Did Ignatius believe in the doctrine of Eternal Generation of the Son?
score:5
This "begotten and unbegotten" quote comes from Ignatius's Epistle to the Ephesians, chapter 7.2. One source for the Greek is The Loeb Classical Library, Apostolic Fathers, vol. 1, page 180. English translations of the text differ somewhat, but here are two popular ones:
There is one Physician who is possessed both of flesh and spirit; both made and not made; God existing in flesh; true life in death; both of Mary and of God; first possible and then impossible,—even Jesus Christ our Lord. (ANF)
There is one Physician, who is both flesh and spirit, born and yet not born, who is God in man, true life in death, both of Mary and of God, first passible and then impassible, Jesus Christ our Lord. (Loeb, 181)
Quoting this section, J. N. D. Kelly, in Early Christian Doctrines, 92, indicates that the word agennetos is "the technical term reserved to distinguish the increate God from creatures." Thus the emphasis can be understood to be more on Christ's distinction from his creatures than between Him and the Father.
Still, this is an attribute typically associated with God the Father, and this isn't the only place where Ignatius closely connects the Son and Father – Kelly provides several other quotes along similar lines, and describes how this language has sometimes been interpreted:
In view of this language the conclusion has sometimes been drawn that [...] Ignatius was really an 'economic trinitarian', i.e. regarded God as an undifferentiated monad in His essential being, the Son and the Spirit being merely forms or modes of the Father's self-revelation, only distinguishable from Him in the process of revelation. (93)
However, Kelly disagrees with this conclusion, and contends that Ignatius did believe in the pre-existence of the Son – not that he only became an expression of God in the incarnation – as well as his independence from the Father:
[The thought of Ignatius] was steeped in the Fourth Gospel, and its strong emphasis on the oneness of Christ with the Father reflects such Johannine texts as 1:1f.; 10:30; 14:9; 17:5. [...]
[Ignatius] definitely states that He 'existed with the Father before the ages', and that He 'came forth from the unique Father, was with Him and has returned to Him'. Phrases like these imply a real distinction, as do the passages in which he compares the relation of deacons to the bishop, or of the church to the bishop, to that of Christ to the Father.
Numerous other contexts suggest that His independence vis-a-vis the Father was not limited to His earthly sojourn, such as (a) the formulae of greeting and farewell affixed to the letters, and (b) Ignatius's requests to his correspondents to address their prayers to Jesus Christ. (93)
So it's fair to conclude that while Ignatius did closely associate the Father and the Son, this use of "unbegotten" can be understood as referring to Christ as compared to his creatures, and that Ignatius did believe in the eternal generation of the Son.
Upvote:3
It seems what you quote is a Trinitarian formula of his as below:
Chapter 14. Conclusion | Epistle to the Antiochians | Spurious Epistles of St. Ignatius of Antioch | New Advent
I write this letter to you from Philippi. May He who is alone unbegotten, keep you steadfast both in the spirit and in the flesh, through Him who was begotten before time began! And may I behold you in the kingdom of Christ! I salute him who is to bear rule over you in my stead: may I have joy of him in the Lord! Fare well in God, and in Christ, being enlightened by the Holy Spirit.
It is clear that the Unbegotten is the Father.
In all his documents, Jesus, the Son, and the Trinity, are as per the Apostolic and Catholic Teaching.
From, Excursus on the Words Gennethenta Ou Poiethenta., my understanding is that Jesus as man is generated in time, his Divinity was never generated when he appeared as God-made-man, and he was begotten of the Father before time began.
cf. Athanasian Creed.
About St. Ignatius of Antioch
Born is Syria died in Rome between 98 and 117.
May have been the child whom Our LORD took in his arms (cf. Mk 9:36)
His friend was St. Polycarp, a disciple of St. John the Apostle.
Was the third bishop of Antioch appointed by St. Peter himself.
Source: Glimpses of the Church Fathers | Claire Rusell
More post
- 📝 What do most Christians think about the Massacre of the Innocents and the claim in Matthew 27:53 that many people were resurrected with Jesus?
- 📝 Do Jehovah's Witnesses believe in ghosts (or what-ever these may be)?
- 📝 Was Phoebe a deacon?
- 📝 What does 'do not be overrighteous' mean in Ecclesiastes?
- 📝 Are the fallen angels already in hell?
- 📝 Prayer of Manneseh, not in the protestant bible?
- 📝 According to Christians who believe that God is a utilitarian, why is h*m*sexuality suboptimal?
- 📝 According to Trinitarians, can a Person of the Trinity add a new nature whenever He wants to?
