CHRISTgospel
30th July 2002, 10:26 PM
We want to stress the significant fact that the Jesus of the Church Council (and of the creeds of nearly all denominations calling themselves Christian), whose decision is taken as binding by millions of church-goers, “is not a human being,” “does not have a personal human center.” So says this Roman Catholic theologian. Lest anyone should be puzzled that the Jesus of the churches’ creed is not a human person, we can confirm that this is in fact the official teaching by quoting from a leading Protestant source:
“If we affirm that Jesus was a human person, we are driven into an impossible conception of double personality in the incarnate Son of God...” (Oliver Quick, D.D., Doctrines of the Creed, p. 178, emphasis added).
Dr. Quick obviously finds himself unable to affirm that Jesus was a human person. He then goes on to admit,
“If we deny that Jesus was a human person we deny by implication the completeness of his manhood” (ibid.).
But he and the Council did in fact deny that Jesus was a human person! Dr. Quick is not prepared to affirm that Jesus was a human person!
From these official statements about the person of Christ it appears that the Jesus of the churches — the Trinitarian Jesus — is not a human person. The churches are forced into this position because of their conviction that the person of Jesus is the eternal second member of the Trinity. Jesus for the churches is primarily God Himself who later puts on human nature.
When another theologian was first exposed, during his training, to this official Trinitarian Jesus he expressed his bewilderment as follows:
“During my theological formation I was well instructed in the traditional account of the incarnation of God in Jesus Christ. I distinctly remember being told that the Word of God when he assumed human nature, assumed impersonal humanity: that Jesus did not possess a human personality; that God became man in Jesus, but that he did not become a man.... Two considerations have persuaded me that this traditional Christology is incredible” (Grace and Truth, A.T. Hanson, p. 1, emphasis added).
Because many of our readers will be unaware of the extraordinary definition of Jesus derived from the Church Councils, we add a further statement from a book entitled, What Think Ye of Christ? by Leslie Simmonds:
“Now the doctrine of the Incarnation [and therefore of the Trinity] is that in Christ the place of a human personality is replaced by the Divine Personality of God the Son, the Second Person of the Most Holy Trinity. Christ possesses a complete human nature without a human personality. Uncreated and eternal Divine Personality replaces a created human personality in Him” (p. 45, emphasis added).
“If we affirm that Jesus was a human person, we are driven into an impossible conception of double personality in the incarnate Son of God...” (Oliver Quick, D.D., Doctrines of the Creed, p. 178, emphasis added).
Dr. Quick obviously finds himself unable to affirm that Jesus was a human person. He then goes on to admit,
“If we deny that Jesus was a human person we deny by implication the completeness of his manhood” (ibid.).
But he and the Council did in fact deny that Jesus was a human person! Dr. Quick is not prepared to affirm that Jesus was a human person!
From these official statements about the person of Christ it appears that the Jesus of the churches — the Trinitarian Jesus — is not a human person. The churches are forced into this position because of their conviction that the person of Jesus is the eternal second member of the Trinity. Jesus for the churches is primarily God Himself who later puts on human nature.
When another theologian was first exposed, during his training, to this official Trinitarian Jesus he expressed his bewilderment as follows:
“During my theological formation I was well instructed in the traditional account of the incarnation of God in Jesus Christ. I distinctly remember being told that the Word of God when he assumed human nature, assumed impersonal humanity: that Jesus did not possess a human personality; that God became man in Jesus, but that he did not become a man.... Two considerations have persuaded me that this traditional Christology is incredible” (Grace and Truth, A.T. Hanson, p. 1, emphasis added).
Because many of our readers will be unaware of the extraordinary definition of Jesus derived from the Church Councils, we add a further statement from a book entitled, What Think Ye of Christ? by Leslie Simmonds:
“Now the doctrine of the Incarnation [and therefore of the Trinity] is that in Christ the place of a human personality is replaced by the Divine Personality of God the Son, the Second Person of the Most Holy Trinity. Christ possesses a complete human nature without a human personality. Uncreated and eternal Divine Personality replaces a created human personality in Him” (p. 45, emphasis added).