The Feast of the Circumcision of Christ is a Christian celebration of the

circumcision of Jesus The circumcision of Jesus is an event from the life of Jesus, according to the Gospel of Luke chapter 2, which states: And when eight days were fulfilled to circumcise the child, his name was called Jesus, the name called by the angel before ...

in accordance with

Jewish tradition Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites"" ...

, eight days (according to the Semitic and southern European calculation of intervals of days) after his

birth Birth is the act or process of bearing or bringing forth offspring, also referred to in technical contexts as parturition. In mammals, the process is initiated by hormones which cause the muscular walls of the uterus to contract, expelling the f ...

, the occasion on which the child was formally given his name.Catholic Encyclopedia: ''Feast of the Circumcision''
/ref> The circumcision of Jesus has traditionally been seen, as in the popular 14th-century work the ''

Golden Legend The ''Golden Legend'' (Latin: ''Legenda aurea'' or ''Legenda sanctorum'') is a collection of hagiographies by Jacobus de Voragine that was widely read in late medieval Europe. More than a thousand manuscripts of the text have survived.Hilary ...

'', as the first time the

blood of Christ Blood of Christ, also known as the Most Precious Blood of Our Lord Jesus Christ, in Christian theology refers to (a) the physical blood actually shed by Jesus Christ primarily on the Cross, and the salvation which Christianity teaches was accomp ...

was shed, and thus the beginning of the process of the redemption of man, and a demonstration that Christ was fully human, and of his obedience to

Biblical law Biblical law refers to the legal aspects of the Bible, the holy scriptures of Judaism and Christianity. Judaism * Law of Moses * Mitzvah, divine commandment ** The Ten Commandments ** 613 commandments * Seven Laws of Noah, laws applicable to all of ...

. The feast day appears on 1 January in the

liturgical calendar The liturgical year, also called the church year, Christian year or kalendar, consists of the cycle of liturgical seasons in Christian churches that determines when feast days, including celebrations of saints, are to be observed, and whi ...

of the

Eastern Orthodox Eastern Orthodoxy, also known as Eastern Orthodox Christianity, is one of the three main branches of Chalcedonian Christianity, alongside Catholicism and Protestantism. Like the Pentarchy of the first millennium, the mainstream (or " canonical ...

churches, all

Lutheran Lutheranism is one of the largest branches of Protestantism, identifying primarily with the theology of Martin Luther, the 16th-century German monk and Protestant Reformers, reformer whose efforts to reform the theology and practice of the Cathol ...

churches, and some churches of the

Anglican Communion The Anglican Communion is the third largest Christian communion after the Roman Catholic and Eastern Orthodox churches. Founded in 1867 in London, the communion has more than 85 million members within the Church of England and other ...

, though it is observed on 26 December in

Byzantine Catholic The term Greek Catholic Church can refer to a number of Eastern Catholic Churches following the Byzantine (Greek) liturgy, considered collectively or individually. The terms Greek Catholic, Greek Catholic church or Byzantine Catholic, Byzantine Ca ...

churches. In the

General Roman Calendar The General Roman Calendar is the liturgical calendar that indicates the dates of celebrations of saints and mysteries of the Lord (Jesus Christ) in the Roman Rite of the Catholic Church, wherever this liturgical rite is in use. These cele ...

, the 1 January feast, which from 1568 to 1960 was called "The Circumcision of the Lord and the Octave of the Nativity", is now named the

Solemnity of Mary, Mother of God The Solemnity of Mary, the Holy Mother of God is a feast day of the Blessed Virgin Mary under the aspect of her motherhood of Jesus Christ, whom she had circumcised on the eighth day after his birth according to Levitical Law. Christians see him ...

, and the Octave Day of the Nativity of the Lord. In

Western Christian Western Christianity is one of two sub-divisions of Christianity (Eastern Christianity being the other). Western Christianity is composed of the Latin Church and Western Protestantism, together with their offshoots such as the Old Catholic ...

denominations, the Feast of the Naming and Circumcision of Jesus Christ marks the eighth day (octave day) of

Christmastide Christmastide is a season of the liturgical year in most Christian churches. In some, Christmastide is identical to Twelvetide. For the Catholic Church, Lutheran Church, Anglican Church and Methodist Church, Christmastide begins on 24 December ...

Textual sources

And when eight days were fulfilled to circumcise the child, his name was called Jesus, the name called by the angel before he was conceived in the womb.

