The Circumcision of Jesus is an event from the life of Jesus which does not appear in any of the Gospels except that of Luke, which states in just one verse, as we had read today, that Jesus was circumcised eight days after his birth, which is why we keep this feast on the 1st January. This is in keeping with the Halakha, the Jewish law which holds that males should be circumcised eight days after birth during a Brit milah ceremony, at which they are also given their name.
The circumcision of Jesus has traditionally been seen, as explained in the popular 14th century work the ‘Golden Legend’, as the first time the blood of Christ was shed, and thus the beginning of the process of the redemption of man. Medieval and Renaissance theologians repeatedly stressed this, also drawing attention to the suffering of Jesus as a demonstration of his humanity and a foreshadowing of his Passion. It was a demonstration that Christ was fully human, and of his obedience to Biblical law. These themes were continued by Protestant theologians like Jeremy Taylor, who in a treatise of 1657 argued that the circumcision of Jesus proved his human nature while fulfilling the law of Moses.
The "Feast of the Circumcision of our Lord" is a Christian celebration of the circumcision, eight days after his birth, the occasion on which the child was also formally given his name. What of the name ‘Jesus’? It is a derivative of Yeshua, which means ‘God is salvation’. It was a very common name for pious Jews to give their sons. His name certainly did nothing to make him stand out from other Jewish boys.
The feast we are keeping was first recorded from a church council held at Tours in 567, although it was clearly already long-established.
It is worth noting that the feast of the Circumcision has now disappeared from the Roman calendar. It has been replaced on 1st January by the Solemnity of Mary, Mother of God.
Why should we give attention to the Circumcision of Christ? The most obvious answer to that was that Jesus was born under the Torah, and therefore had to fulfil the conditions of the Law. Circumcision was the sign of the Covenant between God and the people of Israel. The answer for us does, however, need to be taken further. A constant in ancient Patristic writings of the church is the idea that the Circumcision of Christ was seen as part of his work of redemption.
As a result of the sin of Adam we are all born in sin. Original sin applied to each of us here in church today. The debt incurred by this sin of Adam cannot be met by our spiritual insolvency. Since Christ's blood pays the ransom for our sin to be forgiven, his Circumcision becomes, as it were, a first instalment, a down payment on behalf of humankind. We appropriate this down payment through our Baptism.
On an individual level, it is because Christ was circumcised that the Christian no longer needs circumcision. In the words of St. Ambrose: “Since the price has been paid for all after Christ ... suffered, there is no longer need for the blood of each individual to be shed by circumcision.”
In the Epistle to the Galatians, S Paul settles the question regarding circumcision -- the rite of circumcision is not required for salvation, since “in Christ” all are justified by faith. This faith is placed in us by the indwelling Holy Spirit, given us at Baptism.
Along with his discussion of the true circumcision, S Paul explains that all who are “in Christ” are members of the true Israel of God and are counted as the true sons of Abraham. That is, in Christ, the concepts of circumcision, Israel, and the seed of Abraham take on a new, spiritual meaning.
For both Jewish and Gentile believers, the Epistle to the Romans tells us that “real circumcision is a matter of the heart—it is spiritual and not literal” (Rom. 2:29). This whole argument of the Epistle to the Galatians can best be summarized in one verse from the Epistle to the Philippians (3:3): “For it is we who are the circumcision, who worship in the Spirit of God and boast in Christ Jesus and have no confidence in the flesh.”
May God bless you as you worship the new born Babe of Bethlehem on this first day of the new year of Grace, 2012.
