Nativity of Christ in the Flesh The last eight articles have been on the seven “O Antiphons” used in the Liturgy Advent and which contain rich Biblical images for the Messiah, Jesus Christ. The antiphons are: O Wisdom; O Sacred Lord; O Root of Jesse; O Key of David; O Radiant Dawn; O King of All Nations; O Emmanuel. These antiphons are also paraphrased in the popular carol, O Come, O Come, Emmanuel . The deacon St. Ephraim the Syrian (c. 306-373), an incredible poet and hymn writer, wrote a marvelous Christmas hymn with many biblical images of the Messiah. Following is a portion of Hymn I for the Nativity of Christ in the Flesh . This is the day that gladdened them, the Prophets, Kings, and Priests, for in it were their words fulfilled, and thus were the whole of them indeed performed! For the Virgin this day brought forth Immanuel in Bethlehem. The voice that of old Isaiah spake, today became reality.... The Psalm that David once sang, by i...

Virgin Birth       Christmas celebrates the miraculous birth of Christ Jesus our Lord over two millennia ago. Miraculous meaning not in the ordinary course of nature. As the angel Gabriel told Mary, “With God, nothing will be impossible” ( Lk 1:37 ). Jesus puts that truth this way: “What is impossible with men [humanity] is possible with God” ( Lk 18:27 ; cf.. Mt 19:26 ; Mk 10:27 ).       Last week we discussed Isaiah’s prophecy: “The Lord himself will give you a sign. Behold, a virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel [Emmanuel]” ( Is 7:14 ). The Hebrew word translated “virgin” here is “ almah ,” which can mean “virgin” or “young woman,” and virginity was expected of every young woman. There is a separate word, “ bethulah ,” that means a virgin specifically, and the two terms can be used interchangeably as with Rebekah ( Gen 24:16, 43 ).       The Greek Septuagint translation (3rd Century ...

O Antiphons: O Emmanuel       This Sunday is the Fourth Sunday of Advent, and the “O Antiphon” we consider this week is the Lord’s Messianic title, “O Emmanuel.” This is the last of the seven “O Antiphons” we have discussed over the last six weeks.       The antiphon for Vespers is:           O Emmanuel, King and Lawgiver,           Desire of the Nations, Savior of All People,           come and set us free, Lord our God.       The Alleluia for Mass modifies it as, “O Emmanuel, our King and Giver of Law: come to save us, Lord our God!”       Isaiah’s prophecy giving us the messianic title of “Emmanuel” (or “Immanuel”) is from a prophetic word to King Ahaz (ca. 735-715 BC): “The Lord himself will give you a sign. Behold, a virgin shall conceive and bear a son,...

  O Antiphons: O King of All the Nations       This Sunday is the Third Sunday of Advent, and the “O Antiphon” we consider this week is the Lord’s Messianic title, “O King of All the Nations.”  The antiphon for Vespers is:           O King of all the nations,           the only Joy of every human heart;           O Keystone of the mighty arch of man,           come and save the creature you fashioned from the dust. The Alleluia for Mass modifies it as, “O King of all nations and keystone of the Church: come and save man, whom you formed from the dust!”       We start with the last phrase, the “dust.” Genesis 2:7 tells us, “Then the Lord God formed man of dust from the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul.” The prophet Isaiah has this to say to us creatures of dust: “Your d...

O Antiphons: O Radiant Dawn   This Sunday is the Second Sunday of Advent, and the “O Antiphon” we consider this week is the Lord’s Messianic title, “O Radiant Dawn.” This antiphon reads the same both for Vespers and at Mass: O Radiant Dawn, splendor of eternal light, sun of justice: come, shine on those who dwell in darkness and the shadow of death. The Latin is “ O Oriens ,” which can mean “rising” and “dawn,” so sometimes this is translated, “O Rising Dawn.” The Antiphon tells us of a radiance of the rising dawn, a splendor of light that is eternal, a “sun” who is justice and righteousness – the Messiah – who will dawn upon our darkness, shadows, gloom, and death. Isaiah prophesies, “The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light; upon those who dwelt in the land of gloom a light has shown” (Is 9:1; quoted at Mt 4:16 as fulfilled in Christ). And, “Then shall your light break forth like the dawn, and your healing shall spring up speedily” (Is 58...

O Antiphons: O Key of David           This Sunday is the First Sunday of Advent, and the “O Antiphon” we consider this week is the Lord’s Messianic title, “O Key of David.”       The antiphon for Vespers is:                O Key of David, O Royal Power of Israel,                  controlling at your will the gate of heaven:                 come, break down the prison walls of death                 for those who dwell in darkness and the shadow of death;                 and lead your captive people into freedom.          The Alleluia for Mass modifies it as, “O Key of David, opening the gates of God’s eternal Kingdom: come and free the prisoners of darkness!”...

