CFD CEBU AND CFD MANILA SETTLE CHRISTOLOGICAL DEBATES, DECLARE UNITY OF FAITH : “GOD DIED IN HIS HUMAN NATURE”

To my fellow CFD, we all know that this present controversy has long been resolved by the church since the early church fathers during its various ecumenical councils such as in Chalcedon 451, Constantinople 553, etc…until the second vatican council.

There should be no contoversy within our organization had all its members listen to our teacher regarding its correct interpretation which is in accordance with the teachings of the church through its Catechism of the Catholic Church. Literal and figurative is a matter of understanding and accepting the church explanation.

First, our Catechism (ccc no. 467), says: “we confess that one and the same Christ, is to be acknowledged in two natures without confusion. The distinction between His divine and human nature which was never abolished by their union but rather was preserved as they came together in one person”. By it, we are sure to have a correct understanding regarding this seemingly controversy. “Thus everything in Christ’s human nature is to be attributed to his divine person as its proper subject, not only his miracles but also his sufferings and even death.” (Ccc 468). [Response: THAT IS VERY CLEAR, EVERYTHING ABOUT CHRIST’S HUMAN NATURE IS “TO BE” ATTRIBUTED TO HIS “DIVINE PERSON” AS ITS PROPER SUBJECT, NOT ONLY HIS MIRACLES BUT ALSO HIS SUFFERINGS AND EVEN DEATH. THAT IS WHY WE SAY: GOD DIED ON THE CROSS! BECAUSE THE SUFFERINGS AND DEATH OF JESUS IS TO BE ATTRIBUTED TO THE “DIVINE PERSON”, NOT TO BODY ONLY AND NOT TO HUMAN NATURE ONLY.]

Thus, it was only attributed or ascribed to his divine person the so called sufferings and death of our Lord Jesus Christ in view of the fact that both his divine and human nature are never abolished when he assumed humanity under the doctrine of hypostatic union.

Ergo, when it comes to a question whether literal or figurative in the parlance of Jesus’ Death, Mother of God, Eucharist, etc…is a matter of understanding regarding his one person (prosopon) and one hypostasis. [Response: THE STATEMENTS OF FAITH IN THE CREED ARE NOT FIGURATIVE BUT DEFINED STATEMENT OF FAITH WHICH ARE TRUE AND REAL. SUCH AS: “TRUE GOD AND TRUE MAN”, “SUFFERED AND DIED FOR US”, “MARY THE MOTHER OF GOD”, “JESUS IS TRULY PRESENT IN THE HOLY EUCHARIST, BODY, SOUL AND DIVINITY” THESE ARE NOT FIGURATIVE BUT LITERAL, i.e., THEY ARE ABSOLUTE TRUTHS. 

FIGURATIVE LANGUAGE IS USING ANOTHER WORDS TO DESCRIBE ANOTHER. TO CLAIM THAT THEY ARE MERE FIGURES OF SPEECH IN EXPLANATION WILL MEAN THAT WHAT WE ARE EXPLAINING IS NOT REAL. JUST LIKE SAYING “YOUR EYES ARE LOVELY DIAMONDS”. THOSE EYES ARE NOT LITERALLY, NOT TRULY, NOT REALLY DIAMONDS. YOU ARE USING ANOTHER WORD TO DESCRIBE ANOTHER ANALOGICALLY. IS MARY MOTHER OF GOD ONLY FIGURATIVELY? IS JESUS PRESENT IN THE EUCHARIST ONLY FIGURATIVELY? IF WE WILL ANSWER YES INTO THESE WE SHALL BECOME NESTORIAN AND LUTHERAN. THE PROTESTANTS CLAIM THAT THE EUCHARIST IS ONLY SYMBOLIC THEN IF WE SAY IT IS FIGURE OF SPEECH WE SHALL BECOME MUCH WORSE.]

