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Stained glass window of Saint Peter proclaiming Jesus, in Luke 9:20: "But who do you say that
I am?" Peter answered: "The Christ of God".[1]
Christology (from Christ and Greek -λογία, -logia) is the field of study within Christian
theology which is primarily concerned with the nature and person of Jesus Christ as recorded in
the Canonical gospels and the letters of the New Testament.[2] Primary considerations include the
relationship of Jesus' nature and person with the nature and person of God the Father. As such,
Christology is concerned with the details of Jesus' life (what he did) and his teachings (what he
said) in order to arrive at a clearer understanding of who he is in his person, and his role in
salvation.[3]
A major component of the Christology of the Apostolic Age was that of Saint Paul whose central
themes were the notion of pre-existence of Christ and the worship of Christ as Kyrios (the Lord).
[4]
Following the Apostolic Age, a number of issues in Christology were debated, and due to
seemingly minor, but politically charged differences, in the 4th century schisms among
denominations developed.
In the 13th century Saint Thomas Aquinas provided the first systematic Christology that
consistently resolved a number of the existing issues. In his Christology from above, Aquinas
also championed the principle of perfection of Christ's human attributes.[5][6][7] The Middle Ages
also witnessed the emergence of the "tender image of Jesus" as a friend and a living source of
love and comfort, rather than just the Kyrios image.[8]
According to theologian Karl Rahner, the purpose of modern Christology is to formulate the
Christian belief that "God became man and that God-made-man is the individual Jesus Christ" in
a manner that this statement can be understood consistently, without the confusions of past
debates and mythologies.[9] However, there are some Christian denominations, such as The
Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, that believe that God and Jesus are literally separate
persons.
Contents
• 1 Terms and concepts
• 2 Beginnings
o 2.1 Apostolic Christology
o 2.2 Post-Apostolic controversies
• 3 Middle Ages to the Reformation
• 4 Christological issues
o 4.1 Person of Christ
o 4.2 Nativity and the Holy Name
o 4.3 Crucifixion and Resurrection
o 4.4 Threefold office
o 4.5 Mariology
• 5 See also
• 6 Notes
• 7 References
• 8 Further reading
• 9 External links
Over the centuries, a number of terms and concepts have been developed within the framework
of Christology to address the seemingly simple questions: "who was Jesus and what did he do?"
A good deal of theological debate has ensued and significant schisms within Christian
denominations took place in the process of providing answers to these questions. After the
Middle Ages systematic approaches to Christology were developed.
The term Christology from above refers to approaches that begin with the Divinity and pre-
existence of Christ as the Logos (the Word), as expressed in the first sections of the Gospel of
John. These approaches interpret the works of Christ in terms of his Divinity. Christology from
above was emphasized in the ancient Church, beginning with Ignatius of Antioch in the 2nd
century.[10][11] The term Christology from below, on the other hand, refers to approaches that
begin with the human aspects and the ministry of Jesus (including the miracles, parables, etc.)
and move towards his Divinity and the mystery of Incarnation.[10][11]
The concept of Cosmic Christology, was first elaborated by Saint Paul and focuses on how the
arrival of Jesus as the Son of God forever changed the nature of the cosmos.[4][12] The terms
functional, ontological and soteriological have been used to refer to the perspectives that analyze
the "works", the "being" and the "salvific" standpoints of Christology.[13] Some essential sub-
topics within the field of Christology include the incarnation, the resurrection, and salvation.
