Dear friends on Catholic Answers Forums:
I am a prospective Taiwanese Catholic living in Taiwan. I have joined RCIA-like programs here. But the study materials provided by the teachers of the programs are not
exciting enough for me. So I am trying to self-study CCC and Compendium.
After reading the precious replies and teachings in
my latest post/question, and after some thinking, now I have the following questions:
- What does “the human nature” mean in CCC? What are the defining properties of “the human nature” in CCC? This question is to improve the understanding of exactly what (properties) does the Son of God assume.
GREAT Question
“human nature” refers to how GOd choose to create us; The Bible
Genesis 1:26-27
http://drbo.org/ here is a bible site for a free download
26] And he said: Let us make man to our image and likeness: and let him have dominion over the fishes of the sea, and the fowls of the air, and the beasts, and the whole earth, and every creeping creature that moveth upon the earth. [27]
And God created man to his own image: to the image of God he created him: male and female he created them
It refers to WHAT “makes a man” a “man/ human”
It’s a profound topic that space will not permit me to fully address here.
Gen, 1:26-27 tells us the God choose to Create us {to make someting out of nothing} in His very image; which leads to another question: HOW?
The bible John 4:23-24 tells us: " [23] But the hour cometh, and now is, when the true adorers shall adore the Father in spirit and in truth. For the Father also seeketh such to adore him. [24]
God is a spirit; and they that adore him, must adore him in spirit and in truth.
So man id obviously physical and Mortal, while God is Spirit and immortal. So HOW can man emulate our God. Here’s the very brief explanation
In all of Creations Universe of BILLIONS of stars and planets, only ONE; Planet earth can be proven to be able to sustain the many life forms we are aware of…
On Planet earth with its many MILLIONS of living things, only ONE, “man” has the ability to rationalize & to choose to love or hate.
In order for “man” to do these unique things requires
A Mind
A Intellect
& a Freewill, ALL of which like God are also spiritual things; and immortal, and it is this “other-self” that exist after our Mortal Bodies cease
Genesis 3:19
In the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread till thou return to the earth, out of which thou wast taken:** for dust thou art, and into dust thou shalt return.**
So “human nature” is this other self & our bodies which exist precisely to Glorify God by our life choices
Isaiah 43: verses 7 &21
[7] And every one that calleth upon my name, I have created him for my glory, I have formed him, and made him.[21] This people have I formed for myself, they shall shew forth my praise…" So this then become the very reason for our existence,because man alone is ABLE to freely choose to, or NOT to do this.
- Does the Son of God assume the human nature permanently or temporarily?
Jesus, the Son of God alone posses BOTH a human and a Divine Nature. And Jesus alone within the Trinity retains both now for eternity: He is Risen in His GLORIFIED Body, Blood, Soul and Divinity for eternity. we too at the fianl Judgment will also be given “glorified bodies” {space limits more info here}.
If permanently, where/how does the human nature assumed manifest before conception by Mary and after ascending into heaven?
The “other self” {SOUL} which for this discussion can be describes as “the source of Life”; that which actually gives life to all living things. Man’s SOUL, like man is th top, the most copmplex of all living things. God the Holy Spirit gives to each “man” a SOUL at inception
If temporarily: (1) When does the the Son of God begin and complete assuming? (2) Does the Son of God assume immediately or progressively? This question is to improve the understanding of hypostatic union
.
HYPOSTATIC UNION. The union of the human and divine natures in the one divine person of Christ. At the Council of Chalcedon (A.D. 451) the Church declared that the two natures of Christ are joined “in one person and one hypostasis” (Denzinger 302), where hypostasis means one substance. It was used to answer the Nestorian error of a merely accidental union of the two natures in Christ. The phrase “hypostatic union” was adopted a century later, at the fifth general council at Constantinople (A.D. 533)
. It is an adequate expression of Catholic doctrine about Jesus Christ that in him are two perfect natures, divine and human; that the divine person takes to himself, includes in his person a human nature; that the incarnate Son of God is an individual, complete substance; and that the union of the two natures is real (against Arius), no mere indwelling of God in a man (against Nestorius), with a rational soul (against Apollinaris), and the divinity remains unchanged"** Fr. Hardons Catholic Dictionary**
While Jesus dies on the cross, He retained his Human Soul; and always {from all time} possessed His Divine Nature. In His Resurrection He assumed His GLORIFIED Body, Blood, Soul and Divinity for all time {reunited body and human soul with His always present Divine Nature.
Could someone please teach me again? I will appreciate very much.
PLEASE look for a Private Messgae from me {PJM}
God Bless you
Patrick
