Remembering the Mother of God: St. Cyril on the Theotokos and the Incarnation

December 28, 2009 Length: 11:52

In this season of Christ’s incarnate coming in the flesh, we take a moment to reflect, through the words of St. Cyril of Alexandria, on the role of the Virgin Theotokos in the nativity of the true God, Jesus Christ.Direct link Play in Popup Download

Blessed be Mary, the Mother of God.

The Theotokos is also a Christian par Excellence, being "all faith and all grace."

She's a model for what should be happening in all of us "God-bearers"

See...
Orans
Panagia

From Panagia...

Panagia is also the term for a particular type of icon of the Theotokos, wherein she is facing the viewer directly, usually depicted full length with her hands in the orans position, and with a medallion showing the image of Christ as a child in front of her chest. This medallion symbolically represents Jesus within the womb of the Virgin Mary at the moment of the Incarnation.

Thought:
Isn't this what happens when the believer, by faith through Grace, opens up themselves to the Father to send his overshadowing Spirit to bear the Presence of Christ within their very selves as "living sacrifices" and "temples of the Holy Spirit"?  I know that this is what EOs think about Christ's Presence at the Eucharist.  From Ware's "The Orthodox Way", pages 35-37...

Incarnation.

At the annunciation, the Father sends the Holy Spirit upon the Blessed Virgin Mary, and she conceives the eternal Son of God (Luke 1:35).  So God's taking of our humanity is a Trinitarian work.  The Spirit is sent down from the Father, to effect the Son's presence within the womb of the Virgin.  The Incarnation, it should be added, is not only the work of the Trinity, but also the work of Mary's free will.  God waited for her voluntary consent, expressed in the words, "Behold, the handmaid of the Lord: be it unto me according to thy word" (Luke 1:38); and had this consent been withheld, Mary would not have become God's Mother.  Divine grace does not destroy human freedom but reaffirms it. 

...

The Eucharistic Epiclesis. 
The same Triadic pattern as is evident at the Annunciation, the Baptism, and the Transfiguration, is apparent likewise at the culminating moment of the Eucharist, the epiclesis or invocation of the Holy Spirit.  In words addressed to the Father, the celebrant priest says in the Liturgy of St. John Chrysostom:

We offer to thee this spiritual worship without shedding of blood,
and we pray and beseech and implore thee:
Send down thy Holy Spirit upon us and upon these gifts here set forth;
And make this bread the precious Body of thy Christ,
And what is in this cup the precious Blood of Christ,
Transforming them by Holy Spirit.

As at the Annunciation, so in the extension of Christ's incarnation at the Eucharist, the Father sends down the Holy Spirit, to effect the Son's Presence in the consecrated gifts.  Here, as always, the three Persons of the Trinity are working together.

Post Edited (One Love) : 12/30/2009 8:09:27 AM (GMT-6)

Posted By : One Love - 10/23/2007 7:15 PM

Ok. Giving an update...interesting stuff... I had a very, very pleasant phone conversation with Father Jonathon Proctor from Holy Trinity Orthodox Church nearby. He seemed to be a very encouaging, gracious guy who really knew his stuff (obviously). I hope to meet him in person sometime soon. Anyway...long story short...I asked him my question concerning epiklesis. Basically, I just asked him: Given what we know about theosis, the Theotokos, and epiklesis, and all that, isn't it possible that the "living sacrifices" (meaning the believers themselves) can be mystically transformed into Christ's Real Presence by the power of the Spirit...just like the bread and the wine? I told him that I wasn't merely trying to say that the bread and the wine were some form of "middle man". Not at all. What I was trying to address was the incarnational power of the epicletic encounter with God (like what happened with the Theotokos!). It just seemed to me that if we were indeed to be "living sacrifices" and "gifts" to be giving sacrificially to God everyday...that we could have the Spirit of Christ "change" our members into His.  Epicletic living. What he said was pretty interesting. He said that what I proposed was "directly in line" with the saints, the prophets, the Fathers, and the Tradition...but for pastoral reasons, that may not be the most effective thing to talk about. As I understand him, he said that there would be some dissonance between the reality of whole thing and the continuing struggle of the Christian life that may make things to prone to misunderstanding or abuse.  But, yes, epicletic living is a potential Christian reality. He said I was quite the informed and intuitive Christian. But guess what... He also just politely, nicely let me know... If I go to Divine Liturgy... I could watch everything.. but I can't partake in the "Real Presence" of Christ in the Eucharist there... ...because I'm not an Orthodox Church participant. Of course, I understand...but dang... Hmmm... Like I said... Interesting.

