I have some Odd questions

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roccoangelo

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Greetings,

I have some odd questions to ask… Our Creed states that Jesus “is seated at the right hand of the God the Father almighty, from thence he shall come to judge the living and the dead”. Would this part of the creed suggest that Jesus is physically sitting on a throne in heaven?.. because according to our faith and the holy scriptures, Jesus has been resurrected in His physical body, so wouldn’t that mean that heaven is a also a physical place and not just a spiritual place?..

Also, I understand that God is pure spirit, neither male nor female, but at the same time, Jesus is a male, so would the “pure spirit” description be applicable to God the Father and God the Holy Spirit only?

In Christ,
Rocco
 
Well, we know that Jesus ascended to heaven with His resurrected body. We also assume the assumption of Mary in her body. And we have Enoch and Elijah who never died and were taken up to at least a part of heaven - perhaps “paradise” (since Jesus had not opened the gates of heaven yet till His resurrection).

It may be the expression ‘seated at the right hand of the father’ is more an expression of highest position of honor and glory. But it could just as well be literal in a heavenly sense that may or may not have both physical and spiritual aspects.

My opinion is that when it comes to heaven its almost pointless to try to imagine it in human terms since we are told it transcends the joy and happiness of anything we could possibly imagine.

James
 
roccoangelo said:
Greetings,

I have some odd questions to ask… Our Creed states that Jesus “is seated at the right hand of the God the Father almighty, from thence he shall come to judge the living and the dead”. Would this part of the creed suggest that Jesus is physically sitting on a throne in heaven?.. because according to our faith and the holy scriptures, Jesus has been resurrected in His physical body, so wouldn’t that mean that heaven is a also a physical place and not just a spiritual place?..

Also, I understand that God is pure spirit, neither male nor female, but at the same time, Jesus is a male, so would the “pure spirit” description be applicable to God the Father and God the Holy Spirit only?

In Christ,
Rocco
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As far as the right hand goes, in ancient times those who were favored by the king, at least in the societies which the Jews were familiar, sat on their right side in court. The creed’s wording reflects Christ’s favored-son position with the Father. Whether or not that’s an accurate representation of a physical presense, ???🤷

The trinity is a complicated concept, one that is difficult to understand and explain. The best I can offer with my limited understanding that Jesus, being fully God and fully man, is pure spirit united to his human body.
 
Newbie2,

Aren’t we all pure spirits united with our bodies though?
 
roccoangelo said:
Newbie2,

Aren’t we all pure spirits united with our bodies though?
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No, we are not spirits united with bodies, we are human=body and spirit. Without the body, we are not complete, we are only truely human when we are with body and spirit thus the resurrection of the dead, so that we may live again as humans. Mary and Jesus are fully human at this time because they have both body and spirit, whereas the saints, have to endure an existence without a body and thus cannot be fully what they are: human.

The Father, the Holy Spirit, and the angels are pure spirit. The son and all humans are not.

So, to say we are pure spirit with a body is like saying water is pure hydrogen united with some oxygen.
 
On the Incarnation of the Word by St. Athanasius newadvent.org/fathers/2802.htm

On the Flesh of Christ by Tertullian newadvent.org/fathers/0315.htm
This was written by our author in confutation of certain heretics who denied the reality of Christ’s flesh, or at least its identity with human flesh— fearing that, if they admitted the reality of Christ’s flesh, they must also admit his resurrection in the flesh; and, consequently, the resurrection of the human body after death.
 
roccoangelo said:
Greetings,

I have some odd questions to ask… Our Creed states that Jesus “is seated at the right hand of the God the Father almighty, from thence he shall come to judge the living and the dead”. Would this part of the creed suggest that Jesus is physically sitting on a throne in heaven?.. because according to our faith and the holy scriptures, Jesus has been resurrected in His physical body, so wouldn’t that mean that heaven is a also a physical place and not just a spiritual place?..

Also, I understand that God is pure spirit, neither male nor female, but at the same time, Jesus is a male, so would the “pure spirit” description be applicable to God the Father and God the Holy Spirit only?

In Christ,
Rocco
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The best way to “understand” these things is that we can’t truly understand them.😛
Any Human language that is used, even with the guidance and inspiration of the Holy Spirit, can only approximate the Glories of God. The limitation lies with us and our ability to grasp concepts.
I liken it to when some Sadducees were asking Jesus about a woman who was widowed and married by her husbands brothers:
28 “In the resurrection, therefore, whose wife of the seven will she be? For they all had married her.” 29 But Jesus answered and said to them, "**You are mistaken, not understanding the Scriptures nor the power of God. **30 "For in the resurrection they neither marry nor are given in marriage, but are like angels in heaven.
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In other words, they could not comprehend what the resurrection would be like.
How many times did Jesus try to explain the Kingdom of God with these words:
The Kingdom of God is like…
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Yet we still struggle to understand.

Your questions are certainly valid ones, but just remember that we can never get truly complete and satisfactory answers on this side of Heaven.

Peace
James
 
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