Yes he is God. but he is also man. So therefore he had two wills, one divine and one human. When Christ became man in the Incarnation he took on a human nature with a human will. His prayer is a prayer of obedience to the Father’s will and shows how his human will was united completely with his divine will by asking “Thy will be done”.
Which nature of Jesus, the Son, was praying to the Father: Jesus’ divine nature or human nature? Or are these natures inextricably connected? In the same vein, was the divine Jesus, the Son, experiencing fear or was only Jesus’ human nature afraid?
but if they’re three divine persons in one divine being how can one not know what the other is thinking?
I can talk to myself like I am a other person.but if they’re three divine persons in one divine being how can one not know what the other is thinking?
We all can Andre, and it can be a very growthful quality.
Very often in human experience such reflective thought leads to insight, and sometimes, greater love for our own selves in a way that leads us to be more loving of others. In Barron’s view, that love that is engendered is the essence of the Holy Spirit. So you have three “Voices or distinct Persons” if you will, in One Being.en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shield_of_the_Trinitybut if they’re three divine persons in one divine being how can one not know what the other is thinking?
That’s a great question meltzerboy, I’ll try my best. Here’s a quote from the Haydock Catholic Bible Commentary penned by Robert Witham, the president of the Douai College from 1715-1738, referring to St. Luke’s Gospel, Ch. 22, Verse 43:
Thanks for your response, erikd, and, posthumously, that of Robert Witham.
This question can best be answered by looking at another verse in the New Testament:but if they’re three divine persons in one divine being how can one not know what the other is thinking?
Actually the answer is in the Catechism in a round about way. Christ’s human nature was real, he had a human body ensouled by a human soul ( real live intellect, will, memory = soul) . This was his human nature. But his human nature did not exist on its own, it was assumed by the Divine Natue of the Son of God ( the Second Person of the Trinity). So in Christ only one person existed, The Second Person of the Trinity. There was no human person in Christ.
Just read a few things in Pope Benedict’s book " Jesus of Nazareth, Holy Week, ( pp. 157-166), " which apply. He argues that Christ’s human intellect and will are indeed free to operate on their own but in this freedom his human nature was fully obedient to the Will of the Son of God, which had subsumed the human nature, such that there was only the Person of the Son of God (God) willing and acting. The purpose of Christ’s human nature was to be perfectly united to and obedient to the Divine Nature, which seems to indicate the possibility of refusal.Actually the answer is in the Catechism in a round about way. Christ’s human nature was real, he had a human body ensouled by a human soul ( real live intellect, will, memory = soul) . This was his human nature. But his human nature did not exist on its own, it was assumed by the Divine Natue of the Son of God ( the Second Person of the Trinity). So in Christ only one person existed, The Second Person of the Trinity. There was no human person in Christ.
If you met Jesus on the street what you would see is the Second Person of the Trinity, you would see a human body having a human soul but in and through the Divinity of Christ.
Nevertheless, Jesus’ human intellect was fully functional and active at all times even though it was operating through the Divine Second Person.
Christ’s human intellect and will were in constant communion with His Divine Intellect and Will. But it was absolutely free, yet it always obeyed and submitted itself to the Divine Will. Yet, since Christ’ had a human nature, his human intellect and will was limited and had to learn and experience what humans had to learn and experience. Fear of accidents, illness were part of what it means to have a human nature. And it was part of Christ’s sacrifice to experience all that man had to endure, except sin. And of course he was free of all concupiscence of the flesh.
So in the garden his human nature naturally feared what was about to take place. For the Divine Intellect was constantly communing with it, so he knew what was going to happen. So it was the human reaction of fear to what was going to happen that made his human nature call out to his Father. His human nature naturally knew it was united to the person of the Person of the Son of God. So the human nature cried out to the Father, who being the Father of the Second Person, was the father of Christ’s human nature as well.
More than this we can only speculate. But I also think, Christ, as God, wanted us to realize just how real Christ’s Passion was. And to impress upon us just how real Christ’s suffering and passion was he allowed Christ’s human nature cry out as any man would, expressing the real fear and horror of what was to happen. Christ wanted us to know that it was a real man suffering, that a real man had desired, in obedience, to make this sacrifice for all other men, even though he was also the Second Person of the Trinity suffering through his human nature. In this way his real love for all men could be more easily comprehended - since it was a real man suffering.
Yes, Jesus, in His human nature, certainly set the bar high. He united Himself to the will of the Father, that is something I’ve been striving for all my life, only to end up in confession.Just read a few things in Pope Benedict’s book " Jesus of Nazareth, Holy Week, ( pp. 157-166), " which apply. He argues that Christ’s human intellect and will are indeed free to operate on their own but in this freedom his human nature was fully obedient to the Will of the Son of God, which had subsumed the human nature, such that there was only the Person of the Son of God (God) willing and acting. The purpose of Christ’s human nature was to be perfectly united to and obedient to the Divine Nature, which seems to indicate the possibility of refusal.
So when he cries out to the Father, he is expressing the difficulty his human nature had in being perfectly obedient due to the horror he experienced at the coming sacrifice. His human nature cries to the Father because he speaks through the Person of the Son. So it is really the Son of God, crying out through his human nature to the Father.
He futher adds that the purpose of humans is to unite their intellect and will to that of the Father also. So Christ, through his human nature and by its perfect obedience to the Father, is able to attone for our sins and failures, And this total obedience to death, is a perfect sacrifice. He thus shows us that our personal attonement is the sacrifice of own will to that of the Father also.
Well, this is a concept that may be difficult for us mere mortals to understand as this is a condition that only God Himself could experience, being both God and man at the same time, so I too share your difficulty in fully understanding this concept. However, it is clear that Jesus had a human intellect, with which He expressed fear, sadness, and many other emotions we as humans would experience. Jesus’s human intellect would only be aware of that which His divine intellect would make known. The Divine intellect of our Lord is infinite while His human intellect was finite, as is our own. For instance, when our Blessed Lord was born, He already had a Divine intellect and was all knowing, and yet He still had to learn how to walk, talk, eat, etc. This is an example of two different intellects, one being human the other being Divine. Let me know if I’m clearing up the issue or blurring it more, I would love to hear your response.