The Christology of Essential Orthodox Christian Beliefs: A Critique

A very brief foreword.

I was once told by a professional editor that a foreword is a word you say before you get started and it does not necessarily need to relate directly to the text. So before I get started I have a word to say: when a critique is written the purpose should not be to criticize or strike out at an organization or person but rather to protect the faithful. And so, this is my motivation.

When I caught sight of the article introducing “Essential Orthodox Christian Beliefs” I rejoiced and thought it was something I could make use of. The website states an aim was, “to bring together interested pastors, teachers, and scholars from across the Orthodox Church in America and produce a presentation of the Orthodox Faith that would emphasize developing an Orthodox Christian worldview.” I admire their zeal and the immense work they produced but, unfortunately, it appears that in some places they may have flawed in always presenting the Orthodox understanding to the world. I believe what happens at times in modern catechetical works is an attempt to present the truths of the faith in a way that is interesting or appealing to contemporary man. Often this results in a diluted or misrepresentation of “These Truths We Hold”.1

Let us move on to the critique. It is the section “Jesus” in Chapter 3 God, Jesus, and the Christian Life that we will now reflect on. This will be in two parts. First a reply will be made to the comment “an angry God indeed!” (Essential Orthodox Christian Beliefs, p. 41) This was the concluding remark in a paragraph which begins with the words, “Christ’s anger”. I will introduce the second part, which will come in the next post, by quoting a letter I received in response to a Christological question: We do not know of the “man Jesus”, only the God-man Christ.

Now to the “anger of God”. How do we explain this? We go to the saints. Among the writings of St. John Cassian his Book VIII within the Institutes of the Cenobia is called “Of the Spirit of Anger”. The heading in the second chapter reads: “Of those who say that anger is not injurious, if we are angry with those who do wrong, since God Himself is said to be angry”. So he explains:

We have heard some people trying to excuse this most pernicious disease of the soul, in such a way as to endeavour to extenuate it by a rather shocking way of interpreting Scripture: as they say that it is not injurious if we are angry with the brethren who do wrong, since, say they, God Himself is said to rage and to be angry with those who either will not know Him, or, knowing Him, spurn Him, as here “And the anger of the Lord was kindled against His people;”(Psa. 105:38) or where the prophet prays and says, “O Lord, rebuke me not in thine anger, neither chasten me in thy displeasure;”(Psa.6:1) not understanding that, while they want to open to men an excuse for a most pestilent sin, they are ascribing to the Divine Infinity and Fountain of all purity a taint of human passion….For if when these things are said of God they are to be understood literally in a material gross signification, then also He sleeps, as it is said, “Arise, wherefore sleepest thou, O Lord?” (Psa. 33.23) though it is elsewhere said of Him: “Behold he that keepeth Israel shall neither slumber nor sleep.” (Psa. 120:4) And He stands and sits, since He says, “Heaven is my seat, and earth the footstool for my feet” (Isa. 66:1). (Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers Volumes 11, p.258)

And so as without horrible profanity these things cannot be understood literally of Him who is declared by the authority of Holy Scripture to be invisible, ineffable, incomprehensible, inestimable, simple, and uncompounded, so neither can the passion of anger and wrath be attributed to that unchangeable nature without fearful blasphemy…. when we read of the anger or fury of the Lord, we should take it not anthropopathos; i.e., according to an unworthy meaning of human passion, but in a sense worthy of God, who is free from all passion; so that by this we should understand that He is the judge and avenger of all the unjust things which are done in this world; and by reason of these terms and their meaning we should dread Him as the terrible rewarder of our deeds, and fear to do anything against His will. (ibid. pp. 258-9)

In a concluding remark on this subject St. John affirms that such expressions should be seen as metaphors:
It would be tedious and outside the scope of the present work were we to explain all the things which are spoken metaphorically of God in the Holy Scripture, with human figures. (ibid. 259)

Based upon the ascetic tradition of our Church I would like to offer some additional comments:
How should we understand the supposed “angry” actions of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of God, Who is both God and man? In becoming man our Lord Jesus Christ assumed not only our flesh but also a human soul. This is mentioned a number of times in the Hymnology of the Church. For instance, in the Vespers service this past Saturday evening (Tone 8) we sang: “We glorify Christ Who rose from the dead; for having assumed a soul and body, He cut the passions off from both.” (The Octoechos Volume IV, trans. Reader Isaac E. Lamberstein, p. 77) In The Philokalia the three aspects or powers of the soul are defined as the intellectual, the appetitive or desiring, and the incensive aspects. The incensive aspect “often manifests itself as wrath or anger, but [which] can more generally be defined as the force provoking vehement feelings”. (The Philokalia Volume One, p.358) However, if Christ God, Who cut off the passions of soul and body, uses this incensive force, does this mean that He was angry as we experience and understand it? That the answer is no, should be obvious to us. Let us take the example of the cleansing of the Temple. The first three evangelists describe the account without commenting on this action. It is only St. John who gives an explanation of this event in which we see Christ using physical force. St. John writes: “And his disciples remembered that it was written, ‘The zeal of thine house hath eaten me up’”[Ps. 68:9]. (John 2:17)

