Angelicum Thomistic Institute

This talk examines the question of whether Jesus Christ possessed the theological virtue of faith and, if not, in what sense he can be called faithful. Drawing upon Scripture, and particularly the theology of St. Thomas Aquinas, it argues that while Christ did not have faith in the proper sense—since faith concerns truths not yet seen—he nevertheless embodied its perfection through the beatific vision granted to him from the first moment of his conception. Aquinas teaches that faith and the beatific vision are mutually exclusive: one either sees God’s essence directly, as in the vision of the blessed, or one believes in what is unseen. Because Christ, as the Incarnate Word, saw the Father immediately, he did not live by faith but by vision. Yet this vision was necessary for his role as the immovable and perfect principle of human salvation, the “author and finisher of faith” (Heb 12:2). The study further explores the Pauline expression pistis Christou (“faith/faithfulness of Christ”) and argues that even if read as a subjective genitive, the phrase refers not to Christ’s personal act of believing but to his unwavering fidelity to the Father’s salvific will. Through his obedience “unto death, even death on a cross” (Phil 2:8), Christ merited the perfection of faith without sharing its defect of unseeing. Consequently, his beatific knowledge grounds his perfect charity, by which he redeemed humanity. Thus, while Christ did not have faith as a wayfarer does, he was supremely faithful—the exemplar and efficient cause of all faith. His fidelity, flowing from divine vision and perfect love, ensures the faith and salvation of those united to him.

This talk will offer an introduction to the principle that Christ is not a human "person" but is fully human. The first half of the talk will explore how this is expressed in the foundational Patristic writers (especially Cyril of Alexandria), and then the other half will explain why this principle is essential to understanding that salvation flows from Christ's humanity. Because Christ is the person of the Word (with his humanity) we are saved by union with the Word's humanity.

Integral to Jesus's full humanity was his manhood or maleness. As the "exemplum virtutus," he thus imbibed all the virtues in a male-structured and male-conditioned manner. This includes the virtue of chastity (or, more specifically in his case, the virtue of virginity). Though men are neurobiologically oriented to sexual desire and pleasure and to the visual aspects of sex, to the extent that the male fallen condition is particularly prone to lust, the struggle with lust was not characteristic of Jesus, even if he possessed the natural male neurobiological structuring. The Gospel evidence shows a Jesus who enjoyed unfettered, virtuous relationships with his female (and male) disciples and who insisted that his followers exercise strict sexual self-mastery. He was the model for this. The Gospel evidence also indicates that Jesus held an extremely high estimation of marriage. Though he did not struggle with lust, he could however have experienced sexual temptation, given his recognition of the good of sex and the good of marriage. This talk will examine all of this.

Among the important mysteries of Christ’s life, few are as overlooked in theology as his walking on water, perhaps because this exceptional action seems to distance him from other human beings while not benefitting anyone. Our goal in this presentation is to remedy this oversight. It is structured according to several questions. What does walking on water mean? What does it not mean? What is the unique context of this event in Christ’s life? How did he walk on water? Why did he do so? How does this mystery save us? Current exegetical scholarship allows us to grasp significant theological elements present in the pericopes dealing with this episode in Matthew, Mark and John. It is invariably placed in the context of Jesus’s prayer and after the miraculous feeding of the multitude. In Matthew it is a forerunner of the revelation of Christ’s true identity, in Mark it is a key stage in the development of the disciples’ faith in Jesus, while in John it is a sign like no other, that is, one that is not counted among the seven signs. Because in Sacred Scripture deeds manifest and confirm words, while words proclaim and clarify deeds, special attention will be afforded to the words uttered by Christ on this occasion. Saint Thomas draws critically from Hugh of Saint Victor’s understanding of Jesus’s walking on water as a sign of a quality (dos) of the glorified body. As such it reveals different aspects of Christ’s being. Although it is not treated in the Tertia Pars, this action should be interpreted in light of what is said there of the other actions and experiences of the Savior. Once its soteriological fittingness is established, we determine and analyze the multiple ways in which this event saves us. These soteriological causalities prove that Jesus’s walking on water is among the most beneficial mysteries for our life of discipleship and mission.

The Scriptures tell us that “Jesus increased in wisdom and in years, and in divine and human favor” (Lk 2:52). How are to interpret these inspired words in the context of the Church’s teaching on the hypostatic union confirmed at both Nicea and Chalcedonian? This conference draws us into the teaching of theologians throughout the centuries who have struggled to properly interpret “two na¬tures, inconfusedly, unchangeably, indi¬vis¬i¬bly, insepara¬bly,” united in “one Person and one Subsistence”, such that “the property of each nature being pre¬served, and concur¬ring in one Person and one Subsis¬tence […] the same Son, and only begot¬ten, God the Word, the Lord Jesus Christ.” Having these profound theological statements as a foundation, this paper addresses one seemingly simple question: whether or not Christ, in his human nature, made progress? I will respond to the question by analyzing three specific aspects of Christ’s assumed nature: first, the question of physiological change and progress; second, progress as to Christ’s knowledge which will necessarily require distinctions as to his Divine and human knowledge; third, the question of whether Christ progressed in moral virtue. Since moral virtue perfects both the rational and sensitive appetite, one cannot avoid mention of Christ’s passions as movements of the latter appetite. This discussion, however, will be limited to a few key points pertinent to the specific question of progress. [Sources, both ancient, medieval, and contemporary, abound, but Thomas Aquinas’s writings are key both for their abundance and specificity. His Christological teachings appear in many works, including De Veritate, De Virtutibus, and various Commentaries on the Scriptures, and fine nuggets are gleaned from these, but emphasis must be given to his comprehensive mature and subtle synthesis which appears in the Tertia pars of his Summa Theologiae, written shortly before his death. I also will make brief reference to the other Dominican Doctor of the Church, Catherine of Siena. Though not a systematic work, her Dialogue offers a profound Christology, particularly noteworthy in the doctrine of Christ as Il Ponte – the bridge between earth and heaven.]

Ethik des Krieges | Dr. Sebastian Ostritsch by Angelicum Thomistic Institute

Où est il ton Dieu | Serge-Thomas Bonino OP by Angelicum Thomistic Institute

Jesus Christ, un mythe vrai? | Anthony Giambrone OP by Angelicum Thomistic Institute

Qu'est ce qu'est la veritè? | Dominic Legge OP by Angelicum Thomistic Institute

Thomas von Aquin und die Frage nach der Heiligung Mariens | Riester by Angelicum Thomistic Institute