The term monastic Christology has been used to describe spiritual approaches developed by
Anselm of Canterbury, Peter Abelard and Bernard of Clairvaux. The Franciscan piety of the 12th
and 13th centuries led to popular Christology. Systematic approaches by theologians such as
Thomas Aquinas are called scholastic Christology.[14]
[edit] Beginnings
Early Christians found themselves confronted with a set of new concepts and ideas relating to the
life, death and resurrection of Jesus, as well the notions of salvation and redemption, and had to
use a new set of terms, images and ideas to deal with them.[15] The existing terms and structures
available to them were often insufficient to express these new set of religious concepts, and taken
together, these new forms of discourse lead to the beginnings of Christology, as an attempt to
understand, explain and discuss their understanding of the nature of Christ.[15]
Furthermore, as early Christians had to explain their concepts to a new audience which had at
times been influenced by Greek philosophy they had to present arguments that at times resonated
with, and at times confronted the beliefs of that audience. A key example is Apostle Paul's
Areopagus sermon that appears in Acts 17:16-34. Here the apostle attempted to convey the
underlying concepts about Christ to a Greek audience and the sermon illustrates some key
elements of future Christological discourses that were first brought forward by Paul.[15][16][17]
The Kyrios title for Jesus is central to the development of New Testament Christology, for the
early Christians placed it at the center of their understanding and from that center attempted to
understand the other issues related to the Christian mysteries.[18] The question of the deity of
Christ in the New Testament is inherently related to the Kyrios title of Jesus used in the early
Christian writings and its implications for the absolute lordship of Jesus. In early Christian belief,
the concept of Kyrios included the Pre-existence of Christ for they believed that if Christ is one
with God, he must have been united with God from the very beginning.[18][19]
In everyday Aramaic, Mari was a very respectful form of polite address, which means more than
just "Teacher" and was somewhat similar to Rabbi. In Greek this has at times been translated as
Kyrios. While the term Mari expressed the relationship between Jesus and his disciples during
his life, the Greek Kyrios came to represent his lordship over the world.[20]
The Christology of the three Synoptic Gospels emphasizes the humanity of Jesus, his sayings, his
parables, and his miracles. The Gospel of John provides a different, yet complimentary
perspective that focuses on his divinity.[3] The first fourteen verses of the Gospel of John are
devoted to the divinity of Jesus as the logos, usually translated as Word, along with his
preexistence, and they emphasize the cosmic significance of Christ, e.g. John 1:3: "All things
were made through him, and without him was not any thing made that was made." In the context
of these verses, the Word made flesh is identical with the Word who was in the beginning with
God, being exegetically equated with Jesus.[3]
A foremost contributor to the Christology of the Apostolic Age is that of Paul. The central
Christology of Paul conveys the notion of Christ's preexistence and the identification of Christ as
Kyrios.[4] The Pauline epistles use Kyrios to identify Jesus almost 230 times, and express the
theme that the true mark of a Christian is the confession of Jesus as the true Lord.[21] Paul viewed
the superiority of the Christian revelation over all other divine manifestations as a consequence
of the fact that Christ is the Son of God.[3]
The Pauline epistles also advanced the cosmic Christology of the fourth gospel, elaborating the
cosmic implications of Jesus' existence as the Son of God, as in 2Corinthians 5:17: "Therefore, if
anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come."
Also, in Colossians 1:15: "He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation."[4][12]
Main articles: First Council of Nicaea, First Council of Ephesus, and Council of Chalcedon
A series of articles on
Christology
Christ
Pre-existence of Christ
Logos (The Word)
Incarnation • Nativity
Hypostatic union
Knowledge of Christ
Perfection of Christ
Threefold office
Following the Apostolic Age, from the 2nd century onwards, a number of controversies
developed about how the human and divine are related within the person of Jesus.[22][23] As of the
2nd century, a number of different and opposing approaches developed among various groups,
e.g. Arianism and Ebionitism argued that Jesus was an ordinary mortal, while Gnosticism, held
docetic views which argued that Christ was a spiritual being that only appeared to have a
physical body.[24][25] The resulting tensions lead to schisms within the church in the 2nd and 3rd
centuries, and ecumenical councils were convened in the 4th and 5th centuries to deal with the
issues. Eventually in 451 the Hypostatic union was decreed, namely that Jesus is both fully
divine and fully human, making this part of the creed of Orthodox Christianity.[22][23] Although
some of the debates seemed to be over one theological iota they took place in controversial
political circumstances and resulted in a schism that formed the Church of the East.[26][27]
In 325 the First Council of Nicaea defined the persons of the Godhead and their relationship with
one another - decisions which were re-ratified at the First Council of Constantinople in 381. The
language used was that the one God exists in three persons (Father, Son, and Holy Spirit); in
particular it was affirmed that the Son was homoousios (of same substance) as the Father. The
Nicene Creed declared the full divinity and full humanity of Jesus.[28][29][30]
In 431, the First Council of Ephesus was initially called to address the views of Nestorius on
Mariology, but the problems soon extended to Christology, and schisms followed. The 431
council was called because in defense of his loyal priest Anastasius, Nestorius had denied the
Theotokos title for Mary and later contradicted Proclus during a sermon in Constantinople. Pope
Celestine I (who was already upset with Nestorius due to other matters) wrote about this to Cyril
of Alexandria who orchesterated the council. During the council Nestorius defended his position
by arguing that there must be two persons of Christ, one human, the other Divine, and Mary had
given birth only to a human and hence could not be called the Theotokos, i.e. the one who gives
birth to God. The debate about the single or dual nature of Christ ensued in Ephesus.[31][32][33][34]
The Council of Ephesus debated hypostasis (co-existing natures) versus Monophysitism (only
one nature) versus Miaphysitism (two natures united as one) versus Nestorianism (disunion of
two natures). From the Christological viewpoint, the council adopted hyposthasis, i.e. co-existing
natures, but its language was less definitive than the 451 Council of Chalcedon. The Oriental
Orthodox rejected this and subsequent councils and to date consider themselves to be
Miaphysite.[35][36] By contrast, to date Roman Catholics believe in the Hypostatic union and the
Trinity. The council also confirmed the Theotokos title and excommunicated Nestorius.[37]
The 451 Council of Chalcedon was highly influential and marked a key turning point in the
Christological debates that broke apart the church of the Eastern Roman Empire in the 5th
century.[38] It is the last council which many Anglicans and most Protestants consider ecumenical.
