JESUS, THE MESSIAH

Natures of Jesus

1. Who is Jesus Christ?

Jesus Christ, called the Son of God, is truly God, the second person of the Blessed Trinity, with a divine nature. Jesus Christ also possesses a human nature, having become man by the power of the Holy Spirit for our salvation. [glossary, 422, 456, 464, 467].

2. How is Jesus Christ true God and true man?

Jesus Christ is both truly human and truly divine. We acknowledge that he has both a human nature and a divine nature, without confusion, change, division or separation. The Second Council of Constantinople (553 AD) proclaimed that the distinction between the natures was never abolished by their union, but rather the character proper to each of the two natures was preserved as they came together in one person. [480*-481*, 467].

Jesus is Divine

3. Why is Jesus called "Lord"?

In the Greek translation of the Old Testament the ineffable Hebrew name YAHWEH, by which Jesus revealed himself to Moses (Ex 3:14), is rendered as kyrios, "Lord." From then on "Lord" becomes the more usual word found in the Old Testament to indicate divine sovereignty, the divinity of Israel's God. The New Testament uses this full sense of the title "Lord" both for the Father and for Jesus, who is thereby recognized as God Himself (cf. 1 Cor 2:8). Very often in the Gospels people address Jesus as "Lord." The French, German, Italian, Latin and Spanish terms for Lord are: Le Seigneur, Der Herr, Il Signore, Dominus, and El Señor. [glossary, 455*, 446, 448; cf. 447, 449-451].

4. At what two solemn moments was Jesus designated by the Father as his "beloved Son"?

The Gospels report that at the solemn moments of his Baptism and of his Transfiguration (Mt 3:17; 17:5) the voice of the Father designated Jesus as his "beloved Son." [444].

5. What is the transfiguration?

The transfiguration is the event on a high mountain in which, in the presence of the witnesses Peter, James and John, Jesus disclosed his divine glory when his face and clothes became dazzling white. Moses and Elijah appeared with him, speaking "of his departure, which he is to accomplish in Jerusalem" (Lk 9:31). The transfiguration aimed at strengthening the apostles' faith in anticipation of the Passion. [glossary, 568*, 554-556].

Jesus is Human

6. Who is Jesus in His human nature?

Catholics believe and confess that Jesus of Nazareth, born a Jew of a daughter of Israel at Bethlehem at the time of King Herod the Great and the Emperor Caesar Augustus, a carpenter by trade, who died by crucifixion under the procurator Pontius Pilate during the reign of the emperor Tiberius, is the eternal son of God made man. He "came from God" (Jn 13:3), "from heaven" (Jn 3:13; 6:33), "and came in the flesh" (1 Jn 4:2). "For the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, full of grace and truth" (Jn 1:14). [423].

7 What do the creeds say about the birth of Jesus?

The Apostles' Creed says "He was conceived by the power of the Holy Spirit, and was born of the Virgin Mary." The Nicene Creed says "For us men and our salvation he came down from heaven; by the power of the holy spirit, he was born of the Virgin Mary, and became man." [456].

8. What is the incarnation?

The incarnation is the fact that the Son of God, without losing his divine nature, assumed human nature and became man in order to accomplish our salvation in that same human nature. [glossary, 479*, 483*, 461, 464].

9. Does Jesus have a human intellect and will?

Christ, being truly human, has a human intellect and a human will, perfectly attuned and subject to his divine intellect and will, which he has in common with the Father and the Holy Spirit. His human knowledge as such could not be unlimited; it was exercised in the historical conditions of his existence in time and place. Thus Jesus in his human nature was able to grow in worldly knowledge and ability. [482*, 471-75].

