I’ve lost track of how many times I have heard a preacher or theologian reference the Holy Spirit as the “forgotten” member of the Trinity, and I would concur with this overarching statement as often there is little attention given to the person and work of the Holy Spirit. In a similar way, the Athanasian Creed seems to be the “forgotten” creed of the three “ecumenical” creeds adopted not only by Reformed churches but also branches like the Lutherans and Anglicans (the other “ecumencial” creeds are the Apostles’ Creed and Nicene Creed). Just as Christians neglect thinking about the Holy Spirit to their own detriment, so the lack of interaction with this creed is a disservice to Christians as it explains some key but confusing issues in the Christian faith.
The previous post explored the background of this creed and its teaching about the Trinity. It also includes a lengthy discussion of the Incarnation, explaining what it means to believe that Jesus is both fully God and fully man. It is this section that I want to focus on in this post.
The Background for This Discussion
Although the creed has been called the “Athanasian Creed,” it does not seem that Athanasius was the author. The creed appears to have been written in Latin towards the end of the fifth (or beginning of the sixth) century but Athanasius lived in the fourth century and wrote in Greek. However, the content of the creed reflects some key teachings in his battle against the false teaching known as Arianism that saw Jesus as less than God. Perhaps the most famous of Athanasius’ writings, however, was not written as a direct counter to Arianism but rather as an explanation of the importance and necessity of Jesus taking on human form – this work is called On the Incarnation. Thus, it seems fitting that the other major topic of discussion in a creed (that seems inspired by and has been connected to Athanasius) is about the Incarnation.
Before looking at the creed’s discussion on the Incarnation, it is important to know that in the years following the Nicene Creed, the Christian church wrestled with the nature of the Incarnation. While the councils that led to the Nicene Creed clarified that Jesus was equal with God and thus fully God, there was still some confusion as to how his divinity related to his humanity. Some would view Jesus as having a human body but then a divine soul (but then he would not be fully human), while others saw him being some sort of combination of God and human (which would mean he was neither) or that he had some type of a split personality (like the Incredible Hulk) – sometimes being God and sometimes being human. The Council of Chalcedon in AD 451 clarified how to think about how the two natures (God and human) can reside in one person (Jesus); the language found in the definition and canons developed there appear in the Athanasian Creed.
The Content of This Discussion
Verse 29 is where the Athanasian Creed transitions from its discussion of the Trinity to that of the Incarnation, noting that proper faith confesses “that our Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of God, is God and Man” (30). Therefore, the Incarnation is similar to the Trinity in that it is an important and essential doctrine of the Christian faith. It is also similar to the Trinity in that both seem illogical; just as it is unclear how three persons can be one God, it is unclear how one person can possess two natures (human and divine). Similar to the earlier discussion of the Trinity, the creed then goes on to discuss some parameters in understanding this glorious mystery.
In continuity with the explanation developed at Chalcedon, the Athanasian Creed highlights that Jesus is both God and man, with these two natures not being confused or mixed together but rather united in one person (34: “Who although he be God and man: yet he is not two, but one Christ”). Jesus is fully divine in that he is “of the substance of the Father” and “begotten before the worlds” (31); he is not a heavenly being that is less than God but the second member of the Trinity who is “equal to the Father” (33). Yet, he also has this human nature that was “born in the world” at a particular point in time; he thus also has the “substance of his mother” (32) and is “inferior to the Father, as touching his Manhood” (33), which explains why Jesus will refer to Father as being greater when they are equal.
The creed uses the words “Perfect God” and “Perfect Man.” The latter of these phrases is important, as it is a reminder that Jesus is not just “like” a human or “similar” to a human. As the Book of Hebrews notes, Jesus is like us in every way (Hebrews 2:17). This means that Jesus Jesus must have a human soul as well as human flesh, as we have a soul and flesh. Therefore, he is not a divine soul in human flesh but rather possesses a human soul and flesh along with his divine nature.
The exact way this union of the divine and human in one person happens is not identified, but some important aspects of it are. One element that this creed notes is that this union is not “conversion of the Godhead into flesh; but by the taking of the Manhood into God” (35). That is, he does give up his divinity in taking on humanity, but rather by taking on humanity, he is not just human in appearance but rather becomes human while still being divine. The creed highlights that there is no “confusion of substance” (36) in that he is not a combination of divine and human, as that would mean there was a change in divinity. At the same time, he is not two persons but a “unity of person” (36), one who is both God and human. The two natures reside in one person.
The creed therefore shows four key truths that we need to keep in mind about Jesus. 1) He is God. 2) He is human. 3) He has two natures. 4) He is one person. These beliefs are boundaries that should not be crossed (denied) in thinking about the Incarnation but instead create affirmations that allow for both understanding and also mystery, hopefully leading to awe and humility in worship.
The Importance of This Discussion
Why is this technical and rather confusing topic so important? I think the words that follow the section on the Incarnation remind us (verses 38-41). The creed goes on to discuss the fact that Jesus “suffered for our salvation” (38) and descended to hell” (38) before noting that he arose and ascended into heaven, where he is now seated at the Father’s right hand and will bring judgment (39). Those words are familiar, reflecting the Apostles’ Creed, but this creed also expands a bit by noting that the return of Jesus will feature a bodily resurrection of people, accounting of their actions, and rewards of eternal life and eternal death (40-41). It is important for Jesus to be truly God and truly man so that he can save us from our sins; he needs to be God and man so that His suffering is sufficient and a substitute for our suffering. He needed to come in the flesh so that our flesh might be redeemed, that just as he arose and ascended into God’s presence, so we will arise and be in God’s presence forever. If he was not a true human, we would not have that hope. So while we might not fully understand the details of the Incarnation, we can understand why it works and also why these elements noted are important. May this understanding lead us to worship and rejoice in who Jesus is and what He has done for us.
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