[39]
It fully promulgated the hypostatic union, stating that the human and divine natures of Christ
co-exist, yet each is distinct and complete. Although, the Chalcedonian Creed did not put an end
to all Christological debate, it did clarify the terms used and became a point of reference for
many future Christologies. Most of the major branches of Christianity —Roman Catholicism,
Eastern Orthodoxy, Anglicanism, Lutheranism, and Reformed — subscribe to the Chalcedonian
Christological formulation, while many branches of Eastern Christianity - Syrian Orthodoxy,
Assyrian Church, Coptic Orthodoxy, Ethiopian Orthodoxy, and Armenian Apostolicism - reject
it.[39][40][41]
While the concept of Kyrios dominated the Christology of the Apostolic Age, an important
supplementary element emerged in the Middle Ages. Based on the influences of Anselm of
Canterbury, Bernard of Clairvaux and women mystics the "tender image of Jesus" as a friend and
a source of love and comfort was developed. This contrasted with the images of Jesus as the
Lord and as the key to eventual salvation based on his sacrifice at Calvary. The Franciscan
approach to popular piety strengthened this friendly image. According to Archbishop Rowan
Williams this made an important impact within the Christian Ministry by allowing Christians to
feel the living presence of Jesus as a loving figure "who is always there to harbor and nurture
those who turn to him for help and take delight in his presence".[8][14]
The Middle Ages, between the 5th and 15th centuries, ushered in three new aspects of
Christology: monastic, popular and academic. The spiritual and monastic perspectives were due
to Anselm of Canterbury, Peter Abelard and Bernard of Clairvaux, each focusing on a different
variation of that theme. The popular piety championed by the Franciscans led to a more
widespread appreciation of Christology from the Middle Ages onwards. At the same time,
European Universities embarked on a systematic and scholarly approach to Christology, with
Thomas Aquinas being the key figure in that arena.[14]
Some key theological figures in this period such as Saint Augustine or John Calvin never wrote
specific works on Christology, yet modern scholars have attempted to extract Christological
insights from their works, e.g. the study of Theocentricism in the writings of Augustine and the
analysis of Christ as "King, priest and prophet" in the writings of Calvin.[42][43]
During the Middle Ages, many of the conflicts between Scripture and tradition were resolved
through the construction of theological arguments, and were presented in terms of summae,
which summed up complete presentations of discussions that led to knowledge.[44] The apex of
these in the 13th century, was provided by Saint Thomas Aquinas. His Summa Theologiae
presented the first systematic Christology that consistently resolved a number of the existing
issues. In his Christology from above, Aquinas also championed the principle of perfection of
Christ, namely that in every human sense, Jesus was the best that could ever be.[5][6][7]
The question of "grace" was at the heart of the Reformation, which Martin Luther initiated. This
amounted to the question of where do I find a gracious God? Luther believed that the saving
work of Christ is imputed for the remission of sins via the words of the gospels. This led to his
fourfold formula of solo Christo, sola gratia, sola fide, sola scriptura, i.e. only Christ, grace,
faith and scripture.[45] Martin Luther believed in the Creed of Chalcedon and that Jesus was both
God and man. He viewed Incarnation as the union of God and man.[46]
Docetism (from the Greek verb to seem) taught that Jesus was fully divine, and his human body
was only illusory. At a very early stage, various Docetic groups arose; in particular, the gnostic
sects which flourished in the 2nd century AD tended to have Docetic theologies. Docetic
teachings were attacked by St. Ignatius of Antioch (early 2nd century), and appear to be targeted
in the canonical Epistles of John (dates are disputed, but range from late 1st century among
traditionalist scholars to late 2nd century among critical scholars).
