S. Clemens Alex* on New Testament Chronology. 329 On this supposition, the 194y. lm. 13d. ending at the death of Commodus, i. e. 31 Dec. 192 = 29 Mechir M. Nab. 940 reach up to 16 Tybi M. Nab. 746, which day = 6 Jan. b. c. 2 and = 11 Tybi of the 28th fixt Augustan year beginning 29 Aug. b. c. 3. An interesting result: for 6 Jan. = 11 Tybi fixt was in very early times the received date of our Lord's Baptism, which, accordingly, is still commemorated on the Feast of Epiphany*. Hence this same day was by some assigned to the Nativity, and it is retained as such by Epiphanius, Exposit: fid. 22. cf. Hair. 51, 24, 29, though he refers the Baptism to a different day of the Calendar (8 Nov.). Clement indeed does not pretend to assign the exact day of the Nativity, but by giving the sum in years, months, and
- Undoubtedly the Baptism was the
original subject of celebration. It was not till a later time that other "mani- festations" of our Lord's glory were drawn into the scope of this festival. S. Hieronym. in Ezech. i: "Haec dies significat Baptisma, in quo aperti sunt Christo cceli, et Epiphaniorum dies hue usque venerabilis est ; non, ut quidam putant, natalis in carne : tunc enim abs- conditus est, et non apparuit, quod huic tempori congruit, quando dictum est, Hie est filius meus dilectus, in quo mihi complacui." In the African Church, in S. Augustine's time, the principal subject of commemoration was the mani- festation of Christ to the Gentiles, Serm. 202 204, t. v. 914, which, without ad- verting to its other characters, he en- forces against the Donatists by whom this feast was not acknowledged. The diversity of the tradition on this subject is noted in the sermons (probably of Maximus) in Opp. S. Augustin. t. v. App. 240, "nonnuhi hodie Dominum nostrum stella duce venientibus ab Ori- ente Magis sestimant adoratum ; alii autem asserunt eum aquas in vina mu- tasse ; quidam vero baptizatum ilium a Joanne confirmant," S. 134; to which S. 136 adds, "sive quod de quinque panibus quinque niillia hominum satia- vit:" but S. 135 dwells only on the Baptism: "Necdum ortus est ejus ex- pleta festi vitas, et jam baptismatis ejus est celebranda solemnitas . . . Natalis ergo hodie alter est quidam modo Salvatoris . . . Prseclarior plane est secunda quam prima nati vitas." In fact, as the terms ' First' and ' Second Epiphany' were re- spectively applied to the Nativity and the Baptism, so the Epiphany was often spoken of as the ' Second Nativity.' As Montf. remarks in Prcemon. ad Horn,, in diem not. Chr., S. Chrysost. Opp. t. n. 354: "Apud Occidentales nonnisi post Epiphanise solemnitatem Natalis Domini festum institutum fuerat : inde- que erat quod in Occidente et in urbe Roma Natali potior Epiphania habere- tur, ut legitur in veteri ordine Romano : Nee hoc prcetereundum est, quod secunda Nativitas Christi (= Epiphania), tot illus- trata mysteriis, honoratior sit quam prima (sc. Natalis.)" In the Eastern Church we find S. Chrysostom in the sermon de Baptismo preached on the feast of Epi- phany, a.d. 387, speaking of the Bap- tism alone as the subject of commemo- ration. "Ort fiev odv 'Eirupdveia t) vap- ovaa e~yercu eoprr] Stju icrrc Tacri dXXci twos evKv o^ V yfJ-tya icad' tjv ir^V) a ^X V VfJ-epa xad" rjv ifiair- riaQy) 'Evicpdveia Xiyerai; Avtv ydp iariv -fj T)pkpa kclQ' tv cpaTTTlcraTo, kuI tt)v tuv vbaruv riylacre <ptio-iv : illustrated by the mention of a custom of draw- ing water at midnight of that festival, which shews the antiquity of this cele- bration.