- 📝 Did this phrase "love the sinner but hate the sin" in this form originate in Christianity and who is credited to have first used it?
- 📝 Any radical transformation in case of incarnation without fall?
- 📝 How do Christians argue about Jewish objections against Jesus being the Messiah
- 📝 Is Cyrus the Messiah?
- 📝 How do proponents of Sola Scriptura choose the "correct" interpretation of a key Bible verse?
- 📝 Did all disciples of Christ's apostles consider priesthood a sacrament?
- 📝 What is the origin of holding hands when praying around a circle before a meal?
- 📝 Did Isaiah prophesy the countenance of Jesus who was undergoing Passion?
- 📝 When do adult male LDS converts receive what priesthood?
- 📝 Martin Luther's take on Roman Catholic clergy individuals living (immediately) before him
- 📝 Meaning of "Confirmatio" in relation to the Sacrament of Confirmation (Sacramentum Confirmationis)
- 📝 Are there modern cases (1900 - present) of heavenly visitations recognized and endorsed by a denomination?
- 📝 Does Catholicism teach that Trinity is reflected in Man?
- 📝 Meaning of the original Hebrew of "thou shall not" in the ten commandments
- 📝 Where is the concept of "local church" from?
- 📝 How do proponents of Apokatastasis deal with the "Everlasting punishment" texts in scripture?
- 📝 Contradiction between God's mercy being greater than ours and Jesus' harsh words about who will end up in hell
- 📝 Can priests (or popes) administer sacraments in a liturgy other than their own?
- 📝 Does God exclude loving your neighbor as a basis for being accepted into heaven?
- 📝 Is there a non-Catholic view of purification of the spirit after physical death?
- 📝 If you have a strong desire, is it a given that it's ultimately from God?
- 📝 Can we ask God to bless unsaved people so that they will be more open to the Gospel?
Source: stackoverflow.com
Search Posts
Related post
- 📝 Did Ignatius believe in the doctrine of Eternal Generation of the Son?
- 📝 Are there any Trinitarian Protestant denominations that deny the doctrine of the eternal generation of the Son from the Father?
- 📝 When did Joseph Smith first understand the doctrine of eternal progression?
- 📝 Do Calvinists Disbelieve the Doctrine of Eternal Generation as a 'Begetting'?
- 📝 On what do Catholics base their doctrine of the eternal virginity of Mary?
- 📝 Did early church fathers understand the doctrine of trinity?
- 📝 What significance, if any, does the doctrine of the eternal virginity of Mary have?
- 📝 Did Martin Luther believe the Church needed to be reformed before the Great Schism of 1054AD, or after?
- 📝 Do Catholics subscribe to the "once saved, always saved" doctrine that many evangelical Christians believe in?
- 📝 Why did the people believe that no one would know where the Christ came from?
- 📝 Does LDS teaching hold to a multi-universe theory or an infinite universe theory in order to account for the doctrine of eternal progression?
- 📝 Why is the Son of God called the Eternal Father in the book of Alma?
- 📝 Where did the Young Earth Creationist doctrine originate?
- 📝 Did Jesus know from the outset that He was the Son of God or did Mary tell Him?
- 📝 Did adherents of apocatastasis in the early church believe that the devil and his demons would be restored?
- 📝 What role did the Donation of Constantine have on the development of the doctrine of Papal supremacy?
- 📝 What did the early church fathers (pre-5th c.) teach with regards to the doctrine of baptism as a necessity for salvation?
- 📝 Did Baptist and Methodists ever believe that Jesus is Michael the Archangel?
- 📝 Did Karl Barth confess an orthodox doctrine of the Trinity?
- 📝 What influence did Greco-Roman philosophy have on the doctrine of "creatio ex nihilo"?
- 📝 What's the name of this doctrine and (when) did the Eastern Orthodox Church condemn it?
- 📝 When did the Community of Christ (formerly RLDS) adopt the doctrine of the Trinity?
- 📝 How did the doctrine of the pope having "supreme, full, immediate, and universal power in the care of souls" originate?
- 📝 Did the early church believe that Jesus was crucified on a cross or on a stake?
- 📝 Do Calvinists believe that it is possible to be saved without believing the doctrine of predestination?
- 📝 What is the biblical basis for the doctrine of Eternal Security?
- 📝 Did Jacob Arminius and/or the remonstrants believe they were in agreement with John Calvin?
- 📝 What did the early church believe about the "rapture"?
- 📝 Why did early Christians believe in the Real Presence?
- 📝 How do those who believe the Son is not Almighty God interpret Revelation 2:23?