Youth pilgrims try to catch the cross thrown by an Orthodox priest into the water during an Epiphany ceremony to bless the sea in the southeastern village of Xylophagou, Cyprus, Tuesday, Jan. 6, 2026. (AP Photo/Petros Karadjias)
Christians are celebrating the feast day of Epiphany, also known as Three Kings Day. It recalls the visit of the three kings, or magi, to the baby Jesus. Orthodox Christians focus on the baptism of Jesus by John the Baptist. In Europe, some worshippers bathe in icy lakes and rivers. Ceremonies this year in Greece highlighted water scarcity concerns. Children in Latin America traditionally unwrap holiday gifts.
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This is a photo gallery curated by AP photo editors.
A pilgrim catches a cross after an Orthodox priest throw it into the water during an Epiphany ceremony to bless the sea in the southeastern village of Xylophagou, Cyprus, Tuesday, Jan. 6, 2026. (AP Photo/Petros Karadjias)People prepare for a Three Kings parade during the Epiphany Day celebrations in Vilnius, Lithuania, Tuesday, Jan. 6, 2026. (AP Photo/Mindaugas Kulbis)Orthodox archbishop Teodosie, centre, walks with clerics and faithful at the end of a religious service by the river Danube in Harsova, Romania, Monday, Jan. 5, 2026, a day ahead of the celebration of Epiphany. (AP Photo/Vadim Ghirda)A priest blesses horses during Epiphany celebrations in the village of Pietrosani, Romania, Tuesday, Jan. 6, 2026. (AP Photo/Andreea Alexandru)A girl watches people plunging into icy water during celebrations of Epiphany in Kyiv, Ukraine, Tuesday, Jan. 6, 2026. (AP Photo/Efrem Lukatsky)A veteran who lost his arm in Russia-Ukraine war, comes out of the icy water during celebrations of Epiphany in Kyiv, Ukraine, Tuesday, Jan. 6, 2026. (AP Photo/Dan Bashakov)Altar boys line up to take part in a religious procession marking Three Kings Days, also known as feast day of The Epiphany, at the Guardia Viejo neighborhood in Guatemala City, Tuesday, Jan. 6, 2026. (AP Photo/Moises Castillo)Catholics carry a religious float transporting statues representing the Three Wise Men: Balthazar, Gaspar and Melchior, during a procession marking Three Kings Days, also known as feast day of The Epiphany, at the Guardia Viejo neighborhood in Guatemala City, Tuesday, Jan. 6, 2026. (AP Photo/Moises Castillo)A white dove is released during the Christian Orthodox Epiphany ceremony at the Golden Horn, in Istanbul, Turkey, Tuesday, Jan. 6, 2026. (AP Photo/Francisco Seco)First Primate of Ukrainian Orthodox Church Epiphanius I, center, stands next to Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew I, the spiritual leader of the world’s Orthodox Christians, during the Epiphany, in Istanbul, Turkey, Tuesday, Jan. 6, 2026. (AP Photo/Francisco Seco)Pope Leo XIV celebrates Mass on the Day of the Epiphany of the Lord inside St. Peter’s Basilica at the Vatican, Tuesday, Jan. 6, 2026. (AP Photo/Alessandra Tarantino)People wait for Pope Leo XIV to deliver the Angelus noon prayer from the central loggia of St. Peter’s Basilica at the Vatican, Tuesday, Jan. 6, 2026. (AP Photo/Alessandra Tarantino)Polar swimmers take part in their traditional Three Kings swim in the Vltava River in Prague, Czech Republic, Tuesday, Jan. 6, 2026. (AP Photo/Petr David Josek)Polar swimmer holds up a block of ice during the traditional Three Kings swim in the Vltava River in Prague, Czech Republic, Tuesday, Jan. 6, 2026. (AP Photo/Petr David Josek)People attend the Epiphany ceremony as a Greek Orthodox priest, center, throws a cross blessing the waters at Lake Marathon, near Athens, on Tuesday, Jan. 6, 2026, where receding water levels reflect successive years of low rainfall across Greece. (AP Photo/Thanassis Stavrakis)A child plays with the teddy bear she was gifted at an event celebrating Three Kings Day, at the Angel of Independence in Mexico City, Monday, Jan. 5, 2026. (AP Photo/Marco Ugarte)People attend the traditional “Cabalgata de Reyes” parade in Madrid, Spain, Monday, Jan. 5, 2026, as part of the festivities marking the Catholic feast of Epiphany. (AP Photo/Bernat Armangue)A fire eater performs during the traditional “Cabalgata de Reyes” parade in Madrid, Spain, Monday, Jan. 5, 2026, as part of the festivities marking the Catholic feast of Epiphany. (AP Photo/Bernat Armangue)
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