Eastern Orthodox churches

The feast is celebrated with an

All-Night Vigil The All-night vigil is a service of the Eastern Orthodox and Byzantine Catholic churches consisting of an aggregation of the canonical hours of Compline (in Greek usage only), Vespers (or, on a few occasions, Great Compline), Matins, and the F ...

, beginning the evening of December 31. The hymns of the feast are combined with those for Saint

Basil the Great Basil of Caesarea, also called Saint Basil the Great ( grc, Ἅγιος Βασίλειος ὁ Μέγας, ''Hágios Basíleios ho Mégas''; cop, Ⲡⲓⲁⲅⲓⲟⲥ Ⲃⲁⲥⲓⲗⲓⲟⲥ; 330 – January 1 or 2, 379), was a bishop of Cae ...

. After the

Divine Liturgy Divine Liturgy ( grc-gre, Θεία Λειτουργία, Theia Leitourgia) or Holy Liturgy is the Eucharistic service of the Byzantine Rite, developed from the Antiochene Rite of Christian liturgy which is that of the Ecumenical Patriarchate of ...

the next morning, Russian churches often celebrate a New Year

Molieben A Paraklesis ( el, Παράκλησις, Slavonic: молебенъ) or Supplicatory Canon in the Byzantine Rite, is a service of supplication for the welfare of the living. It is addressed to a specific Saint or to the Most Holy Theotokos wh ...

(service of intercession) to pray for God's blessing for the beginning of the civil

New Year New Year is the time or day currently at which a new calendar year begins and the calendar's year count increments by one. Many cultures celebrate the event in some manner. In the Gregorian calendar, the most widely used calendar system to ...

(Byzantine Christians commemorate the

Indiction An indiction ( la, indictio, impost) was a periodic reassessment of taxation in the Roman Empire which took place every fifteen years. In Late Antiquity, this 15-year cycle began to be used to date documents and it continued to be used for this p ...

, or Ecclesiastical New Year, on September 1). On the

Julian calendar The Julian calendar, proposed by Roman consul Julius Caesar in 46 BC, was a reform of the Roman calendar. It took effect on , by edict. It was designed with the aid of Greek mathematicians and astronomers such as Sosigenes of Alexandr ...

, 1 January will correspond, until 2100, to 14 January on the

Gregorian Calendar The Gregorian calendar is the calendar used in most parts of the world. It was introduced in October 1582 by Pope Gregory XIII as a modification of, and replacement for, the Julian calendar. The principal change was to space leap years dif ...

. Accordingly, in

Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and Northern Asia. It is the largest country in the world, with its internationally recognised territory covering , and encompassing one-eig ...

, 14 January in the civil calendar is known as "The

Old New Year The Old New Year or the Orthodox New Year is an informal traditional holiday, celebrated as the start of the New Year by the Julian calendar. In the 20th and 21st centuries, the Old New Year falls on January 14 in the Gregorian calendar. This tra ...

", since it corresponds to 1 January in the Julian Calendar, still used by the Church. The Circumcision, by Luca Signorelli

Latin Catholic Church

At an early stage the Church in Rome celebrated on 1 January a feast that it called the anniversary (''Natale'') of the

Mother of God ''Theotokos'' (Greek: ) is a title of Mary, mother of Jesus, used especially in Eastern Christianity. The usual Latin translations are ''Dei Genitrix'' or ''Deipara'' (approximately "parent (fem.) of God"). Familiar English translations ar ...

. When this was overshadowed by the feasts of the Annunciation and the

Assumption Assumption, in Christianity, refers to the Assumption of Mary, a belief in the taking up of the Virgin Mary into heaven. Assumption may also refer to: Places * Assumption, Alberta, Canada * Assumption, Illinois, United States ** Assumption Tow ...

, adopted from Constantinople at the start of the 7th century, 1 January began to be celebrated simply as the octave day of Christmas, the "eighth day" on which, according to , the child was circumcised and given the name Jesus. In the 13th or 14th century 1 January began to be celebrated in Rome, as already in Spain and Gaul, as the feast of the Circumcision of the Lord and the Octave of the Nativity, while still oriented towards Mary and Christmas.Adolf Adam, ''The Liturgical Year''
(Liturgical Press 1990 ), pp. 139–140 The emphasis that Saint

Bernardine of Siena Bernardino of Siena, OFM (8 September 138020 May 1444), also known as Bernardine, was an Italian priest and Franciscan missionary preacher in Italy. He was a systematizer of Scholastic economics. His preaching, his book burnings, and his " bon ...

