After eight days had passed [since his birth], it was time to circumcise the child; and he was called Jesus, the name given by the angel before he was conceived in the womb.
Luke 2:21
The feast day of the Circumcision and Naming of Jesus is on 1 January – 8 days after his birth.
Mary (“Miriam”) bears the same name as Moses’ sister. A strong woman. She is married to Joseph. The names of the rest of the family are also strong names recollecting their early history of liberation. Jesus (Joshua = “God saves/liberates/sets free”), James (Jacob), Joseph, Simon (Simeon), Judas (Judah), (Matthew 13:55). And, yes, we know Jesus had at least two sisters. It also tells a story that we don’t know their names…
Does your family go in for royal names (George, James, Henry, William, Elizabeth, Anne)? Famous sportspeople? Jesus’ family seemed to choose early liberation names. Jesus’ family chose names from the foundational deliverance stories of their nation. You can imagine what the Roman oppressors thought of people with names like this.
When the new Joshua (Jesus) crosses the Jordan (baptism) from the far side (Jn 1:28), re-entering the Promised Land, one can imagine the texts that hit Pontius Pilate’s cellphone from the equivalent of MI5 or the SIS. The strong Miriam-Mary and her family were a group to keep an eye on.
*****
Jesus, and the followers of Jesus, are not primarily political, but this live and movement has consequences. In response to the question: “Where is God in Gaza” – there has been said: “God is under the rubble”. God is with the frightened and the refugees. God is in the operating room.
A Palestinian artist showed an installation of a Baby Jesus figurine inside an incubator in front of Bethlehem’s Church of the Nativity:
The image, at the top of this blog post, is from the Evangelical Lutheran Christmas Church in Bethlehem. Jesus has been wrapped in the traditional Palestinian keffiyeh and placed in debris and rubble.
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