To further illustrate my point I shall turn to an event in the life of St. Paisius Velichkovsky:

Once, one of the brethren said to the starets, “Father, my thoughts tell me that you bear hatred toward me since you often rebuke me angrily in the brethren’s presence.” The starets answered, “My beloved brother, to become angry and irritated is alien to the life of the Gospel. If the divine Gospel commands us both to love our enemies and do good to them, then how can I possibly hate my spiritual children? [No, it is impossible!] (1) And if I rebuke you angrily, then let God give you such anger as well. I force myself to appear angered, although through God’s grace I never have anger or hate.” The brother fell to the starets’ feet with tears, asking for forgiveness. The starets would often tell the brethren, “I do not wish for anyone of you to fear me as a stern ruler, but for all of you to love me as a father, just as I love you as my spiritual children.” (Starets Paisii Velichkovskii, Sergii Chetverikov, trans. Vasily Lickwar and Alexander J. Lisenko, Nordland Publishing Company 1980, pp.154-5)

If this was so with a saint, then how much more is it true for our Lord Jesus Christ? Therefore, let us hold fast to what has been handed down and “contend for the faith which was once for all delivered to the saints.” (Jude 1:3)
1. I specifically used these words as it is the title of a very excellent catechism book for us in America which was done by a monk of St. Tikhon’s Monastery and is published there.

Local All Saints
On this past Sunday, which follows the commemoration of “All Saints”, it has become a tradition to remember all the saints of any particular self-ruling Church. Likewise, in certain areas on this coming Sunday, a commemoration of the saints of a particular locality has evolved. It certainly is natural to rejoice in the fact that a number of saints exist among one’s ancestors, but is the Church teaching us something more in such commemorations? I believe so, the Church shows us that it sanctifies the people of any given locality without changing who they are. Therefore I am simply posting Chapters V and VI of “The Epistle of Mathetes to Diognetus” which can be found in Volume I of the Ante-Nicene Fathers. This is an anonymous work in which the author refers to himself as a disciple of the apostles. This is why it has been termed “The Epistle of Mathetes”, Mathetes means disciple.
The Epistle of Mathetes to Diognetus
Chapter V.-The Manners of the Christians.
For the Christians are distinguished from other men neither by country, nor language, nor the customs which they observe. For they neither inhabit cities of their own, nor employ a peculiar form of speech, nor lead a life which is marked out by any singularity. The course of conduct which they follow has not been devised by any speculation or deliberation of inquisitive men; nor do they, like some, proclaim themselves the advocates of any merely human doctrines. But, inhabiting Greek as well as barbarian cities, according as the lot of each of them has determined, and following the customs of the natives in respect to clothing, food, and the rest of their ordinary conduct, they display to us their wonderful and confessedly striking method of life. They dwell in their own countries, but simply as sojourners. As citizens, they share in all things with others, and yet endure all things as if foreigners. Every foreign land is to them as their native country, and every land of their birth as a land of strangers. They marry, as do all [others]; they beget children; but they do not destroy their offspring. They have a common table, but not a common bed. They are in the flesh, but they do not live after the flesh. They pass their days on earth, but they are citizens of heaven. They obey the prescribed laws, and at the same time surpass the laws by their lives. They love all men, and are persecuted by all. They are unknown and condemned; they are put to death, and restored to life. They are poor, yet make many rich; they are in lack of all things, and yet abound in all; they are dishonoured, and yet in their very dishonour are glorified. They are evil spoken of, and yet are justified; they are reviled, and bless; they are insulted, and repay the insult with honour; they do good, yet are punished as evil-doers. When punished, they rejoice as if quickened into life; they are assailed by the Jews as foreigners, and are persecuted by the Greeks; yet those who hate them are unable to assign any reason for their hatred.
Chapter VI.-The Relation of Christians to the World.
To sum up all in one word-what the soul is in the body, that are Christians in the world. The soul is dispersed through all the members of the body, and Christians are scattered through all the cities of the world. The soul dwells in the body, yet is not of the body; and Christians dwell in the world, yet are not of the world. The invisible soul is guarded by the visible body, and Christians are known indeed to be in the world, but their godliness remains invisible. The flesh hates the soul, and wars against it, though itself suffering no injury, because it is prevented from enjoying pleasures; the world also hates the Christians, though in nowise injured, because they abjure pleasures. The soul loves the flesh that hates it, and [loves also] the members; Christians likewise love those that hate them. The soul is imprisoned in the body, yet preserves that very body; and Christians are confined in the world as in a prison, and yet they are the preservers of the world. The immortal soul dwells in a mortal tabernacle; and Christians dwell as sojourners in corruptible [bodies], looking for an incorruptible dwelling in the heavens. The soul, when but ill-provided with food and drink, becomes better; in like manner, the Christians, though subjected day by day to punishment, increase the more in number. God has assigned them this illustrious position, which it were unlawful for them to forsake.
May God help us to perfect what we are. Amen!