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[[Image:Pantokrator of Sinai.jpg|right|frame|[[Icon]] of our Lord Jesus Christ at [[St. Catherine's Monastery (Sinai)]]]]
[[Image:ChristChora.JPG|right|thumbnail|[[Byzantine]] mural of Jesus Christ at [[Church of the Holy Saviour in the Country (Istanbul,Turkey)|Chora Church]], Istanbul]]
Our Lord, God and Savior '''Jesus Christ''' is the [[Incarnation|incarnate]] Second Person of the [[Holy Trinity]], the only begotten [[Son of God]], fully God and fully man, born in time of the [[Theotokos|Virgin Mary]] and begotten from before all time of [[God]] the Father.
== History ==
Historians agree that Jesus Christ was born <ref>The [[Nativity]] of Christ is celebrated by the Eastern Orthodox church [[December 25]] (New Calendar) and [[ January 7]] (Old Calendar).</ref> in Bethlehem to [[Theotokos|Mariam]]<ref> Mariam, the Virgin [[Theotokos]], was the daughter of [[Ioachim]] Joachim and [[Anna]], who were descendants of King [[Righteous David|David]].</ref> nine months after the [[Annunciation]]. The timing of His birth has been dated between 749 and 754 from the foundation of the city of Rome.<ref>The accepted chronology AD (Anno Domini) begins from the year 754, from the foundation of Rome.</ref>.
What is known about the events of Jesus Christ's life, miracles and conversations are documented by the four books of the [[Gospels]].<ref> The four Evangelists [[Apostle Matthew|Matthew]], [[Apostle Mark|Mark]], [[Apostle Luke|Luke]] and [[Apostle John|John]].</ref>.
The greatest events are celebrated liturgically as [[Great Feasts]] by the Orthodox church and others, such as various miracles, are also included throughout the Liturgical year:
=== Jesus Christ ===
*'''"Jesus"''' is a transliteration, occurring in a number of languages and based on the Latin ''Iesus'', of the Greek Ιησους (Iēsoûs), itself a Hellenisation of the Hebrew יהושע (Yehoshua) or Hebrew-[[Aramaic ]] ישוע (Yeshua ), (Joshua), meaning "the Lord saves".
*'''"Christ"''' is His title derived from the Greek ''Χριστος'' (Christós), meaning the "Anointed One", a translation of the Hebrew-derived ''Mashiach'' ("Messiah").<ref> A ''Messiah'' is a king anointed at God's direction or with God's approval.</ref>
=== The Word (the Logos) of God ===
The fourth [[Gospel of John]]<ref>Written by Saint [[John the Theologian]]</ref> opens with a hymn of revelation identifying Christ as the divine Logos, or Word, that formed the universe and the divine nature of Jesus Christ <ref>John 1:1–5; 9–14]</ref>:
:''No man hath seen God at any time; the only begotten Son, who is in the bosom of the Father, He hath declared Him"''
=== The only begotten Son and Word of God ===
As the 'uncaused' hypostasis [person], the Father was nonetheless always with his divine Word and Spirit, who themselves were also concrete and distinct modes of existence within the divine essence. Being Father necessarily implied a schesis with his Son and Spirit, without whom, fatherhood would be logically inconceivable. That is to say, the Father could never be perceived to be alone in his divinity as this would imply that He was not always 'father' but became so, which would be unacceptable in the Eastern Orthodox tradition. And so, there was never a time when God was without his Word and Spirit. Indeed, St Irenaeus (130-202AD) had noted that when God acts in the world, He always does so through his Word and Spirit, which he called the "two hands of God." Accordingly, the teaching of the Church on the Son of God is that He was begotten of the Father before all ages, and not created in time like all other created beings of the world. Being begotten of the Father [tovn ejk tou' Patrov" gennhqevnta prov pavntwn tw'n aijwvnwn] – as is said in the Nicene-Constantinopolitan Creed – simply meant that the Son of God shared the same essence as God the Father and so was 'light from light, true God from true God.' And this eternal Son of God they identified with Jesus, whom they taught was God incarnate and born of the Virgin Mary.
===Immanuel / Emmanuel===
'''ImmanuelEmmanuel''' (Hebrew Gr. Εμμανουηλ <ref>'''עִמָּנוּאֵל'Εμμανουηλ''("Emmanuel") as found in the Hebrew Text of the [[Book of Isaiah]] 7:14 of the [[Old Testament]] consists of two Hebrew words: אל (''El'', meaning ''God'') and עמנו (''Imanu'', meaning ''with us'') and therefore has the meaning "'''God with us'''." It also appears as Εμμανουηλ (''Emmanuel'') in Isaiah 7:14 of the Greek [[Septuagint]], and is most notably found in [[Gospel of Matthew|Matthew]] 1:23 where this </ref>) is the descriptive name is applied to Our Lord and Savior since He is and means '''"God with us."'''<ref>"God with us" is derived from the '''Immanuel''' (Hebrew '''עִמָּנוּאֵל''') which is from the Hebrew Text of the [[Old Testament]] that consists of two Hebrew words: אל (''El'', meaning ''God'') and עמנו (''Imanu'', meaning ''with us'').</ref>
:''"Behold, a virgin shall be with child, and shall bring forth a son, and they shall call his name ''Emmanuel'', which being interpreted is, ''God with us''. (Matt. 1:23; KJV) :''"Therefore the Lord himself shall give you a sign; behold, a [[Theotokos|virgin]] shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall call his name ''Immanuel''. (Isa. 7:14; KJV)
== Oriental Orthodox ==
Between 325 and 681, Christians theologically articulated their view of the nature of Jesus Christ by a series of seven [[Ecumenical Councils]]. These councils described Christ as one person with a fully human and a fully divine nature, a doctrine known as the [[Hypostatic Union]] and defined at the [[Fourth Ecumenical Council|Council of Chalcedon]].
The [[Christology|Christological]] terminology defined at the Council of [[Council of Chalcedon]] is the main difference and the reason for the split between the [[Eastern Orthodox]] church and the [[Oriental Orthodox]] church, who only recognise the first three ecumenical councils.
At the first [[First Ecumenical Council|Council of Nicaea]] (325), Jesus Christ was declared as God, "consubstantial" with the Father. At the [[Third Ecumenical Council|Council of Ephesus]] (431), Jesus Christ was declared as only one person, though divine as well as human. At the [[Council of Chalcedon]], almost twenty years after Ephesus, Jesus Christ was declared to be two complete natures, one human and one divine.
==Notes==
