THE CAMBRIAN PESHER
THE VOICE OF THE DESPOSYNI TO THE AMERICAN DISPERSION
Day of the Holy Innocents (December 28, 2000 vulgaris)
And the WORD was made flesh, and dwelt among us, and we beheld his glory. . .
- St. John 1:14
Beloved:
The Christmas Season is the only Christian feast which is dedicated to celebrating the Divine Incarnation, the time when God became a man in the person of Jesus Christ. All other feasts honor His life and ministry - and fulfill Old Testament types - but Christmas stands alone as a feast which remembers how it was that "the WORD was made flesh"- an expression, I might add, beloved by the Celtic saints.
The Divine Incarnation is an important doctrine. If Jesus were a mere man, His Atonement would not have been efficacious for the sins of the world. If He were a phantom and not flesh, as some Gnostics say, He would not have been qualified to represent the world before the Throne of God. The most complete and qualified mediator is one who shares the natures of both parties he seeks to bring together (see the Epistle to the Hebrews).
The doctrine of the Incarnation was a Desposynic doctrine. James, perhaps the earliest New Testament document, refers to Jesus as the "the Lord of glory" and "the LORD of hosts" (2:1 & 5:4), both titles ascribed only to Yahweh in the Old Testament. Jude, the brother of James, refers to Him as "God our Savior"(v. 25) and "the Lord" who comes "with ten thousands of his saints" (cf. Daniel 7:10; Zechariah 14:5; 2 Thessalonians 1:7; Revelation 1:7). John, who was among the first to receive the true gnosis along with James the Just and Peter (as says Clement, Ante-Nicene Fathers, vol 4, p. 416), declared with greater finality:
Hereby know ye the Spirit of God: Every spirit that confesseth that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is of God:
And every spirit that confesseth not that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is not of God: and this is the spirit of antichrist . . .
4:2-3
Here, John rebukes the early Gnostics (the proto-Docetists, in particular), who denied our Lord's fleshly existence (1:1) but he also declares that Jesus was pre-incarnate as Yahweh of the Old Testament: for the name "Jesus" is in the Hebrew tongue "Yeshua", or "Yahweh our Savior", which is to say "Yahweh has come in the flesh to be our Savior".
The Adoptionists believe that the Incarnation occurred at our Lord's baptism by John in the Jordan River. We have mentioned this teaching before.[1] Why do they wish to believe it this way?
First, their view of the Messiah is Jewish. The Jews saw the Messiah as a glorified man, a man who received the attributes of deity through powers imparted by the Spirit of God and who existed on a scale similar to the angels - the sons of God - but was still a mere man who shared no equality with God.
We find the influence of this view among the disciples prior to our Lord's resurrection, even among the Desposyni (John 7:5). However, that view faded away after the Ascension and we see evidence of that in Peter's first sermon (Acts 2:34), where he quotes Psalm 110:1, the very same text which Jesus used to confound His detractors in Matthew 22:44 with the suggestion that the true Messiah could only be God of very God.
Second, Adoptionists want to avoid the superstitions of the pagans, whose fertility religions were replete with stories of commerce - including sexual commerce - between men and the gods and goddesses of the heavens (or extra-terrestrials as some would have it). To them, the story of the Virgin Birth of Jesus is a heretical retelling of any number of the ancient stories of the heathen. This issue is a little more complex and requires that I offer a detailed explanation.
The Pagan Christ?
It is true that the ancient world before Christ did teach similar doctrines: the idea that a god comes down to be born of a virgin, to be sacrificed, and to rise again to repeat the cycle in future ages. Very often, this god has commerce with an incarnate goddess, or perhaps a human consort in a hieros gamous (sacred marriage).[2] Sceptics have taken these legends as proof that Christianity was a clumsy Hellenistic imitation, with no real originality and no new message to mankind. It was argued in the 19th Century, and still argued, that many pagan religions have had Christ-figures and that Jesus Christ was just a literary composite of such figures to fit the need of Constantine's Rome. Indeed, some have gone so far as to claim that the name "Jesus" (from the Greek "Yay-soos") is a compound of two names "Yahweh" and "Zeus" - thus, producing a Hellenized Judaism - and that "Christ" is a corruption of the Hindu "Krishna". In other words, classical Christianity is regarded as a political invention to meet the need of Rome for a unifying imperial religion.
