THE ANAPHORA of the APOSTLES ADDAI and MARI and ITS CHRISTOLOGICAL CHARACTER by Mateusz Rafał POTOCZNY University of Opole - Poland

Parole de l’Orient 45 (2019) 309-324

THE ANAPHORA OF THE APOSTLES ADDAI AND MARI AND ITS CHRISTOLOGICAL CHARACTER BY Mateusz Rafał POTOCZNY University of Opole - Poland

INTRODUCTION In the 20th century the East-Syrian Anaphora of the Apostles Addai and Mari was rediscovered and widely elaborated by western scholars and theo- logians. The main fruits of this discovery can be found in the Guidelines for Admission to the Eucharist between the Chaldean Church and the Assyrian Church of the East published in October 26th, 2001. One of the most prominent scholars, Robert Taft SJ († 2018), used to call this document the most important ecclesiastical document since Vaticanum II1. Ten years after the issue of Gudelines the Pontifical Oriental Institute in Rome organized the Congress dedicated to the Anaphora of Addai and Mari2. Even if the preparation of both the Gudelines and the Congress was followed by many studies, it seems justified to go back again and again to the Anaphora which is very often called the “Gem of the Orient”, and to bring out the deep and genuine theology contained in it. In this paper we want to pay attention to the Christological aspects of the Anaphora. To achieve this goal, we will start with a short presentation of the historical development of the text and only afterwards we will try to identify the main Christological components of the Anaphora of Addai and Mari. The analysis will be based on the oldest known texts of the anaphora published by William F. Macomber3, with some additions taken from the

) See Bibliography and abbreviations. 1) TAFT, Messa, p. 129. 2) The acts of the Congress were published in GIRAUDO, The Anaphoral Genesis. It is worth to mention some prominent speakers active during the Congress: Cesare Giraudo, Di- etmar W. Winkler, Sebastian P. Brock, Massimo Pampaloni, Paul Pallath, Bryan D. Spinks, Robert F. Taft, Enrico Mazza, Mar Awa Royel. 3) William F. MACOMBER, “The Oldest Known Text of the Anaphora of the Apostles

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Missale Chaldeorum4 made by Cesare Giraudo5.

1. THE BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY Among historians of the liturgy none would disagree that the Anaphora of the Apostles Addai and Mari is the oldest eucharistic prayer used continuously from the early Christian era6. As in the case of the other ancient anaphoras it is impossible to point precisely to the very moment of its redaction. Even if the oldest manuscripts date back to the middle Ages, we can state in all probability that this most important and most popular eucharistic prayer of the Church of the East was composed in the first half of the 3rd century, and most probably the author used an oral tradition transmitted from the apostolic era7. In our times the prayer the Anaphora of the Apostles Addai and Mari is divided into four parts called ܐ ܬܢܗܓ (syr. a prayer of inclining said by the priest with bowed head and in a low voice8), which in turn are preceded by a petition called ܬܦܫܘܟ, and an invocation orate fratres with a diaconal re- sponse. The other parts of the anaphora reveal Christianized elements of the Jewish blessings said during the festival meals. We find here praises for creation, thanksgivings for salvation and different invocations followed by a doxology9. Some scholars claim that such a character of the prayer appears as a result of a Jewish practice, i.e. the Last Supper, and this influenced the prayer of the ancient Christians. To show the connection between the Anaphora and the Jewish rites Anthony Gelston evokes the examples of the birkat ha-mazon and points to its connection with the Syro-oriental eucharistic prayers10. But beyond the shadow of a doubt the main characteristic of the Anaph- ora of the Apostles Addai and Mari is the lack of the narratio institutionis – the prayer does not quote directly the words spoken by Jesus during the Last

Addai and Mari”, in OCP 32 (1966), pp. 335-371. 4) Missale Chaldaeorum, (Mosul, 1901), pp. 27-36. 5) The English translation used in this study mainly comes from: GELSTON, Addai and Mari, pp. 48-55, with some changes made by myself (what will be marked by * in the proper place). 6) Cf. GIRAUDO, L’anafora, p. 209. 7) YOUSIF, Addai e Mari, p. 10. 8) Jessie PAYNE SMITH, A Compendious Syriac Dictionary, (Clarendon Press, Oxford, 1903), p. 62. 9) YOUSIF, Addai e Mari, p. 10. 10) GELSTON, Addai and Mari, pp. 6-7. Cf. Bawai SORO, The Church of the East. Apostolic and Orthodox, (Adiabene Publications, San Jose, 2007), p. 137.

