1. THE FAITH OF THE CHURCH

2. How Christ is Human and Divine

3. The faith of the church is important because:
It shows that you are not only Christian by name, but by your actions and words
St. Peter says, “…always be ready to give a defense to everyone who asks you a reason for the hope that is in you” (1 Peter 3:15).
We must be prepared when people ask us questions about our faith and what the church believes
Christ is both human and divine. As we say in the Liturgy, “His divinity never separated from His humanity for a moment, nor a twinkle of an eye.”

4. Memory Verses:
“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God” (John 1:1).
“I and My Father are one” (John 10:30).
“Most assuredly, I say to you, before Abraham was, I AM” (John 8:58).

5. Our Faith: Christ is God manifest in the flesh (1 Tim 3:16)
The Word became flesh (John 1:14). He carries the perfection of humanity and divinity in His one person

6. “Without mingling”: meaning that you can’t distinguish between the two
“Without mingling”: meaning that you can’t distinguish between the two. Our Lord Jesus Christ is One
“Without Confusion”: the example to illustrate this is adding milk to coffee. The two existing together, but in originality they are separated.
“Without alteration”: This is the case with a chemical bond. For example, Water (H2O) consists in originality of Hydrogen and Oxygen, but when the two are combined, their nature changed and loses some of its original properties that distinguished it before the union. The One Person of Christ is “Without Alteration”

7. St. Cyril the great helps illustrate this by the example of Iron and Fire: He says that in the union of fire and iron, the iron is not changed into fire or the fire into iron. They are both united without mingling, confusion, or alteration.

8. Our Lord Jesus Christ is One person in two Natures:
• The Divine Nature of the Logos
• The Human Nature that the
Logos took from Virgin Mary

9. What happened on the cross?
Our Lord Jesus Christ died on the cross.
Death means that the human spirit separates from the human body.
Jesus Christ, Human Spirit was separated from His Human Body, but the Divine Logos remained united with BOTH the Human Spirit and Body after their separation.
Which is why we say, “His Divinity parted nor from His Humanity.”

10. Conclusion: Our Lord Jesus Christ is fully human and fully divine.
Salvation could not have occurred by an angel, archangel, or prophet because they are creations and imperfect.
God had to be manifested in the flesh, take our nature, and being also divine to complete salvation.
Without Christ’s humanity AND divinity, we would not have obtained salvation and remission of sins.
St. Paul states, “And according to the law almost all things are purified with blood, and without shedding of blood there is no remission” (Hebrews 9:22).

11. Questions for Reflection:
Try to picture yourself living during the time of our Lord Jesus Christ when He was on earth. What would you tell/ask Him?
2. Why did Christ become fully human and fully divine for YOU?