10. What events in the infancy and early life of Jesus point toward his humanity and his mission?

Jesus' nativity (birth) was in a humble stable to a poor family (Lk 2:6-20). Jesus' circumcision is a sign of his incorporation into Abraham's descendants and his submission to the law (Cf. Lk 2:21). The Epiphany is the celebration of Jesus being adored by the wise men (magi) representing the neighboring pagan religions (Mt 2:1). The presentation of Jesus in the temple shows him to be the firstborn Son who belongs to the Lord (Lk 2:22-39). The flight into Egypt and the massacre of the innocents makes clear the opposition of darkness to the light (Mt 2:13-18; Jn 1:11). [522-530].

11. What events during the hidden life of Jesus point toward his humanity and his mission?

The finding of Jesus in the temple gives us a glimpse of his total consecration to his future mission (Lk 2:49). His entire hidden life at Nazareth allows everyone to enter into fellowship with Jesus by the most ordinary events of daily life. During this hidden life Jesus was obedient to his parents, and "increased in wisdom and in stature, and in favor with God and men" (Lk 2:51-52). During this time Jesus gave us an example of holiness in the daily life of family and work. [564*, 531-34].

Jesus is the Messiah

12. Why do we call our Savior "Jesus"?

Jesus means in Hebrew: "God saves." At the annunciation, the angel Gabriel gave him the name Jesus as his proper name, which expresses both his identity and his mission (cf. Lk 1:31). In Jesus, God recapitulates all of the history of salvation on behalf of men. [452*, 430].

13. Why is Jesus called "Christ"?

The word "Christ" comes from the Greek translation of the Hebrew Messiah, which means "anointed." It is the name for Jesus because he accomplished perfectly the divine mission that the title "Christ" signifies. The Messiah was anointed at once as king and priest, and also as prophet. (cf. Ia 11:12; 61:1; Zech 4:14; 6:13; Lk 4:16-21). Jesus fulfilled the messianic hope of Israel in his threefold office as priest, prophet and king. [glossary, 453*, 437].

14. How does catechesis (teaching Christian doctrine) involve Jesus Christ?

The transmission of the Christian Faith consists primarily in proclaiming Jesus Christ in order to lead others to faith in him. At the heart of catechesis we find, in essence, the Person of Jesus of Nazareth, the only Son of the father, who suffered and died for our us and who now, after rising, is living with us forever. We seek to understand the meaning of Christ's actions and words, and of the signs worked by him, to put people in communion with him. [425, 427].

15. How did the life of Christ reflect his messianic mission?

The whole of Christ's life was a continual teaching. His silences, his miracles, his gestures, his prayer, his love for people, his special affection for the marginalized and the poor, his acceptance of the total sacrifice on the Cross for the redemption of the world, and his Resurrection are the actualization of his word, and the fulfillment of Revelation. Jesus did not abolish the Law of Sinai, but fulfilled it. He performed certain acts, such as pardoning sins, that manifested himself to be the Savior God himself. [561*, 592*, 594*].

16. How was the messianic mission of Jesus prefigured in the Old Testament?

On the road to Emmaus after the Resurrection (Lk 24:13-35) Jesus interpreted to Cleopas and his companion the scriptures that referred to his mission. Many of the Old Testament passages and prophecies that prefigure Jesus as the Messiah are read during the Holy Week liturgy. [711-14].

17. What was the role of John the Baptist in salvation history?

John the Baptist was the immediate precursor or herald of Jesus. Before he was born John "leaped for joy" in his mother Elizabeth's womb when Mary was pregnant with Jesus and went to visit Elizabeth (Lk 1:44). John identified Jesus, at the start of his public life, as the Messianic Lamb of God, and baptized him in the Jordan River (Lk 4:21-22). With prophetic power John gave witness to Jesus by his preaching, by the baptism of conversion, and finally through his martyrdom [glossary, 523, 529, 535-37, 720].

The Public Life of Christ

18. What were some important events in the public life of Jesus?

At the beginning of his public life Jesus, the new Adam, remained faithful during the forty days of solitude, and triumphed over Satan by his total adherence to the plan of salvation willed by the Father. (Cf. Mt 16:21-23). Jesus repeatedly proclaimed the kingdom of God to the poor and lonely, and to sinners, and he worked many miracles. He gave the keys of the kingdom, and the power of binding and loosening to Peter (Mt 16:19). He announced his passion three times beforehand. Jesus made a triumphal entry into Jerusalem. [566*, 569*-570*, 538-560].

