ἀνάμνησις

From the study of 1 Corinthians 11:24

Range of meaning

In ordinary Greek: recollection, calling something back to mind, a reminder (BDAG). In the Greek of the Jewish scriptures it often has a worship sense: a memorial, an act or object that brings someone or something into remembrance before God and the community. The related Hebrew idea (zakar, “remember”; zikkaron, “memorial”) is active. To remember a covenant is to act on it.

Against the English

English “remembrance” or “memory” (WEB) mostly suggests a private mental act, like recalling a loved one. Nearly all versions use “remembrance”. The word is not wrong, but it is smaller than the Greek in this setting. The phrase “in remembrance of me” is also sometimes heard as “to help you not forget me”, when it means “as my memorial”.

How it drifted

In modern English, memory is mostly inward and psychological. On top of that, in some streams of Protestant debate “memorial” came to be set against any idea of presence, so “remembrance” came to mean “only a reminder”. That contrast belongs to the 16th century, not to the first.

Used elsewhere in the period

In the Greek Old Testament: Leviticus 24:7, where frankincense on the bread of the Presence is “for a memorial (eis anamnēsin)”, the same phrase as here; Numbers 10:10, trumpets over sacrifices as “a memorial before your God”; the titles of Psalms 38 and 70 (37 and 69 in the Greek), “for remembrance”; Wisdom 16:6. In the New Testament it appears only in Luke 22:19, 1 Cor 11:24–25 and Hebrews 10:3 (“a reminder of sins year by year”, of the yearly sacrifices). Passover is called a “memorial” (Hebrew zikkaron, Greek mnēmosynon) in Exodus 12:14. The Mishnah (Pesahim 10:5) says each generation must regard itself as having personally come out of Egypt. In Greco-Roman life, clubs and families held meals “in memory of” a dead founder or relative, a custom Corinthian Gentiles would have known.

From the study of 1 Corinthians 11:25

Range of meaning

Remembrance, recollection, a memorial. In Greek usage it can mean simply calling something to mind. In Jewish worship the matching ideas (Hebrew zikkaron, "memorial"; zakar, "remember") describe ritual remembering: a community act in which God's past deeds are recited and acted out so that the present generation stands inside them, and in which God himself is asked to "remember" his covenant.

Against the English

Most versions: "in remembrance of me". WEB: "in memory of me". YLT: "to the remembrance of me", which keeps the Greek "toward/for". None is wrong, but all can sound like private, mental recall.

How it drifted

Modern "remembrance" or "memory" usually means a mental act of thinking back, often sentimental. The Jewish background makes it public, spoken and enacted. Verse 26 spells it out: eating and drinking "proclaims the Lord's death".

Used elsewhere in the period

Exodus 12:14: Passover is "a memorial (LXX mnēmosynon) for you"; Exodus 13:9; Deuteronomy 16:3 ("that you may remember the day you came out of Egypt"). The Mishnah (Pesahim 10:5, written down c. 200 AD but drawing on older practice) says "in every generation one must regard himself as if he himself came out of Egypt." LXX uses anamnēsis for memorial offerings (Leviticus 24:7; Numbers 10:10, where trumpets over sacrifices serve "as a remembrance before your God"). Greek and Roman associations also held meals "in memory of" a founder or benefactor.

From the study of Luke 22:19

Range of meaning

Remembrance, recollection, memorial. In the Greek Old Testament it often marks a memorial act or offering done before God, matching the Hebrew zikkaron or azkarah (memorial, memorial portion). It is not simply recalling something in the mind.

Against the English

“In remembrance of me” (KJV, BSB, ESV, NIV, NLT) and “in memory of me” (WEB) are fair, but modern English “remembrance” tends to mean thinking back to something absent. YLT's literal “to remembrance of me” at least keeps the sense of purpose.

How it drifted

In modern English, remembering is a private mental act. Biblical remembering is a covenant act: when God “remembers” he acts (Gen 8:1; Exod 2:24), and when Israel “remembers” it rehearses and lives by a saving event.

Used elsewhere in the period

Leviticus 24:7 (frankincense with the showbread “for a memorial,” eis anamnēsin); Numbers 10:10 (trumpets over offerings “for a remembrance before your God”); the headings of Psalms 38 and 70 (37 and 69 in the Greek numbering); Wisdom 16:6; Hebrews 10:3 (the yearly sacrifices are “a reminder of sins”). Passover itself was a zikkaron (Exod 12:14; the Greek uses mnēmosynon), and Deuteronomy 16:3 says to eat the unleavened bread “so that you may remember the day you came out of Egypt.” The Mishnah (Pesachim 10:5, recorded about 200 CE) says that in every generation a person should see himself as if he had come out of Egypt. In the Greek world, associations held memorial meals for founders; Epicurus' will provided for a yearly commemoration of himself (Diogenes Laertius 10.18). Gentile hearers would have recognised that too.