Was Jesus perfect?

  • Thread starter Thread starter mcteague
  • Start date Start date
Status
Not open for further replies.
M

mcteague

Guest
I knew this old guy years ago who claimed that Jesus was a perfect person. By perfect he meant, and I am quoting here, “Jesus never had sex, he never sweated, and he never went to the bathroom”. If true this probably created quite a stir at Mary and Joseph’s house. ‘We gotta get this kid to a hospital’. The man I quoted was not a Catholic, and admittedly had some strange ideas. But it does raise the question of how human was Jesus?

There are some experiences, not just the biological ones mentioned, that are so common as to be considered universal. If human would Jesus have experienced them. One would assume that Jesus was toilet trained like every other child, and had all the usual childhood experiences. There are some sins that are so universal I think it fair to say everyone has committed. On this site a lot of people make a really big deal about masturbation. But it is something I think everyone who ever lived has done. Its a sin probably even Pope Benedict has been guilty of. Although one would imagine not recently. I mean back as a teen-aged boy.

So how human was Jesus. Do Catholics have the same kinds of ideas of his perfection as my long ago friend? Did he have most of the human experiences we have. Did he sin? Its hard to imagine a human who never gave his Mother a dirty look when told to clean his room.
Oh and also, who does the pope go to for confession? I’d like to think its the youngest, least experienced Priest he can find. But I am kind of a romantic fellow.
 
Of course Jesus was perfect. He was human in every way but he was also God and therefore, sinless. One does not have to have sex to be human…geez

The Pope can confess his sins to any priest.
 
Jesus was fully human and fully divine. He was without sin. Glaring at His mother or masturbation are outside the realm of His perfection. He did not sin. He was perfect in His humanity. Peace,

Stan
 
cathgal said:
Of course Jesus was perfect. He was human in every way but he was also God and therefore, sinless. One does not have to have sex to be human…geez
/QUOTE]

True. But I do think one has to go to the bathroom.
Click to expand...
 
Well of course Jesus went to the bathroom. He ate food so of course he had to relieve himself. But that is not sin. That is a natural act. The old man you quote, in my opinion, is way off the mark. If we make Jesus’ humanity cartoonish, my word, then we can make being 100% human something not achievable by us and that we cannot strive for perfection because it isn’t attainable. In Christ,
Stan
 
While Jesus is often portrayed as an angelic-looking man with a halo, gazing skyward with his heart exposed, it is likely to be a far more human picture in reality.
He would have experienced negative feelings (anger, fear, resentment, impatience) which make him all the more a “complete” human, without in any way negating his sinlessness.
 
hansard said:
While Jesus is often portrayed as an angelic-looking man with a halo, gazing skyward with his heart exposed, it is likely to be a far more human picture in reality.
He would have experienced negative feelings (anger, fear, resentment, impatience) which make him all the more a “complete” human, without in any way negating his sinlessness.
Click to expand...
It is not sinful to harbor negative thoughts?
 
StrawberryJam said:
It is not sinful to harbor negative thoughts?
Click to expand...
Harboring a sinful thought is sinful … having a sinful thought but not harboring it
( acting upon it or entertaining the thought ) is not sinful. Jesus was perfect, but as a human
He realized all the feelings and thoughts that any human might have. This is why He was the perfect sacrifice. He was human … He was also Divine.
You ( StrawberryJam) need to get off the fence. Either there is a God or there is not.
Yes … somethings ARE Black and White.
Blessings upon you as you journey closer to our LORD.
 
It is common among some Christians to think that every failing is a sin - I grew up in one of these churches. I thought every mistake, every accident, was a sin. Negative emotions, especially anger, were considered sinful. Mary couldn’t possibly have been without sin, since the Bible tells us she worried about Jesus. Etc, etc.

One of the more grace-filled moments of my journey into the Church was the realization that there is a difference between sin and imperfection!
 
Jesus was like us in all things but sin.

[BIBLEDRB]Heb 4:15[/BIBLEDRB]

He even felt anger. Of course, His anger was righteous and not hateful, rash or vengeful.
 
To feel a negative emotion is certainly not sinful. Did Jesus not feel anger in the temple when he overturned the sellers’ tables? Did he not also question his Father when he was dying on the cross? These were very human responses to immediate situations.
 
1believer1 said:
Harboring a sinful thought is sinful … having a sinful thought but not harboring it
( acting upon it or entertaining the thought ) is not sinful. Jesus was perfect, but as a human
He realized all the feelings and thoughts that any human might have. This is why He was the perfect sacrifice. He was human … He was also Divine.
You ( StrawberryJam) need to get off the fence. Either there is a God or there is not.
Yes … somethings ARE Black and White.
Blessings upon you as you journey closer to our LORD.
Click to expand...
I am really trying to get off the fence, if there is one to be had.
My question was based on the descriptive words used. Fear for example, would be one that may have tripped my trigger.
He feared what?
 
NHInsider said:
It is common among some Christians to think that every failing is a sin - I grew up in one of these churches. I thought every mistake, every accident, was a sin. Negative emotions, especially anger, were considered sinful. Mary couldn’t possibly have been without sin, since the Bible tells us she worried about Jesus. Etc, etc.