There is some truth to this, although not as extensive as the sceptics claim. A case can be made that many of these pagan legends were simply updated versions reflecting the influence - and competition - of Christianity in the pagan world (forcefully argued by Justin Martyr: "Dialogue with Trypho" Ante-Nicene Fathers, vol. 1, p. 233-235. Note: Justin also points out that the Messianic prophecies are more clearly defined in the Septuagint[3], especially those pertaining to the Virgin Birth and charges that the Jews altered and even deleted key Masoretic texts to disprove the Christians).
This plagiarism of Christianity was certainly true of the Mithras cult (Justin, p. 233). But it was also true that the ancient world expected the appearance of Jesus Christ and that their ancient legends really represented allegorical prophecies of the coming Savior. That explains the visit of the Magi at Christ's birth, who were pagans. And it explains why the Gospel was so readily received by the Druids (e.g. The Holy Conspiracy).
The Biblical doctrines of a Six-Day Creation and the Universal Flood also disprove this syncretistic thesis. Considering that these doctrines teach only one origin for the races of mankind, it would follow that all spiritual knowledge would have been derived from the Antedeluvian fathers such as Adam, Enoch, and Noah. We would expect that pagan religions would be preserving many of these same religious themes which they were taught by the patriarchs, although certainly distorted over time. Thus, pagan religions taught proto-Christian doctrines.
Ancient astrology is a good example. When understood correctly, it taught the world the plan of salvation. Lacking a written text, mankind found the Gospel foretold in the stars (see a very readable booklet by Dr. D. James Kennedy of Coral Ridge Presbyterian Church, Fort Lauderdale, Florida, entitled "The Gospel in the Stars" or other sundry books written by E. Raymond Capt available from Hoffman Publishing House.) Paul claimed a pre-Christian evangelism of the world (Romans 10:18 cf. Psalm 19:4): meaning, the Hebrew prophets expected that the pagan Gentiles would be more spiritually and theologically ready for the Savior than would be the Jews (Romans 10:19-21).
It is disingenuous to say that the name "Jesus" represents a fictional historical figure as a synthesis between Hellenism and Judaism. To repeat what was said above, the Hebrew form of the name Jesus is Yeshua or Joshua, which means "Yahweh our Savior". When the Scriptures were translated into Greek, Jesus was translated as Yay-soos because "soos" or "zeus" means "savior" in that language. It was not an appellation to a pagan deity, nor was it meant to represent Christ as the Zeus of the Greek pantheon - no more so than did the Old Testament Joshua, which is also translated as "Jesus" in the Septuagint. Rather, it was a simple translation reflecting the etymological meaning of the word. The historical Jesus is chronicled in the Gospels and His pre-incarnate activity as Yahweh is revealed in the Old Testament Scriptures. There is no confusion or compromise here with paganism as the Adoptionists claim.
Evidence for the Virgin Birth
It is on the matter of the Virign Birth as proof of the Incarnation that the holy women become important. Only two people could have given authentic witness to our Lord's conception and birth: Mary and her midwife. The birth stories are found in Matthew and Luke. In Matthew, Mary's claim is vindicated in Joseph's dream. In Luke, we have the story of Elizabeth's prophetic utterance. But in each case, we have no empirical proof, which is why Tradition is important on this point. Luke tells us that his account was based upon the word of eye-witnesses (1:2). His sources for the Birth Story could have only been the Virgin and Salome.
