On the Incarnation- St. Athanasius

On the Incarnation by St.Athanasius On the Incarnation by St. Athanasius Made available to the net by: Paul Halsall [email protected] Formatted into HTML by: Tim Hawes [email protected] Formatted into E-text on March 1, 1998 This book is in the public domain. It is not copyrighted. 1 On the Incarnation by St.Athanasius Table of Contents Chapter I Creation And The Fall Chapter II The Divine Dilemma And Its Solution In The Incarnation Chapter III The Divine Dilemma And Its Solution In The Incarnation--Continued Chapter IV The Death Of Christ Chapter V The Resurrection Chapter VI Refutation Of The Jews Chapter VII Refutation Of The Gentiles Chapter VIII Refutation Of The Gentiles--Continued Chapter IX Conclusion End Notes (End Notes are now the footnotes) Scripture Index 2 On the Incarnation by St.Athanasius manifested in a human body for this reason only, CHAPTER I out of the love and goodness of His Father, for the salvation of us men. We will begin, then, Creation And The Fall with the creation of the world and with God its Maker, for the first fact that you must grasp is this: the renewal of creation has been wrought (1) In our former book 1 we dealt fully enough by the Self-same Word Who made it in the with a few of the chief points about the heathen beginning. There' is thus no inconsistency worship of idols, and how those false fears between creation and salvation for the One originally arose. We also, by God's grace, briefly Father has employed the same Agent for both indicated that the Word of the Father is Himself works, effecting the salvation of the world divine, that all things that are owe their being to through the same Word Who made it in the His will and power, and that it is through Him beginning. that the Father gives order to creation, by Him that all things are moved, and through Him that (2) In regard to the making of the universe and they receive their being. Now, Macarius, true the creation of all things there have been various lover of Christ, we must take a step further in the opinions, and each person has propounded the faith of our holy religion, and consider also the theory that suited his own taste. For instance, Word's becoming Man and His divine Appearing some say that all things are self-originated and, in our midst. That mystery the Jews traduce, the so to speak, haphazard. The Epicureans are Greeks deride, but we adore; and your own love among these; they deny that there is any Mind and devotion to the Word also will be the behind the universe at all. This view is contrary greater, because in His Manhood He seems so to all the facts of experience, their own existence little worth. For it is a fact that the more included. For if all things had come into being in unbelievers pour scorn on Him, so much the this automatic fashion, instead of being the more does He make His Godhead evident. The outcome of Mind, though they existed, they things which they, as men, rule out as would all be uniform and without distinction. In impossible, He plainly shows to be possible; that the universe everything would be sun or moon or which they deride as unfitting, His goodness whatever it was, and in the human body the makes most fit; and things which these wiseacres whole would be hand or eye or foot. But in point laugh at as "human" He by His inherent might of fact the sun and the moon and the earth are all declares divine. Thus by what seems His utter different things, and even within the human body poverty and weakness on the cross He overturns there are different members, such as foot and the pomp and parade of idols, and quietly and hand and head. This distinctness of things argues hiddenly wins over the mockers and unbelievers not a spontaneous generation but a prevenient to recognize Him as God. Cause; and from that Cause we can apprehend God, the Designer and Maker of all. Now in dealing with these matters it is necessary first to recall what has already been said. You Others take the view expressed by Plato, that must understand why it is that the Word of the giant among the Greeks. He said that God had Father, so great and so high, has been made made all things out of pre-existent and uncreated manifest in bodily form. He has not assumed a matter, just as the carpenter makes things only body as proper to His own nature, far from it, for out of wood that already exists. But those who as the Word He is without body. He has been hold this view do not realize that to deny that God is Himself the Cause of matter is to impute limitation to Him, just as it is undoubtedly a 1 i.e. the Contra Gentes. 3 On the Incarnation by St.Athanasius limitation on the part of the carpenter that he can it into being through the Word. He says make nothing unless he has the wood. How as much in Genesis: could God be called Maker and Artificer if His "In the beginning God created the ability to make depended on some other cause, heavens and the earth; 4 namely on matter itself? If He only worked up and again through that most helpful book existing matter and did not Himself bring matter The Shepherd, into being, He would be not the Creator but only "Believe thou first and foremost that a craftsman. there is One God Who created and arranged all things and brought them Then, again, there is the theory of the Gnostics, out of non-existence into being." 5 who have invented for themselves an Artificer of Paul also indicates the same thing when all things other than the Father of our Lord Jesus he says, Christ. These simply shut their eyes to the "By faith we understand that the obvious meaning of Scripture. For instance, the worlds were framed by the Word of Lord, having reminded the Jews of the statement God, so that the things which we see in Genesis, now did not come into being out of "He Who created them in the things which had previously beginning made them male and appeared." 6 female . ," and having shown that For God is good--or rather, of all for that reason a man should leave his goodness He is Fountainhead, and it is parents and cleave to his wife, goes impossible for one who is good to be on to say with reference to the mean or grudging about anything. Creator, "What therefore God has Grudging existence to none therefore, He joined together, let no man put made all things out of nothing through asunder." 2 His own Word, our Lord Jesus Christ and How can they get a creation independent of all these His earthly creatures He of the Father out of that? And, again, St. reserved especial mercy for the race of John, speaking all inclusively, says, men. Upon them, therefore, upon men "All things became by Him and who, as animals, were essentially without Him came nothing into impermanent, He bestowed a grace which being." 3 other creatures lacked--namely the How then could the Artificer be someone impress of His own Image, a share in the different, other than the Father of Christ? reasonable being of the very Word Himself, so that, reflecting Him and (3) Such are the notions which men put themselves becoming reasonable and forward. But the impiety of their foolish expressing the Mind of God even as He talk is plainly declared by the divine does, though in limited degree they might teaching of the Christian faith. From it continue for ever in the blessed and only we know that, because there is Mind true life of the saints in paradise. But behind the universe, it did not originate since the will of man could turn either itself; because God is infinite, not finite, way, God secured this grace that He had it was not made from pre-existent matter, given by making it conditional from the but out of nothing and out of non- first upon two things--namely, a law and existence absolute and utter God brought a place. He set them in His own paradise, 4 Gen. 1. 1 2 Matt. 19. 4-6 5 The Shepherd of Hermas, Book II. I 3 John 1. 3 6 Heb. 11. 3 2 On the Incarnation by St.Athanasius and laid upon them a single prohibition. For the transgression of the If they guarded the grace and retained the commandment was making them turn loveliness of their original innocence, back again according to their nature; and then the life of paradise should be theirs, as they had at the beginning come into without sorrow, pain or care, and after it being out of non-existence, so were they the assurance of immortality in heaven. now on the way to returning, through But if they went astray and became vile, corruption, to non-existence again. The throwing away their birthright of beauty, presence and love of the Word had called then they would come under the natural them into being; inevitably, therefore law of death and live no longer in when they lost the knowledge of God, paradise, but, dying outside of it, they lost existence with it; for it is God continue in death and in corruption.

Load more