19. What was the place of the Temple in Jewish history?

The Temple is the house of worship built in Jerusalem in the 10th century BC by Solomon as God's dwelling place, for the exercise of the priestly rites of sacrifice in the Jewish religion. It was destroyed by the Babylonians at the fall of Jerusalem in 587 BC, and rebuilt in the next century after the return of the Jewish nation from exile. The Temple in Jerusalem was rebuilt by Herod the Great who reigned at Jesus' birth. After the capture of Jerusalem in 70 AD the Temple was destroyed and never rebuilt. Only the Wailing Wall remains, and the mosque Dome of the Rock stands on its site. The Holy Spirit now makes the Church the temple of the living God. [glossary, 593*, 583, 797, 2580].

20. What role did the Temple play in Jesus' life"

Like the prophets before him Jesus expressed his greatest respect for the Temple. Jesus recognized the Temple as God's dwelling, and a house of prayer; he even identified himself with the Temple by presenting himself as God's definitive dwelling place. Jesus venerated the Temple by going up to it for the Jewish feasts of pilgrimage, and with a jealous affection he loved this dwelling of God among men. The Temple prefigured his own mystery. When he predicts its destruction, it is as a manifestation of his own execution and of his entry into a new age in the history of salvation, when his Body would be the definitive Temple. [glossary, 593*, 583-586].

21. How did Jesus scandalize the Pharisees and other Church leaders?

Jesus scandalized the Pharisees by eating with tax collectors and sinners (Lk 5:30; 7:36; 11:37; 14:1). He affirmed "I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance" (Lk 18:9; 5:32; Jn 7:49; 9:34). He angered them by forgiving sins, especially on the Sabbath (Mk 2:7). Jesus made absolute claims "something greater than Jonah, . . . , greater than Solomon", "Before Abraham was I AM", and even "I and the Father are one" (Mt 12:6, 30, 36-37, 41-42; Jn 8:58; 10:30). [594*, 587-91].

The Paschal Mystery

22. What is the paschal mystery?

Christ's work of redemption was accomplished principally in the paschal mystery, that is by the events surrounding his Passion, death, Resurrection and glorious Ascension, where by "Dying he restored our life" [glossary, 654, 1067].

23. What were the main events of the Paschal Mystery?

Jesus celebrated the last Supper with his apostles; he was betrayed by Judas; He suffered the agony at Gethsemane; he underwent trials involving the High Priest Caiaphas, the Sanhedrin and Pontius Pilate; Peter denied knowing him three times; Jesus carried his cross; and he died of crucifixion. After death he descended into the realm of the dead, opened heaven's gates for the just who had gone before him, rose up from the dead on the third day, appeared to many, and then forty days later ascended into heaven. [619*-623*, 636*-637*, 656*-658*, 665*-667*, 595-664].

25. What is the significance of the Paschal mystery?

Jesus was obedient unto death. He died for our sins, offering himself freely for our salvation. Christ is the principle for our own resurrection, and one day by the new life he will impart to our bodies. Having ascended into heaven, he intercedes constantly for us as the mediator who assures us of the permanent outpouring of the Holy Spirit. [619*-623*, 658*].

26. What is Redemption?

Jesus Christ, redeemer of mankind, paid the price of his own sacrificial death on the cross to ransom us, to set us free from the slavery of sin, thus achieving our redemption. [glossary, 517, 571, 601].

27. When do we celebrate the paschal mystery?

The paschal mystery is celebrated and made present in the liturgy of the Church, and its saving effects are communicated through the sacraments, especially the Eucharist, which renews the paschal sacrifice of Christ as the sacrifice offered by the Church. [glossary, 571, 1076, 1362-1372].