On November 15th we begin the forty day period where we proclaim the miracle of God becoming man. This is the time in the Orthodox Church where our attention is drawn to the great mystery of the Incarnation of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. It is joyful Fast! We await his coming in anticipation of the great joy of His birth on Christmas Day. For our preparation the wisdom of our Church asks us to participate in a fast, with all the inconvenience and discomfort it may bring. If this is a season of such great joy, why is this the practice of Orthodox Christians around the world? Why are we asked to fast when we hear daily the hymn "Hark, the herald angels sing!" almost every place we go?
According to St. Symeon of Thessalonica, “…the Nativity Forty-day Fast represents the fast undertaken by Moses, who, having fasted for forty days and forty nights, received the Commandments of God, written on stone tablets [of the Law]. And we, fasting for forty days, will reflect upon and receive from the Virgin of the living Word - not written upon stone, but born, incarnate, and we will commune of His Divine Body.”
The Nativity Fast was established to allow us through repentance, prayer and fasting to cleanse ourselves before the Nativity of Christ, so that with clean heart, soul, and body, we might reverently meet the Son of God, Who has come into the world and so that in addition
to bringing the usual gifts and sacrifices, we might bring Him our clean hearts and a desire to follow His teachings. May God grant that we all spend the salvific days of the Nativity Fast in such a way as to be a great benefit to our souls.
1166 - The
Council of Constantinople decrees the fast as we know it now. A 40 day fast
from November 15th to December 25th.
To read more about the Nativity Icon and its meaning:
At
the bottom left is Joseph who was greatly battling doubts. The figure next to
him is supposed to be the devil who is, of course, not making it any easier on
him. We may sing “What Child is This?” but Joseph’s question was “Whose
child is this?!” since he knew he was certainly not the father. Mary is facing
Joseph and Jesus. She is concerned about him and interceding for him.
Jesus lies next to Mary wrapped in grave clothes foreshadowing his coming
death. Joseph also has a halo, indicating he is a saint of the Orthodox
Church. He wrestled with doubt even after God incarnate had physically
come into his life. It makes me wonder if the shepherds appeared after
Jesus’ birth more for Joseph’s sake than anything else. At the bottom right
Jesus is being cleaned up by midwives to show his humanity (that he was fully
God and fully human). However The mother of God did not give birth as all the
other women did before or after her. She remained a virgin!
May we all have a Blessed Nativity Fast!
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