Wednesday, December 31, 2008

Feast of Mary, Mother of God? World Day of Peace? How About the Feast of the Circumcision?

Many centuries before today's Holy Day of Obligation was established as the Feast of Mary, Mother of God, it was known as the Feast of the Circumcision. Here's why: Jesus was Jewish.

According to Torah law, Jewish boys must be circumcised eight days after birth as a sign of the enduring covenant God made with his Chosen People (Genesis 17:10-14).

That's right, my dear sisters and brothers in the Lord, Jesus had a bris. I want to encourage you to remember and celebrate this event. Doing so cannot help but strengthen awareness of your Jewish heritage. It also provides a great excuse to have lox, sable, whitefish, bagels, and cream cheese for blunch -- if you need an excuse.

As you might imagine, I'm working on shtick about why the name of this feast might have been changed. It seemed to be working just fine from the 6th to the 20th century.