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Supper. Even if the Syriac tradition knows other similar cases, for the western faithful it must be shocking, seeing that precisely the narratio institutionis for centuries was considered as the proper moment of the transubstan- tiation of the gifts of bread and wine. As we know very well, it was this phenomenon which created the main controversy regarding the anaphora, espe- cially among western prelates. In one of his writings Robert Taft recalls a dialogue between himself and a certain “high-ranking Catholic prelate” who, referring to the Anaphora of Addai and Mari, asked: “But how can there be Mass without the consecration?” Taft says that the answer is that there cannot be - but that does not solve the problem11. A similar question is raised by Peter A. Kwaśniewski, who remembers that many Catholics, based on the arguments of St. Thomas Aquinas, were convinced that the only real form of the Eucharist are the words spoken by Jesus during the Last Supper12. In other words we can hazard a guess that] given such an understanding the Chris- tological quality of any eucharistic prayer would be guaranteed only by the exact words, which working as an embolism, are an essential part of this euchological composition. Therefore, it is not surprising that in the course of history many reform- ers tried to come up with some recipes for healing the – in their opinion – invalid […] anaphora. Of course, the healing process had to make out of the ancient Anaphora of Addai and Mari a prayer which meets the requirements of Catholic orthodoxy. In this field special efforts were made by western missionaries who very often forcibly incorporated the narratio institutionis into the Anaphora of Addai and Mari. In the Catholic Chaldean missals (from 1797) and in the Malabar (from 1774) the words of Jesus were added to the text of the anaphora, among the preparatory prayers for the breaking of the bread. The Anglican missionaries put those words at the end of the post- Sanctus13. Obviously, many scholars tried to answer the question why in some oriental anaphoras the essential words are lacking. Some of them suggested that this is a result and a proof of Nestorian (hence: heretical) provenance14. The supporters of this theory maintain that the anaphora was shaped by the patriarch Isho„yahb III († 659) who certainly was convinced that, given the value

11) Cf. TAFT, Messa, p. 128. 12) Cf. Peter A. KWAŚNIEWSKI, Doing and Speaking in the Person of Christ: Eucharis- tic Form in the Anaphora of Addai and Mari, “Nova et Vetera”, English Edition, 4,2 (2006), p. 314. 13) GIRAUDO, L’anafora, p. 209. 14) Cf. TAFT, Messa, pp. 135-136.

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312 MATEUSZ RAFAŁ POTOCZNY of the epiclesis and of the work of the Spirit, the Words of Institution are in- essential15. In the literature we meet also some hypotheses arising out of the following assumption: because according to the ecclesiastical intuition the eucharistic consecration comes through the recitation of the Words of Insti- tution, it is very likely that also the Anaphora of Addai and Mari must have once had those words in its structure; they disappeared only by ignorance or negligence (Gherardini, Santogrossi, Lang)16. Some others, in turn, claimed that the lack of the narratio institutionis is not a proof of the absence of the words of Jesus in the anaphora – probably they were learned by heart and spoken during the celebration, but they were not written because of the great respect towards their holiness17. Even if such theories were common among the scholars until the first half of the 20th century, they are impossible to verify. On the one hand we cannot entirely exclude them, but on the other no one can prove the theories. Today the common statement is that if the narratio institutionis was present in the Anaphora of Addai and Mari there would be a trace of it. Another weakness of this hypothesis is its apriorism, which assumes that every eucharistic prayer should include the Words of Institution18. Making a theological evaluation of the Anaphora of Addai and Mari we should remember that the oldest eucharistic prayers had primarily a character of benediction, thanksgiving and petition. The subject of this benediction and thanksgiving was constituted by the salvific events which God accomplished for His people. Within this framework, the other forms gradually took shape. including epiclesis, anamnesis and the remembrance of the Last Supper to- gether with the quotation of the Jesus‟ words. Of course, we do not say that those elements were added from outside: as noted by Cesare Giraudo, the Words of Institution are in the DNA of every anaphora, even if in the beginning they may not be clearly articulated. This means that the Words belong to the internal structural form of the eucharistic prayer19. Scholarly accusations that the Anaphora of Addai and Mari is defective because of the lack of the narratio institutionis are mistaken. A similar error would be to accuse the

