Sunday Before the Feast of the Nativity of Christ December 23, 2018

Transcription

1 Sunday Before the Feast of the Nativity of Christ December 23, 2018 Icon of the Tree of Jesse, the Ancestors of Christ Saint Nicholas Greek Orthodox Church 3585 North 12th Street Grand Junction, Colorado Reverend Protopresbyter Luke Uhl, Pastor Parish Web Page: Parish Answering Machine: Saint Nicholas Greek Orthodox Church is a parish of the Greek Orthodox Metropolis of Denver under the spiritual and ecclesiastical jurisdiction of His Eminence Metropolitan Isaiah of Denver Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America Ecumenical Patriarchate Resurrection Apolitikion. Tone Plagal 1. Τὸν συνάναρχον Λόγον Πατρὶ καὶ Πνεύµατι, τὸν ἐκ Παρθένου τεχθέντα εἰς σωτηρίαν ἡµῶν, ἀνυµνήσωµεν πιστοὶ καὶ προσκυνήσωµεν, ὅτι ηὐδόκησε σαρκί, ἀνελθεῖν ἐν τῷ Σταυρῷ, καὶ θάνατον ὑποµεῖναι, καὶ ἐγεῖραι τοὺς τεθνεῶτας, ἐν τῇ ἐνδόξῳ Ἀναστάσει αὐτοῦ. Entrance Hymn. Tone 2. Page 33. Resurrection Apolitikion. Tone Plagal 1. Eternal with the Father and the Spirit is the Word, Who of a Virgin was begotten for our salvation. As the faithful we both praise and worship Him, for in the flesh did He consent to ascend unto the Cross, and death did He endure; and He raised unto life the dead, through His allglorious resurrection. Apolitikion of the Forefeast. Tone 4, Κατεπλάγη Ἰωσὴφ. Prepare yourself, Bethlehem, for Eden has been opened unto all; make ready, Ephratha, for the Tree of Life, has blossomed forth in the cave from the Virgin; her womb was shown to be a spiritual paradise, in which the divine fruit was planted; eating of it, we shall live, and we shall not die like Adam. Christ is born, to raise the image of God in man that fell of old. Apolitikion of the Fathers (Ancestors of Christ). Tone 2. Great are faith s accomplishments! for in the fountain of flame, as if on restful waters, the holy Three Youths took delight; and the Prophet Daniel showed himself to be the lions shepherd. Through their intercessions, O Christ God, save our souls. Apolitikion of the Temple. Tone 4. Page 33. Kontakion During the Nativity Fast. Tone 3. The virgin today comes to the cave, to give birth to the eternal Word in an ineffable way. Rejoice, O universe, having heard of this event; glorify with the angels and the shepherds, Him who willed to be seen as a new Child: the God Who existed before the ages. He became as we are, that He might make us brothers and free men. First, God the Word, the only-begotten Son of God the Father, was born in the flesh in the same way as ourselves. Second, we are joined to Him in Baptism, a rebirth in God through the Spirit, no longer being called children of flesh but transformed into something that transcends nature, being called sons of God by grace. Saint Cyril of Alexandria

2 Paramony of (Preparation for) the Nativity of Christ Matins Monday, December 24th, 9:00 am Imperial Hours Monday, December 24th, 10:00 am Vesperal Divine Liturgy Monday, December 24th, 6:00 pm The Nativity of Christ Matins Tuesday, December 25th, 9:00 am Divine Liturgy Tuesday, December 25th, 10:00 am The Synaxis of the Theotokos Matins Wednesday, December 26th, 9:00 am Divine Liturgy Wednesday, December 26th, 10:00 am Feast of the Protomartyr Stephen Great Vespers Wednesday, December 26th, 6:00 pm Matins Thursday, December 27th, 9:00 am Divine Liturgy Thursday, December 27th, 10:00 am Regular Services and Activities This Week: Daily Vespers: Thursday and Friday at 6:00 pm (Preceded by 9th Hour at 5:45 pm). Notes: No Paraklesis this week. No Discovering and Discussing Orthodoxy this week. For updated schedule information, always refer to: www. saintnicholasgj.org/worship_schedule/ A Scandalous Genealogy? On the day before Christmas, we will conclude our forty days of fasting which prepares us to celebrate the Feast. On that day God also concludes His mostmeticulous preparation for the Feast. Our preparation lasted forty days while His preparation spanned all of history, culminating in the conception of the God the Word, the unbegotten Son of the Father, in the womb of the Virgin Mary. The genealogy of Jesus, read in the Gospel on this Sunday before the Feast, tells us how much God loves us. It proclaims that He is not ashamed of us. He loves us who are sinners while detesting our sin. He embraced our sinfulness, not that we might stay as we are, but that we might be healed. The Gospel reveals that God became man with an ancestry as common as that of any man. God works in unexpected ways, which may surprise and even scandalize us. The genealogy mentions women but not those blessed ones who conceived by divine intervention such as Sarah, Rebecca, and Rachel. Instead it cites Tamar, a prostitute, and Ruth, a foreigner. Their union to their spouses was scandalous but it is in the lineage of the Messiah. God works out of love, despite apparent stumbling blocks, triumphing over our expectations and limitations. The final woman mentioned in the genealogy is also scandalous. Mary was found with child while betrothed, but not married, to Joseph. Yet this is by the will and the act of God culminating in the birth of God our Savior Jesus Christ. God s ways are not our ways. The conception of the Son of God happened was culturally scandalous and unacceptable. Moreover, it occurred in a manner not humanly possible in nature: a virginal conception. Yet it was the will of God. The genealogy affirms that God carefully prepared for the birth of Christ into normal human history as messy as it may be. He included, and even gave principal roles to, extremely scandalous persons. What do we learn from this? God can also make use of scandalous and unexpected events in our life so that Jesus may be born in our heart. Each of us can look back and see that certain events we considered as shameful, or disastrous, were used by God to be more fully present in our life. This is not to say that we should embrace scandalous ways of life! But it means that we should not allow the events in our own messy lives to overwhelm us. God brought forth the birth of Jesus through an unexpected genealogy of saints and sinners, of human triumphs and failures. He can do the same in our lives. God holds human history, and each of our personal histories, in His hand. The genealogy of Christ assures us that God loves every one of us, and each of us can be saved if we repent and accept Him. It promises that, no matter the multitude of our sins, we never need to despair. It guarantees that, despite our failings and scandals, we can maintain the hope of seeing our personal histories culminate in Christ if He is born in our hearts, and if we glorify Him forever. If you have any questions or concerns, please speak with your parish priest!

