SUBJECT: RECM 402 – Christology and Mariology

INSTRUCTOR: Sr. Lorna S. Fabillar, OP - MAED Math

Email Add: oplorna@gmail.com
Handouts #2
1.2. SALVATION

Christianity's primary premise is that the incarnation and death of Jesus Christ formed the
climax of a divine plan for humanity's salvation. This plan was conceived by God before the
creation of the world, achieved at the cross, and it would be completed at the Last Judgment,
when the Second Coming of Christ would mark the catastrophic end of the world.

For Christianity, salvation is only possible through Jesus Christ. Christians believe that Jesus'
death on the cross was the once-for-all sacrifice that atoned for the sin of humanity.

The Christian religion, though not the exclusive possessor of the idea of redemption, has given
to it a special definiteness and a dominant position. Taken in its widest sense, as deliverance
from dangers and ills in general, most religions teach some form of it. It assumes an important
position, however, only when the ills in question form part of a great system against which
human power is helpless.

Salvation (from Latin: salvatio, from salva, 'safe, saved') is the state of being saved or
protected from harm or a dire situation. In religion and theology, salvation generally refers to
the deliverance of the soul from sin and its consequences. The academic study of salvation is
called soteriology. It is also called deliverance or redemption - is the "saving [of] human
beings from sin and its consequences, which include death and separation from God" by
Christ's death and resurrection, and the justification following this salvation.

While the idea of Jesus' death as an atonement for human sin was derived from the Hebrew
Bible, and was elaborated in Paul's epistles and in the Gospels, Paul saw the faithful redeemed
by participation in Jesus' death and rising. Early Christians regarded themselves as partaking
in a new covenant with God, open to both Jews and Gentiles, through the sacrificial death and
subsequent exaltation of Jesus Christ. Early Christian notions of the person and sacrificial role
of Jesus in human salvation were further elaborated by the Church Fathers, medieval writers
and modern scholars in various atonement theories, such as the ransom theory, Christus Victor
theory, the recapitulation theory, the satisfaction theory, the penal substitution theory, and the
moral influence theory.

Variant views on salvation are among the main fault lines dividing the various Christian
denominations, including conflicting definitions of sin and depravity (the sinful nature of
mankind), justification (God's means of removing the consequences of sin), and atonement
(the forgiving or pardoning of sin through the suffering, death and resurrection of Jesus).

According to Christian belief, sin as the human predicament is considered to be universal. For
example, in Romans 1:18-3:20 the Apostle Paul declared everyone to be under sin—Jew and
Gentile alike. Salvation is made possible by the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus, which in
the context of salvation is referred to as the "atonement". Christian soteriology ranges from
exclusive salvation to universal reconciliation concepts. While some of the differences are as
widespread as Christianity itself, the overwhelming majority agrees that salvation is made
possible by the work of Jesus Christ, the Son of God, dying on the cross.

At the heart of Christian faith is the reality and hope of salvation in Jesus Christ. Christian
faith is faith in the God of salvation revealed in Jesus of Nazareth. The Christian tradition has
always equated this salvation with the transcendent, eschatological fulfillment of human
existence in a life freed from sin, finitude, and mortality and united with the triune God. This
is perhaps the non-negotiable item of Christian faith. What has been a matter of debate is the
relation between salvation and our activities in the world.
The Bible presents salvation in the form of a story that describes the outworking of God's
eternal plan to deal with the problem of human sin. The story is set against the background of
the history of God's people and reaches its climax in the person and work of Christ. The Old
Testament part of the story shows that people are sinners by nature, and describes a series of
covenants by which God sets people free and makes promises to them. His plan includes the
promise of blessing for all nations through Abraham and the redemption of Israel from every
form of bondage. God showed his saving power throughout Israel's history, but he also spoke
about a Messianic figure who would save all people from the power, guilt, and penalty of sin.
This role was fulfilled by Jesus, who will ultimately destroy all the devil's work, including
suffering, pain, and death.