The Council of Nicaea rejected theologies that entirely ruled out any humanity in Christ,
affirming in the Nicene Creed the doctrine of the Incarnation as a part of the doctrine of the
Trinity. That is, that the second person of the Trinity became incarnate in the person Jesus and
was fully human.
The discussion of whether the three distinct persons in the Godhead of the Trinity were of
greater, equal, or lesser by comparison was also, like many other areas of early Christology, a
subject of debate. In Athenagoras of Athens (c. 133-190) writings we find a very developed
trinitarian doctrine.[47] On the one end of the spectrum was modalism, a doctrine stating that the
three persons of the Trinity were equal to the point of erasing their differences and distinctions.
On the other end of the spectrum were tritheism as well as some radically subordinationist views,
the latter of which emphasized the primacy of the Father of Creation to the deity of Christ and
Jesus's authority over the Holy Spirit. During the Council of Nicea, the modalist bishops of
Rome and Alexandria aligned politically with Athanasius; whereas the bishops of Constantinople
(Nicomedia), Antioch, and Jerusalem sided with the subordinationists as middle ground between
Arius and Athanasius.
The Nativity of Jesus impacted the Christological issues about his Person from the earliest days
of Christianity. Luke's Christology centers on the dialectics of the dual natures of the earthly and
heavenly manifestations of existence of the Christ, while Matthew's Christology focuses on the
mission of Jesus and his role as the savior.[48][49] The salvific emphasis of Matthew 1:21 later
impacted the theological issues and the devotions to Holy Name of Jesus.[50][51][52]
Matthew 1:23 provides a key to the Emmanuel Christology of Matthew. Beginning with 1:23,
Matthew shows a clear interest in identifying Jesus as "God with us" and in later developing the
Emmanuel chracterization of Jesus at key points throughout the rest of his Gospel.[53] The name
Emmanuel does not appear elsewhere in the New Testament, but Matthew builds on it in
Matthew 28:20 ("I am with you always, even unto the end of the world") to indicates that Jesus
will be with the faithful to the end of the age.[53][54] According to Ulrich Luz, the Emmanuel motif
brackets the entire Gospel of Matthew between 1:23 and 28:20, appearing explicitly an
dimplicitly in several other passages.[55]
The accounts of the Crucifixion and subsequent Resurrection of Jesus provides a rich
background for Christological analysis, from the Canonical Gospels to the Pauline Epistles.[56]
A central element in the Christology presented in the Acts of the Apostles is the affirmation of
the belief that the death of Jesus by Crucifixion happened "with the foreknowledge of God,
according to a definite plan".[57] In this view, as in Acts 2:23, the cross is not viewed as a scandal,
for the crucifixion of Jesus "at the hands of the lawless" is viewed as the fulfilment of the of the
plan of God.[58].[57]
Paul's Christology has a specific focus on the death and resurrection of Jesus. For Paul, the
Crucifixion of Jesus is directly related to his resurrection and the term "the cross of Christ" used
in Gallatioans 6:12 may be viewed as his abbreviation of the message of the gospels.[59] For Paul,
the Crucifixion of Jesus was not an isolated event in history, but a cosmic event with significant
eschatological consequences, as in Cor 2:8.[59] In the Pauline view, Jesus, obedient to the point of
death (Phil 2:8), died "at the right time" (Rom 4:25) based on the plan of God.[59] For Paul the
"power of the cross" is not separable from the Resurrection of Jesus.[59]
The threefold office (Latin munus triplex) of Jesus Christ is a Christian doctrine based upon the
teachings of the Old Testament. It was described by Eusebius and more fully developed by John
Calvin. It states that Jesus Christ performed three functions (or "offices") in his earthly ministry -
those of prophet (Deuteronomy 18:14-22), priest (Psalm 110:1-4), and king (Psalm 2) In the Old
Testament, the appointment of someone to any of these three positions could be indicated by
anointing him or her by pouring oil over the head. Thus the term messiah, meaning "anointed
one", is associated with the concept of the threefold office. While the office of king is that most
frequently associated with the Messiah, the role of Jesus as priest is also prominent in the New
Testament, being most fully explained in chapters 7 to 10 of the Book of Hebrews.