One of the more grace-filled moments of my journey into the Church was the realization that there is a difference between sin and imperfection!
Click to expand...
I’m glad catholics do not make me feel that this is the case at all. I am glad you no longer are under that type of belief system. Overall, catholics seem to be the most sensible and rational thinkers.
 
Cat_Herder said:
Jesus was like us in all things but sin.

[BIBLEDRB]Heb 4:15[/BIBLEDRB]

He even felt anger. Of course, His anger was righteous and not hateful, rash or vengeful.
Click to expand...
Makes sense. No objection here. I simply wondered about some other descriptives used in response to my question.

Thank you all who have answered
 
StrawberryJam said:
I am really trying to get off the fence, if there is one to be had.
My question was based on the descriptive words used. Fear for example, would be one that may have tripped my trigger.
He feared what?
Click to expand...
Well, we do know from the Gospels that Jesus wasn’t all smiles and “hooray, I’m gonna die to save the world” at the eve of His Passion. Instead, what we have is the God-Man who felt anguish and distress, seeking company and wishing for the cup to be taken away.
 
patrick457 said:
Well, we do know from the Gospels that Jesus wasn’t all smiles and “hooray, I’m gonna die to save the world” at the eve of His Passion. Instead, what we have is the God-Man who felt anguish and distress, seeking company and wishing for the cup to be taken away.
Click to expand...
That was a known to Him. Fear is the not knowing, the unknown. He knew. So, while he may not have been in fear he could have been in agony. Agony would be a better word to sum it up. Agony that he shared in all of our pain and suffering. Agony knowing what was to come afterward for all who rejected him.
Agony for those who rejected his Mother.
Agony, and pain.

but never fear
 
mcteague said:
I knew this old guy years ago who claimed that Jesus was a perfect person. By perfect he meant, and I am quoting here, “Jesus never had sex, he never sweated, and he never went to the bathroom”. If true this probably created quite a stir at Mary and Joseph’s house. ‘We gotta get this kid to a hospital’. The man I quoted was not a Catholic, and admittedly had some strange ideas. But it does raise the question of how human was Jesus?

There are some experiences, not just the biological ones mentioned, that are so common as to be considered universal. If human would Jesus have experienced them. One would assume that Jesus was toilet trained like every other child, and had all the usual childhood experiences. There are some sins that are so universal I think it fair to say everyone has committed. On this site a lot of people make a really big deal about masturbation. But it is something I think everyone who ever lived has done. Its a sin probably even Pope Benedict has been guilty of. Although one would imagine not recently. I mean back as a teen-aged boy.

So how human was Jesus. Do Catholics have the same kinds of ideas of his perfection as my long ago friend? Did he have most of the human experiences we have. Did he sin? Its hard to imagine a human who never gave his Mother a dirty look when told to clean his room.
Oh and also, who does the pope go to for confession? I’d like to think its the youngest, least experienced Priest he can find. But I am kind of a romantic fellow.
Click to expand...
Well we do know that according to 50’s Hollywood, Jesus is that white, delicate guy who keeps speaking in Elizabethan English and who doesn’t have any indication of grime or sweat in His body. Heck, He doesn’t even have body hair and bleeds only a little even when pummeled and beaten a number of times (He’s so stoic, He doesn’t even scream in pain). Not to mention that He always wears clothes that doesn’t get soiled in any situation. 😉

To be more serious: yes I do believe the Son of God was like us in all ways save for sin. I believe He felt what it was like to get bruises, scraped knees, muscle cramps and whatnot. I believe He felt what it was like to be called by nature. I believe that He felt exhaustion after a hard day’s work, exasperation when the owner of the field or a customer doesn’t pay them enough to feed the family, annoyance at the thickness of His disciples, happiness when a person He has cured gives Him a show of gratitude, shock at the unbelief of His native village (even His own relatives), grief, anger, surprise, pain, suffering, and everything else in between.
 
Jesus Christ was 100% Human and 100% Divine. You cannot be imperfect and be 100% Divine at the same time. However, being 100% Divine doesn’t mean Jesus never used the bathroom because that would imply He was not 100% human. All human beings go the bathroom and all human beings sweat. You cannot convince me Jesus did not sweat on the cross.
 
mcteague said:
cathgal;7131346:
Of course Jesus was perfect. He was human in every way but he was also God and therefore, sinless. One does not have to have sex to be human…geez
/QUOTE]

True. But I do think one has to go to the bathroom.
Click to expand...
Going to the bathroom isn’t imperfection, it’s just being human.
Click to expand...
 
Going to the bathroom and sweating are part of being human. There are plenty of people who don’t have sex, they’re just not as vocal about it as the ones who are promiscuous and brag about it (i.e. high school, college, bars).

You can stop yourself from fornicating/masturbating, but no matter how hard you try, you will not stop yourself from using the bathroom or sweating.

(I did hear there about some people who had issues with sweat glands and they don’t sweat, but Jesus wasn’t one of them.)
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top