Variant views on salvation are among the main fault lines dividing the various Christian
denominations, both between Roman Catholicism and Protestantism and within Protestantism,
notably in the Calvinist–Arminian debate, and the fault lines include conflicting definitions of
depravity, predestination, atonement, but most pointedly justification.
Salvation, according to most denominations, is believed to be a process that begins when a
person first becomes a Christian, continues through that person's life, and is completed when
they stand before Christ in judgment. Therefore, according to Catholic apologist James Akin,
the faithful Christian can say in faith and hope, "I have been saved; I am being saved; and I
will be saved."

Christian salvation concepts are varied and complicated by certain theological concepts,
traditional beliefs, and dogmas. Scripture is subject to individual and ecclesiastical
interpretations. While some of the differences are as widespread as Christianity itself, the
overwhelming majority agrees that salvation is made possible by the work of Jesus Christ, the
Son of God, dying on the cross.

The purpose of salvation is debated, but in general most Christian theologians agree that God
devised and implemented his plan of salvation because he loves them and regards human
beings as his children. Since human existence on Earth is said to be "given to sin," [Jn. 8:34]
salvation also has connotations that deal with the liberation of human beings from sin, and the
suffering associated with the punishment of sin—i.e., "the wages of sin are death."[Rom. 6:23]

Christians believe that salvation depends on the grace of God. Stagg writes that a fact assumed
throughout the Bible is that humanity is in, "serious trouble from which we need
deliverance…. The fact of sin as the human predicament is implied in the mission of Jesus,
and it is explicitly affirmed in that connection." By its nature, salvation must answer to the
plight of humankind as it actually is. Each individual's plight as sinner is the result of a fatal
choice involving the whole person in bondage, guilt, estrangement, and death. Therefore,
salvation must be concerned with the total person. "It must offer redemption from bondage,
forgiveness for guilt, reconciliation for estrangement, renewal for the marred image of God."

Scope of Salvation

Christian salvation not only concerns the atonement itself, but also the question how one
partakes of this salvation, by faith, baptism, or obedience; and the question of whether this
salvation is individual or universal. It further involves questions regarding the afterlife, e.g.
"heaven, hell, purgatory, soul sleep, and annihilation." The fault lines between the various
denominations include conflicting definitions of sin, justification, and atonement.

Sin

Christian hamartiology describes sin as an act of offence against God by despising his persons
and Christian biblical law, and by injuring others. It is an evil human act, which violates the
rational nature of man, as well as God's nature and his eternal law. According to the classical
definition of Augustine of Hippo, sin is "a word, deed, or desire in opposition to the eternal
law of God".

Christian tradition has explained sin as a fundamental aspect of human existence, brought
about by original sin—also called ancestral sin, the fall of man stemming from Adam's
rebellion in Eden by eating the forbidden fruit from the tree of knowledge of good and evil.
Paul espouses it in Romans 5:12–19, and Augustine of Hippo popularized it in the West,
developing it into a notion of "hereditary sin," arguing that God holds all the descendants of
Adam and Eve accountable for Adam's sin of rebellion, and as such all people deserve God's
wrath and condemnation—apart from any actual sins they personally commit.

Total depravity (also called "radical corruption" or "pervasive depravity") is a Protestant

theological doctrine derived from the concept of original sin. It is the teaching that, as a
consequence of the fall of man, every person born into the world is enslaved to the service of
sin as a result of their inherent fallen nature and, apart from the irresistible or prevenient grace
of God, is utterly unable to choose to follow God, refrain from evil, or accept the gift of
salvation as it is offered. It is advocated to various degrees by many Protestant confessions of
faith and catechisms, including those of some Lutheran synods,[9] and Calvinism, teaching
irresistible grace. Arminians, such as Methodists, also believe and teach total depravity, but
with the distinct difference of teaching prevenient grace.

