Was our Lord a Greek? "Christ" is a Greek translation of Hebrew "Meshiach," meaning "the anointed one."
Did Peter say, "Thou art the Christ?" (Matthew 16:16) Of course not. No Israelite would ever say such a thing. He said, "Thou art the Messiah." This is just one more example of the perverse anti-Jewish prejudice that covertly (too often deceptively subtly) and overtly pervades society.
Also, the correct transliteration of his given name is not Jesus but Yeshua. These proper appellations have more, softer syllables than the traditional ones and are phonetically unsuitable as expletives. Their usage could curb blasphemous cursing somewhat.
In old English the name was transliterated with a J, which at that time represented phoneme /y/, like the <j> of German. This archaic spelling was retained after the sound shifted to its present phonetic value. The Messiah's mission was performed among the Jews (the only non-pagan people on earth at that time, for which they should be eternally praised and honored), not the Greeks (however much we may appreciate them). In all propriety we should reverently refer to Him and pray in His name as Yeshua Messiah. This merits repeating: The softer syllables of Yeshua Messiah lend themselves much less to sacriligious profanation as an epithet.
Proper names should be transliterated, never translated. Hispanic Americans may render the surname Hall as Vestíbulo but only as a joke, always reverting to something sounding like "Hole" in serious conversation.
No big deal? It definitely is. We should love the Lord with all our heart, soul, strength and
mind. Messiah, Messiahns, Messiahity, and Messiah Day are the appropriate terms and, except in quotations, will be given preference on this website.
Messiah Day—not
Messiahmas. Mas, meaning
mass, has Catholic connotations and therefore lacks the appropriate universality.
Does this matter to veterans of World War II who liberated horrendous concentration camps in Europe? When our 411th Infantry Regiment liberated the six camps surrounding Landsberg (where, incidentally, Hitler wrote
Mein Kampf while imprsioned there), the unspeakable horror of it made me resolve that from that day forward I would be an outspoken defender of the Jews, so terribly, falsely, maligned, discriminated against and persecuted for centuries. The slightest sign of anti-Semitism makes me bristle and fight it the best I can.