3 Sunday of the Fathers In the Name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Last Sunday the Church commemorated all the righteous of the Old Testament who awaited the coming of Christ. Today, the Sunday before the Birth of Christ on earth, the Church remembers all those in the Old Testament who were related to Christ by blood and those who spoke of His Birth as a man. That is why today we have read Christ's family tree from the Gospel of St Matthew. In this way the Church shows us that Christ really became a man, that the Son of God really took on human nature. He was not a ghost, an apparition, a myth, a distant imagined god, the abstract god of philosophers. Such a god does not have a family tree. Our God is the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. He has flesh and blood, human ancestors, many of whom sinned greatly, but like David, also repented greatly. By taking on human nature, the Son of God became like us in all ways, in flesh and blood, in tears and sweat, in mind and soul, in heart and will, He differed from us in only one way, He did not sin. Since we know that Christ's human nature remained sinless, He shows us the way that we too can go in order to strive to avoid sin and so improve and transform our failing human nature. However, the fact that Christ took on human nature and has a family tree, has another meaning too. Christ is descended from Adam through Abraham and David, through His ancestors Joachim and Anne - in His human nature He is therefore related to us and we are related to Him. He is a cousin of our ancestors. He is one of our own forebears. He is our kith and kin and we are His kith and kin, we belong to the same family. It is now that we understand that with Christ we belong to a family, a family of saints and sinners, but a family of which he is the Head and we are His children, the children of Mother Church and Father God. And believing in the Fatherhood of God, we believe in the Brotherhood of Man. Holy Fathers of Christ, pray to God for us! Amen. Reverend Andrew Phillips, Colchester, England Sunday Before the Nativity of Christ In the Gospel read on the Sunday before the Nativity of Christ, the genealogy of our Savior is reckoned. In the forty-two generations described (fourteen from Abraham to David, fourteen from David until the Babylonian captivity, and fourteen from the Babylonian captivity until Christ) we note that the tribes of Judah and Levi were united in a fusion of their bloodlines. Why is this significant? Because our Lord, Jesus Christ came into the world as both King and Priest. Abraham had a son named Isaac, who in turn had a son named Jacob who was later renamed Israel. Jacob (Israel) had twelve sons, and the descendants of these sons comprised the twelve tribes of Israel. Two of Jacob s twelve sons were named Judah and Levi. When Moses led the descendants of Jacob (Israel) out of Egypt, they camped in the area near Mount Sinai where God gave Moses His laws for His people. According to God s laws eleven of the tribes were to inherit a portion of the promised land in Canaan; one tribe, the tribe of Levi, was designated to serve the Temple as priests and to subsist from the tithes given by the other tribes. Jesus Christ is descended from the tribe of Levi, and thus He is of the priestly heritage and filled with holiness. After the descendants of Jacob settled in the promised land, they choose to have a king for their nation which was comprised of the twelve tribes of Israel. David, Solomon, and the rest of the kings of Israel belonged to the tribe of Judah. Jesus Christ being also descended from the tribe of Judah shines forth with the splendor of a royal heritage. Thus the Scriptures give us clear testimony that our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, is shown to be at once both King and Priest. At the same time the Gospel reminds us that among the ancestors of Jesus were outsiders, sinners and even very wicked individuals. Jesus is descended from foreigners (Ruth was from Moab, and not a descendant of Israel), from a murderer and adulterer (King David and the wife of Uriah), and even from a wicked apostate (King Ahaz behaved wantonly and had been faithless to the Lord). Saint Matthew mentions these to show us that no one should be ashamed of his forefathers, but should strive by his own virtue to make even them illustrious. The Evangelist shows us that all of us can be acceptable to God if we have virtue. After all, Christ was born to save all who would believe in Him!

4 Epistle for the Sunday Before the Nativity Hebrews 11:9-10, BRETHREN, By faith Abraham dwelt in the land of promise as in a foreign country, dwelling in tents with Isaac and Jacob, the heirs with him of the same promise; for he waited for the city which has foundations, whose builder and maker is God. And what more shall I say? For the time would fail me to tell of Gideon and Barak and Samson and Jephthah, also of David and Samuel and the prophets: who through faith subdued kingdoms, worked righteousness, obtained promises, stopped the mouths of lions, quenched the violence of fire, escaped the edge of the sword, out of weakness were made strong, became valiant in battle, turned to flight the armies of the aliens. Women received their dead raised to life again. Others were tortured, not accepting deliverance, that they might obtain a better resurrection. Still others had trial of mockings and scourgings, yes, and of chains and imprisonment. They were stoned, they were sawn in two, were tempted, were slain with the sword. They wandered about in sheepskins and goatskins, being destitute, afflicted, tormented of whom the world was not worthy. They wandered in deserts and mountains, in dens and caves of the earth. And all these, having obtained a good testimony through faith, did not receive the promise. God having provided something better for us, that they should not be made perfect apart from us. Gospel for the Sunday Before the Nativity Matthew 1:1-25 The book of the genealogy of Jesus Christ, the Son of David, the Son of Abraham: Abraham begot Isaac, Isaac begot Jacob, and Jacob begot Judah and his brothers. Judah begot Perez and Zerah by Tamar, Perez begot Hezron, and Hezron begot Ram. Ram begot Amminadab, Amminadab begot Nahshon, and Nahshon begot Salmon. Salmon begot Boaz by Rahab, Boaz begot Obed by Ruth, Obed begot Jesse, and Jesse begot David the king. David the king begot Solomon by her who had been the wife of Uriah. Solomon begot Rehoboam, Rehoboam begot Abijah, and Abijah begot Asa. Asa begot Jehoshaphat, Jehoshaphat begot Joram, and Joram begot Uzziah. Uzziah begot Jotham, Jotham begot Ahaz, and Ahaz begot Hezekiah. Hezekiah begot Manasseh, Manasseh begot Amon, and Amon begot Josiah. Josiah begot Jeconiah and his brothers about the time they were carried away to Babylon. And after they were brought to Babylon, Jeconiah begot Shealtiel, and Shealtiel begot Zerubbabel. Zerubbabel begot Abiud, Abiud begot Eliakim, and Eliakim begot Azor. Azor begot Zadok, Zadok begot Achim, and Achim begot Eliud. Eliud begot Eleazar, Eleazar begot Matthan, and Matthan begot Jacob. And Jacob begot Joseph the husband of Mary, of whom was born Jesus who is called Christ. So all the generations from Abraham to David are fourteen generations, from David until the captivity in Babylon are fourteen generations, and from the captivity in Babylon until the Christ are fourteen generations. Now the birth of Jesus Christ was as follows: After His mother Mary was betrothed to Joseph, before they came together, she was found with child of the Holy Spirit. Then Joseph her husband, being a just man, and not wanting to make her a public example, was minded to put her away secretly. But while he thought about these things, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take to you Mary your wife, for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit. And she will bring forth a Son, and you shall call His name Jesus, for He will save His people from their sins. So all this was done that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the Lord through the prophet, saying: Behold, the virgin shall be with child, and bear a Son, and they shall call His name Immanuel, which is translated, God with us. Then Joseph, being aroused from sleep, did as the angel of the Lord commanded him and took to him his wife, and did not know her till she had brought forth her firstborn Son. And he called His name Jesus. New King James Version (NKJV) Copyright 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc.

