52. Be able to identify 2 Christological Heresies and explain them

Adoptionism:  Jesus Christ is the son of God only by adoption.  He did not have a divine nature per se, but the Father is willing to accept this imperfect Son as His own and raise him to perfection.

Arianism:  Claimed that the Son of God was a created being, “came to be from things that were not,” and therefore has a different substance than the Father.

Nestorianism:  Christ was first a divine person who then put aside his divinity and became human.  Christ could be God or man, but He could not be both.  Mary is then a Christ-bearer, but not a God-bearer.  Mary was the main issue here.

Monophysite Heresy:  The Divine nature of Christ completely overtook the human nature of Christ, so that all that was left was a divine nature, and no elements of human nature remained.

Personal Subject Heresy:  Some later claimed that Christ’s human nature was the “personal” side, or subject of Jesus.  That in some sense, the human deeds and weakness of Jesus could be attributed to his human subject, and his miracles to his Divine nature.

51. What four reasons does the Catechism give for why God became flesh?

• In order to reconcile us with God
• So that we might know God’s love
• To be our model of holiness
• To make us sharers in the divine nature

50. What does it mean to call Jesus “Christ” and “Son of God”?

Christ comes from the Greek translation of the Hebrew word “messiah,” meaning “anointed one.”  In Israel, those who were consecrated to God for a special mission were anointed, including priests, prophets and kings.  Jesus is all three of these.  He is the messiah because he completed perfectly the mission of the Father and shares in that three-fold ministry.

Son of God is a phrase used throughout the Old Testament, in the New Testament it is a revelation of the unique relationship between Jesus and God the Father.

49. Describe the relationship between the theologian and the Magisterium

The the0logian unpacks the deposit of faith to uncover new truths.  The Magisterium protects the deposit of faith and sets boundaries within which the theologian can operate.

48. Why is public dissent a serious matter?

It is a serious matter because it leads to scandal.

47. What is the difference between struggling personally with conversion to the Church’s teaching and public dissent?

We all need conversion on some level, or we would not sin.  If we are struggling with a Church teaching, the point is not to get them out of the Church, but to reconcile them to the truths of Christ.  The difference between this and public dissent is that the personal struggle is not a formal, public disagreement with the Church.  For it to be public dissent, the person must be fully aware of what they are saying.  They would know and understand the Church teaching and even after dialogue still publicly disagree.

46. What was the first ecumenical council, and how many have there been total?

The first ecumenical council was the Council of Nicea.  There have been 21 Councils.

45. What is a creed and in what ways was it used?

Fides quae.  It is a stable, fixed statement of faith which intends to accurately convey what truths that person (or group of people) hold to.  Creeds have been used as confessions or statements of faith from those who were under the suspicion of heresy; and statements of faith handed on in the catechumenate and professed before the baptismal rite.

44. What is an ecumenical council?

An ecumenical council is a conference of the bishops of the whole Christian Church convened to discuss and settle matters of Church doctrine and practice.  All the bishops are invited, although all are not required to attend.  The Pope need not attend, but he must ratify any definitions which come from the Council.

43. What is the difference between the ordinary and extraordinary magisterium?

Ordinary magisterium:  the day to day teaching and preaching of the bishops in union with the Pope on faith and morals.  E.g. the Holy Father’s Wednesday audience, or bishop’s homilies

Extraordinary magisterium:  special teaching actions of the College of Bishops and Pope on faith and morals.  E.g. Definitions of an Ecumenical Council; Solemn definitions of the Pope alone when he speaks “ex cathedra”