Justification

In Christian theology, justification is God's act of removing the guilt and penalty of sin while
at the same time making a sinner righteous through Christ's atoning sacrifice. The means of
justification is an area of significant difference among Catholicism, Orthodoxy, and
Protestantism. Justification is often seen as being the theological fault line that divided
Catholic from the Lutheran and Reformed traditions of Protestantism during the Reformation.

Broadly speaking, Eastern Orthodox, Catholic, and Methodist Christians distinguish between
initial justification, which in their view ordinarily occurs at baptism; and final salvation,
accomplished after a lifetime of striving to do God's will (theosis or divinization).

Theosis is a transformative process whose aim is likeness to or union with God, as taught by
the Eastern Orthodox Church and Eastern Catholic Churches. As a process of transformation,
theosis is brought about by the effects of catharsis (purification of mind and body) and theoria
('illumination' with the 'vision' of God). According to Eastern Christian teaching, theosis is
very much the purpose of human life. It is considered achievable only through a synergy (or
cooperation) between human activity and God's uncreated energies (or operations). The
synonymous term divinization is the transforming effect of divine grace, the Spirit of God, or
the atonement of Christ. Theosis and divinization are distinguished from sanctification, "being
made holy," which can also apply to objects; and from apotheosis, also "divinization," lit.
"Making divine").

Catholics believe faith which is active in charity and good works can justify, or remove the
burden of guilt in sin, from man. Forgiveness of sin exists and is natural, but justification can
be lost by mortal sin.

In the Protestant doctrine, sin is merely "covered" and righteousness imputed. In Lutheranism
and Calvinism, righteousness from God is viewed as being credited to the sinner's account
through faith alone, without works. Protestants believe faith without works can justify man
because Christ died for sinners, but anyone who truly has faith will produce good works as a
product of faith, as a good tree produces good fruit. For Lutherans, justification can be lost
with the loss of faith.

Atonement

The word "atonement" often is used in the Old Testament to translate the Hebrew words
kipper and kippurim, which mean "propitiation" or "expiation". The English word "atonement"
originally meant "at-one-ment", i.e. being "at one", in harmony, with someone. According to
Collins English Dictionary, it is used to describe the saving work that God did through Christ
to reconcile the world to himself, and also of the state of a person having been reconciled to
God. According to The Oxford Dictionary of the Christian Church, atonement in Christian
theology is "man's reconciliation with God through the sacrificial death of Christ."

Most Christians believe that atonement is unlimited; however, some Christians teach that
atonement is limited in scope to those who are predestined unto salvation, and its primary
benefits are not given to all of mankind but rather to believers only.

Theories of atonement

A number of metaphors and Old Testament terms and references have been used in the New
Testament writings to understand the person and death of Jesus. Starting in the 2nd century
CE, various understandings of atonement have been explicated to explain the death of Jesus,
and the metaphors applied by the New Testament to understand his death. Over the centuries,
Christians have held different ideas about how Jesus saves people, and different views still
exist within different Christian denominations. According to C. Marvin Pate, "there are three
aspects to Christ's atonement according to the early Church: vicarious atonement
[substitutionary atonement], the eschatological defeat of Satan [Christ the Victor], and the
imitation of Christ [participation in Jesus' death and resurrection]." Pate further notes that
these three aspects were intertwined in the earliest Christian writings but that this intertwining
was lost since the Patristic times. Because of the influence of Gustaf Aulén's 1931 Christus
Victor study, the various theories or paradigms of atonement which developed after the New
Testament writings are often grouped under the "classic paradigm," the "objective paradigm,"
and the "subjective paradigm".