  O Antiphons: O Root of Jesse       We are in a series of articles meditating on our Lord’s coming again this Christmas by using the lovely Advent tradition of calling upon the Lord Jesus Christ with one of his messianic titles. This week we call upon him as “O Root of Jesse,” also translated, “O Flower of Jesse’s stem.”       This “O Antiphon” (as they are called) for Vespers is rendered in today’s English as:           O Flower of Jesse’s stem, you have been raised up as a sign for all peoples;              kings stand silent in your presence;              the nations bow down in worship before you.             Come, let nothing keep you from coming to our aid.       The lectionary for Mass for the Gospel Alleluia modifies it to read: “O Root of Jesse’s stem, sign of God’s love...

O Antiphons: O Lord          We are in a series of articles meditating on our Lord’s coming by using the lovely Advent tradition of calling upon the Lord Jesus Christ with one of his messianic titles. This week we call upon him as “O Lord” (Adoni), also translated, “O Leader.” This “O Antiphon” (as they are called) is rendered in today’s English as:                O Sacred Lord of ancient Israel, who showed yourself to Moses in the burning bush,                who gave him the Holy Law on Sinai mountain:                come, stretch out your mighty hand to set us free.          The lectionary for Mass modifies it to read: “O Leader of the House of Israel, giver of the Law to Moses on Sinai: come to rescue u...

O Antiphons: O Wisdom       Fall is now upon us. Advent is near. Christmas is coming.       We might begin thinking of our Lord's coming by using a lovely Advent tradition of calling upon the Lord Jesus Christ with one of his messianic titles, such as “O Wisdom.” Liturgically and traditionally, they start on Dec. 17th, but we might prepare ourselves for Advent and Christmas by taking more time, starting today, to meditate on these seven different themes.       The tradition is commonly called the “O Antiphons” because each begins with an “O.” (An “antiphon” is a verse added before and/or after a Psalm or canticle from Scripture; something like we use a refrain for songs and hymns today.)       The popular Advent and Christmas hymn, “O Come, O Come, Emmanuel,” is an English paraphrase of these seven O Antiphons.       They probably began in the 5th or 6th Century and...

The Gospel of the Forty Days:  The Church as the Restored Kingdom       Last week we developed the theme of the Messianic expectation of the restoration of the Kingdom of David, and asserted that in Jesus’s teaching about the “kingdom of God” during the forty days between His resurrection and ascension (Ac 1:3), He would have taught that this kingdom is now the Church. Let’s explore that a bit more.       David’s kingdom was based on covenant with God (2 Sam 7:1-29), which included God’s promise to establish an eternal kingdom with a descendant of David, and “I will be His Father, and He shall be My Son.” Luke’s Gospel makes it clear that Jesus, in the flesh, is a descendant of David (Lk 2:4-7, 3:31); and in previous articles we have discussed some of the Bible’s evidence that Jesus is, at the same time, in His Divinity, the Son of God.       Now at the Last Supper, Jesus says to the Twelve, “As My Father appoin...

The Gospel of the Forty Days: A Suffering Messiah       We are continuing to identify what commands (Ac 1:2) and teachings (Ac 1:3) the resurrected Lord Jesus gave, or might have given, during the forty days before His ascension. Last week we looked at First Century Jewish messianic expectations in general, and one thing is immediately clear: no one expected a suffering Messiah.       As Christians, we think of the “Suffering Servant” prophecies of Isaiah (42:1-7; 49:1-9; 50; 53), but these were not applied to the Messiah in the First Century. Usually they were understood to refer to the sufferings of the people of Israel as a whole. Yet, a few of the “servant” references in Isaiah clearly indicate an individual. The “servant” in Isaiah 52:13, the Targum (later Jewish rabbinical writing reflecting First Century traditions) has inserted the term “Messiah” in place of the term “servant.” But this oracle refers to a King Messiah prospering and be...

The Gospel of the Forty Days: Messianic Expectations       “Lord, will You at this time restore the kingdom to Israel?” Or as a significant textual source has it: “Is it at this time that You will bring about the restoration, and when will the kingdom of Israel be?” (Ac 1:6.) The Apostles asked this of Jesus at the end of the forty days following His resurrection and just before He ascended into Heaven.       Many misinterpret the question as an expression of the expectation of a political Messiah. It is true that some First Century Jews, notably the Zealots (the Apostle Simeon had been one), were waiting for a political Messiah. But Biblical and extra-biblical Jewish sources indicate this was not at all the general Messianic expectation.       Brant Pitre, PhD, a scholar of the Jewish background to Christianity, reminds us that to understand the humanity of Jesus, His words and actions in historical context, we ne...