15) Cf. RUSSO, Validity, pp. 57-58. 16) Ibid., p. 61. 17 ) Cf. Bogusław NADOLSKI, Liturgika, vol. 4, Eucharystia, (Pallottinum, Poznań, 2011), p. 44. 18) TAFT, Messa, pp. 135-136. 19) Cesare GIRAUDO, “La genesi anaforica del racconto istituzionale alla luce dell‟anafora di Addai e Mari: tra storia delle forme e liturgia comparata”, in IDEM (ed.), The Anaphoral Genesis, p. 451.

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THE ANAPHORA OF … ADDAI AND MARI AND ITS CHRISTOLOGICAL CHARACTER 313 esteemed and ancient Roman Canon of lacking a clear epiclesis20. The absence of the Words of Institution results from the antiquity and Semitic origin of the Anaphora of Addai and Mari; likewise the lack of a clear epiclesis in the Roman Canon results from the fact that its redaction took place before the pneumatological controversies in the 4th century. It would be ab- surd to maintain that during the celebration of the Eucharist the Holy Spirit is not operative, simply because He is not mentioned directly. The same ap- plies to the Words of Institution21. Concluding this section it seems useful to refer once again to the Vati- can document mentioned at the beginning of this paper. The Anaphora of the Apostles Addai and Mari has been described as follows: [...] the Anaphora of Addai and Mari is one of the most ancient Anapho- ras, dating back to the time of the very early Church; it was composed and used with the clear intention of celebrating the Eucharist in full continuity with the Last Supper and according to the intention of the Church; its validity was never officially contested, neither in the Christian East nor in the Christian West. [...] the Catholic Church recognizes the Assyrian Church of the East as a true particular Church, built upon orthodox faith and apostolic succession. The Assyrian Church of the East has also preserved full Eucharistic faith in the presence of our Lord under the species of bread and wine and in the sacrificial character of the Eucharist. In the Assyrian Church of the East, though not in full communion with the Catholic Church, are thus to be found “true sacraments, and above all, by apostolic succession, the priest- hood and the Eucharist” (U.R., n. 15). [...] the words of Eucharistic Institution are indeed present in the Anapho- ra of Addai and Mari, not in a coherent narrative way and ad litteram, but rather in a dispersed euchological way, that is, integrated in successive prayers of thanksgiving, praise and intercession22.

20) The text in the editio typica says as follows: “Quam oblati nem tu, Deus, in mnibus, qu sumus, bened ctam, adscr ptam, ratam, rationábilem, acceptabilémque fácere digéris: ut nobis Corpus et Sanguis fiat dilectíssimi Fílii tui, Dómini nostri Iesu Christi”. Missale Romaum ex decreto Sacrosancti Oecumenici Concilii Vaticanii instauratum auctoritate Pauli PP. VI promulgatum Ioannis Pauli PP. II cura recognitum. Iuxta typicam tertiam, (MTF, Downers Grove, 2007), p. 499. It is interesting that some modern translations add Holy Spirit, probably to make clear that He is the acting agent of the epiclesis; see, for example, the Polish one: “Prosimy Cię, Boże, uświęć te Ofiarę pełnią swojego błogosławieństwa, mocą Twojego Ducha [by the power of Your Spirit] uczyń ją doskonała i milą sobie, aby się stała dla nas Ciąłem i Krwią Twojego umiłowanego Syna, naszego Pana Jezusa Chrystusa”. Mszał Rzymski dla diecezji polskich, (Pallottinum, Poznań, 1986), p. 308*. 21) Por. RUSSO, Validity, p. 61. 22) Guidelines, n. 3.

