The Christ is (the) 'us' we know first-hand, even if we have never heard of Jesus...
In this sense...you know Christ when you know your true self,
the Divine Self, the Spirit of Christ within.
David Steindl-Rast
Thinking about my last Blog, and how St Francis of Assisi is a significant life-symbol for me, I am also aware that he too had a Life Symbol as he sought to follow in the footprints of Christ. We see this reflected in the prayer he often used when entering a Church. It is also included in his final testament of the instruction to his brothers, dictated on the night he died, so they may be reminded the essence of their life, vision and calling was to also follow in 'Christ's footprints':
We adore you, most holy Lord Jesus
Christ,
here, and in all your churches throughout all the
world;
and we bless you,
because by your holy cross,
you
have redeemed the world.
With that in mind, I was interested to come across an article titled, 'Jesus is not the same as Christ'. The author of the article (Chuck Queen), distinguished between the historical Jesus of Nazareth and the Christ 'to whom we are united' and in 'whom we live and have our being' (see Acts 17:28). The article suggested this 'Cosmic Christ' both preceded the historical Jesus, and is eternally present for us to experience as our authentic self. I found that food for thought for my next power-walk!
Closer to the heart of the issue is the meaning we associate with words and how the meaning changes with time. For example, our English word 'Christ' is a translation of the Greek word 'Christos' meaning 'Anointed One '. The corresponding Hebrew word is 'mashiyach', which occurs in several places in the Hebrew Scriptures. Usually, it referred to people who had been anointed with oil when given a position of authority – such as Priests, Kings and Prophets. After their anointing, they were referred to as 'mashiyach' – the Anointed Ones.
What I also found interesting, was the English translation of 'mashiyach' is 'Messiah'. The Greek translation of 'mashiyach' is 'Christos' (or 'Christ' in English). It was only later that the word 'Christ' became associated with the post-resurrection Jesus. It was never his second name.
But you might say – 'It is written in the Gospels!' – and that was because the Gospels were written after Paul's letters. By then the Jesus-followers understood that this man carried with him the anointing (Christos) of God's presence and those who also reflected this same charisma started to be called Christianoí (or 'Christians' in English. See Acts 11:26).
All that may be so. What attracts my interest, (and I referred to it in the latter part of my last Blog), this same anointing presence of God is still available to us; for us to encounter and experience and to 'live and move and have our being'. Or as Franciscan Priest, Richard Rohr,has suggested, this eternal Christ Mystery began with the beginning of time – long before humans existed – and this same Divine Presence is still present within all Creation for anyone with open eyes and heart to encounter and experience.
For me, as a Franciscan, I value St Francis and the way he mirrored the eternal Christ mystery in his life, in his calling, and in his passion to imitate the spirituality of Jesus. In doing so, he pointed a way for us to discover the vibrancy of the Christ Symbol for ourselves.
Kia mau te rongo me te pai ki a koe i to haerenga.
May you find peace and good will on your journey.
Phil
_______________________
David Steindl-Rast) Deeper Than Words: Living the Apostles' Creed, Image, 2010.
Queen, C, Jesus is not the same as Christ, https://baptistnews.com/article/jesus-is-not-the-same-as-christ/#.XwzyYBJS-00
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