So that when we say: “God died in His human nature”, it is basically literal as our ccc teaches us (ccc 612) …”death (of Jesus) represented for his human nature.”…, “…the Spirit who gave life to JESUS’ DEAD HUMANITY…”(ccc 648). [Response: YES, IT IS LITERAL. YOU ARE RIGHT. IT IS BASICALLY LITERAL AS OUR CCC TEACHES. JESUS IS LITERALLY GOD. JESUS LITERALLY DIED. JESUS OUR LITERAL GOD SUFFERED AND DIED FOR US IN HIS HUMAN NATURE OR IN THE BODY THAT HE ASSUMED.]

But when we say GOD DIED (literally) without explaining its sense of Communicatio Idiomatum, we have to be very careful on it because it is where the controversy sprouts. We cannot defend fully in the bible and in our catechism books saying God died (literally), do you? [Response: JESUS IS TRULY GOD. WHEN WE SAY GOD DIED IT MEANS JESUS TRULY DIED. SO THERE SHOULD BE NO PROBLEM ON THIS REGARD IF THIS STATEMENT IS VIEWED IN THE LIGHT OF THE INCARNATION OF JESUS. WHEN WE SAY CHRIST HAS DIED IT MEANS THAT CHRIST OUR GOD TRULY DIED FOR US. IF IT IS NOT LITERAL THEN JESUS IS NOT LITERALLY AND NOT TRULY GOD. IF IT IS NOT LITERAL WHAT IS IT? JESUS IS NOT GOD SYMBOLICALLY OR FIGURATIVELY ONLY. JESUS DIDN’T DIE SYMBOLICALLY OR FIGURATIVELY ONLY. JESUS OUR GOD DIED LITERALLY AND THEREFORE IT IS LITERAL.

IF THE PHRASE “GOD DIED” IS ADDRESSED TO THE FATHER OR THE HOLY SPIRIT AND NOT SPECIFICALLY TO JESUS THE SECOND PERSON OF THE HOLY TRINITY THEN IT WILL BE PROBLEMATIC. BUT AS LONG AS IT IS REFERRED TO THE LORD JESUS IN THE LIGHT OF THE INCARNATION AND HYPOSTATIC UNION THEN THE COMMUNICATIO IDIOMATUM APPLIES.]

God is eternal (ps 90:1) and what is eternal? It is a duration without beginning and without end (De Fide). That statement in Acts 3:15 which says: …”you killed the source of life”…must not be understood literally as cessation of life, but applying the ‘principle of predication’. “The oneness of Christ personality…where his human characteristics are predicated to His person under the title of God – the divine Logos became man, without ceasing to be God – after incarnation he possess also human nature, that he is God-Man” (Fundementals of Catholic Dogma, pg. 145). [Response: THE STATEMENT YOU KILLED THE SOURCE OF LIFE IS ALSO LITERAL. IT MEANS THAT THOSE WHO SENT JESUS TO CALVARY TRULY KILLED JESUS WHO IS GOD. THAT IS NOT FIGURATIVE BECAUSE JESUS IS TRUE GOD AND TRULY DIED. ST. PETER WAS NOT SPEAKING FIGURATIVELY INSTEAD HE WAS PROCLAIMING THE STRICTEST TRUTH OF FAITH OF THE CHURCH THAT JESUS IS GOD AND THAT THIS GOD WHO CAME DOWN FROM HEAVEN WAS KILLED AND WAS RISEN AGAIN. THAT IS THE BIBLICAL FOUNDATION OF “CHRIST HAS DIED, CHRIST IS RISEN, CHRIST WILL COME AGAIN!” THAT IS NOT FIGURATIVE. EACH WORD THEREIN IS LITERAL SINCE THEY ARE REAL AND TRUE.]

