The First Century Anno Domini

The Incarnation and the Primacy of Sacred Tradition

Jesus Christ, True God and True Man, is the fulfillment of time—God humbling Himself so that humanity might be exalted. In Divine Providence, within the Economy of Salvation, human existence moves along roughly 2,000 years after Jesus’ Passion, Death, Resurrection, and Ascension.

The question of which came first, Sacred Scripture or Sacred Tradition, is often asked. The answer is Sacred Tradition. The Sacred Tradition of dying to this life so that we might be born to the next was instituted and led—though not documented in text—by Christ from Good Friday until Resurrection Sunday. Likewise, the Sacred Tradition of servant leadership was demonstrated through Christ’s washing of the Apostles' feet in the Upper Room the day before.

Saint John the Beloved and the Historical Context of the Last Supper

Yet there was one present at all these events and more, who documented them for many: God Made Man. That witness was the Beloved Disciple, Saint John. It is fitting to begin with a narrative regarding Our Lord and Saint John the Apostle, for Saint John’s feast day is the closest one to Our Lord’s Nativity.

This moment occurs just after Christ consecrated the bread and wine, and it contrasts sharply with Leonardo da Vinci’s famous depiction of that holy night. There were no standing tables like a modern dining room table in the first-century Levant. Instead, the seating consisted of low couches or cushions on the floor, with each Apostle leaning back with his left forearm supporting him.

John was sitting next to Our Lord. Jesus leaned over his shoulder and fed Saint John with His right hand. It is here that the Church receives Her ancient tradition of placing the Host in the communicant's mouth, and it is here, too, that the tradition of bride and bridegroom feeding each other cake originates.

The Paschal Movement & the Birth of the One Church

When discussing the paschal (saving) actions of Christ's earthly life, a certain movement seems to always occur: His going down into Limbo to bring forth the holy men and women of the Twelve Tribes, His Rising from the Dead, His Accession into Heaven and/or the Decent of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost. It is this last downward movement, that is the birth of the one, holy, catholic, apostolic Church and that indeed the twelve apostles turn into Churches: all still one, holy, catholic.