To be a Jew is easier because for him, Jesus was just a Rabbi. To be a Muslim is easier too because for him, Jesus was only a prophet. However, to be a Christian is more difficult, more intellectually challenging. Christians are Christians because they are followers of Jesus Christ whom they believe is fully human and divine. Christians believe that Jesus is God the Son incarnated. Jesus is both God and human. Christians of the first four centuries struggled hard to come in terms with this article of faith. Orthodox Christians won the day when they confessed that in the person of Jesus, there are two natures: divinity and humanity. The Son of God, with his divinity, took up our lowly human nature; went through all the necessary stages of human development --- in the womb of Mary, born as a Jewish baby boy etc.; preached the Gospel with divine authority; crucified and died on the cross; resurrected from death and returned to Heaven. In short, if anybody doubts either the humanity (Docetians, Apollinarians) or the divinity (Arians) of Jesus, or separates the humanity and divinity of Jesus (Nestorians), he is NOT a Christian.
Sometimes, those heretics challenged the divinity of Jesus indirectly. They attacked Mary instead. For example, they argued that Mary was only a human being, a creature of God. It was impossible for her to give birth to God. Therefore, Mary should not be called the "Mother of God" (See the section "Mary's divine motherhood"). She should only be called the "Mother of Christ". This view was logically attractive. However, accepting this view would deny the unity of the two natures of Jesus. Orthodox Christians could not concede. They convoked the Ephesus Council in 431 A.D. to defend the unity of the divinity and the humanity of Jesus and affirm the title of Mary. She is not only the Mother of Christ. She is the Mother of God.
Why is it important for Christians to defend the unity of the two natures of Jesus?
If the humanity of Jesus were separable from his divinity, we would not be able to partake in the eternal life of God. Our redemption/salvation would only be incomplete.
Okay, don't press me too hard. My theological knowledge is limited. I need to follow the example of the Mother of God, who
kept all these things, pondering them in her heart (Luke 2:19, 51b).
Until today, Mary does not understand. She just follows God's will and cooperates with God to bring us salvation. Her humility fills her with God's grace.
Therefore, let me wish you all
As for Nestorius, who believed Jesus was God but didn't believe you should call Mary "Mother of God" -- he was not in any wise denying Jesus' divinity nor humanity nor trying to split them. He was following Hebrews 7 which says that Melchisedek was "made like Christ, being without father, without mother" -- Nestorius would argue based on this passage that Christ is without father as pertaining to his humanity and without mother as pertaining to his godhood, hence he is described BY SCRIPTURE as "without father, without mother." If you condemn Nestorius as a heretic you must also condemn the writer of Hebrews. If you insist on calling Mary "Mother of God" you are in conflict with Hebrews 7.
ReplyDeleteNow in the other direction, many denied that Jesus was born of Mary because they believed he was God. And they thought he brought his flesh down with him from heaven. They would appeal to passages like in John 6 "I am the bread that came down from heaven...the bread is my flesh..." to demonstrate that Christ's FLESH came down from heaven not from any woman. Or they'd appeal to those passages in Matt and Luke where Jesus says "Of all those born of women, none is greater than John the Baptist" which would mean that Jesus was saying "I was not born of a woman" for it is unthinkable that he would be saying John the Baptist was greater than himself!
Dear beowulf2k8,
DeleteI think you have misread Hebrews 7:3.
He (Melchizedek) is without father or mother or genealogy, and has neither beginning of days nor end of life, but resembling the Son of God he continues a priest for ever (RSV).
Melchizedek is without father or mother or genealogy. Christ is not. The gospels of Matthew and Luke contain a genealogy of Christ. So, Christ is not without father, without mother.
Melchizedek resembles the Son of God in that he continues to be a priest forever.
Jesus, the Son of God was definitely born of woman. Read Galatians 4:4.
But when the time had fully come, God sent forth his Son, born of woman, born under the law (RSV)
Sometimes, reading the Bible out of context is great fun!