A statement in 5th Ecumenical council at Constantinople 553 which says: “He (God), who was crucified in the flesh, our Lord Jesus Christ is true God, Lord of glory one of the Holy Trinity”, is very clear statement which is to be understood on his human nature. This was clarified in our Book: Our Catholic Faith, pg. 75 which says: “It is true to say that God died for us (though only His Human Nature died)”. [Response: OUR CATHOLIC FAITH CATECHISM IS NOT ABOVE IN AUTHORITY THAN THE CATECHISM OF THE COUNCIL OF TRENT WHICH IS THE FIRST UNIVERSAL CATECHISM OF THE CHURCH. IT STATES:

“It is not, however, our belief that the body of Christ alone was interred. The above words propose, as the principal object of our belief, that God was buried; as according to the rule of Catholic faith, we also say with THE STRICTEST TRUTH that GOD DIED, and that GOD WAS BORN OF A VIRGIN. For as the Divinity was never separated from His body which was laid in the sepulcher, we truly confess that God was buried.” (CATECHISM OF THE COUNCIL OF TRENT, Rockford, Illinois: TAN Books and Publishers, Inc., 1982. P. 56)

ONCE AGAIN, THE TERM GOD IN THIS QUOTE REFERS TO THE PERSON OF JESUS AND WE BELIEVE THE TERM GOD IN OUR CATHOLIC FAITH CATECHISM REFERS TO THE “DIVINITY”.

It was also clearly explained in Catechism of the Council of Trent, pg. 57, 52 says: “That burial, passion and also death apply to Christ not as God, but as man. To suffer and die are incidental to human nature only, yet they are also attributed to God…are predicated with propriety of that person who is a perfect God and perfect man, therefore what was mortal in Christ remained mortal…what was immortal that is His divine nature continued as immortal”. [Response: IT APPLIES TO CHRIST NOT AS GOD BUT AS MAN, YET THEY ARE ATTRIBUTED NOT TO HUMAN NATURE ONLY BUT… TO GOD: “To suffer and die are incidental to human nature only, yet they are also attributed to God” THE ATTRIBUTION IS TO GOD. WHY BECAUSE OF PERFECT UNITY OF THE DIVINITY AND HUMANITY OF CHRIST WHICH CANNOT BE SEPARATED. THAT IS WHY THE COUNCIL OF TRENT CONSIDERED IT THE STRICTEST TRUTH THAT GOD DIED AND WAS BORN.]

“So it is false to say that Christ suffered as God” (Fundamentals of Catholic Dogma, pg. 161). Christ death in his human but alive in Spirit (1Pet 3:18).

“It is not, however, our belief that the body of Christ alone was interred. The above words propose, as the principal object of our belief, that God was buried; as according to the rule of Catholic faith, we also say with THE STRICTEST TRUTH that GOD DIED, and that GOD WAS BORN OF A VIRGIN. For as the Divinity was never separated from His body which was laid in the sepulcher, we truly confess that God was buried.” (CATECHISM OF THE COUNCIL OF TRENT, Rockford, Illinois: TAN Books and Publishers, Inc., 1982. P. 56)

THIS IS ALREADY SETTLED IN OUR AGREEMENT THAT DIVINE NATURE IS IMMORTAL AND CANNOT DIE. BUT WHEN WE SAY ‘GOD DIED’ WE REFER TO THE PERSON OF THE SON OF GOD, THE LORD JESUS WHO INCARNATED AND THEREFORE ASSUMED A HUMAN FLESH.]

In view of the above explanation, the Catholic Faith Defenders – Cebu Archdiocesan Chapter, hereby resolved this God Died controversy and settle to the explanation as: “GOD DIED IN HIS HUMAN NATURE” as approved by Rev. Fr. Lucas Inoc as CFD National Spiritual Adviser, together with our CFD Teacher – Bro Soc Fernadez and majority of the Cebu CFD Arch.Chapter Board of Steward and most importantly the previous approval of His Eminence Ricardo J. Cardinal Vidal, then Archbishop of Cebu. May our CFD be united regarding this resolution. God bless us all.