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Warnings against the heresies of the COC
The following my translation of a posting on http://www.coptology.com/?p=2563 by Dr. George Bebawy, in which he warns the Coptic Orthodox Church of heresies that are becoming the predominant teaching in the Church.
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First: Whoever says that the Church is not the Body of Christ, but that it is a social institution or a society of believers only; then he denies his birth from water and Spirit and has returned to his first birth from Adam that is dominated by death.
Second: Whoever says that the phrase and name “Body of Christ” is an analogy or symbol that has no significance to the divine life; then he has divided the Head from the Body, that is, he has divided Christ from the Church, and as such no longer has hope in the new life that has conquered death.
Third: Whoever denies the holiness of the Church, and that it is the gift of God the Father in the Son through the Holy Spirit, because the Church, that is, the Body of Jesus who was christened by the Holy Spirit so that we may be christened in Him, as St. Athanasius said (Contra Arianus, 2:37-38); then he denies the economy of the Incarnation, the Crucifixion, and the Resurrection as the foundations of the Church, and has divided the Spirit of God the Father from the Son, thus losing eternal life.
Fourth: Whoever says that he communes of the Body and Blood of the Lord without his divinity has fallen into the condemnation of the anathemas listed in the Council of Ephesus (431 A.D.), and has become a partner with Nestorius.
Fifth: Whoever denies the descent of the Holy Spirit, the Third Person of the Trinity, upon the believers, and teaches the lie that this is a descent of grace only; then he has divided his participation with the Trinity and has lost his eternal inheritance, and even his resurrection from the dead (Rom. 8:11).
Sixth: Whoever teaches that the Mysteries are from the clergy and that they are its source rather than its servants only; then he has denied the priesthood of the Lord Jesus, and he has lost the power and work of the one Mediator and one Lord, Jesus Christ, who alone offers us to the service of the Mysteries that he distributes by himself.
Seventh: Whoever thinks that the holiness of a person is rooted in the episcopate or priesthood, or that the holiness of the bishop or the priest is the reason for him remaining holy; then he has denied his baptism and the chrism, and his participation in the one, holy, and catholic body of the Church.
Eighth: Whoever thinks that the bishop or priest, etc., are the mediators between himself and the Saviour Jesus Christ our Lord; then he has fallen far from the grace that comes from and is given by the Lord Jesus Christ alone.
Ninth: Whoever says that the Patriarch is the head of the Church, or says so in theory; then he as denied the leadership of Christ, the head, from whom grows every member of the body (Col. 2:19), and he no longer has eternal hope in God, because he has made something instituted upon humans and not upon the Lord the salvation of the Church and the redemption of whoever believes in him.
Tenth: Whoever thinks that the Lord paid the price of sins on the Cross, and that the Father has punished him and lighted on him the fire of divine justice, has by this tasted the bitterness of straying away from the Apostolic teachings that the disciple of the Lord taught saying: “It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me” (Gal. 2:20). He has lost the fountain of salvation, the Cross, the seal of baptism and chrismation, because he has not been sealed by a seal of punishment and retribution from the Son, but by the seal of righteousness, love, forgiveness, and renewal.
Eleventh: Whoever imagines that the Lord died to unite justice with mercy, and that “eternal sins” required an eternal redemption; then he has by this given sin a divine attribute, which is the attribute of eternality, and made a god out of sin and sinners. By this he loses the powerful work of Christ crucified, for with him we are crucified, die, and resurrect, as the Apostle of the Lord says in Rom. 6:1-8. By our death in him, we also rise to newness of life, and whoever denies the power of the Cross denies the glory of the Resurrection.
Twelfth: Whoever denies that we are partakers of the divine nature (1 Pet. 2:4), and that this is partaking in immortality, adoption, resurrection, and inheritance of the Kingdom; then he he has denied the the divinity of the Lord, who has given us from his immortality, his sonship, his resurrection, and has promised that we will be on the right hand of the Father in his Second Appearance.
I have not written here any anathemas, but warnings. I hope that what is said will not be lost in the uproar of the mob -- but those who are enlightened, will know of the seriousness of what I wrote.
May God the Father forgive us all and make us steadfast in grace, for he alone can protect the Church of Egypt, the Body of his Only-Begotten Son, for he is the redeemer of this Body, which is his Body.