5 When do Shepherds watch over their flock by night? Shepherds do not normally watch over their flock by night unless there is some pressing reason to do so. After bedding down his flock at sunset, the shepherd will likewise lie down and sleep with the sheep throughout the night. This was the natural cycle for men and animals, until the advent of artificial lighting. Shepherds will stay up at night, however, during lambing season when the ewes are giving birth to their offspring. This is a critical economic period in the sheep industry, because the lambs are the harvest of a year s work. Some of the ewes will need assistance delivering their offspring, and others will need to be protected from predators during the 24 hours they remain at their birth site bonding with their newborn lambs. Most importantly, it would be all-but-unheard-of for a shepherd to leave his flock during this critical period as did the shepherds at Bethlehem who went to see the baby lying in a manger. At what time of year are lambs born? Sheep are seasonal breeders, and the breeding season for Mediterranean herds begins in the declining daylight hours of late Summer. Gestation takes about five months, and thus the lambing season begins in late Autumn or early Winter: at about the time of the Winter solstice. At what time of year was Jesus born? The Biblical account clearly states that Jesus was born when shepherds were watching over their flock by night which means during the lambing season which occurs in early Winter in Judea. To the glory of God, nature and theology coincide: while ewes are giving birth to their lambs, the Virgin Mary gives birth to Jesus the Lamb of God! Moreover, a spring lamb is slaughtered between three and five months of age. It is a piously-held tradition of the Church that the shepherds tending flocks Bethlehem were principal suppliers of the lambs that would be slaughtered at Passover. Again to the greater glory of God, nature and theology, the New and Old Testaments coincide: while the Passover lambs are being born outside of Bethlehem, the true Paschal Lamb is being born in the cave and laid in a manger in Bethlehem! The Services Celebrating the Nativity of Christ (Christmas) in the Orthodox Church The Nativity Fast (Advent) A Time of Preparation Orthodox Christians begin the celebration of the Nativity of Christ with a forty-day time of preparation, called the Nativity Fast, which begins on November 15. The purpose of each fasting season is to prepare soul and body to enter into the spiritual reality of the great feasts of Jesus Christ. The Nativity Fast is not as intense as that of Great Lent. It is instead a joyous Fast, anticipating the first light of the greatest possible joy the coming of God into His world. The Sundays of the Forefathers and Christ s Ancestors On the two Sundays preceding Christmas, the Church commemorates the Forefathers and the Ancestors of Christ. These are the prophets and the saints of the Old Testament as well as the very real and very human family tree of Jesus Christ. All of these prepared for the coming of the Lord into the world, which has made possible the salvation and reconciliation of mankind with God. The Forefeast of the Nativity The Church begins the Forefeast period of the Nativity on December 20. The most significant liturgical services of this period are those that usually take place on December 24 (or on Friday if the Feast of the Nativity falls on a Sunday or Monday): (1) Matins, (2) the Imperial (or Royal ) Hours, and (3) the Vesperal Divine Liturgy, or Great Vespers. Matins and the Imperial Hours. The two principal daily services of the Orthodox Church in parishes and monasteries are (1) Vespers (Evening Worship) and (2) Matins (Morning Worship) immediately followed by the Divine Liturgy. In the monastic liturgical tradition prayers are also offered at 6:00 am (First Hour), 9:00 am (Third Hour), noon (Sixth Hour), and at 3:00 pm (Ninth Hour). On the Forefeasts of the Nativity, of Theophany, and of Pascha these four Hours are recited as one Service: the Imperial Hours. On the morning of December 24th (or of Friday in certain years), we celebrate Matins and immediately following the Imperial Hours. Each of the four Hours is comprised of Psalms, prayers, and Scripture readings which proclaim the joy and power of Christ coming into the world. The Imperial Hours are one last meditation on the cosmic meaning of the Nativity: on the decisive and radical change that the Birth of Christ brought about for the entire creation.

