Christmas 2017 is almost here. So here is a riddle. How many birthdays does Jesus have? As Orthodox Christians we stand on solid bedrock when affirming the paradox that Christ has two natures, human and divine, united unconfusedly in one person. Nevertheless, the first birthday of the “only begotten Son of God, eternally begotten before all ages … [Read more...]
The mother of Jesus and the beloved disciple have no names…
Consider what it means that unlike the Synoptic Gospel authors, Matthew, Mark and Luke, the fourth evangelist never mentions Jesus’ mother by name. Not only does he omit any reference to the birth narratives included by Luke and Matthew, replacing them with the soaring theological prologue, but he includes two events, unique to his Gospel, as … [Read more...]