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2. CHRISTOLOGY IN THE ANAPHORA OF ADDAI AND MARI Because the liturgy is the very first locus theologicus and according to the ancient axiom lex orandi – lex credendi – lex vivendi it is united with the dogmas of this faith, therefore everything that is essential in the faith should be found in the euchology. Regarding the Church of the East, for centuries this community was wrongly termed “Nestorian” – even today we can meet this term also in some serious scientific studies (sic!). The term itself suggests that the deposit of faith transmitted within this community is marked by heresy and should be viewed with a dose of mistrust or even combated. For centuries, one of the main accusations against the Assyrian theology was the statement on the dualism of persons in Jesus Christ: the divine and human. But The Common Christological Declaration between the Catholic Church and the Assyrian Church of the East23 signed in 1994 by Pope Jean Paul II († 2005) and Patri- arch Mar Dinkha IV († 2015) showed that the main problem of the controversy lay on the linguistic level, while none appears to exist on the level of essence. The key to understanding this question is the term ܢܝܟ (kyanā) in Je- sus Christ. In one of his commentaries Polish scholar Michał Sadowski writes: The Assyrians maintain that every kyanā ( ܢܝܟ) needs a qnōmā ( ܡܘܿ ܢܩ) for existence; therefore the Assyrian theology speaks of two qnōmē in Christ. This understanding led to the incorrect conviction that the Assyrians, rec- ognizing two kyanē and two qnōmē in Christ, believe in two separate persons (parsōpē). From the Assyrian point of view every kyanā (nature) must have a real being, i.e. qnōmā. Therefore, in the West the conviction arose that this Christology speaks of two persons (qnōmē) in Christ24. In the Christological field qnōmā should be understood as an “individual- ized” kyanā, a necessary and indirect element, “still” belonging to the or- der of kyanā, and not as an autonomous subject25.

23) JOINT COMMITTEE FOR THEOLOGICAL DIALOGUE BETWEEN THE CATHOLIC CHURCH AND THE ASSYRIAN CHURCH OF THE EAST, The Common Christological Declaration signed by Pope John Paul II and the Catholicos Patriarch of the Assyrian Church of the East, Khanania Mar Dinkha IV [1994]. For Syriac text: http://www.atour.com/media/files/religion/coe/ Common-Christological-Declaration-Roman-Catholic-Church-and-Church-of-the-East- COE.pdf (02.01.2018); English translation: http://www.vatican.va/roman_curia/pontifical_councils/chrstuni/documents/rc_pc_chrst uni_doc_11111994_assyrian-church_en.html (02.01.2018).

24) Cf. Bawai SORO, « La Déclaration christologique commune du 11 novembre 1994: son contenu véritable et sa portée », in Istina 40 (1995), p. 165. 25) Cf. POTOCZNY – SADOWSKI, Deklaracje, pp. 297-316.

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Now we see that dogmatically the question seems very clear, but it is worthwhile to confront the theory with practice, as expressed in the faith included in a specific euchological text, namely in the subject of this paper, i.e. [in] the Anaphora of the Apostles Addai and Mari. Christology present in any eucharistic prayer is not only limited to ref- erences to the events of the Upper Room and their anamnetic manifestation. In fact, Christology has to show forth Jesus Christ, in whom God the Father meets His creation, and through this meeting people have an entrance to sal- vation26. One of the most prominent liturgists of the Church of the East used to say that the liturgical action as a whole is a contemplation of Jesus Christ27. The Christological content of each eucharistic prayer, thanks to the anamnesis and epiclesis, contains in itself the whole history of salvation and all the salvific events of Jesus Christ. Those events reached their climax in the passion, death and resurrection of the Lord. We should remember that the eucharistic prayers were composed precisely for dogmatic and not liturgical unity28. The first Christological feature of the Anaphora of the Apostles Addai and Mari can already be seen in its introductory part, which precedes the Sanctus (Latin “Preface”). The thematic of this section encompasses, so to speak, the whole history of salvation: it touches both the creation of the Uni- verse and the Salvation of people. Even if the thanksgiving prayer is directed here to the whole Trinity, the mention of redemption (“redeemed the sons of men in his mercy – ܗܬܢܢܢܒ̈ ܬܬܢ ܝ̈ܢ ܒ ܩܪܦܘ”) brings a clear Christological and sote- riological message. The next Christological text, this time very rich and deep, we encounter just after the introductory words of the Post-Sanctus. Although this prayer is directed to God the Father, hence it could smack of the ancient language of Monarchianism, in reality this text can easily become a basis for a separate Christological treatise. And with these heavenly hosts we give thee thanks, o my Lord, we also thy unworthy, frail, and miserable servants, because thou hast dealt very graciously with us in a way which cannot be