6 Vesperal Divine Liturgy (or Great Vespers). Following Matins and the Royal Hours (in most years) the Church celebrates the Vespers of the Feast combined with the Divine Liturgy. When the Feast of the Nativity falls on a Sunday or Monday, we do not celebrate a Vesperal Liturgy, but only Great Vespers of the Feast on the evening of December 24th. The Orthodox liturgical day always begins at sunset with Vespers. This corresponds to the Scriptural account of creation in which first darkness was over the earth and then God said, Let there be light. (Genesis 1:2,3). At the vigil service of either Great Vespers or the Vesperal Divine Liturgy we prepare for the great celebration of the Nativity. The hymns chanted express great joy for the gift of the Incarnation of God becoming man. The Old Testament readings proclaim that Christ fulfills all prophecies, and that His Kingdom is the Kingdom of all ages. The Feast of the Nativity We celebrate the Feast of the Nativity ( Christmas ) at Matins and the Divine Liturgy on the morning of December 25. Matins of the Nativity. At the Katavasiai of Matins we sing one of the most beautifula nd maejestic hymns in Orthodox worship: Christ is borne; glorify Him; Christ comes from heaven, meet Him; Christ is on earth, be exalted; all the earth, sing unto the Lord; O you peoples sing praises in gladness, for He is glorified. The Divine Liturgy of the Nativity. The Divine Liturgy on the Feast of the Nativity was at one time the baptismal liturgy at which catechumens were Baptized, Chrismated and integrated into the Church, the Body of Christ. We therefore do not sing Holy God, Holy Mighty, Holy Immortal..., but instead the baptismal hymn, Those who in Christ have been baptized, have put on Christ; alleluia (Galatians 3:27). The Post-Feast The Post-Feast period of the Nativity extends to December 31. On the second day, December 26, we celebrate the Synaxis of the Theotokos, which is probably the most ancient feast of the Virgin Mary in the Christian tradition. Combining the hymns of the Nativity with those celebrating the Mother of God, the Church points to Mary as the one through whom the Incarnation was made possible, for the humanity of Jesus Christ our humanity was received concretely and historically from Mary His Mother. The third day, December 27, celebrates the Feast of Saint Stephen, the First Martyr of Christianity. December 31 is the Apodosis, or Dismissal, of the feast on which we repeat the full Nativity services. Why is the Nativity of Christ Celebrated in December? Although much may be written in contemporary media about the Emperor Constantine instituting the Feast of Christmas to Christianize a pagan feast of the sun, this is simply not true. It is not even a feasible likelihood. December 25th is the original Christian date of Christmas The Christian Church has celebrated the birth of our Lord Jesus Christ on December 25th from the very beginning. A first-century Christian document, the Apostolic Constitutions which contains guidelines made by the Apostles themselves, refers to the Nativity being celebrated on December 25th. Both Saint Clement of Alexandria in the second century, and Saint Hippolytus of Rome in the third century, both refer to the Feast of the Nativity on December 25. The date of Christmas can not be related to a pagan Roman feast The date chosen for the celebration of the Birth of Christ could in no way feasibly be a Christianization of a pagan Roman celebration at the Winter solstice. In fact, the Roman Emperor Aurelian established a feast of the Sol Invictus ( The Unconquered Sun ) on December 25 in AD 274. This was over two centuries after the Church began celebrating Christmas on that date, and it was an attempt to discredit the Christian feast by creating an alternative celebration. The theory that the date for Christmas was derived from a pagan celebration is itself a relatively modern notion, dating from the 1700s. Simply put, the pagan origins of Christmas is a myth without any historical substance. December is the obvious Scriptural month for Christmas The principal reason why Christmas is celebrated in December is because the Bible clearly indicates this: Now there were in the same country shepherds living out in the fields, keeping watch over their flock by night. (Luke 2:8) Modern man, urbanized and remote from his ancestors agrarian heritage, will not immediately grasp the implication of this verse.

7 Pastoral Care Matters Mystery of the Holy Eucharist (Communion) Holy Communion may only be given to Orthodox Christians who have prepared to do so by (a) prayer and fasting, (b) regular confession of sins in the Mystery of Holy Repentance (Confession), and (c) living a life in accordance with the Commandments of God and the Laws of the Church. It is gravely disrespectful to arrive late for Holy Communion. To do so exhibits total ignorance about the reality of the Eucharist. Those who are not present for the Epistle and Gospel may not receive Holy Communion. Those who miss attending the Divine Liturgy several times in a row should not receive Holy Communion until they have spoken with the priest and scheduled time for Confession. Mystery of Holy Repentance (Confession) All Orthodox Christians are urged to come to confession at least once during each of the four annual fasting seasons. Father Luke will normally be available to hear confessions before or after Vespers, and at any other time by mutual arrangement. If you have never been to Confession, do not be afraid! Please speak with Father Luke. Mystery of Holy Unction (Anointing) Holy Unction may only be given to Orthodox Christians. It is a sacrament of healing for both soul (forgiveness of sins) and body (recovery from sickness). Holy Unction is offered on Wednesdays after the Paraklesis, and at any other time as needed. Visitation of the Sick (Holy Unction and Holy Communion) Please call Father Luke to inform him whenever anyone is ill so that he can pray for them. Father Luke will never drop in uninvited. Please call and invite him to visit the sick, the aged, and those in need. He will gladly bring Holy Unction and Holy Communion to those at home or in hospital. If you have any questions or concerns, please speak with your parish priest! Explanation of the Nativity Icon Iconography is a Theological Language Icons are as Orthodox Christians faithfully understand very sophisticated theological expressions about the individuals and events portrayed. Icons are not as some people mistakenly believe illustrations of biblical or other religious stories for the illiterate. Iconography is therefore a theological language. Many spiritual and theological ideas exceed the ability of mere words, either spoken or written, to describe. The aesthetic, visual, colorful, and rich symbolism of a painted icon, however, can provide an additional way to express these ideas. Poetry, similarly, can convey ideas and experiences that simple prose fails to fully articulate. Religious poetry is therefore employed in the hymns of Orthodox worship services. Icons are additionally a dynamic expression of theological truths, actively projecting the spiritual reality of individuals and events across time and space. Yet, despite their spiritual sophistication, icons are accessible and understood by all: by the simple and the wise, by the young and the old, by the educated and the unlettered. The Icon of the Nativity of Christ The icon of the Nativity is very rich in meaning. Its central depiction is of Christ lying in a feeding trough (the manger or a crib ) for animals. This manger is in a cave, which has a black background and inside of which are an ox and a donkey. The dark background represents an inhospitable world, the earth after man s expulsion from Paradise. But into this darkened world a great Light has shone: Jesus Christ, true God and true man, the Savior of the world.