+++
First: Whoever says that the Church is not the Body of Christ, but that it is a social institution or a society of believers only; then he denies his birth from water and Spirit and has returned to his first birth from Adam that is dominated by death.
Second: Whoever says that the phrase and name “Body of Christ” is an analogy or symbol that has no significance to the divine life; then he has divided the Head from the Body, that is, he has divided Christ from the Church, and as such no longer has hope in the new life that has conquered death.
Third: Whoever denies the holiness of the Church, and that it is the gift of God the Father in the Son through the Holy Spirit, because the Church, that is, the Body of Jesus who was christened by the Holy Spirit so that we may be christened in Him, as St. Athanasius said (Contra Arianus, 2:37-38); then he denies the economy of the Incarnation, the Crucifixion, and the Resurrection as the foundations of the Church, and has divided the Spirit of God the Father from the Son, thus losing eternal life.
Fourth: Whoever says that he communes of the Body and Blood of the Lord without his divinity has fallen into the condemnation of the anathemas listed in the Council of Ephesus (431 A.D.), and has become a partner with Nestorius.
Fifth: Whoever denies the descent of the Holy Spirit, the Third Person of the Trinity, upon the believers, and teaches the lie that this is a descent of grace only; then he has divided his participation with the Trinity and has lost his eternal inheritance, and even his resurrection from the dead (Rom. 8:11).
Sixth: Whoever teaches that the Mysteries are from the clergy and that they are its source rather than its servants only; then he has denied the priesthood of the Lord Jesus, and he has lost the power and work of the one Mediator and one Lord, Jesus Christ, who alone offers us to the service of the Mysteries that he distributes by himself.
Seventh: Whoever thinks that the holiness of a person is rooted in the episcopate or priesthood, or that the holiness of the bishop or the priest is the reason for him remaining holy; then he has denied his baptism and the chrism, and his participation in the one, holy, and catholic body of the Church.
Eighth: Whoever thinks that the bishop or priest, etc., are the mediators between himself and the Saviour Jesus Christ our Lord; then he has fallen far from the grace that comes from and is given by the Lord Jesus Christ alone.
Ninth: Whoever says that the Patriarch is the head of the Church, or says so in theory; then he as denied the leadership of Christ, the head, from whom grows every member of the body (Col. 2:19), and he no longer has eternal hope in God, because he has made something instituted upon humans and not upon the Lord the salvation of the Church and the redemption of whoever believes in him.
Tenth: Whoever thinks that the Lord paid the price of sins on the Cross, and that the Father has punished him and lighted on him the fire of divine justice, has by this tasted the bitterness of straying away from the Apostolic teachings that the disciple of the Lord taught saying: “It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me” (Gal. 2:20). He has lost the fountain of salvation, the Cross, the seal of baptism and chrismation, because he has not been sealed by a seal of punishment and retribution from the Son, but by the seal of righteousness, love, forgiveness, and renewal.
Eleventh: Whoever imagines that the Lord died to unite justice with mercy, and that “eternal sins” required an eternal redemption; then he has by this given sin a divine attribute, which is the attribute of eternality, and made a god out of sin and sinners. By this he loses the powerful work of Christ crucified, for with him we are crucified, die, and resurrect, as the Apostle of the Lord says in Rom. 6:1-8. By our death in him, we also rise to newness of life, and whoever denies the power of the Cross denies the glory of the Resurrection.
Twelfth: Whoever denies that we are partakers of the divine nature (1 Pet. 2:4), and that this is partaking in immortality, adoption, resurrection, and inheritance of the Kingdom; then he he has denied the the divinity of the Lord, who has given us from his immortality, his sonship, his resurrection, and has promised that we will be on the right hand of the Father in his Second Appearance.
I have not written here any anathemas, but warnings. I hope that what is said will not be lost in the uproar of the mob -- but those who are enlightened, will know of the seriousness of what I wrote.
May God the Father forgive us all and make us steadfast in grace, for he alone can protect the Church of Egypt, the Body of his Only-Begotten Son, for he is the redeemer of this Body, which is his Body.
Comments
Eleventh: Whoever imagines that the Lord died to unite justice with mercy, and that “eternal sins” required an eternal redemption; then he has by this given sin a divine attribute, which is the attribute of eternality, and made a god out of sin and sinners. By this he loses the powerful work of Christ crucified, for with him we are crucified, die, and resurrect, as the Apostle of the Lord says in Rom. 6:1-8. By our death in him, we also rise to newness of life, and whoever denies the power of the Cross denies the glory of the Resurrection.