26) Gerhard L. MÜLLER, Dogmatyka katolicka, (WAM, Kraków, 2015), p. 283. 27) Petros YOUSIF, “East Syrian Liturgy as an Expression of Christology”, in Alfred STIRNEMANN, Gerhard WILFLINGER, Syriac Dialogue. Second Non-Official Consultation on Dialogue within the Syriac Tradition, (Pro Oriente, Vienna, 1996), p. 174. 28) Baby VARGHESE, “East Syrian Liturgy as an Expression of Christology”, in Alfred STIRNEMANN, Gerhard WILFLINGER, Syriac Dialogue. Second Non-Official Consultation on Dialogue within the Syriac Tradition, (Pro Oriente, Vienna, 1996), p. 153.

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repaid, in that thou didst assume (*put on) our humanity (ܢܬܘܬܢܐ̈ ܬܒܠܕܒ) that thou mightest restore us to life by thy divinity (ܟܬܘܗܠܐܒ ܢܝܚܬܕ), and didst exalt our low estate (ܢܡܦܫ ܡܪܡܪܘ), and raise up our fallen state (ܢ ܠܘܦܡ ܡܝܩܐܘ), and resurrect our mortality (ܢܬܘܝܬܡ ܡܢܢܘ), and forgive our sins (ܢ ܒ̈ܘ ܚ ܪܒܫܘ), and acquit our sinfulness (ܢܬܘܝܛܢܠ ܩܕܙܘ), and enlighten our understanding (ܢ ܥܕܝܠ ܬܪܗܢܐܘ), and, our Lord and God, overcome our adversaries (ܢܝܒܒܵ ܕܡܥܒܠ̈ ܒܝܚܘ̈ܢܗܐܠܘ̈ܢܪܡ), and give victory to the unworthiness of our frail nature ( ܬܡܚ ܢܢܝܟܕ̈ܗܬܘܪܝܨܒܠ ܚܨܢܘ) in the overflowing mercies of thy grace. Some authors see in this narration a Christianised version, provided with a deep Christological meaning, of the second Jewish Birkat ha-mazon, where we read as follows: We thank You, Lord, our God, for having given as a heritage to our an- cestors a precious, good and spacious land; for having brought us out, Lord our God, from the land of Egypt, and redeemed us from the house of slaves; for Your covenant which You have sealed in our flesh; for Your Torah which You have taught us; for Your statutes which You have made known to us; for the life, favor, and kindness which You have graciously bestowed upon us; and for the food we eat with which You constantly nourish and sustain us every day, at all times, and at every hour29. The initial thanksgiving of the Post-Sanctus in the Anaphora of Addai and Mari concerns some specific benefits which God has provided for His people. The mystery of the Incarnation of the Son of God is the basis of this narration. The prayer clearly specifies the motive for Incarnation: in the abasement of the Divine Logos the point is that fallen human nature could be raised again. To achieve this Jesus Christ put on this human nature. We encounter here the Syriac word ܬܬܒܠ [lbešt], which literally means “to put on the garment”. The term is very popular in Syriac theology. Sebastian Brock notes that St. Ephrem and the other Syriac writers use this term as a means of linking all the different points in the course of salvation history, starting with the creation narrative, then applying it in turn to Jesus Christ, to the individual Christian and to the saints on the Day of Judgment. This imagery of put-