8 The Cave The earth provides its gift to God: the cave in which animals were being sheltered during the cold winter months. In the cave-stable are two animals: a cow and a donkey. These represent the prophetic words of Isaiah: The ox knows its owner and the donkey its master s crib; but Israel does not know, My people do not consider. (Isaiah 1:3) The Star The sky offers to God the star, the light of wisdom. This is a sign that Christ came for all people, because a star is seen by everyone and leads all men to Him. It is, of course, the star seen by the three Magi who followed it to Bethlehem. These Magi, along with the shepherds bring their gifts, also showing that Christ came for everyone. Some icons have three rays from the star, representing the Trinity. A Tree In some Nativity icons a tree is painted. The tree represents the root of Jesse (the father of King David from which the promised Messiah, or Christ, will come: There shall come forth a Rod from the stem of Jesse, and a Branch shall grow out of his roots. (Isaiah 11:1) The Child Jesus is shown wrapped in swaddling clothes. These signify His submission to human flesh, and also presage His death and burial for the sins of the world. Jesus will embrace every aspect of the human condition, from conception to death and even resurrection. The helpless figure in swaddling clothes represents the complete submission of Christ to the conditions governing the human race. The crib resembles an altar, for He is the Living Sacrifice for the sins of the world. The manger, a feeding trough for dumb animals, represents His crib, His church, and His tomb. Mary In the center of the icon is Mary, resting in a cave upon, and surrounded by, a red bedroll. This represents her seedless conception and her painless birthgiving. She looks upon her hew-born Child, contemplating the great mystery wrought through her by the Holy Spirit. She prays for Him as His mother, and she prays to Him as the Mother of the human race. The Righteous Joseph The Righteous Joseph is depicted away from Jesus and the Theotokos, at the bottom of the icon. This is because he was not involved in the miracle of the Incarnation of the Son of God, but he was the protector of Mary and Jesus. The old man speaking to him represents the devil bringing new doubts to Joseph. The devil suggests that if the infant were truly divine He would not have been born in the human way, and not in such lowly and impoverished conditions. In the person of Joseph, the icon discloses not only his personal doubt, but the dilemma of all mankind, the difficulty of accepting that which is beyond reason: the Incarnation of God. The Angels The angels are glorifying God, tending to the action, and ministering. They announce the Good News to the shepherds, singing Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, to men good will. The Shepherds Shepherds are shown, watching over their flocks by night. This was the lambing season for the ewes; otherwise the shepherds would have been asleep with their animals at night. Just as the ewes were giving birth according to nature in the late Autumn and early Winter days, Mary gave birth to her Son Who is the true Lamb of God. In a few months, at Passover (in Hebrew Pesach, or in Greek Pascha ) some of the lambs would be sacrificed as Paschal lambs. In thirty-three years Jesus, would be crucified on the Cross as the true Paschal Victim. The Magi The shepherds were summoned by the angels to leave their flocks at a critical time to go to Bethlehem to se a new-born Child. The Magi were drawn by a star to Bethlehem to see a new-born King. The Magi brought gifts: gold for a King, incense for a Priest, and myrrh for One to be placed in the grave. The Women In some Nativity icons women are shown in the lower portion. These women are midwives, indicating that Jesus was born in the normal way and would have needed washing, as a regular human baby would.

9 From The Explanation of the Gospel of Saint Luke by Saint Theophylaktos, Archbishop of Ochrid (AD ) Matthew1:1. The book of the generation. Why did he not say vision or word as did the prophets who prefaced their writing in this manner: The vision which Isaiah saw (Isaiah 1:1), and The word which came to Isaiah (Isaiah 1:1). Do you wish to know why? Because the prophets were speaking to hard-hearted and disobedient people, and therefore they would say, This is a divine vision, or This is the word of God, so that the people would be frightened and not disdain what was said. But Matthew was addressing believers who were obedient and of a good disposition, and for this reason he did not begin in the manner of the prophets. I will also add that what the prophets saw, they saw noetically, that is, with their minds, envisioning these things by the Holy Spirit; and this is why they called them visions. But Matthew did not see Christ noetically, nor did he envision Him in his mind, but he was with Him tangibly and listened to Him with his senses and saw Him in the flesh. Therefore he did not say, The vision which I saw, but The book of generation. Of Jesus. The name Jesus is not Greek but Hebrew, meaning Savior, for too is the Hebrew word for salvation (Iao is a Greek transliteration of the Hebrew word). Christ. The Hebrew kings and priests were called christs (i.e. anointed ones ), because they were anointed with the holy oil poured out from a horn held over the head. The Lord, therefore, is called Christ, both as King because He ruled over sin, and as Priest because He offered Himself as a sacrifice for us. He Himself was pre-eminently anointed with the true oil, the Holy Spirit; for who else possessed the Spirit as did the Lord? In the saints, the grace of the Holy Spirit was at work, but in Christ it was not the grace of the Spirit at work, but rather Christ being of one essence with the Spirit worked the miracles. The Son of David. Since Matthew had said Jesus, he added the Son of David, so that you would not think he was speaking of the other Jesus (i.e., Joshua the son of Navi, or son of Nun), for there was another renowned Jesus, who became commander under Moses (In Greek and Hebrew Joshua and Jesus are the same name: Iesous in Greek, Yeshua in Hebrew. There are two forms of the same name in English due to the fact that Joshua was the Hebrew, not the Greek (Septuagint), text of the Old Testament, while Jesus, of course, was taken from the Greek of the New Testament. In Hebrew the name simply means one who saves or savior. ) Joshua, the son of Navi or Nun, preceded David by many generations and was not of the tribe of Judah, from which David was descended, but of another. The son of Abraham. Why did he place David before Abraham? He did so because to the Jews David had greater renown, both because he was more recent than Abraham and because he was more illustrious on account of his kingdom. For of the kings, David was the first to please God, and he received the promise from God that the Christ would arise from his seed. For this reason all men called Christ the Son of David. And indeed David was also a symbolic type of Christ: for just as David ruled after Saul, that outcast from God who was rejected, so too Christ came in the flesh to reign over us after Adam had been deprived of the kingship and the dominion which he had over all things, both animals and demons. Matthew 1:2. Abraham begat Isaac. Matthew begins the genealogy with Abraham because he was the father of the Hebrews, and because he first received the promises that in his seed all the nations would be blessed (Genesis 22:18). Therefore it is fitting that he should give the genealogy of Christ beginning with Abraham, for the seed of Abraham is Christ by Whom all we nations have been blessed who were formerly cursed. Abraham means father of the nations, and Isaac means joy or laughter. The evangelist makes no mention of the illegitimate children of Abraham, Ishmael and the others, because the Jews were not descended from them, but from Isaac. And Isaac begat Jacob, and Jacob begat Judah and his brethren. You see that he mentioned Judah and his brothers because the twelve tribes were from them.

