Divine filiation
Encyclopedia
Jesus
Jesus of Nazareth , commonly referred to as Jesus Christ or simply as Jesus or Christ, is the central figure of Christianity...
and God
God
God is the English name given to a singular being in theistic and deistic religions who is either the sole deity in monotheism, or a single deity in polytheism....
, specifically as the second person of the Trinity
Trinity
The Christian doctrine of the Trinity defines God as three divine persons : the Father, the Son , and the Holy Spirit. The three persons are distinct yet coexist in unity, and are co-equal, co-eternal and consubstantial . Put another way, the three persons of the Trinity are of one being...
, "God the Son
God the Son
God the Son is the second person of the Trinity in Christian theology. The doctrine of the Trinity identifies Jesus of Nazareth as God the Son, united in essence but distinct in person with regard to God the Father and God the Holy Spirit...
". The doctrine
Doctrine
Doctrine is a codification of beliefs or a body of teachings or instructions, taught principles or positions, as the body of teachings in a branch of knowledge or belief system...
of the Trinity identifies Jesus of Nazareth
Jesus
Jesus of Nazareth , commonly referred to as Jesus Christ or simply as Jesus or Christ, is the central figure of Christianity...
as God
God in Christianity
In Christianity, God is the eternal being that created and preserves the universe. God is believed by most Christians to be immanent , while others believe the plan of redemption show he will be immanent later...
.
Divine filiation implies divinization
Divinization
Divinization or deification is the "making divine", the "deification" of an earthly entity, individual, group, or activity.In Christian theology, divinization is the transforming effect of divine grace....
: "For the Son of God became man so that we might become God
God
God is the English name given to a singular being in theistic and deistic religions who is either the sole deity in monotheism, or a single deity in polytheism....
", "sharers in the divine nature" , other "Christs".
Divine filiation is the centerpiece of the Gospel
Gospel
A gospel is an account, often written, that describes the life of Jesus of Nazareth. In a more general sense the term "gospel" may refer to the good news message of the New Testament. It is primarily used in reference to the four canonical gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John...
, the Good News: it is the reason why man was saved. And is also the purpose behind baptism
Baptism
In Christianity, baptism is for the majority the rite of admission , almost invariably with the use of water, into the Christian Church generally and also membership of a particular church tradition...
According to John Paul II, divine filiation is "the deepest mystery of the Christian vocation
Vocation
A vocation , is a term for an occupation to which a person is specially drawn or for which they are suited, trained or qualified. Though now often used in non-religious contexts, the meanings of the term originated in Christianity.-Senses:...
" and "the culminating point of the mystery of our Christian life...we share in salvation, which is not only the deliverance from evil, but is first of all the fullness of good: of the supreme good of the sonship of God."
Basis
The very first point of the Catholic CatechismCatechism
A catechism , i.e. to indoctrinate) is a summary or exposition of doctrine, traditionally used in Christian religious teaching from New Testament times to the present...
states that God's "plan of sheer goodness" is oriented towards man's divine filiation: "In his Son and through him, he invites men to become, in the Holy Spirit, his adopted children and thus heirs of his blessed life." (CCC 1; italics added)
The Gospel of John
Gospel of John
The Gospel According to John , commonly referred to as the Gospel of John or simply John, and often referred to in New Testament scholarship as the Fourth Gospel, is an account of the public ministry of Jesus...
also begins by pointing to what Jesus brought: "to all who received him, who believed in his name, he gave power to become children of God."
The Fathers of the Church describe Jesus's work of salvation as a restoration of humanity's original dignity—man made in the image of Christ, as children of God.
Divine filiation, said John Paul II, constitutes the essence of the Good News. This is the purpose of Christ's redemption and through baptism, each Christian's fundamental state is being a child of God, according to Catholic doctrine.