Old Testament

In the Hebrew writings, God is absolutely righteous, and only pure and sinless persons can
approach him. Reconciliation is achieved by an act of God, namely by his appointment of the
sacrificial system, or, in the prophetic view, "by the future Divine gift of a new covenant to
replace the old covenant which sinful Israel has broken." The Old Testament describes three
types of vicarious atonement which result in purity or sinlessness: the Paschal Lamb; "the
sacrificial system as a whole," with the Day of Atonement as the most essential element; and
the idea of the suffering servant (Isaiah 42:1–9, 49:1–6, 50:4–11, 52:13–53:12), "the action of
a Divinely sent Servant of the Lord who was 'wounded for our transgressions' and 'bare the sin
of many'." The Old Testament Apocrypha adds a fourth idea, namely the righteous martyr (2
Maccabees, 4 Maccabees, Wisdom 2–5).
These traditions of atonement offer only temporary forgiveness, and korbanot (offerings)
could only be used as a means of atoning for the lightest type of sin, that is sins committed in
ignorance that the thing was a sin. In addition, korbanot have no expiating effect unless the
person making the offering sincerely repents of his or her actions before making the offering,
and makes restitution to any person who was harmed by the violation. Marcus Borg notes that
animal sacrifice in Second Temple Judaism was not a "payment for sin," but had a basic
meaning as "making something sacred by giving it as a gift to God," and included a shared
meal with God. Sacrifices had numerous purposes, namely thanksgiving, petition, purification,
and reconciliation. None of them was a "payment or substitution or satisfaction," and even
"sacrifices of reconciliation were about restoring the relationship." James F. McGrath refers to
4 Maccabees 6, "which presents a martyr praying 'Be merciful to your people, and let our
punishment suffice for them. Make my blood their purification, and take my life in exchange
for theirs' (4 Maccabees 6:28–29). Clearly there were ideas that existed in the Judaism of the
time that helped make sense of the death of the righteous in terms of atonement."

New Testament

1 Corinthians 15:3–8 contains the kerygma of the early Christians:

For I handed on to you as of first importance what I in turn had received: that Christ died for
our sins in accordance with the scriptures, and that he was buried, and that he was raised on
the third day in accordance with the scriptures, and that he appeared to Cephas, then to the
twelve. Then he appeared to more than five hundred brothers and sisters at one time, most of
whom are still alive, though some have died. Then he appeared to James, then to all the
apostles. Last of all, as to one untimely born, he appeared also to me.

— 1 Corinthians 15:3-41

In the Jerusalem ekklēsia, from which Paul received this creed, the phrase "died for our sins"
probably was an apologetic rationale for the death of Jesus as being part of God's plan and
purpose, as evidenced in the scriptures. The phrase "died for our sins" was derived from
Isaiah, especially Isaiah 53:4–11, and Maccabees 4, especially 4 Maccabees. "Raised on the
third day" is derived from Hosea 6:1–2:

Come, let us return to the Lord;

for he has torn us, that he may heal us;
he has struck us down, and he will bind us up.
After two days he will revive us;
on the third day he will raise us up,
that we may live before him."

Soon after his death, Jesus' followers believed he was raised from death by God and exalted to
divine status as Lord (Kyrios) "at God's 'right hand'," which "associates him in astonishing
ways with God." According to Hurtado, powerful religious experiences were an indispensable
factor in the emergence of this Christ-devotion. Those experiences "seem to have included
visions of (and/or ascents to) God's heaven, in which the glorified Christ was seen in an
exalted position." Those experiences were interpreted in the framework of God's redemptive
purposes, as reflected in the scriptures, in a "dynamic interaction between devout, prayerful
searching for, and pondering over, scriptural texts and continuing powerful religious
experiences." This initiated a "new devotional pattern unprecedented in Jewish monotheism,"
that is, the worship of Jesus next to God, giving a central place to Jesus because his ministry,
and its consequences, had a strong impact on his early followers. Revelations, including those
visions, but also inspired and spontaneous utterances, and "charismatic exegesis" of the Jewish
scriptures, convinced them that this devotion was commanded by God.

Paul

The meaning of the kerygma of 1 Corinthians 15:3–8 for Paul is a matter of debate, and open
to multiple interpretations. For Paul, "dying for our sins" gained a deeper significance,
providing "a basis for the salvation of sinful Gentiles apart from the Torah."