10 Matthew1:3 And Judah begat Pharez and Zarah of Tamar. Tamar was the daughter in law of Judah, the wife of his son Er (Genesis 38:6-30). When Er died childless, Judah married her to another of his sons, Onan, But when he. too, was cut down from among the living on account of his wickedness, Judah did not marry her to any other of his sons. But she desired to have a child of the seed of Abraham, and so she put off the garments of a widow, dressed as a harlot, came together with her father-in-law, and from him conceived twin boys. As she was giving birth to them, the first child reached its hand out from her womb, as if it would be born first, and at once the mid-wife marked the extended hand of the child with a scarlet thread so as to distinguish the firstborn. But the child drew its hand back into the womb and the other one was born first, followed by the one who had reached out its hand. So the one who was born first was named Pharez which means interruption, for it had interrupted the natural order; and the child which withdrew its hand was named Zarah. This account indicates a certain mystery. For just as Zarah first showed his hand and then withdrew it, so, too, the life in Christ appeared in those holy ones who lived before the law and circumcision. For all these were not counted as righteous by the observances of the law and the commandments, but by living the evangelic life of the Gospel. Consider Abraham who left his father and his home for God s sake and even denied the order of nature by his willingness to sacrifice Isaac. Consider Job, and Melchizedek. But when the law came, this manner of life receded, Just as in the story, Pharez was born and then Zarah came forth again, so too, when the law had been given, the evangelic life later shone forth again, marked with the scarlet thread, that is. sealed with the blood of Christ. The reason why the evangelist mentioned these two children, therefore, is that their birth revealed something mysterious. But there is another reason why he mentions Tamar, who does not appear to be praiseworthy on account of her physical relations with her father-in-law; and that was to show that Christ Who accepted all things for our sake, accepted even to have such forbearers as these. It was moreover for this very reason that He was born from them, that He might sanctify them; for He came not to call the righteous, but the sinners. Matthew 1:3-5. And Pharez begat Hezron; and Hezron begat Ram; and Ram begat Amminadab; and Amminadab begat Nahshon; and Nahshon begat Salma; and Salma begat Boaz of Rahab. Some believe Rahab to be that Rahab the harlot who received the spies of Jesus (Joshua) sun ol Navi (Joshua son of Nun; Joshua 2:1-21, 6:21-25). She saved them, and was herself saved as well. He mentions her to show that just as she was a harlot, so, too, was the congregation of the nations, for they went whoring in their practices, But all those who accepted the spies of Jesus, that is, the Apostles, and were convinced by their words, were saved from among the nations. And Boaz begat Obed of Ruth. Ruth was a foreigner but nevertheless she was married to Boaz (Ruth 4:13-17). So, too, the Church is from among the Gentiles. For like Ruth, these Gentiles had been foreigners and outside the covenants, yet they forsook their people, their idols, and their father, the devil. And as Ruth was wed to Boaz of the seed of Abraham, so too was the Church taken as bride by the Son of God. Matthew 1:5-6. And Obed begat Jesse; and Jesse begat David the king; and David the king begat Solomon of Uriah s wife. Again, he mentions Uriah s wife (2 Kings, or 2 Samuel, 11:2-27, 12:24) to show that no one should be ashamed of his forefathers but rather should strive by his own virtue to make even them illustrious. He also mentions Uriah s wife to show that all are acceptable to God, even those born of adultery, if only they have virtue. Matthew 1:7-11. And Solomon begat Rehoboum; and Rehoboam begat Abia; and Abia begat Asa; and Asa begat Jehoshaphat; and Jehoshaphat begat Joratn; and Joram begat Ahaziah; and Ahaziah begat Jotham; and Jotham begat Ahaz; and Ahaz begat Hezekiah; and Hezekiah begat Manasseh; and