According to John Paul II, Christians are supposed to "be always aware of the dignity of the divine adoption," so as to give meaning to what they do. Thus, the Christian relates to God as a Father who is loving and provident, and becomes confident and daring as a Christian and apostle. Each Christian, whether a priest or a layperson, is called to a life of holiness
Sacred
Holiness, or sanctity, is in general the state of being holy or sacred...
, consistent with his membership to the family of God. The ordinary Christians are fully responsible for continuing the redeeming mission of Christ in the ordinary circumstances of their life.
According to John Paul II in Redemptor hominis
Redemptor Hominis
Redemptor Hominis is the name of the first encyclical written by Pope John Paul II. It lays a blueprint for his pontificate in its exploration of contemporary human problems and especially their proposed solutions found in a deeper understanding of the human person...
, his first encyclical, at the deepest root of the redemption of the world is the fullness of justice in the heart of Jesus Christ "in order that it may become justice in the hearts of many human beings, predestined from eternity in the Firstborn Son to be children of God and called to grace, called to love."
Divine filiation, said John Paul II, constitutes the essence of the Good News. "What is the Good News for humanity?" is a question of the Compendium of the Catechism of the Catholic Church. The reply to this question begins with Jesus Christ and ends with Galatians 4:45: God sent his Son, born of a woman, born under the law, to redeem those who were under the law, so that we might receive adoption as sons. Divine filiation is "the deepest mystery of the Christian vocation
Vocation
A vocation , is a term for an occupation to which a person is specially drawn or for which they are suited, trained or qualified. Though now often used in non-religious contexts, the meanings of the term originated in Christianity.-Senses:...
: in the divine plan, we are indeed called to become sons and daughters of God in Christ, through the Holy Spirit."
Thus, the Catechism states: "By his death, Christ liberates us from sin; by His Resurrection, He opens for us the way to a new life. [Justification] brings about filial adoption so that men become Christ's brethren." (CCC 654)
Judaism's view of Divine filiation
Fundamentally, Judaism believes that God, as the creator of time, space, energy and matter, is beyond them, and cannot be born or die, or beget a son. Judaism teaches that it is heretical for any man to claim to be God, part of God, or the literal son of God, see also Idolatry in JudaismIdolatry in Judaism
Judaism strongly prohibits any form of idolatry. Judaism holds that idolatry is not limited to the worship of an idol itself, but also worship involving any artistic representations of God. In addition it is forbidden to derive benefit from anything dedicated to idolatry...
. There is no Jewish concept of something as a "divine filiation" or "god the son".The Jerusalem Talmud
Jerusalem Talmud
The Jerusalem Talmud, talmud meaning "instruction", "learning", , is a collection of Rabbinic notes on the 2nd-century Mishnah which was compiled in the Land of Israel during the 4th-5th century. The voluminous text is also known as the Palestinian Talmud or Talmud de-Eretz Yisrael...
(Ta'anit
Ta'anit (Talmud)
Ta'anit or Taanis is a volume of the Mishnah, Tosefta, and both Talmuds. In Judaism these are the basic works of rabbinic literature.The tractate of Ta'anit is devoted chiefly to the fast-days, their practices and prayers...
2:1) states explicitly: "if a man claims to be God, he is a liar." According to Jewish scholars, the Christian concept of Divine filiation has indirect reference to the prior Jewish phrase Son of God
Son of God
"Son of God" is a phrase which according to most Christian denominations, Trinitarian in belief, refers to the relationship between Jesus and God, specifically as "God the Son"...
, which is found in the Jewish Bible, referring to angels, or humans or even all mankind.
According to Judaism's view of Jesus
Judaism's view of Jesus
Jews have traditionally seen Jesus as one of a number of false messiahs who have appeared throughout history. Jesus is viewed as having been the most influential, and consequently the most damaging, of all false messiahs...
, Jewish scholars note that though Jesus is said to have used the phrase "my Father in Heaven" (cf. Lord's Prayer
Lord's Prayer
The Lord's Prayer is a central prayer in Christianity. In the New Testament of the Christian Bible, it appears in two forms: in the Gospel of Matthew as part of the discourse on ostentation in the Sermon on the Mount, and in the Gospel of Luke, which records Jesus being approached by "one of his...
