From the Rector's Desk ~

IT'S IN THE NAME(S)

In the Scriptures, it is common for the name of a person or a location to be an indicator of meaning.  This is certainly true for Jesus and the names associated with him.

Jesus is a transliteration of a Hebrew name which could be rendered Joshua; its literal meaning is "the Lord God (YHWH) delivers."  Emmanuel, another name associated with Jesus, literally means "God with us."  The title Christ is from the Greek, and the Hebrew parallel word in Hebrew is Messiah, which means "Anointed One."

So come Christmas Eve, as we sing of Jesus Christ as our Emmanuel, we are actually making a profound theological claim.  We are giving thanks to God for the gift of One whose life reveals the compassion of God, delivering us from that which would seek to destroy our spirit.  We are giving thanks to God that the One who is given for us truly lived among us at a particular time and place in history, and lives with us in spirit eternally.  And we are giving thanks that the One among us is the anointed one, that is, the sovereign above all sovereigns.

Taken together, these names call upon us to offer sincere worship and praise to God who created - and creates - us, again and again.

Merry Christmas to all!

--Stephen