epiphany
noun
definition 1: (cap.) a Christian celebration on January 6 of the revelation of the divinity of Jesus Christ to the Magi.
definition 2: any revelation of the existence of a divine being.
definition 3: a sudden revelation or realization of an important truth.
example: It was while in prison that he had an epiphany: there was no one he could rely on but himself.
Examples from Published Writing
The Epiphany is a season especially set apart for adoring the glory of Christ. The word may be taken to mean the manifestation of His glory, and leads us to the contemplation of Him as a King upon His throne in the midst of His court, with His servants around Him, and His guards in attendance. (J. H. Newman, Parochial and Plain Sermons, Vol. VII)
It was the Sixth Sunday after Epiphany, and the collect began with the words: O God, whose blessed Son was manifested that he might destroy the works of the devil, and make us the sons of God, and heirs of Eternal life. Philip read it through. He could make no sense of it. (Somerset Maugham, Of Human Bondage)
During an afternoon run in 2007, Ina Sargen had an epiphany. ” It had been two years since my mom died, and I still missed her so much, ” she says. ” I was heading home and recalled how good it felt to go home to my mom as a child. I realized that I didn’t want all the wonderful stories I remembered about her, and my childhood, to end with me. ” Shortly after that revelatory run, Sargen, a commercial real estate broker who lives in Philadelphia, began researching adoption. (Hochwell, L., “One. Solo. Uno,” Parenting: Early Years)
Our introduction to the feisty orphan Annie; her repeated faceoffs with Helen’s [Helen Keller’s] stubborn parents….and, above all, her brutal scrimmages and hard-won progress with the blind-and-deaf but hardly disabled little bully Helen, reaching its peak in the easily parodied but still effective water-pump epiphany. (Rob Weinert-Kendt, “Star Turns,” America, Vol. 202, Iss. 12, pp 20-25: April 2010.
This image illustrating Christianity’s Epiphany, definition 1, should drive home that even in the secular humanist metaphorical sense of definition 3, an epiphany is a significant and memorable revelation or manifestation, one that can change everything for the person experiencing it.