Early Christian histories identify Salome as the Virgin's midwife. In this case, she alone would have performed the physical examination necessary to confirm Mary's virginity, which was precisely what occurred.2 Yet, it required the additional testimony of our Lord concerning His own pre-existence to establish the doctrine in early Christian teaching. His pre-existence as Yahweh and His virginal conception is the central doctrine of the gnosis which Jesus taught the three disciples (James the Just, Peter, and John) after His resurrection and which we find presented repeatedly in the mystical Gospel - the Gospel of John (chapters 1, 3, 6 and so on).
While sceptics refuse to believe this doctrine - and it does require faith as do any of the other doctrines of Christianity - they cannot explain how it is any less miraculous for a man to be divinized at any other stage of life. Irenaeus tells us that public justice required the Savior to participate in every stage of human existence: conception, birth, childhood, maturity, and death. If there is a need of a Savior at all, then there is a need of a Savior for all. "For in many things we offend all" (James 3:2). "There is none righteous, no not one" (Romans 3:10, cf. Psalm 14:1-3; 53:1). And that leads us to the occasion for today's remembrance.
A Savior for the Innocent
Today is the Day of the Innocents, the day we remember the slain babies of Bethlehem and all little ones who have suffered from cruel hands. As you recall, when King Herod found himself bested by the Magi, he flew into a rage and set out on a desperate course to kill the infant Jesus. Failing to identify who the child was, he engaged in a state-sponsored massacre of all males under two years. While the Biblical narrative does not dwell on the political ramifications of this atrocity, it did harden the resolve of Jewish patriots and led to a century-long revolt against Rome and her puppets.
On the 25th of December, the Western world celebrates this joyous coming of the Savior. And then, a few days later, we remember this massacre. What is the message we are to learn? Why had there to be such sorrow mingled with the joy of this Divine Advent?
There are many thoughts that may come to mind, but there is perhaps one central lesson: that man resists his own salvation, even to the point of horrific crimes. It is a troubling thought but true. They murdered the babies then and they murder the babies now. They murdered the Savior of the world and they continue to pursue those who proclaim His Gospel and represent His Kingdom. We find comfort in the knowledge that we are perfected in suffering (Hebrews 5:8, 9; 1 Peter 2:21) and will share in His glory (Romans 8:17), but the faithful son wonders, "is suffering the only way to holiness and dominion? How will mankind escape this prison of suffering?"
The answer is found in the esoteric doctrines of the Jerusalem Church and remains hidden in its sacraments. When the world is ready to learn the moral discipline of the five sacraments of the esoteric church, when it learns its symbolism inwardly by the Holy Spirit, then will be fulfilled the promise that says,
For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, saith the Lord: I will put my laws into their mind, and write them in their hearts: and I will be to them a God, and they shall be to me a people.
And they shall not teach every man his neighbor, and every man his brother, saying, Know the Lord: for all shall know me, from the least to the greatest.
For I will be merciful to their unrighteousness, and their sins and their iniquities will I remember no more.
- Hebrews 8:10-12 (cf. Zech. 8:8; Isaiah 54:13)
The Desposyni affirm the all-sufficiency of the Atonement of Christ. We no longer need the annual sacrifices of the pagan or the Jew. The Desposyni also affirm the all-sufficiency of the Regeneration of the Holy Spirit. The Church is being tutored in a spiritual pedagogy and when it has come to understand its own sacraments, then will come to pass the words of the carol,
For lo, the days are hast'ning on, By prophet bards foretold,
When with the ever-circling years, Comes 'round the age of gold,
When peace shall over all the earth, It's ancient splendors fling,
And the whole world give back the song, Which now the angels sing.
A servant of Jesus,
James Wesley Stivers
The Collect for the Day:
We remember this day, O God, the slaughter of the holy innocents of Bethlehem by the order of King Herod. Receive, we beseech thee, into the arms of thy mercy all innocent victims; and by thy great might frustrate the designs of evil tyrants and establish thy rule of justice, love, and peace; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who liveth and reigneth with thee, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.
- from the Book of Common Prayer