Editing Christ (title) (section)

==Usage==
{{See also|Names and titles of Jesus in the New Testament|Holy Name of Jesus}}

The word ''Christ'' (and similar spellings) appears in English and in most European languages. English speakers now often use "Christ" as if it were a name, one part of the name "[[Jesus in Christianity|Jesus Christ]]", though it was originally a title ("the Messiah"). Its usage in "Christ Jesus" emphasizes its nature as a title.<ref name=Pannenberg>{{cite book|title= Jesus God and Man |first= Wolfhart |last= Pannenberg | author-link= Wolfhart Pannenberg |year= 1968 |isbn= 0-664-24468-8 |url= https://books.google.com/books?id=zWfvlpURwiIC&pg=PA30|pages= 30–31|publisher= Westminster John Knox Press }}</ref><ref name=Miriam >{{cite book|title= Merriam-Webster's Encyclopedia of World Religions |publisher= Merriam-Webster |first= Wendy |last= Doniger | author-link= Wendy Doniger |year=2000 |isbn= 0-87779-044-2 |url= https://archive.org/details/isbn_9780877790440|url-access= registration |page= [https://archive.org/details/isbn_9780877790440/page/212 212]}}</ref> Compare the usage "the Christ".<ref name="bauermessias"/>

The spelling ''Christ'' in English became standardized in the 18th century, when, in the spirit of the [[Age of Enlightenment|Enlightenment]], certain words' spelling changed to fit their [[Greek language|Greek]] or [[Latin]] origins. Before that, scribes writing in [[Old English|Old]] and [[Middle English]] usually used the spelling ''Crist''—the ''i'' being pronounced either as {{IPAc-en|iː}}, preserved in the names of churches such as [[St Katherine Cree]], or as a short {{IPAc-en|ɪ}}, preserved in the modern pronunciation of "[[Christmas]]". The spelling "Christ" in English is attested from the 14th century.<ref>{{OED|Christ}}</ref>

In modern and ancient usage, even in secular terminology, "Christ" usually refers to Jesus, based on the centuries-old tradition of such usage. Since the [[Apostolic Age]], the use of the definite article before the word ''Christ'' and its gradual development into a proper name show the Christians identified the bearer with the promised messiah of the Jews.<ref name="CathencChrist">{{CathEncy|wstitle=Origin of the Name of Jesus Christ}}</ref>