הגדה של .After Joel B. WOLOWELSKY, Women at the Seder. A Passover Haggadah (29 .KTAV Publishing House, Urim, 2005), p. 65) ,פסח

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THE ANAPHORA OF … ADDAI AND MARI AND ITS CHRISTOLOGICAL CHARACTER 317 ting on and taking off clothing, taken from the everyday life, served early Syriac writers as a very effective means for showing how the different stages in the history of salvation are interconnected, and how each individual Chris- tian is directly involved in this history30. The concept of putting on the body like clothing is present already in Aphrahat the Persian Sage († 345). In his Demonstratio XXI we read as follows: “Jesus‟ Father clothed him with a body (ܐܪܬܓܦ ܗܬܬܒܐܠ) from the Vir- gin” 31. In the context of the Mystery of Incarnation Ephrem says: “Who would compare the clothing (ܗܫܘܬܒܠ) of Your human nature to Your robe? Who would compare the clothing (ܗܫܘܬܒܠ) of Your divine nature to Your body? They were both clothing for You, Lord: the robe and the body, and the bread: the Bread of Life” (De Fide 19,2)32; “Who, then, will depict the nature of the Existent Which is not entirely visible? Whoever was written to have seen It did not see Him, unless [he saw] a form [in] which He had veiled ( ܬܛܥܬܐܕ) Himself” (De Fide 33,13)33; “Because they were not able to see Him, He took clothing ( ܬܫܘܒܠ) for Himself from among the sheep” (De Fide 36,2)34; “He sent His Son and clothed Him (ܗܬܬܒܠ) and raised Him up in glory” (De Fide 50,5)35. Putting on human nature opened the gates to the other elements of the Divine economy, listed in the Anaphora, such as: raising up the miserable and fallen people, the resurrection of our mortality, the forgiveness of debts and the justification of sins. Another remarkably Christological character can be found in the remembrance of the departed, present among the intercessory invocations. The following words have particular importance:

30) Sebastian P. BROCK, Spirituality in the Syriac Tradition, (SEERI, Kottayam, 2005), pp. 39-40. 31) Aphrahates, Demonstratio, 21:9. 20, in Patrologia Syriaca, vol. 1, (IFT, Parisiis, 1894), p. 953. For English translation, see Kuriakose VALAVANOLICKAL, Aphrahat. Demon- strations, vol. 2, (SEERI, Kottayam, 2005), p. 209. 32) BECK, Ephraem. De Fide, s. 72. For English translation, see RUSSEL, Ephraem. On Faith, p. 61. 33) BECK, Ephraem. De Fide, s. 111. For English translation, see RUSSEL, Ephraem. On Faith, p. 107. 34) BECK, Ephraem. De Fide, s. 118; English translation see RUSSEL, Ephraem. On Faith, p. 114.

35) BECK, Ephraem. De Fide, s. 157. English translation see RUSSEL, Ephraem. On Faith, p. 158. Zob. Michał SADOWSKI, “Funkcja hidżabu w chrystologii najstarszego arabskojęzycznego tekstu chrześcijańskiego „O Bogu w Trójcy Jedynym‟ (Sinai ar. 154)”, in Teologia i człowiek 38,2 (2017), pp. 188-189.

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[...] make a good and gracious remembrance ( ܒܛ ܢܐܪܟܘܕ̈ܕܒܥ), for all the upright and just fathers (ܐܬܗ ܒܐ ܢܘܗܟܠܠ) who were pleasing before thee, in the commemoration (ܢܐܕܗܘܥܒ) of the body and blood of thy Christ, which we offer to thee (ܟܠ ܢܢܝܒܪܪܡܕ) upon the pure and holy altar, as thou hast taught us (ܢ ܦܐܠ). At a glance this text does not contain any interesting Christological character; but this is only an impression. It is enough to go deeper into the terminology used in this section to discover that this is not only a regular memento. The keywords used in this prayer are: memory (ܢܐܪܬܟܘܕ) and remembrance (ܢܐܕܗܘܬܥ). Both words point to the fact that that in this moment the Anaphora emphasizes more a real manifestation, rather than just a memento for the departed. Cesare Giraudo notes that this intercession is a request to God, not for anybody in general, but precisely it concerns the upright and just fathers, who had the privilege of offering the same sacrifice as the gathered community makes in the very moment of the eucharistic celebration, according to God‟s instruction (ܢ ܬܦܐܠ). The expression “as thou hast taught us” cannot be understood only as the transmission of knowledge. It is about an instruction which provokes a habit and becomes the very channel linking different historic events, starting from the Last Supper, through every celebration enacted in history, until the prayer of the community which gathers today, to accomplish exactly the same service as the upright and just fathers did36. In the following verses the Anaphora evokes once more the Mystery of the Incarnation. This time Jesus is shown as a real Pantokrator, who teaches His people:

[...] and thou didst send our Lord Jesus Christ (ܥܘܬܝ ܢܪܡܠ ܬܪܕܫ ܢܝܬܡ ܢܐܘ), thy Son and thy Beloved; and he, our Lord and our God (ܢܗܐܠܘ ܢܪܡ), taught us in his lifegiving Gospel. Another very important Christological text in the Anaphora we are dis- cussing is incorporated in its part called anamnesis and – as proposed by Cesare Giraudo – quasi-narratio institutionis: And we also, o my Lord, thy unworthy, frail, and miserable servants,

who are gathered (ܢܢܝܬܝܢܟܕ) and stand (ܢܢܝܡܝܩ) before thee (*in this hour) ( ̈ܢܐܕܥܒ ܢܐܗ),

36) Por. GIRAUDO, In unum Corpus, pp. 356-357.

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and have received by tradition (ܠܐܒܘܝܒ̈ܢܢܡܒܩ) the example /(*figure) ( ܤܦܘܛ), which is from thee, rejoicing and glorifying, and exalting and commemorating (ܢܢܝܕܗܥܡ) and celebrating (ܢܢܝܠܠܗܡ) this great and awesome (ܠܐܝܚܕܘ ܒܪ) mystery (ܐܙܪܐ) of the passion ( ܬܚܕ) and death (ܗܬܘܡܕܘ) and resurrection (ܗ ܡܝܩܕܘ) of our Lord Jesus Christ. This passage became the key for the theological dialogue and the redaction of the Guidelines quoted above. In an anamnetic way the different elements present in this section make of the celebration the same liturgical action, which was continuously celebrated in the Church‟s Tradition. Again, the Christology of this section is contained in some Syriac expressions. The first one is: we “have received by tradition (ܠܐܒܘܝܒ ܢܢܡܒܩ)”. Every Syriac scholar knows that the meaning of the word ܠܐܒܘܬܝ is much wider than the popular understanding of tradition. ܠܐܒܘܬܬܝ concerns the reality which is dynamic, marked by course and continuity, succession, origins and the stream of gen- erations37. Thus in this exact moment of celebration the community gathered in the Church remembers, celebrates and makes present the Mystery of Jesus Christ: in a sacramental way they fulfill the memory of His passion, death and resurrection. Another important term in this section is ܬܤܦܘܛ, which can be translated as an example, figure, pattern, similarity. Giraudo emphasizes that in this word the sacramental signs of the bread and wine are included – therefore this word would be in fact the very remembrance of the Last Supper. The figure received in the stream of tradition is nothing else than the sacramental Body and Blood of the Lord. Thanks to this, the narratio institutionis is here present in an embryonic state38. It should be noted that the lack of the Words of Institution expressed explicite does not mean that the Church of the East disregards them. In the liturgical intuition the power of the words of Jesus, said once in the Upper Room, lasts unceasingly from that moment. In each eucharistic celebration, when the “figure” received in the tradition is transmitted, the Words of Insti- tution are reactivated. We see then, that the narratio institutionis […] always has consecratory power, even if the words are not said directly, because it is not the priest-celebrant who gives them the spiritual power, but Jesus Christ

37) PAYNE SMITH, Dictionary, s. 189. 38) GIRAUDO, In unum Corpus, s. 357-358.