), this common poetic Jewish expression may have been misinterpreted as literal.
Meaning and significance
Christians are said to be children of God because they have the same nature as God the Father. St. Peter referred to Christians as "partakers of the divine nature."Thus, the Fathers of the Church referred to the deification or divinization of the baptized. We are made gods, said St. Augustine.
St. Thomas Aquinas
Thomas Aquinas
Thomas Aquinas, O.P. , also Thomas of Aquin or Aquino, was an Italian Dominican priest of the Catholic Church, and an immensely influential philosopher and theologian in the tradition of scholasticism, known as Doctor Angelicus, Doctor Communis, or Doctor Universalis...
explained the terminology of the Fathers that Christians are "sons in the Son." He said that Christians enter the trinity through the Son, and they "have a certain participation in the filiation of the Second Person."
Thus, John Paul II said that divine filiation is "the culminating point of the mystery of our Christian life. In fact, the name 'Christian' indicates a new way of being, to be in the likeness of the Son of God. As sons in the Son, we share in salvation, which is not only the deliverance from evil, but is first of all the fullness of good: of the supreme good of the sonship of God."
Divine filiation is at the core of Christianity. "Our divine filiation is the centerpiece of the Gospel as Jesus preached it. It is the very meaning of the salvation He won for us. For he did not merely save us from our sins; He saved us for sonship."
Thus the incarnation and the redemption is for this:
- The Word became flesh to make us "partakers of the divine nature": "For this is why the Word became man, and the Son of God became the Son of man: so that man, by entering into communion with the Word and thus receiving divine sonship, might become a son of God."[St. Irenaeus] "For the Son of God became man so that we might become God."[St. Athanasius] "The only-begotten Son of God, wanting to make us sharers in his divinity, assumed our nature, so that he, made man, might make men gods."[St. Thomas Aquinas] (CCC 460)
The Christian then is another "Christ": "We can adore the Father because he has caused us to be reborn to his life by adopting us as his children in his only Son: .. through the anointing of his Spirit who flows from the head to the members, he makes us other "Christs." "...you who have become sharers in Christ are appropriately called "Christs." (CCC 2782)
The divinization of man through sonship is real and metaphysical. It is not metaphorical, i.e. a mere comparison with a real thing that is similar. In the Christian religion, God is really Father, and does not just act like human fathers. And God really made us share in his nature, and thus we are really children. Not in the same level as the Only Begotten Son, but truly sharing in his filiation and his divinity.
John the Evangelist
Saint John the Evangelist is the conventional name for the author of the Gospel of John...
said with a tone of amazement, "See what love the Father has given us, that we should be called children of God; and so we are!" (1 John 3:1)
General consequences for Christian life
Since divine filiation is fundamental for the Christian life, a foundational point, then the various aspects of the Christian life follow from it, as shown by the frequent allusions of the Catechism to divine filiation:- Abandonment to God the Father's providenceDivine ProvidenceIn Christian theology, divine providence, or simply providence, is God's activity in the world. " Providence" is also used as a title of God exercising His providence, and then the word are usually capitalized...
, since Jesus said that "your heavenly Father knows what you need." (Mt 6:31; CCC 305) Thus Benedict XVI said in Deus caritas estDeus Caritas EstDeus Caritas Est is a 2006 encyclical—the first written by Pope Benedict XVI, in large part derived from writings by his late predecessor, Pope John Paul II. Its subject is love, as seen through a Christian perspective, and God's place within all love...
, "Immersed like everyone else in the dramatic complexity of historical events, [Christians] remain unshakably certain that God is our Father and loves us, even when his silence remains incomprehensible." - Becoming child-like in pietyPietyIn spiritual terminology, piety is a virtue that can mean religious devotion, spirituality, or a combination of both. A common element in most conceptions of piety is humility.- Etymology :...
