READINGS 11, 12 & 13 - Nativity of the Lord - Continued from page 6
thousands of Judah, yet out of you shall He come forth unto me that is to be ruler in Israel; whose goings forth have been from of old, from everlasting."
He was made under the Torah, the Law. This is also a very striking point. In the Syriac version of the Gospel, the Peshitta [Simple text], the Law is referred to as "Nimosa" in Aramaic, also present in the Talmud tradition. Interestingly some Aramaic words also used in the Jewish traditions are not of Semitic origin. This is the case for the name given for the first time to the Believers in Christ at Antioch: "Khristyane" [Acts of the Apostles 11:26] although they might have been called "Meshikhe". "Nimosa" comes from the Greek word "Nomos" [Law]. In the Gospel it is the normal naming for the "Book of the Law", the Torah.
Here we face a paradox, an estrangement and a challenge. The Greek word "Nomos" determines a rule, regulations or a code. In the Talmud, this expression is used as regards pagan cults as in Numbers Rabba 18: "The way of the nations is to have many religious observances [nimos] for various deities and many priests." Or: "In three things Greece is in advance of Rome, especially codes [nimos] [Genesis Rabba 16].
The Seventy Jewish Sages who translated the Bible from Hebrew into Greek, used the word "Nomos". But the Hebrew "Torah" is linked to "YaRaH" [educate, give an impulse, throw an arrow]. It does not define any sort of code. It is a dynamic process. This is a linguistic estrangement drifting from a rule on the move to an apparent fixed if not rigid code.
The same applies to the Name of the Messiah. Jesus is the Saviour, in Hebrew "Yeshu'a" a shortening of "Yehoshua". This name is also "on the move" and shows a direction since it means "God has and will save" or "God has saved, is saving and will save".
This aspect is very important because the nativity of the Lord includes His Resurrection and His second coming in Glory.
2. The Circumcision of the Lord
Eight days after the birth of the Lord, the Eastern Orthodox Church recalls His circumcision. This feast has been kept in the Oriental Churches but has formally disappeared after the Second Council of the Vatican of the Roman Catholic Church, although maintained by the Eastern Catholic Churches. This is also the day of celebration of the Naming of the Lord, which complies with the Jewish tradition in force until now. A male child is given a name on the day of his "brit milah" [Covenant of the Word] or Circumcision, "peritomia" in Greek, i.e. the "cutting of the foreskin" permanently mentioned during the Byzantine Feast.
This day also corresponds, according to the Julian calendar in use in Jerusalem, to the first of January, New Years Day. The Patriarch blesses a huge cake with the print of the year and distributes the pieces to all the clergy and the faithful.
The commandment of circumcision was given to Abraham when he was 99 years old [Genesis 17] and he could only have a son with Sarah after this Covenant, building up the "Covenant of Abraham" which still refers normally to the Jewish community. Abraham circumcised himself. In different periods of Jewish history, circumcision was made in order to determine the appartainance to the Jewish inheritage, e.g. prior to the Exodus from Egypt and when the Israelites were circumcised when they entered the Land of Canaan under Joshua's leadership.
Moslem tradition adopted circumcision from Judaism although it is postponed to an advanced age [around 8 - 10 years old].
Circumcision has been a permanent issue in the relationship between Judaism and Christianity. In fact, this sign in the flesh of every Jewish male, has also questioned the Jews themselves throughout history. Some of them would even not perform it or try to be re-operated in order to cancel this sign, especially as concerned the ancient Olympic games in which sportsmen had to be naked. This trend is also linked to secularization. In 1847, the Jewish Community of Frankfurt-am-Main decided to abolish circumcision, which was restored a few years afterwards. After the Shoah [Holocaust] and World War II, a lot of Jewish families who went through a deep trauma, were reluctant to practice this commandment. The same happened in the former Soviet Union. Today, in Israel as in the diaspora, it is a real time of joy for the family and the parentage.
Interestingly, the Eastern Orthodox Churches do recall the Crcumcision of the Lord and the Giving of His Name. It also corresponds to the commemoration of Saint Basil the Great who wrote the exceptional Divine Liturgy in use in the Byzantine celebration and influenced the
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