Church Chat: "Messiah"

The Catholic faith began in an Aramaic-speaking part of a Greek-speaking area of a Latin-speaking empire. This has created perhaps the greatest legacy of linguistic mash-ups this side of the Norman invasion of the British Isles (wherein the French-speaking Normans ran into, or rather over, the Germanic-speaking Anglo-Saxons and bequeathed to us English-speakers a language in which we raise cattle but eat beef). 

Since I’m a word nerd, and since I thought others might find it useful, I’ve put together a short list of words commonly used in our religion, in theology, liturgy, etc., and provided their original meanings in their original language. If there are others you’d like to know, please ask!

Today's entry is the word messiah. The Hebrew/Aramaic word massiach means "anointed one." Anointing with oil had very practical roots in that part of the ancient world: in such a dry climate, keeping your skin moist was important for health and hygiene; so, when you had a guest in your home, you would anoint them with oil, to show care and concern for them, just as you might give someone a drink of water. Jesus refers to this practice in Luke 7:46. Extending that principle, anointing with oil became a way to show someone honor, whether it was a guest in your honor or a holder of some high office. 

We see this in the Old Testament, as kings (1 Samuel 16:13), and occasionally prophets (1 Kings 19:16) and priests (Exodus 28:41), were anointed upon the reception of their office. When God chose someone to perform a task for Him, that person was set apart and sealed with oil, as with Aaron the high priest, David the king, and Elisha the prophet. 

Who is the only person in the Old Testament referred to as “God’s anointed one”? David? Moses? Aaron? Nope. That would be Cyrus, king of Persia. In the book of Isaiah, Cyrus is called the anointed because it was through his conquering of the Babylonians that the Israelites were freed from their captivity there and allowed to return to their land and rebuild the temple. Cyrus brought about God's purpose (even though he didn't know he was doing so), and thus was God's chosen one, his anointed one, for this task. Jesus, who frees us from our sins and who himself is the fulfillment of the temple, is the one who has fulfilled God’s ultimate purpose, and is so most truly called Messiah. He is the Messiah. 

The Greek word for "anointed one" is christos. (You might recognize the same root in the word "chrism," the sacred oil used in several sacraments.) Thus, when St. Peter says in Matthew 16, "You are the Christ," he is calling Jesus God's anointed one, God's Messiah. This is why we call Jesus "Christ." As St. Cyril of Jerusalem tells us, "For Christ was not anointed by men with oil or material ointment, but the Father having before appointed Him to be the Saviour of the whole world, anointed Him with the Holy Ghost." (Catechetical Lecture 21.2)