That is what I imagined. I don't understand this one.
No. He was threatened, but never excommunicated. And that's besides the point: the point is, the church's faith and theology is heading in a dangerous direction.
whos he ??
This thinking is entirely foreign to the fathers and in my opinion not able to be reconciled with the 'atonement' or 'redemption' as seen by St. Athanasius. On The Incarnation by St. Athanasius is, in my mind, one of the greatest pieces of writing ever penned by man and our beloved father fully delves into what it means for God to have become man and why He needed to become man. But it seems that the Catholic conception of the 'atonement' has been taking hold of the church for quite some time.
pray for me!
[quote author=Biboboy link=topic=13611.msg158691#msg158691 date=1344479478]
No. He was threatened, but never excommunicated. And that's besides the point: the point is, the church's faith and theology is heading in a dangerous direction.
whos he ??
George Bebawy
George Habib Bebawy was indeed excommunicated Wednesday February 21, 2007.
I have my concerns regarding postulates 8 and 9. Could someone please explain what he means by these, and how they are being broken in the Coptic church?
In any case, George Bebawi is correct in some of his teachings, and slightly heretic in others.
ReturnOrthodoxy
I agree that we are slightly heading in the wrong direction. Often times, it is the work of just a few bishops. Still the Coptic Church is an Orthodox church.
George Habib Bebawy was indeed excommunicated Wednesday February 21, 2007.
I have my concerns regarding postulates 8 and 9. Could someone please explain what he means by these, and how they are being broken in the Coptic church?
In any case, George Bebawi is correct in some of his teachings, and slightly heretic in others.
ReturnOrthodoxy
I personally do not think postulate 8 is a real problem within our Church. As per postulate 9, I can see where he is coming drom. Many Copts seem to almost adopt an RC-like Ecclesiology. Many think that the Patriarch/Pope of Alexandria is like the Roman Pope. For them, it is almost as if he is some sort of infallible interpreter and final authority in matters of faith, even though in the past, he does seem to have tread waters outside Patristic teaching. What we need to remember is that in Orthodoxy all Bishops have the same charism and degree of theological power.
then maybe we shouldn't get too interested in these posts.
wait, has the person who 'warned us to keep away from these heresies' been excommunicated?
then maybe we shouldn't get too interested in these posts.
Well HH Pope Kyrillos had him as a leader in theological teaching.
To me, it's not a matter of heresy, but a clash of egos. After listening to some of George Bebawy's lectures, he seems to have some controversial thoughts, but he also seems to get under people's skins too, even when he means well.
^Would you mind elaborating?
You're the same Severian in oc.net, right? I think I already addressed this.
http://www.orthodoxchristianity.net/forum/index.php/topic,38938.msg641036.html#msg641036
He was a VIP in the church. When HE felt challenged by another giant like Bebawi, you can imagine there's a sense of mutual stubbornness due to high egos.
[quote author=Severian link=topic=13611.msg158714#msg158714 date=1344500680]
^Would you mind elaborating?
You're the same Severian in oc.net, right? I think I already addressed this.
http://www.orthodoxchristianity.net/forum/index.php/topic,38938.msg641036.html#msg641036
He was a VIP in the church. When HE felt challenged by another giant like Bebawi, you can imagine there's a sense of mutual stubbornness due to high egos.
Ah yes, now I remember. Thanks.
PS- I am Severian from OC.net.
It is excellent to have you on this site. I was wondering when you would show up.
I think that you have (as usual) made a true statement.
ReturnOrthodoxy
This statement as it stands by itself with no further elaboration is is against the Orthodox teaching.
The word "breswidaros" for "priest in English" does mean mediator or intercessor.
^Does not even Saint Ephraim the Syrian say that a Priest is a mediator between God and man?
The word priest in Arabic and Hebrew "Kahen" originally means mediator.
In the OT God used the Aaron and his sons as mediators between Him and the children of Israel.
He used Moses as a mediator. There is tremendous evidence of this in the OT.
This continued in the NT.
The Church herself is a mediator between people and God.
So, it is incorrect to just say that it is wrong for someone to say that a priest is a mediator.
