Christology

Definition and Meaning

Christology is the field of theology concerned with the doctrine of Jesus Christ. (The Korean term gidongnon derives from gidok, the Sino-Korean rendering of "Christ.") Christology is broadly divided into two parts.

• The person of Christ: This part treats who Christ is. Its central themes are the Incarnation, in which God became man, and the relationship between Christ's divinity (his nature as God) and his humanity (his nature as man).
• The work of Christ: This part treats what Christ has done. It includes the atonement accomplished on the cross, the Resurrection, the Ascension, and the Second Coming.

The Reformed tradition organizes the work of Christ under the three offices of prophet, priest, and king, known as the threefold office (munus triplex).

Biblical and Historical Background

Scripture passages commonly cited as starting points for Christology include Peter's confession, "Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God" (Matthew 16:16); "the Word was made flesh" (John 1:14); and Philippians 2:6–8, which describes Christ humbling himself and taking upon himself the form of a servant.

The early church formulated its doctrine through a process in which competing interpretations contended with one another. Against Arianism, which held that the Son is a created being, the Council of Nicaea in 325 confessed that the Son is of the same essence (homoousios) as the Father. In 451 the Council of Chalcedon defined that Christ, as truly God and truly man, possesses two natures in one person. It declared that these two natures exist without confusion and without change, without division and without separation. In the course of this development, two views were rejected. One was Docetism, which held that Christ's humanity was only an appearance; the other was Nestorianism, which was criticized for dividing the two natures as though they were, in effect, two persons. Since the Reformation, most Protestants have accepted these decisions.

Practice in the Korean Church

The major Protestant denominations in Korea generally share Nicene and Chalcedonian Christology and confess the Apostles' Creed together in worship. Presbyterian churches take the chapter on "Christ the Mediator" in the Westminster Confession of Faith as their doctrinal standard, while other denominations set forth their Christology in the doctrinal articles of their respective constitutions.

Differences among denominations appear mainly in matters of detail.

• Lutheran: Lutherans emphasize that Christ's human nature participates in the attributes of his divine nature. Accordingly, they hold that the body of Christ is really present in the Lord's Supper.
• Reformed tradition, including Presbyterians: The Reformed hold that the human nature of the ascended Christ is in heaven. Accordingly, they speak of a spiritual presence in the Lord's Supper through the Holy Spirit.

This difference gave rise to the Eucharistic controversies. The Holiness (Sungkyul) Church emphasizes the Fourfold Gospel of regeneration, sanctification, divine healing, and the Second Coming, connecting it with the work of Christ.

Christological questions have also served as a principal criterion when the general assemblies of Korean denominations determine whether a group is heretical. A representative example is the claim that a particular individual is the returned Christ or the Paraclete (a title referring to the Holy Spirit). This topic is treated in detail in the article Heresy Determinations.