, because it is a condition for entering the Kingdom. (Mt 18:3-4; CCC 526) - Confidence to call God "FatherFatherA father, Pop, Dad, or Papa, is defined as a male parent of any type of offspring. The adjective "paternal" refers to father, parallel to "maternal" for mother...
" and asking him for gifts. "Our Father: at this name love is aroused in us . . . and the confidence of obtaining what we are about to ask.... What would he not give to his children who ask, since he has already granted them the gift of being his children?" - Viewing the liturgyLiturgyLiturgy is either the customary public worship done by a specific religious group, according to its particular traditions or a more precise term that distinguishes between those religious groups who believe their ritual requires the "people" to do the "work" of responding to the priest, and those...
as "a meeting of God's children with their Father, in Christ and the Holy Spirit." (CCC 736; 1153) - Loving the ChurchChristian ChurchThe Christian Church is the assembly or association of followers of Jesus Christ. The Greek term ἐκκλησία that in its appearances in the New Testament is usually translated as "church" basically means "assembly"...
, for God "gathers all his children into unity." (CCC 845), and the Church is "the house of all God's children, open and welcoming". (CCC 1186). And with this the Christian keeps the communion of the saints. (CCC1474) - Giving importance to baptismBaptismIn Christianity, baptism is for the majority the rite of admission , almost invariably with the use of water, into the Christian Church generally and also membership of a particular church tradition...
, by which the Christian become a child of God. (CCC 1243). The Christian should realize the "greatness of God's gift... by the sacraments of rebirth, Christians become children of God, partakers of the divine nature." (CCC 1692) - Playing the role of the prodigal son. Because the "new life as a child of God can be weakened and even lost by sin," (CCC 1420) the Christian has the sacrament of healing called the sacrament of Reconciliation which "bring about restoration of the dignity and blessings of the life of the children of God, of which the most precious is friendship with God." (CCC 1468) "The whole of the Christian life," says John Paul II in his first encyclical Redemptor hominisRedemptor HominisRedemptor Hominis is the name of the first encyclical written by Pope John Paul II. It lays a blueprint for his pontificate in its exploration of contemporary human problems and especially their proposed solutions found in a deeper understanding of the human person...
, "is like a great pilgrimage to the house of the Father, whose unconditional love for every human creature, especially for the "prodigal son", we discover anew each day." - Living in imitation of Christ: "Following Christ and united with him, Christians can strive to be "imitators of God as beloved children, and walk in love" by conforming their thoughts, words and actions to the "mind . . . which is yours in Christ Jesus," and by following his example." (CCC 1694)
- Loving freedom (CCC 1828)
- Practising obedience. "Although he was a Son, [Jesus] learned obedience through what he suffered. How much more reason have we sinful creatures to learn obedience - we who in him have become children of adoption." (CCC 2825)
Piety of children
An important consequence of divine filiation is the prayer of Christians as children of God. Prayer is at the center of the life of Christ, the Son of God. Benedict XVI says that the person of Jesus is prayer. The "fundamental insight" of the Sermon of the Mount is, he says, "that man can be understood only in the light of God, and that his life is made righteous only when he lives it in relation to God." Thus, Jesus, after praying and after being asked by the disciples how to pray, teaches the Our Father, a prayer which aims to "configure [man] to the image of the Son," and trains him in the "inner attitude of Jesus.""Contemplative prayer is the prayer of the child of God, of the forgiven sinner who agrees to welcome the love by which he is loved and who wants to respond to it by loving even more." (CCC 2712 )
Responsibility for the Christian mission