Agreed. The problem is that some Orthodox are so radically anti-Western that they try to completely expunge the judicial theory of the Atonement even though the Scriptures and many of the Fathers used such language.
Agreed. The problem is that some Orthodox are so radically anti-Western that they try to completely expunge the judicial theory of the Atonement even though the Scriptures and many of the Fathers used such language.
Good point. Not only do we have Scripture and patristic language discussing the judicial theory of atonement, but we have PLENTY of liturgical language too. Look at the title of one of our current fraction prayers, "The Only Begotten-Son, The Logos, Who loved us, and because of His love, He wanted to save us from eternal perdition." There is another fraction, attributed to St Cyril I, that says, "You Who receives the oblations, Who offered Your Self in the place of sinners;" I can keep going but I think it suffices to say that one can't claim an absolute anti-Anselmic position in the Coptic Church without contradicting many theological prayers.
What would you guys say is the extent to which the judicial aspect factors into salvation?
I know that, for myself, i am a follower of St. Athanasius, and while he does at times speak in juridical language, that is not the essence of his teaching, nor does St. Athanasius ever speak about a price or recompense being offered to the Father by The Son. So for me, i reject the penal substitution theory of the atonement, but i dont preclude our own teachings to be framed in juridical language or to have a juridical language.
Thoughts? Remember i am just asking for my own edification!
Hmm, i just want to chime in for my edification and perhaps to be a nuisance with a few questions :P.
What would you guys say is the extent to which the judicial aspect factors into salvation?
I know that, for myself, i am a follower of St. Athanasius, and while he does at times speak in juridical language, that is not the essence of his teaching, nor does St. Athanasius ever speak about a price or recompense being offered to the Father by The Son. So for me, i reject the penal substitution theory of the atonement, but i dont preclude our own teachings to be framed in juridical language or to have a juridical language.
Thoughts? Remember i am just asking for my own edification!
I personally think it's ok to mention a price is paid or a sacrifice made to the Father, so long as the language does not make it look like it was necessary. It is a paid sacrifice out of love, not out of necessity or appeasement.
Also the use of divine wrath language is also something that needs not being shunned. The sacrifice was made not to "feed" divine wrath, but to assist humanity avoid it. And so long as people understand the word "wrath" is a weak anthropomorphic language to describe our relationship with God, but not necessarily God's emotional status.
St. Athanasius said God is consistent and He does not break His own laws. Therefore to keep consistency and still show forth the love He has for humanity, He paid the sacrifice for humanity.
http://en.wikisource.org/wiki/Cur_Deus_Homo
And Severian, i will perhaps getting around to reading this at some point because i dont like accepting facts about Anselm's teaching by heresay but i have quite a few other texts i must tackle first i think. Thank you! :D
I don't think he is attacking the term. He is attacking the mentality that the Pope is a rank above the Bishops. This mentality runs freely in our church, and there needs to be some clarification about it. George Bebawi is just offering his clarification. I don't think that he is saying anything to outrageous here. Its just that we expect that from him, so we respond accordingly.
[quote author=imikhail link=topic=13611.msg159067#msg159067 date=1345214259]
[quote author=Severian link=topic=13611.msg159065#msg159065 date=1345213886]
^Does not even Saint Ephraim the Syrian say that a Priest is a mediator between God and man?
The word priest in Arabic and Hebrew "Kahen" originally means mediator.
In the OT God used the Aaron and his sons as mediators between Him and the children of Israel.
He used Moses as a mediator. There is tremendous evidence of this in the OT.
This continued in the NT.
The Church herself is a mediator between people and God.
So, it is incorrect to just say that it is wrong for someone to say that a priest is a mediator.
The mediation of the OT as opposed to the NT is completely different. Before, communication with God was only through the priests and the prophet. There needed to be a mediator, just like there needed to be sacrifices. such mediation is unnecessary now. God is in an intimate relationship with human beings. God is close to everyone. We are a royal priesthood. This also ties in with point 6. Since communion is our mediation between us and the father, and the priest is merely the servant of this mediating mystery (rather than the source) he is only the servant of the mediator, and not the mediator himself. Christ is our mediator. All others are servants of the mediator.
Technically, those assisting the mediator are also mediating, but what Dr. Bebawi is trying to say is basically that we have an intimate relationship with God, and that Christ alone is the mediator, and the priesthood of the OT only prefigured the fullness of mediation revealed in Jesus Christ.
TBC...