11 Manasseh begat Amon; and Amon begat Josiah; and Josiah begat Jeconinh and his brethren, about the time of the deportation to Babylon. The deportation to Babylon means the captivity which they later endured when they were all led away into Babylon. For the Babylonians campaigned against them on another occasion, causing less affliction. But on this occasion, the Babylonians carried them all away from their homeland. Matthew 1: After the deportation to Babylon, Jeconiah begat Salaltiel; and Salaltiel begat Zerubbabel; and Zerubbabel begat Abiud; and Abiud begat Eliakim; and Eliakim begat Azar; and Azar begat Sadok; and Sadok begat Achim; and Achim begat Eliud; and Eliud begat Eleazar; and Eleazar begat Matthan; and Matthan begat Jacob; and Jacob begat Joseph the husband of Mary, of whom was born Jesus, Who is called Christ. Why does he give the genealogy of Joseph and not of Mary, the Theotokos? ( Theotokos means literally She who gave birth to God. It is a name for Mary that the Holy Church has expressly commanded its children to use (by a decree of the Third Ecumenical Council in AD 431. For the name expresses the most profound mystery of theology, and the awe and reverence in which Christians hold the Most Holy Virgin.) What participation did Joseph have in that seedless birth giving? Surely Joseph was not the true father of Jesus, so that Matthew could give Christ s genealogy through Joseph? Listen then: Joseph truly had no share in the birth of Christ; and therefore the genealogy of the Theotokos ought to have been given. But as it was not lawful to reckon ancestry through the mother, he did not give the genealogy of the Virgin. And yet, by giving the genealogy of Joseph, Matthew gave her genealogy as well. For it was the law that a woman was not to be taken as wife by a man who was of a different tribe and who was not of her father s lineage (Numbers 36:8-9). This being the law, it is obvious that Joseph s genealogy includes that of the Theotokos, for she was of the same tribe and the same lineage. If she were not, she could not have been betrothed to him. So the evangelist both kept the law which forbade the reckoning of ancestry through the mother, and at the same time provided the genealogy of the Theotokos by giving the genealogy of Joseph. He calls Joseph the husband of Mary, according to the common practice. For we are accustomed to call the man who is betrothed the husband of her who is betrothed, even before the marriage has taken place. Both in New Testament language, and to this day in Greece, the common word for husband, anir, (andra, accusative case) is simply the word for man. It is easy to see, therefore, how it was also used for betrothed, just as in informal contemporary English, her man can refer to a wide variety of relationships. Matthew1:17. So all the generations from Abraham to David are fourteen generations; and from David until the deportation to Babylon are fourteen generations; and from the deportation to Babylon unto Christ are fourteen generations. He divides the generations into three (different) conditions (of leadership), to show the Jews that although they were ruled by judges, as they were until David, and by kings, as they were until the deportation, and by priests, as they were until Christ, yet it did not benefit them at all in acquiring virtue; but they were in need of the true Judge and King and Priest, Who is Christ. For when the line of their rulers had failed, then Christ came, in accordance with the prophecy of Jacob. Genesis 49:10 reads: A ruler shall not fail from Judah, nor a prince from his loins, until there come the things stored up for him; and He is the Expectation of the Nations. When Herod the Great, a non-jew and usurper, assumed the title King of Judea, the line of Judah had indeed for the first time failed, thus heralding the coming of Christ in fulfillment of Jacob s prophecy. How can there be fourteen generations from the deportation to Babylon until Christ when only thirteen persons are mentioned? If the reckoning of ancestry through the mother could be given, we would list Mary as well, and thus complete the number. But since it cannot, how can this be resolved? Some say that he counted the deportation itself as a person; i.e. as a generation.

12 Matthew 1:18. Now the birth of Christ took place in this manner: when His mother Mary had been betrothed to Joseph. Why did God permit her to be betrothed, and thus give men any cause at all for suspicion that Joseph had come together with her? So that she would have a protector in hardships; for Joseph took care of her during the flight to Egypt and preserved her. She was betrothed for another reason: to escape the notice of the devil. For the devil had heard that the Virgin would conceive (Isaiah 7:14), and was keeping the Virgin under his surveillance. So that the deceiver might be deceived. Joseph betrothed the liver-virgin, outwardly appearing to be her spouse, but not so in actual deed. Before they came together, she was found to be with child of the Holy Spirit. Come together here means physical relations. For she had conceived before there were any physical relations. Therefore the evangelist is amazed at the extraordinary event and cries out, she was found. The amazement In the voice of the Evangelist is not so apparent in English. But in Greek the single word for she was found, eurethe, is simply another form of the verb immortalized b y Archimedes, and preserved intact in English as Eureka! meaning literally, I have found [it]! Matthew 1:19. Then Joseph her husband, being a righteous man, and not willing to make her a public example, was minded to divorce her secretly. The law decreed that the adulteress be pilloried, that is, exposed and punished publicly. How, then, was Joseph righteous since he intended to cover up her sin and thus to transgress the law? The answer is, first, that he was righteous for intending to do this very thing, He did not wish to be harsh, but in his great goodness took compassion on her, showing himself to be above the law, and already living in a manner superior to the decrees of the law. Secondly, since he himself knew that she had conceived of the Holy Spirit, he did not wish to pillory and abuse her who had conceived not by adultery but of the Holy Spirit. Behold what the evangelist says: She was found to be with child. Found by whom? By Joseph; that is, he discerned that she had conceived of the Holy Spirit. Therefore he was minded to divorce her secretly, for he no longer dared to take as a wife her who had been deemed worthy of such grace. Matthew 1:20. But while he pondered these things, behold, the angel of the Lord appeared unto him in a dream, saying. When the righteous one was uncertain, then the angel appeared in order to show him what to do. The angel appeared to him in a dream, because Joseph had great faith. With the shepherds the angel conversed openly, as they were rough country men; but the angel spoke to Joseph, who was righteous and believing, in his sleep. How could Joseph not believe, when the angel spoke to him of matters that were in his mind and that he had not revealed to anyone? For it says, while he pondered, but did not speak of, these things, the angel appeared to him. It was right that he believed the angel to be of God, for it is the attribute of God to know the things that are unspoken. Joseph son of David. The angel called him son of David to remind him that the prophets had foretold that the Christ would come from the seed of David (2 Kings (2 Samuel) 7:12-16; Psalm 88:35-37). It is as if the angel were saying to him, Do not doubt, but remember David who received the promise concerning Christ. Fear not to take unto thee. Here he shows that Joseph was afraid to keep her, lest he spurn God by harboring an adulteress. Or, in another sense, Fear not, that is, Though you fear to touch her who has conceived of the Holy Spirit, do not fear to take her unto thee, that is. to keep her within your house. For in his thoughts and deliberations he had already divorced her. Mary thy wife. This means, you perhaps think that she is an adulteress, but I say to you that she is your wife, that is, she has not been corrupted by anyone, but she is your own betrothed. For that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit. Not only is she acquitted of any unlawful union, but she has conceived in some divine and wondrous manner. Therefore you ought rather to rejoice because of this.

