Heresy: Docetism, Gnosticism, Arianism

• A heresy is a belief against church teaching

Heresy

• Docetism suggests Jesus only appeared to have a human body, essentially God in disguise
• The problem with Docetism is that it diminishes Jesus's suffering and humanity, implying his death wasn't real
• It indicates we cannot be saved if Jesus was not fully human
• Gnosticism claims some religious groups possess knowledge about Jesus Christ and God that elevates them above other followers
• The problem with Gnosticism is it undermines Jesus's welcoming religion by implying hidden knowledge is restricted to a select group
• Arianism sees Jesus as more than human but less than God, stating he was created and didn't exist before conception
• The problem with Arianism suggests Jesus cannot fully pay humanity's debts because he wasn't fully human, and cannot overcome sin and death because he wasn't fully God
• The Council of Nicaea in 325 AD addressed Arianism, establishing the Nicene Creed and Catholic dogma
• Nestorianism believes Jesus was both divine and human in distinct natures and it argues Mary is Christotokos (mother of Jesus) but not Theotokos (mother of God)
• The problem with Nestorianism is that it implies Mary is not the Son of God, diminishing the divinity of Christ
• The Council of Ephesus in 431 AD declared that Christ's human and divine natures are unified in one person
• Monophysitism states Jesus has only one divine nature, which absorbed his human humility
• The issue with Monophysitism is it questions if salvation is real because Jesus must be human The Council of Chalcedon in 451 AD affirmed the unity of human and divine natures in Christ
• Apollinarianism suggests Jesus had a divine mind but a human body and soul.
• The problem with Apollinarianism is that the body of Christ was split into a human and a divine nature
• The Council of Constantinople reaffirmed Nicaea by stating Jesus has a divine and human intellect in one body
• Adoptionism believes Jesus was a moral man throughout his life and was later appointed as the Son of God
• The problem with Adoptionism comes from older Catholic scriptures that say Jesus must be the son of God to fulfill the prophecy
• The Synod of Antioch in 268 AD stated Jesus is the son of God by nature
• Macedonians falsely say the Holy Spirit was a creation by Jesus and serves as an assistant to the Father
• The problem with Macedonians is that this undermines the significance from the unity of the Holy Spirit
• The Council of Constantinople shows the Holy Trinity unified

Why Did Jesus Have to Die?

• God gave Adam and Eve free will and good intentions
• Adam and Eve ignored God's command not to eat from the Tree of Knowledge, they ate and sin became a part of them
• God banished Adam and Eve from the Garden of Eden
• The original sin created by Adam and Eve is what all humans are born with
• The price of sin is death
• Sin is passed down from parent to child through genetics
• All humans sin and die, therefore sin equates to death
• Jesus is all human and all divine but chooses to come to Earth birthed as a human
• Jesus must not be born with Original Sin since he is God
• Jesus had an immaculate conception so his parents could not pass down sin to him
• Mary was born without sin, she cannot pass it down to Jesus
• When Jesus dies, he pays a debt for all, even though he owes none
• Jesus' sacrifice unlocked heaven for humanity

Terms

• Heresy is a belief that conflicts with the doctrine of the Catholic Church
• Apology is a defense for the Church against heresies
• Homoousia means of the same substance
• Consubstantial means of the same substance
• Creed is a formal statement of Catholic belief
• Dogma is unchanging principles of the Catholic Church
• Christotokos means Christ bearer
• Theotokos means God bearer

Acts and Paul

• Acts was written by the apostle Luke
• The act spreads the Holy Spirit to the Apostles and spreads the word
• Jesus stays for about 40 days and then goes to heaven, leaving Peter as the first Pope
• During Pentecost, the Holy Spirit set the tongues of the Apostles on fire, to enable them to speak multiple languages
• Stephen is the first martyr and deacon
• Stephen tells Sanhedrin that they are wrong and is stoned
• The Apostles are all around the land because the humans are hunting them down, to spread the message of Jesus, and to baptize people

Themes of Saint Paul

• The Cross and Christ's Death
• The greatest symbol of christ's love is the cross
• All are not worthy of eternal life but Christ sacrificed his life so all could be reconciled with God
• Some say worshipping a god that died on the cross of foolish
• Paul disagrees and says the death on the cross symbolizes our love and salvation
• The Resurrection of the Body means that life does not end in death
• When we share death through Christ, we are awarded resurrection into heaven
• To have the gift of resurrection, we must get rid of sin
• The first step is baptism

Righteousness and Salvation

• God does not want humanity to suffer but we have sinned
• Humans cannot be righteous by themselves and need help from God
• Only salvation could be reached through Jesus Christ

Hope and Joy

• God is supreme and nothing can separate humans from his love
• Humans share suffering alongside Christ for salvation
• Everyone must practice forgiveness and love

The Christian Community and the Body of Christ

• The Christian community is like a human body, with each person having a unique and special gift
• Everyone must share their gifts for the benefit of everyone
• Everyone is equal within the group of Christianity
• Each member must practice forgiveness and love

Explore Docetism, Gnosticism, and Arianism, beliefs that go against church teaching. Docetism suggests Jesus only appeared to have a human body. Gnosticism claims some religious groups possess knowledge about Jesus Christ and God. Arianism sees Jesus as more than human but less than God.