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From: nabil@cae.wisc.edu (Nabil Ayoub)
Newsgroups: soc.religion.christian
Subject: Re: Monophysites and Mike Walker
Message-ID: <May.11.02.37.16.1993.28132@athos.rutgers.edu>
Date: 11 May 93 06:37:17 GMT
Sender: hedrick@athos.rutgers.edu
Organization: U of Wisconsin-Madison College of Engineering
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Approved: christian@aramis.rutgers.edu

In article <May.10.05.08.01.1993.3602@athos.rutgers.edu> db7n+@andrew.cmu.edu (D. Andrew Byler) writes:
>Nabil Ayoub writes:
>
>>As a final note, the Oriental Orthodox and Eastren Orthodox did sign a
>>common statement of Christology, in which the heresey of >Monophysitism
>>was condemned. So the Coptic Orthodox Church does not believe in
>>Monophysitism.
>
>Sorry!
>
>What does the Coptic Church believe about the will and energy of Christ?
> Were there one or were there two (i.e. Human and Divine) wills and
>energies in Him.
>
>Also, what is the objection ot the Copts with the Pope of Rome (i.e. why
>is there a Coptic Catholic Church)?  Do you reject the supreme
>jurisdiction of the 263rd sucessor of St. Peter (who blessed St. John
>Mark, Bishop of Alexandria was translator for) and his predecessors?  Or
>his infallibility?  Or what other things perhaps?

For your first set of questions (regarding the energy and will of Christ)
I quote to you the relevant part of the Statement signed by both Eastern
(Chalcedonian) and Oriental (non-Chalcedonian) Orthodox scholars a few
years ago (Both families = both Orthodox churches) :

1. Both  families  agreed in  condemning  the Eutychian heresy. Both  families
confess that the Logos, the Second Person  of the Holy  Trinity, only begotten
of the Father before the ages  and consubstantial with  Him, was incarnate and
was born from the Virgin Mary Theotokos; fully consubstantial with us, perfect
man with soul, body and mind  ($  \nu o  \upsilon \zeta $); He  was crucified,
died, was  buried and rose  from the dead on  the third day, ascended   to the
Heavenly Father, where He sits on the right hand of the Father as  Lord of all
creation. At  Pentecost, by the coming of  the  Holy Spirit He  manifested the
Church as His Body. We look forward to His coming again in the fullness of His
glory, according to the Scriptures.

2. Both  families condemn the  Nestorian heresy and the crypto-Nestorianism of
Theodoret of  Cyrus. They agree that it  is not sufficient merely  to say that
Christ is consubstantial both with His Father  and with us, by  nature God and
by nature man; it is necessary to affirm also that the Logos, Who is by nature
God,  became by  nature   man, by His  incarnation  in the fullness  of  time.

3. Both families agree  that the Hypostasis of the  Logos became  composite by
uniting to His divine uncreated nature with its natural will and energy, which
He has  in common with  the Father and  the Holy Spirit, created human nature,
which He assumed  at the Incarnation  and made  His own, with its natural will
and energy.

4. Both families agree  that the natures  with their proper energies and wills
   ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
are united hypostatically and  naturally   without confusion, without  change,
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
without  division and without separation,  and that they are distinguished  in
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
thought alone.
^^^^^^^^^^^^^

5. Both families agree that He who wills and acts is always the one Hypostasis
of the Logos Incarnate.

[...]

I guess that adresses your question adequately.

As for your second set of questions, I am afraid they are irrelevant to the
discussion (at least from my point of view) of Monophysitism. I do not see
how they relate to the topic we are discussing (other than to start an
endless Orthodox-RC debate which I do not plan to engage into). As a brief
answer to your questions, the position of the Coptic Orthodox Church 
regarding the Roman pontiff, his jurisdiction, his infalability, etc.
is exactly the same as all the other Orthodox churches.

Peace,

Nabil

          .-------------------------------------------------------------.
         /  Nabil Ayoub                        ____/   __  /    ____/  /
        /  Engine Research Center             /       /   /    /      /
       /  Dept. of Mechanical Engineering    ___/    __  /    /      /
      /  University of Wisconsin-Madison    /       /   |    /      /
     /  Email:ayoub@erctitan.me.wisc.edu  _____/ __/   _|  _____/  /
    '-------------------------------------------------------------'