(1380–1444) laid on the name of Jesus in his preaching led in 1721 to the institution of a separate

Feast of the Holy Name of Jesus The Feast of the Holy Name of Jesus is a feast of the liturgical year celebrated by Christians on varying dates.''New Book of Festivals and Commemorations'' by Philip H. Pfatteicher 2008 pages3-5 History The feast of the Holy Name of Jesus h ...

Pope John XXIII Pope John XXIII ( la, Ioannes XXIII; it, Giovanni XXIII; born Angelo Giuseppe Roncalli, ; 25 November 18813 June 1963) was head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 28 October 1958 until his death in June 19 ...

's 1960 rubrical and calendrical revision called 1 January simply the Octave of the Nativity. (This 1960 calendar was incorporated into the 1962

Roman Missal The Roman Missal ( la, Missale Romanum) is the title of several missals used in the celebration of the Roman Rite. Along with other liturgical books of the Roman Rite, the Roman Missal contains the texts and rubrics for the celebration of th ...

, whose continued use is authorized by the motu proprio '' Summorum Pontificum''.) The 1969 revision states: "1 January, the Octave Day of the Nativity of the Lord, is the Solemnity of Mary, the Holy Mother of God, and also the commemoration of the conferral of the Most Holy Name of Jesus." However, this does not apply to Masses using the 1962 Missal, where it remains a

Holy Day of Obligation In the Catholic Church, holy days of obligation are days on which the faithful are expected to attend Mass, and engage in rest from work and recreation (id est, they are to refrain from engaging in work or activities that hinder the worship owed t ...

Lutheran Church

As the Circumcision of Our Lord is a feast of Christ and related directly to the life of Christ as recounted in Holy Scripture (notably Luke 2:21), it is celebrated by Lutheran churches. It remains on Lutheran liturgical calendars to this day, although some Lutherans now use the title "The Circumcision and the Name of Jesus" or simply "The Name of Jesus."As in ''

Lutheran Book of Worship The ''Lutheran Book of Worship'' (''LBW'') is a worship book and hymnal used by several Lutheran denominations in North America. Additional hymns and service music are contained in the companions, ''Hymnal Supplement 1991'' and ''With One Vo ...

'', page 10. Copyright 1978, Augsburg Fortress., Martin Luther preached at least one notable sermon on this feast day which is still available in his Church Postils, and most Lutheran hymnals prior to the 1978 Lutheran Book of Worship contained several hymns for the occasion.

Anglican Communion

The

's ''

Book of Common Prayer The ''Book of Common Prayer'' (BCP) is the name given to a number of related prayer books used in the Anglican Communion and by other Christian churches historically related to Anglicanism. The original book, published in 1549 in the reign ...

'' liturgy celebrates this day as the Circumcision of Christ. Since 2000, the '' Common Worship'' of the

Church of England The Church of England (C of E) is the established Christian church in England and the mother church of the international Anglican Communion. It traces its history to the Christian church recorded as existing in the Roman province of Britai ...

has listed this day as "The Naming and Circumcision of Jesus." The ''Book of Common Prayer'' of the Anglican Church of Canada calls it "The Octave Day of Christmas, and the Circumcision of Our Lord, being New Year's Day". The 1979 Book of Common Prayer of the

Episcopal Church (United States) The Episcopal Church, based in the United States with additional dioceses elsewhere, is a member church of the worldwide Anglican Communion. It is a mainline Protestant denomination and is divided into nine provinces. The presiding bishop ...

names this day "The Holy Name of Our Lord Jesus Christ", a Feast of the Lord. A Prayer Book for Australia (1995) of the Anglican Church of Australia calls it "The Naming and Circumcision of Jesus".

References

External links

Russia Orthodox explanation of The Circumcision (''"Obrezanie"'') of the Lord

An essay on the feast of the circumcision
from

Anglicans Online Anglicanism is a Western Christianity, Western Christian tradition that has developed from the practices, liturgy, and identity of the Church of England following the English Reformation, in the context of the Protestant Reformation in Euro ...

{{Liturgical year of the Catholic Church Eastern Orthodox liturgical days Christmastide January observances Circumcision Nativity of Jesus Christ Child Life of Jesus in the New Testament New Year's Day