the actions being revelatory of the Holy Trinity. The Pentecost Day presented an extraordinary experience for Mary and all the disciples, except Judas who had been replaced, through the casting of lot, by Matthias (Acts 1:21-26).

On Pentecost Day, the Holy Spirit fell on Mary and the Apostles, and they began to speak, or were heard speaking, in other tongues - the different languages of the heterogeneous audience. This day has been adopted as the official birthday of the Church, when the formal preaching actually began. This was the true Epiphany of the Holy Spirit, otherwise called the Comforter, whom Christ promised to send to his disciples after his ascension. It is instructive that the Holy Spirit has not gone back since his descent into the world, and he continues to work wonders among the people of God, as the Third Person of the Holy Trinity.

He is continually invoked to resolve any crisis by those who put themselves in the right frame of mind through prayer and fasting, and He has been the consistent inspirer of the Church, who ensures that the Pope is infallible in his actions and statements. During his earthly Ministry, Jesus Christ was always referring to God, the Father, making the Father known through him, and always praying to Him at critical moments. He also taught his disciples the Lord’s Prayer, which gave them the audacity to refer to God as “Our Father”, thus making them (and us) the adopted brothers and sisters of Christ.

At the peak of his agony in the Garden of Gethsemane, Jesus prayed three times to God for the possibility of avoiding the forthcoming passion, although he emphasized each time that God’s Will should prevail, which eventually did. All through the Bible, the Holy Trinity manifested themselves, either singly or jointly, at crucial moments in the life of Christ or those of his Apostles, and they remain eternally available to guide and protect us.