Since Christians are other "Christs", they are in a sense co-redeemers with him, and have, so to speak, the same role as Jesus Christ—to save other men, and make them children of God. "As members, they share a common dignity from their rebirth in Christ, they have the same filial grace and the same vocation to perfection... Because of the one dignity flowing from Baptism, each member of the lay faithful, together with ordained ministers and men and women religious, shares responsibility for the Church's mission."Because the laity—that is, ordinary Christians (not priests or consecrated religious) -- are children of God, they have a specific role to play in the world: "By reason of their special vocation it belongs to the laity to seek the kingdom of God by engaging in temporal affairs and directing them according to God's will. . . . It pertains to them in a special way so to illuminate and order all temporal things with which they are closely associated that these may always be effected and grow according to Christ and maybe to the glory of the Creator and Redeemer. The initiative of lay Christians is necessary especially when the matter involves discovering or inventing the means for permeating social, political, and economic realities with the demands of Christian doctrine and life. This initiative is a normal element of the life of the Church: Lay believers are in the front line of Church life; for them the Church is the animating principle of human society. Therefore, they in particular ought to have an ever-clearer consciousness not only of belonging to the Church, but of being the Church." (CCC 898-99)
Theologians on divine filiation
The Fathers of the Church have emphasized the meaning of salvation in terms of divinization and divine filiation.Writing in the early 20th century (circa 1917-1923), Blessed Columba Marmion
Columba Marmion
Blessed Columba Marmion, born Joseph Aloysius Marmion was an Irish monk, and the third abbot of Maredsous Abbey. Beatified by Pope John Paul II on September 3, 2000, Marmion was one of the most popular and influential Catholic writers of the 20th century...
gave great emphasis to this doctrine. One commentator has observed that although the doctrine had been addressed by many spiritual writers before him, "it would be difficult to find another who had given the mystery such preeminence, making it, as he does, the beginning and the end of the spiritual life. And with Dom Marmion it is not so much a theory or a system, as a living truth that acts directly on the soul." Some believe the Catholic Church will one day formally declare Marmion the Doctor
Doctor of the Church
Doctor of the Church is a title given by a variety of Christian churches to individuals whom they recognize as having been of particular importance, particularly regarding their contribution to theology or doctrine.-Catholic Church:In the Catholic Church, this name is given to a saint from whose...
of Divine Adoption.
Among contemporary authors, Scott Hahn
Scott Hahn
Scott Hahn is a contemporary author, theologian, and Catholic apologist. His works include Rome Sweet Home and The Lamb's Supper: The Mass as Heaven on Earth. He currently teaches at the Franciscan University of Steubenville, a Catholic university in the United States.-Education:Hahn received his...
, an American theologian and convert from Calvinism
Calvinism
Calvinism is a Protestant theological system and an approach to the Christian life...
to Roman Catholicism has written much about filiation in the context of the theology of the covenant. He sees the covenant as a real family bond. He has also written about filiation in the context of his journey as a member of Opus Dei, whose founder, St. Josemaria Escriva, is a leading writer on this topic. Escriva saw filiation as the "foundation of the Christian life," and had a mystical experience in early years of Opus Dei (1931) that led him to emphasize this aspect of Christian life. Fernando Ocariz
Fernando Ocariz
Fernando Ocariz Braña is Vicar General of Opus Dei. He is a Catholic theologian who has published several books and who is regularly consulted by the Congregation of the Faith. He works at the Roman Curia, the central office of the Catholic Church....
, who wrote God as Father (1998) is another theologian who has several works on divine filiation.
Others share interesting views on the subject. There is a small sect of Christians, called Manifestationists, that claim that since Jesus is essentially God (as stated in John), then the Son of God is yet to come. The Son of God is a corporate body, according to this sect, and is called "The Elect", who are identified with the 144,000 that stand with the Lamb on Judgment Day. Manifestationists profess, however, that since these Elect make up the Sons and Daughters of God under the Firstborn Son Jesus, who is God's image in this universe, they must die and resurrect in order to become other Christs. They also hold that the Firstborn will be reborn in them, and will be the Maitreya Buddha that rides the White Horse and defeats the Antichrist and the Devil, establishing the 1,000 years in which the Elect will rule the world under God.