It's all Greek

EDITOR’S NOTE: Julia Annas is Professor Emerita of Ancient Philosophy at the University of Arizona. She is also a Saint Philip’s parishioner and volunteer.

Julia generously shared her knowledge of ancient Greek to translate what is in the different icons that are part of the seasonal Advent bulletin.

On the front of the Advent bulletin is a pregnant Virgin Mary, unveiled by angels. The Greek lettering above her reads: PANAGIA HE EGKUMONOUSA: The Pregnant Madonna. “Panagia,” literally ‘All-holy,’ is used of the Virgin in Orthodoxy, like “Madonna” in the Western Church.

There are faint pairs of letters left and right of the Virgin. Each pair has a tilde (wavy line) over them to show that they are an abbreviation. The left two are MR, short for METER, mother, and the right two are TH and OU, short for THEOU, of God. The Virgin is presented as the Mother of God.

The infant Christ is shown fully developed and in a circle to represent the paradox of the Incarnation: the Infinite is enclosed in finite humanity. In Orthodoxy the Virgin is called “he chora tou achoretou”: the container of the uncontainable.

On page 12 Christ is shown at the Last Supper with a halo enclosing a Greek cross (a cross with all arms equal). The letters in the cross read HO ON (first O short, second O long), He who Is. Above him to the left are the letters IS, short for IESOUS, and to the right, CHS, short for CHRISTOS, Jesus Christ.

On page 14 the Lamb of God is surrounded by a circle in which is written CHRISTUS VICIT, CHRISTUS REGNAT, CHRISTUS IMPERAT, Latin for Christ has conquered, Christ reigns, Christ commands.