[edit] Mariology
Some Christians, notably Roman Catholics, view Mariology as a key component of Christology.
[60]
In this view, not only is Mariology a logical and necessary consequence of Christology, but
without it, Christology is incomplete since the figure of Mary contributes to a fuller
understanding of who Christ is and what he did.[61] Some other Christians, such as the
Protestants, do not agree with this view.
Joseph Cardinal Ratzinger (later Pope Benedict XVI) expressed this sentiment about Roman
Catholic Mariology when in two separate occasions he stated: "The appearance of a truly Marian
awareness serves as the touchstone indicating whether or not the Christological substance is fully
present"[62] and that "It is necessary to go back to Mary, if we want to return to the truth about
Jesus Christ".[63]
[edit] References
• Barclay, William. “The Plain Man Looks at the Apostles’ Creed,” London:Collins. 1967.
• Karl Barth. “Church Dogmatics,” IV.1 Edinburgh:T&T Clark. 1956, 207.
• Brown, Colin, Ed., New International Dictionary of NT Theology, Volume 3 (Grand
Rapids: Zondervan, 1986).
• Chilton, Bruce. “The Son of Man: Who Was He?” Bible Review. August 1996, 35+.
• Craig, William Lane. “Did Jesus Rise from the Dead?” Edited by Michael J. Wilkins and
J.P. Moreland. Jesus Under Fire. Grand Rapids: Zondervan Publishing House, 1995.
• Cullmann, Oscar. The Christology of the New Testament. trans. Louisville: Westminster
John Knox Press, 1980. ISBN 0-664-24351-7
• Fuller, Reginald H. The Foundations of New Testament Christology. New York:
Scribners, 1965. ISBN 0-684-15532-X
• Greene, Colin J.D. Christology in Cultural Perspective: Marking Out the Horizons.
Grand Rapids: Eerdmans Publishing, 2004. ISBN 0-8028-2792-6
• Kingsbury, Jack Dean. The Christology of Mark's Gospel. Philadelphia: Fortress Press,
1989.
• LaSor, William Sanford with David Allan Hubbard, Frederic William Bush. Old
Testament Survey: The Message, Form, and Background of the Old Testament, (Wm. B.
Eerdmans Publishing Co.; 2nd ed 1996).
• Letham, Robert. The Work of Christ. Contours of Christian Theology. Downer Grove:
IVP, 1993, ISBN 0-8308-1532-5
• Hodgson, Peter C. Winds of the Spirit: A Constructive Christian Theology. Louisville:
Westminster John Knox Press, 1994.
• MacLeod, Donald. The Person Of Christ: Contours of Christian Theology. Downer
Grove: IVP. 1998, ISBN 0-8308-1537-6
• Matthews, Victor H. and Don C. Benjamin, Social World of Ancient Israel, 1250-587
BC, (Peabody, MA: Hendrickson, 1993).
• Jürgen Moltmann. Jesus Christ for Today’s World. Translated by Margaret Kohl.
Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 1994
• Wolfhart Pannenberg, Systematic Theology, Vol.2.
• Rausch, Thomas P. Who is Jesus?: An Introduction to Christology (Michael Glazier
Books). Collegeville: Liturgical Press, 2003 ISBN 0-8146-5078-3
• Rogers, Cleon L. Jr. and Cleon L. Rogers III, The New Linguistic and Exegetical Key to
the Greek New Testament, (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan 1998).
• Schwarz, Hans. Christology. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans Publishing, 1998. ISBN 0-8028-
4463-4
• Xavier Tilliette, La Christologie idéaliste, Paris, Desclée, 1986
• Xavier Tilliette, Le Christ de la philosophie, Cerf, 1990 (prix Montyon de l'Académie
française)
• Walker, William. “The Son of Man in the Fourth Gospel.” Journal For the Study of the
New Testament. December 1994; 31-42.
• Wilson, Douglas. “Indwelling.” Credenda/Agenda: Husbandry. Vol. 16. No. 3. 2005.
http://www.credenda.org/issues/16-3husbandry.php.[dead link] Accessed on 24 June 2006.
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