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320 MATEUSZ RAFAŁ POTOCZNY did it once and forever39. Moreover we should remember that narratio institutionis is not an isolated consecratory form: according to the teaching of the Church Fathers and the contemporary teaching of Magisterium Ecclesiae the whole eucharistic prayer has the consecratory character40. The next Christological moment in the Anaphora of the Apostles Addai and Mari is without any doubt the epiclesis. In this petition the celebrant asks that the Holy Spirit come, rest, [ ܬܝܢܬ ܢ], bless and sanctify the offering. It is the Holy Spirit who, resting on the holy gifts, is a guarantee of the actualisa- tion of the Mysteries of Jesus Christ. His presence makes the offering brought by the faithful, become for them “for the pardon of sins and for the forgiveness of shortcomings [ܐ̈ܗ ܛܚܕ ܢܪܒܘܬܠܘ ܒ̈ܘ ܚܕ ܝܣܘܢܠ]”. Also, the epicletic doxology refers to the salvific Mystery of Christ. The community gathered “with open mouths and unveiled faces” (a sign of freedom, availability and unconditional confidence) gives thanks for the redemption made by “the precious blood of thy Christ [ܟܢܝܬܡܕ ܐܪܝܪܝ ܗܡܕܒ ܪܝܪܦ]41”.

CONCLUSIONS The Anaphora of the Apostles Addai and Mari is one of the ancient eucharistic prayers known to us, and at the same time it is the only prayer which is incessantly used by one of the true Apostolic Churches, i.e. the Church of the East. This phenomenon makes the Anaphora a unique and ex- ceptional gem of the liturgical treasure of the whole Christian community. Of course this prayer does not exhaust the richness of the East Syriac eucharistic euchology. From the time of the reform made by the patriarch Isho„yahb III the Churches belonging to the East-Syriac tradition use also two other eucharistic prayers: the Anaphora of Nestorius (the feast of the Greek Fathers, the last day of the Niniveh Fast, the feast of John the Baptist, Epiphany and Maundy Thursday) and the Anaphora of Theodore of Mopsuestia (from the first Sunday of Advent until Palm Sunday)42. Nonethe-

39) Cf. TAFT, Messa, s. 154-158. 40) Ibid., pp. 150-153. It should be noted that even though the Catholic Church recog- nized the validity of the celebration with the Anaphora of Addai and Mari without a direct narratio institutionis, the document from 2001 includes a humble request: “When Chaldean faithful are participating in an Assyrian celebration of the Holy Eucharist, the Assyrian minis- ter is warmly invited to insert the words of the Institution in the Anaphora of Addai and Mari, as allowed by the Holy Synod of the Assyrian Church of the East”. Guidelines, n. 4.3. 41) Cf. GIRAUDO, In unum Corpus, pp. 359-360. 42) Mirosław RUCKI, Michael ABDALLA, “Eucharystyczna obecność Chrystusa – świadectwa pierwszych wieków”, in Liturgia Sacra 23,1 (2017), p. 89.

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THE ANAPHORA OF … ADDAI AND MARI AND ITS CHRISTOLOGICAL CHARACTER 321 less the Anaphora of the Apostles Addai and Mari contains all the theological insights of the Syro-Oriental tradition. The ancient text of the Anaphora contains many interesting theological intuitions. Because the oldest redaction of the text is earlier than the majority of theological controversies, the theology contained is not always as devel- oped as would be required by the later point of view. Nevertheless, analysing the Christology of the Anaphora of the Apostles Addai and Mari we have to say that it is par excellence Catholic, and comprehensively embraces the salvific work of Jesus Christ. A deep reflection on the Anaphora and its in- terpretation facilitates our understanding of the common documents of the Catholic Church and the Church of the East, which bring to an end centuries- old disputes and misunderstanding43. We should always remember that the face of Jesus Christ depicted by the words of the eucharistic prayers has various shades. But it is always the same face of the same Christ. Therefore continuous study of the liturgical texts is always topical and has an ecumenical goal: better knowledge of one another will deepen our understanding of the so-called diversitas reconcil- iata, which – God willing – will lead Christians to full communion.

43) Cf. POTOCZNY – SADOWSKI, Deklaracje, p. 311.

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BIBLIOGRAPHY AND ABBREVIATIONS

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