13 Matthew 1:21, And she shall bear a son. So that no one could ask, How can I believe you that she has conceived of the Holy Spirit? the angel speaks of the future, saying that she shall bear a son. For if I tell the truth in this matter, it is clear that what I said concerning her conception of the Holy Spirit is also true. The angel did not say, She shall bear you a son, but simply, She shall bear a son. For Mary did not bring forth for Joseph s sake, but for the whole world; nor did this grace concern him alone, but it was poured out on all. And thou shalt call His name Jesus. Thou shalt call, as though you were His father, and as the protector of the Virgin. For you must not think, Joseph, that because the conception is of the Holy Spirit that you can leave the Virgin helpless, but rather you will serve her in all things. For He shall save His people from their sins. Here he interprets the name Jesus, showing that it means Savior. The angel says that Jesus will save His people, not only the Jewish people, but also the Gentiles who are eager to believe and to become His people. From whom will He save them? Perhaps from enemies? No, but from their sins. Hence it is clear that it is God Who will be born, for it is the attribute of God alone to forgive sins. Matthew 1:22. Now all this was done, that it might be fulfilled what had been spoken by the Lord through the prophet, saying. Do not think that only now in these recent times did God resolve to do these things, but ι mm before, even from the beginning. For you know the prophets, Joseph. as the student of the law which you are. Remember what was spoken by the law. He did not say, what Isaiah had spoken, but what the Lord had spoken. For it was not man who spoke, but God, through the mouth of the prophet, and therefore the oracle is trustworthy. Matthew 1:23. Behold, the Virgin shall be with child. The Jews say that it is not written in the prophecy virgin but young woman. To which it may be answered that young woman and virgin mean the same thing in Scripture, for in Scripture young woman refers to one who is still a virgin. Furthermore, if it was not a virgin that gave birth, how would it be a sign, something extraordinary? Listen to Isaiah who says, For this reason the Lord Himself shall give you a sign, and immediately he adds, Behold, the Virgin (Isaiah 7:14). So if it were not a virgin that would give birth, it would not be a sign. The Jews, then, alter the text of Scripture in their malice, putting young woman instead of virgin. Note: the Hebrew text of Isaiah found among the Dead Sea Scrolls at Qumran in 1947 docs confirm the accuracy of the Septuagint reading of virgin. But whether the text reads young woman or virgin, it should be understood in either case that it is a virgin who will give birth so that the event may be a miraculous sign. And shall bring forth a son, and they shall call His name Emmanuel, which being interpreted Is, God with us. The Jews say, How then is it that He was not called Emmanuel but Jesus Christ? One may answer, The prophet did not say You shall call, but They shall call. That is, the events and deeds of His life will show that He is God and that He keeps company with us. For Holy Scripture gives names that are derived from the events of one s life; for example, Call his name Plunder Swiftly (Isaiah 87:3). Yet where does it record that anyone was ever called by such a name? But since error was despoiled and taken captive at the moment of the Lord s birth. Scripture gives this as His name, which He acquires from the event. Matthew 1:24. Then Joseph awoke from sleep and did as the angel of the Lord had bidden him. Behold a wakeful, vigilant soul who immediately obeyed. And took unto him his wife. The evangelist continually calls her the wife of Joseph to allay evil suspicion and to show that she was not anyone else s wife but his.

14 Matthew 1:25. And knew her not until she had brought forth. That is, he never came together with her at all. Until here does nut mean that before the birth he did not know her and afterwards he did, but that he absolutely never knew her. Scripture employs this expression. For example, the raven returned not unto the ark until the water had dried off from the earth (Genesis 8:7). But neither did it return after the water had dried off. Again, I am with you until the end of the world (Matthew 28:20). So after the end He will no longer be with the saints? But how can that be? For at that time more than ever will He be with them. So must you understand here until she brought forth to mean, neither before the birth nor after the birth did he know her. How could he have touched the Holy Virgin having once understood the ineffable birth giving? Her firstborn son. The evangelist does not call Him her firstborn son in the sense that she later gave birth to a second son, but simply that He was the first and only child that she bore. For Christ is both the firstborn by having been born first, and the only begotten, in that He had no brother. The attribute only begotten here refers to the single birth giving of the Holy Virgin, and not as in the Creed, to the relationship of God the Son to God the Father. And he called His name Jesus. And here, too, he shows Joseph s ready obedience to do everything that the angel had told him to do. The Life of Saint Theofylaktos Saint Theofylaktos (AD ) was the first Archbishop of Ochrid and an important Orthodox patristic commentator on the Bible. His name may also be written as Saint Theophylact, Ἅγιος Θεοφύλακτος, and Святый Теофилакт. The Saint was born at Euripus, in Euboea. He was ordained Deacon at Constantinople, attained a high reputation as a scholar, and became the tutor of Constantine Ducas, son of the Emperor Michael VII, for whom he wrote The Education of Princes. In AD 1078 he was sent to Bulgaria as archbishop of Achrida (modern Ochrid), one of the capital cities of the First Bulgarian Empire conquered in AD In his demanding position in a conquered territory on the outskirts of the Byzantine Empire, he conscientiously and energetically carried out his pastoral duties. Thoroughly Hellenistic by upbringing and outlook, he was nonetheless a diligent archpastor of the Bulgarian Church. He wrote to the Emperor how the constant wars between the Byzantine Empire and the Pechenegs, Magyars, and Normans had destroyed most of the food of the land and caused many people to flee to the forests from the towns. He acted also vigorously to protect his Archdiocese from the teachings of heretics, and won the respect and love of the Bulgarian people who witnessed his labors on their behalf. He is most well known for commentaries on the Gospels, the Acts of the Apostles, the Epistles of Paul, and the Minor Prophets. His commentaries are solidly founded on the patristic consensus of the Orthodox Fathers, and serve as a wonderful summary of the homilies of Saint John Chrysostom. In themselves the commentaries by Saint Theofylaktos deserve special consideration for the place they hold within exegetical literature for appropriateness, usefulness, sobriety, accuracy, and judiciousness. The Roman Catholic theologian, Saint Thomas Aquinas (AD ), included parts of Saint Theofylaktos writings in his Catena Aurea, a collection of Gospel commentaries by the Church Fathers. Saint Theofylaktos commentaries were published in Latin by both Catholic and Protestant translators in the 1520s, and were published in the original Greek in Rome in They had an important influence on the 16th-century Protestant Reformation, especially on the Novum Testamentum and Annotationes of Desiderius Erasmus. Contemporary translations of Theophylakto s commentaries are available in modern Greek, Russian, Serbian, Bulgarian, Romanian, and English, reflecting the continued wide influence of his exegetical works within the Orthodox Church. Saint Theofylaktos Archbishop of Ochrid The 20th-century Bishop of Ochrid, Saint Nikolai Velimirovic, writes, Theofylaktos commentaries on the Four Gospels and on other books of the New Testament... are the finest works of their sort after Saint John Chrysostom, and are read to this day with great benefit.