Marco Spinosi
One of the most basic Catholic beliefs is that Jesus was born both and lived as both completely man and completely divine. This idea of Jesus being a unity of completely God and completely human is referred to in the Catholic faith as the “hypostatic union”. Per the catechism, the statement on the hypostatic union is, “He became truly man while remaining truly God. Jesus Christ is true God and true man.” This belief is one of the key statements in the Nicene Creed, which is the Catholic profession of faith. The belief that Jesus was two parts in one has been highly debated throughout time by theological experts. Many different beliefs on the nature of Christ have been developed, however the Catholic Church continues to hold the belief that Jesus Christ was indeed completely man and completely God. The history and development of this Catholic doctrine can be traced back through the Council of Chalcedon. The issues in understandings and misgivings about the nature of Jesus as both God and man that lead to the requirement of the also play a large role in the hypostatic union. Furthermore, evidence of Jesus’ complete humanity and divinity can be seen in many biblical references but specifically to Jesus conception and birth.
The Council of Chalcedon occurred in the year 451 A.D. “Council of Chalcedon, the fourth ecumenical council of the Christian Church, held in Chalcedon in 451. Convoked by the emperor Marcian, it was attended by about 520 bishops.” This
The Nicene Creed is the creed or profession of faith that was adopted in the city of Nicaea by the first ecumenical council, which met there in the year 325. At that time, the text ended after the words "We believe in the Holy Spirit", after which an anathema was added. The doctrine of the Trinity is commonly expressed as: "One God, three Persons”, but this word "Trinity" does not appear in the Bible. So the doctrine is formally defined in the Nicene Creed, which declares Jesus to be: "God of God, Light of Light, very God of very God, begotten, not made, being of one substance with the Father." in 325, the Council of Nicea set out to officially define the relationship of the Son to the Father, in response to the controversial teachings of
No matter how one refers to Him, He is fully God and fully human. Because of humanity’s departure from wisdom, God decided to become man as a last ditch effort to save His people. This is best demonstrated in John 3:16, “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life”. Jesus lived among His followers teaching them about the good news of the Bible and when it was time, He willing sacrificed Himself in order to forgive the sins of those who believed and guaranteed his/her salvation. Once He ascended into heaven, the Holy Spirit remained, filling those who believed with the eternal love and guidance so that he/she may now spread the good news, just as His disciples did. Jesus’ identity and work is significant to the Christian worldview because they are the very core of this faith-based belief system. One learns from the Bible that one does not have to witness these works, just by merely believing will lead one to salvation. According to Merrick (2014), “Jesus Christ represents all humanity and offers to God a sacrifice that reconciles humanity and God” (final
On the other hand, a number of philosophy was able to argue that Christ was homoousios (same or one substance) in a way to debunk Nicene Creed by describing the relationship that exist between the father and Son, by stating the fact that Jesus is God that come to earth as a man which is also the Father. Arius believes that it
The same is true for Christ’s humanity. Everything that it means to be a human is true of Christ, with the exception of sin. The two natures of Christ remain distinct and maintain their own nature. The two natures do not change one another and they do not combine to make a third kind of being. Christ has two natures, but is still one person. The Chalcedonian Creed explains this concept best when it
Early saints—or early Christian teachers, have been discussing the Trinity deeply and deliberately for decades, as it is one of the most complex teachings written in the Bible. One of the most reliable doctrines of the Trinity is The Holy Trinity Doctrine. The Holy Trinity Doctrine was one of the doctrines created during the first few ages where Christianity just started developing. This doctrine was created in the Council of Nicea in 325 AD. During this discussion, diverse points were given by theologists. Thoughts named as Tritheism, Unitarism, and Arianism are present. Tritheism focuses that there are three separate Gods, promoting polytheism, Unitarism focuses on God the Father most, and separates Christ and the Holy Spirit into a different category of deity, thus changing their divinity, and Arianism promotes Jesus Christ as a creation of God during the Creation. Other than these three, there are also other strong doctrines about the Trinity from the Apostles’ Creed, the Nicene Creed--which came from the Council of Nicea, and the Athanasian
The word “trinity” is used to describe the relationship of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Though all three are used in scripture there is no description of the “trinity.” Throughout this paper the concept of the “trinity” will be examined. First, the paper will have a summary of relevant sections from three sources: the New Catholic Encyclopedia, the older Catholic Encyclopedia, and a peer-reviewed theological article from a contemporary journal. Two concise analyses will follow the summary. In the first analysis there will be a comparison between the older and newer Catholic encyclopedias to see how over time theological reflection has changed. In the second analysis there will be a comparison between the New Catholic Encyclopedia and a contemporary theological article to show the differences between the two theological perspectives.
There is an ample scope of debate as to whether Mormonism is Christianity or not. It is true that both are similar; however, Protestants and Catholics equally are against the acceptance of Mormons to be Christians. There are many doctrinal similarities between the Catholic Church and the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints (Mormon). Both churches accept Jesus Christ as the Savior of the world and teach that salvation comes through faith in Christ, repentance and baptism. The differences between the two churches revolve around priesthood authority, continuing revelation, the nature of God, the purpose of mortality and eternal marriage as well as methods of baptism. Beyond its shared nature
The Church went through a period of cruel persecution under various Roman Empire emperors prior to the 4th century. The church also had to go through the issue with heretics inside the church. During this crucial period in church history, one of the important theological and ecclesiastical question concerned Christology. Christology deals with the life of Jesus Christ. One bishop, Arius, taught that Jesus was not God the Son. God providentially sent a man, St. Athanasius, to defend the Lord’s church.
Jesus of Nazareth is believed by Christians to be one of the Holy Trinity, defined as being comprised of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. As such, Jesus as the Son, is regarded as
According to the Christian faith, Jesus Christ is the second person in the trinity of God. He is God in human form, the Son. He is God in the flesh. He is known as the God-man. He was fully human, yet fully God. (Theology for Today, Towns, 155) He experienced all of the trials, temptation, pain, suffering of being confined to a human body. Even so, Jesus was God almighty. By the word of His mouth he could perform miracles never seen before. There were
When discussing and proving the person of Christ, there are two basic laws that must be addressed and proven. First you must prove that Christ is one hundred percent human (humanity), then you must prove that at the same time Christ is one hundred percent God (deity).
The two natures of Jesus refers to the doctrine that the one person Jesus has two natures, (Divine and Human). In theology this is called “the doctrine of the hypostatic union. ” it derives its meaning from the Greek word hypostasis (which is also
Studies of Jesus primarily focus on the duality of Jesus and how he is able to be both human and divine at once. This subject was disputed at the Council of Chalcedon in the year 451 between the
On the other hand, Athanasius, the leader of the bishops in the west, claimed that the Father and Son were equal and of the same substance. In 325, as a mediator, Constantine called together a council of bishops at Nicaea in Asia Minor. While condemning Arius and his teachings, the council declared the complete equality of God the Father and the Son. The teaching that Father and Son were made up "of one substance" became part of the Nicene Creed, the statement that helped to unite Christianity. The council addressed other issues as well, including the method for consecrating bishops.
One of the most important events in church history includes the Council of Nicea. The First Council of Nicea happened in 325 and involved the first gathering of Christian bishops and the Roman Empire not as enemies but as allies. The bishops wanted to solve the dispute over Arianism. Arianism is the belief that Christ was more than human but something less than God. Arianism taught the people that Jesus