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Saturday, July 23, 2011

In Defense of the Coptic Church, and The Nature of Christ

'"After the schism which took place in the year 451 A.D., when the Coptic Orthodox Church rejected the motions of the Council of Chalcedon and its theological struggles, they were called "Monophysites" that is, those who believe in the "One Nature".'"

~ H. H. Pope Shenouda III

Historically, for some bizarre reason, many have wondered which of the two natures the Church of Alexandria (Coptic) denied. The misinterpretation throughout history has been that the Coptic Church believed in one nature of Christ and denied the other nature. St. Athanasius of Alexandria said in The Incarnation of the Word that:

"The expression "One Nature" does not indicate the Divine nature alone nor the human nature alone, but it indicates the unity of both natures into One Nature which is "The Nature of the Incarnate Logos".

"...man’s nature is not the soul alone nor the body alone, but their union in one nature called human nature."

~H. H. Pope Shenouda III

In my opinion the misinterpretation has been clarified.

References:

St. Athanasius of Alexandria, The Incarnation of the Word.

H. H. Pope Shenouda III, Patriarch of the See of St. Mark, The Nature of Christ.

1 comment:

Mo said...

Perhaps a better reference would be the following:

http://www.copticchurch.net/topics/theology/index.html.