The Baptism of the Lord is the name of a feast day observed in the Roman Catholic Church and in the Anglican (Episcopalian) Church. The feast commemorates the baptism of Jesus by St. John the Baptist. The Roman Catholic Church (also known as the Catholic Church) is that Christian Church which is led by the Pope, the Bishop of Rome, currently Pope Benedict XVI. The Roman Catholic Church teaches that it is the one holy catholic and apostolic Church founded by Jesus Christ. ... A Catholic baptism Baptism is any water purification ritual practiced in any of various religions including Christianity, Mandaeanism, and Sikhism, and has its origins with the Jewish ritual of mikvah. ... It has been suggested that this article or section be merged with Biblical_Jesus. ... John the Baptist (also called John the Baptizer or John the Dipper) is regarded as a prophet by at least three religions: Christianity, Islam, and Mandaeanism. ...

From 1970 to the present, in every country except the United States, the Baptism of the Lord has been celebrated on the first Sunday after the Epiphany, or January 6 (prior to that year the Feast of the Holy Family was observed on this Sunday; since then the latter has been marked on the Sunday between Christmas and New Year's Day, or December 30 in years where both Christmas and New Year's Day fall on Sunday). In the United States, an exception to the above arises in years when either January 7 or January 8 is a Sunday, due to the fact that in the U.S. Epiphany is always observed on a Sunday (specifically, the Sunday after the first Saturday in January). When this occurs, the Baptism of the Lord feast is transferred to the following day, a Monday, but is not made a holy day of obligation. 1970 (MCMLXX) was a common year starting on Thursday. ... This article is about the Christian feast. ... January 6 is the 6th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... The Feast of the Holy Family is a holy day in the liturgical calendar of the Roman Catholic Church. ... Christmas (literally, the Mass of Jesus Christ) is a traditional holiday observed on 25 December. ... For information on the movie, New Years Day, see New Years Day (film). ... December 30 is the 364th day of the year (365th in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar, with 1 day remaining. ... January 7 is the seventh day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... January 8 is the 8th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... John the Baptist baptizes Jesus Christ as Angels look on in wonder in an Eastern Orthodox icon of the Theophany This article is about the Christian feast. ... In the Roman Catholic Church, the Holy Days of Obligation are the days, other than Sundays, on which the faithful are required to attend Mass. ...

Regardless of the actual day on which the Baptism of the Lord falls, the next day marks the start of the first installment of Ordinary Time. Ordinary Time is a term used in the Christian (especially the Roman Catholic) liturgical calendar to refer, collectively, to two different seasons of the liturgical year. ...