Posted By : One Love - 10/24/2007 6:55 AM

POW: You may not partkcipate because you are not a prepared Orthodox Christian -- two things. Roman Catholics, even if prepared, may not participate due to their part of the church not being in full communion with the Orthodox. Were you to be chrismated Orthodox you could participate. I'm not telling you anything you don't know -- I know. But I'm just directing our attention to the fact that you can't participate WITH THEM AND THEY WITH YOU (com-munion). Its not just a "limitation on you" but on them also -- an honest and necessary one. I understand all that. That's what I told him too. I know that it's nothing personal. I just think it's funny that, from Fr. Proctor's perspective, I had an especially good grasp about what the Divine Litugy was all about and the incredible reality that it represents...but, as I see it, none of that ultimately matters. I can't participate because of my non-chrismatic state. It's just funny to me. Remember the radio show with Fr. Hopko that you posted, B? He was quite open about the Church's stance where a person being baptized did NOT automatically mean that they would not experience hellish "tollbooth" experience...while it was also possible for unbaptized, unchrismated people to be saved by God. In other words, lack of chrismation or baptism doesn't exclude one from having God's Spirit working in their members into salvation-unto-theosis. He seemed very clear on that. Well, if that's truly the case...AND if it IS possible that the self-offering faith of the faithful can indeed lead to "epicletic living" without formal presentation and participation in the bread and wine "elements" (this was my understanding from Fr. Proctor) ...it seems a bit confusing that I can supposedly experience the deep reality of this form of life in community with OTHER non-Orthodox saints of God, but not with the Orthodox themselves...based on me not being baptized into the Orthodox formally. I can participate in the reality...just not WITH them. Just interesting.

Posted By : Tom - 10/28/2007 7:05 AM

B: But I'm just directing our attention to the fact that you can't participate WITH THEM AND THEY WITH YOU (com-munion). Its not just a "limitation on you" but on them also -- an honest and necessary one. E: I understand all that. That's what I told him too. I know that it's nothing personal. I just think it's funny that…, from Fr. Proctor's perspective, I had an especially good grasp about what the Divine Litugy was all about and the incredible reality that it represents...but, as I see it, none of that ultimately matters. I can't participate because of my non-chrismatic state. It's just funny to me. Tom: Not 'funny' but perhaps 'tragic'. E: I can participate in the reality...just not WITH them. Just interesting. Tom: ...and tragic. E: The idea of REALLY having Christ live his hypostatically-unified life in you in mind (Mind of Christ), body (Body and Blood of Christ), and spirit (Holy Spirit of Christ) through a being a "walking epiclesis" or "living sacrifice" is too deep for words. Wouldn't this change...like...everything about how American Evangelical Christianity views it's ecclesiology? Tom: How it ‘views’ ecclesiology, sure, but more importantly how it ‘actually relates’ to others (which I'm sure is what you had in mind anyhow); like whether or not we create requirementes another brother in Christ has to meet (in addition to just BEING a brother in Christ) before we'd share the Lord's table with him. And in this important sense perhaps a deep apprehension of what you're describing would change the EO as well as American Evangelical Xty. I’m not bashing the EO, B, just INCLUDING them with the rest of believers around the world who need reform and change. ----------- I’m still alive! Sorry I can join in more. Peace out, Tom

Post Edited (One Love) : 12/30/2009 8:24:40 AM (GMT-6)

Post Edited (Tom) : 12/30/2009 8:49:07 AM (GMT-6)

Post Edited (One Love) : 12/30/2009 8:53:13 AM (GMT-6)

Post Edited (One Love) : 12/30/2009 9:08:51 AM (GMT-6)

Bruce?

Post Edited (Tom) : 12/30/2009 12:04:11 PM (GMT-6)

Tom:
I guess I'm standing on a different "side" of this. I've been in Orthodox services in the Middle East and talked to a LOT of Arabs who feel very 'left out' by it. They ended up bailing. Not judging their experience either way; just relaying it. It CAN become rote traditions and a ministry of death (as can Protestant or even Pentecostal services can be). I guess that's why I can't look at "form" (any form I guess) and get all that excited.

I hear ya.  How do you feel about the grounding reality of the Eucharistic experience though?  I think THAT is the "function" within the "form" that is crucial.

Post Edited (One Love) : 12/30/2009 12:15:24 PM (GMT-6)

Was it Clement who refered to the CHURCH as the "Mother of God" since in HER little children of God are BORN?

Behr's book on Mystery of Christ has a section on thar, Tom.