Theotokos

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Theotokos (Greek: Θεοτόκος, translit. Theotókos; Slavonic: Богородица translit. Bogoroditsa, Georgian: ღვთისმშობელი transl. ghvtismshobeli, Romanian Născătoare de Dumnezeu) is a title of Mary, the mother of Jesus. This term is used especially in the Eastern Orthodox Church and Eastern traditions within the Catholic Church. Its English translations include God-bearer, Birth-giver of God, Mother of God Incarnate or simply - and potentially less adequately - Mother of God.

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[edit] Etymology and translation

Theotokos is a compound of two Greek words, θεός "God" and τόκος "parturition, childbirth." Literally, this translates as "God-bearer" or "the one who gives birth to God." However, since many English-speaking Orthodox find this literal translation awkward, in liturgical use "Theotokos" is often left untranslated, or paraphrased as "Mother of God." This latter title (in Greek Μήτηρ Θεού) has an established usage of its own in certain hymns, but especially on icons of the Theotokos, where it is usually abbreviated as ΜΡ ΘΥ (see illustration above). However, "Mother of God" and "Theotokos" are not synonymous, as the first describes a family relationship but not necessarily physical childbearing, which is expressed by the latter. This means that Mother of God must be understood by the person employing the term, as not referring to Mary as Mother of God from eternity but rather only with reference to the birth of Jesus, that is, God's birth on earth in flesh. By contrast, Theotokos makes this information explicit, thus excluding any misunderstanding of the Mary's divine maternity.

[edit] Theology

The title "Theotokos" specifically excludes the understanding of Mary as Mother of God in the eternal sense. The Christian framework presumes a God as the cause of all, with neither origin or source, and thus without mother. This stands in contrast to classical Greco-Roman religion in particular, where a number of divine female figures appear as mother of other divinities, demi-gods, or heroes. For example, Juno was revered as the mother of Vulcan; Aphrodite, the mother of Aeneas.

On the other hand, Christians believe the Son of God is begotten (born) of God the Father from all eternity (see Holy Trinity and Nicene Creed), but is born in time of Mary, the Theotokos. "Theotokos," then, refers to the incarnation, when the divine person of God the Son took on human nature in addition to his pre-existing divine nature, this being made possible through Mary's cooperation. To highlight the incarnation as the frame of reference for the title it is sometimes translated "Mother of God incarnate".

Since mainstream Christians understand Jesus Christ as both fully God and fully human, they call Mary "Theotokos" to affirm the fullness of God's incarnation. The significance of the title "Theotokos" consists more in what it says about Christ than in what it says about Mary. This follows from the fact that one which one? cannot (logically) both deny that Mary is Theotokos (Birth-giver of God) and affirm that Christ is Theos (God): for if Christ is Theos (God) then Mary is, obviously, Theotokos (she who bears God), but if Mary is not Theotokos then neither is Christ Theos. This realization, combined with the centrality of Christ's divinity for mainstream Christianity, was the basis for the catholic Church's formal affirmation that Mary is "Theotokos".

In the Orthodox church, because of the significance of Mary's status as "Theotokos" to Orthodox doctrine, it is defined as one of only two indispensable dogmas relating to Mary. The other is that Mary is a Virgin; cf. Nicene Creed. Other beliefs about Mary are expressed in the worship of the Orthodox Church but are not formally dogmatized or made a precondition of baptism, nor would they be. By contrast, the Roman Catholic Church has formally defined as dogma numerous Marian beliefs.

[edit] Use of "Theotokos" in the early Christian Church

Many Fathers of the early Christian Church used the title Theotokos for Mary, at least since the third century AD.

Often Origen (died 254) is cited as the earliest author to use the title Theotokos for Mary but the text upon which this assertion is based is not genuine (Socrates, Ecclesiastical History 7.32 citing Origen's Commentary on Romans).

Dionysios of Alexandria used the term in about 250, in an epistle to Paul of Samosata.

Athanasius of Alexandria in 330, Gregory the Theologian in 370, John Chrysostom in 400, and Augustine all used the term Theotokos.

Theodoret wrote in 436 that calling Virgin Mary Theotokos was an apostolic tradition.

[edit] Third Ecumenical Council

The use of Theotokos was formally affirmed at the Third Ecumenical Council held at Ephesus in 431. The competing view (advocated by Nestorius, then Patriarch of Constantinople) was that Mary should be called Christotokos, meaning "Mother of Christ," to restrict her role to the mother of Christ's humanity only and not his divine nature.

Nestorius's opponents, led by Cyril of Alexandria, viewed this as dividing Jesus into two distinct persons, one who was Son of Mary, and another, the divine nature, who was not. Such a notion was unacceptable, since (in the Orthodox view) by destroying the perfect union of divine and human nature in Christ, it sabotaged the fullness of the incarnation and, by extension, the salvation of humanity. Nestorius's view was anathematised by the Council as heresy, (see Nestorianism), and the title "Theotokos" for Mary was affirmed.

By the end of his life, Nestorius had agreed to the title Theotokos, stating the apparent communication of the attributes (idiomata).

[edit] Hymns

Calling Mary either Theotokos or "Mother of God" (ΜΡ ΘΥ) was never meant to suggest that Mary was coeternal with God, or that she existed before Jesus Christ or God existed. Rather, her divine maternity is only in regard to the mystery of the Incarnation. The Church acknowledges as much in the words of this ancient hymn: "He whom the entire universe could not contain was contained within your womb, O Theotokos."

The title "Theotokos" continues to be used frequently in the hymns of the Eastern Orthodox, Eastern Catholic and Oriental Orthodox churches.

An example of such a hymn is the Suub Tuum dating from the third century.

[edit] Icons

Theotokos of Vladimir

Theotokos Panachranta, illumination from the Gertrude Psalter.

Mother of God (ΜΡ ΘΥ), mosaic icon, Hagia Sophia

Theotokos of St. Theodore

Theotokos Panachranta from the Svensky Monastery, by St. Alypios of Kiev

Mother of God, mosaic fresco, Gelati Monastery

[edit] References

[edit] See also

[edit] External links

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