Traditionally, this kerygma is interpreted as meaning that Jesus' death was an "atonement" for
sin, or a ransom, or a means of propitiating God or expiating God's wrath against humanity
because of their sins. With Jesus' death, humanity was freed from this wrath. In the classical
Protestant understanding humans partake in this salvation by faith in Jesus Christ; this faith is
a grace given by God, and people are justified by God through Jesus Christ and faith in Him.

More recent scholarship has raised several concerns regarding these interpretations. The
traditional interpretation sees Paul's understanding of salvation as involving "an exposition of
the individual's relation to God." According to Krister Stendahl, the main concern of Paul's
writings on Jesus' role, and salvation by faith, is not the individual conscience of human
sinners, and their doubts about being chosen by God or not, but the problem of the inclusion of
Gentile (Greek) Torah observers into God's covenant. Paul draws on several interpretative
frames to solve this problem, but most importantly, his own experience and understanding.
The kerygma from 1 Cor.15:3-5 refers to two mythologies: the Greek myth of the noble dead,
to which the Maccabean notion of martyrdom and dying for ones people is related; and the
Jewish myth of the persecuted sage or righteous man, in particular the "story of the child of
wisdom." For Paul, the notion of 'dying for' refers to this martyrdom and persecution.
According to Burton Mack, 'Dying for our sins' refers to the problem of Gentile Torah-
observers, who, despite their faithfulness, cannot fully observe commandments, including
circumcision, and are therefore 'sinners', excluded from God's covenant. Jesus' death and
resurrection solved this problem of the exclusion of the gentles from God's covenant, as
indicated by Rom 3:21–26.

Gospels

In the Gospels, Jesus is portrayed as calling for repentance from sin, and saying that God
wants mercy rather than sacrifices (Matt. 9:13). Yet, he is also portrayed as "giving His life a
ransom for many" and applying the "suffering servant" passage of Isaiah 53 to himself (Luke
22:37). The Gospel of John portrays him as the sacrificial Lamb of God, and compares His
death to the sacrifice of the Passover Lamb at Pesach.

Christians assert that Jesus was predicted by Isaiah, as attested in Luke 4:16–22, where Jesus
is portrayed as saying that the prophecies in Isaiah were about him. The New Testament
 explicitly quotes from Isaiah 53 in Matthew 8:16–18 to indicate that Jesus is the fulfillment of
these prophecies.

Moral transformation

The "moral influence theory of atonement" was developed, or most notably propagated, by
Abelard (1079–1142), as an alternative to Anselm's satisfaction theory. Abelard not only
"rejected the idea of Jesus' death as a ransom paid to the devil", which turned the Devil into a
rival god, but also objected to the idea that Jesus' death was a "debt paid to God's honor". He
also objected to the emphasis on God's judgment, and the idea that God changed his mind after
the sinner accepted Jesus' sacrificial death, which was not easily reconcilable with the idea of
"the perfect, impassible God [who] does not change". Abelard focused on changing man's
perception of God – not to be seen as offended, harsh, and judgemental, but as loving.
According to Abelard, "Jesus died as the demonstration of God's love", a demonstration which
can change the hearts and minds of the sinners, turning back to God.

Tips to Remember as You Write Your Testimony

Stick to the point. Your conversion and new life in Christ should be the main points.
Be specific. Include events, genuine feelings, and personal insights that clarify your main
point.
Be current. Tell what's happening in your life with God right now, today.
Be honest.

My dear Students God bless you for reading comprehensively the given materials and for
answering/working the following study guide questions/activities diligently:

1. What do we contribute to our own salvation? What is expected of us, what should we do?

2. How do I write my salvation testimony?

3. How is the gospel the power of God unto salvation?

N.B. Submit/Encode directly your work/s to oplorna@gmail.com wall for your

Class Standing records (60%).

God bless you all!!!