The
First, Second and Third (and Final) Coming of Christ
Let Us Set the Record Straight
PURPOSE
The
purpose of this brief document
is to
help the Faithful understand the differences among
The First, Second and Third (and Final)
Coming of Christ.
On the surface it may appear a simple
question; however, official errors abound and some of them may be used
as part of the falsification of the coming of Christ.
BACKGROUND
The root of the confusion may be found in a famous excerpt from a
sermon by St. Bernard of Clairvaux
(1) (Sermo 5, In Adventu
Domini, 1-3: Opera Omnia, Edit. Cisterc. 4 {1966}, 188-190) which is
used in the Roman Office of Readings for Wednesday of the First
Week of Advent. In it, Bernard
(2) speaks of not 2 but 3
comings of the Lord.
[our underscoring]
"We
know that there are three comings
of the Lord. The third lies
between the other two. It is invisible, while the other two are visible.
In the first coming he was seen on earth, dwelling among men; he
himself testifies that they saw him and hated him. In the final coming
all flesh will see the salvation of our God, and they will look on him
whom they pierced. The
intermediate coming is a hidden one; in it only the elect see the Lord
within their own selves, and they are saved. In his first coming
our Lord came in our flesh and in our weakness; in this middle
coming he comes in
spirit and in power; in the
final coming he will be seen in
glory and majesty."
Bernard goes on to say:
"In
case someone should think that what
we say about this middle coming is sheer invention, listen to what our
Lord himself ways: 'If anyone loves
me, he will keep my word, and my Father will love him, and we will come
to him'. There is another passage of
Scripture which reads: 'He who fears
God will do good', but
something further has been said about the one who loves, that is, that
he will keep God's word. Where is God's word to be kept? Obviously in
the heart, as the prophet says: 'I have hidden your words in my
heart,
so that I may not sin against you.'"
Bernard's version of the Second Coming is not just flawed - it is
completely erroneous since his interpretation of John 14:23 is
incorrect.
DETAILS
This error has become an issue now because Ratzinger has
used such quotation in his latest book Jesus of Nazareth - Part 2. (3) It
seems that a verse from the Gospel of John was used by Bernard to
anchor his erroneous theo logic.
If any one love me, he will keep my word,
and my Father will love him, and we will come to him, and will make our
abode with him. [John
14:23]
According to Bernard's definition, that intermediate coming is
individualized (depends on the individual) and varies in Time (when the
individual allows God in). Bernard's version is no more than what
is known as "a conversion", and is certainly not "an intermediate
coming of Christ".
Obviously, when a human keeps the Word of God, the Word of God resides
in him/her but not bodily - as a Person of the Most Holy Trinity. In
residence in that soul, besides the Word of God, is also the Father and
the Holy Spirit, for there
is
only One and Indivisible God.
In other words, when the Holy Spirit of God is within a soul -
manifested
by the words and deeds of that human being - so is the Father and the
Word of God in residence.
The Second Person of the Most Holy Trinity is Jesus, Whose Body
was Glorified after His Resurrection - and that Glorified Body is not
inside anyone. Of course, He also Is the Word of God in His Divine
Nature, and that is what takes up residence in a human at the time of
conversion.
That is - the Second Coming, which
precedes the Third and Final one, is not what John spoke of
in his Gospel verse 14:23. Through John we are only told what
"a conversion" is all about.
CONCLUSION
We have amply covered the true Second Coming as well as the final and
Third Coming of Jesus Christ in 158 documents in our Domain. To make
things very simple: the Second Coming of Christ is imminent; this is
when Christ will come for his faithful people, will end These Times,
and will give the Faithful a “new heaven and a new earth.” The Third -
and final - Coming of Christ is centuries in the future, when Christ
will come to judge the living and the dead, and to end the world. From
then on, there will be only Heaven - and Hell.
Those who wish to go into this issue in greater depth may access our
documents on line. (4).
We wish to take this opportunity to clearly define our position
about Bernard of Clairvaux. We summarily reject his brand of holiness. (2)
Christ's
knight deals out death in safety, as I said, and suffers death in even
greater safety. He benefits himself when he suffers death, and benefits
Christ when he deals out death. 'He does not wear a sword without
cause; he is God's agent for punishment of evil-doers and for
glorification of the good.
' Clearly, when he kills an evil-doer, he is
not a homicide, but, if you will allow me the term, a malicide, and is
plainly Christ's vengeance on those who work evil and the defense
Christ provides for Christians.
When such a knight is himself killed,
we know that he has not simply perished but has won through to the end
of this life. The death he inflicts accrues to Christ's profit; the
death he receives accrues to his own.
Jesus Christ could have – single handedly or by granting
supernatural aid to the Israelites – mowed down every single Roman
oppressor of His people. He did not because that is not the Ways of
God, the "Ways" God came in the person of Jesus Christ to teach us.
Anyone who speaks and acts as Bernard has in the above quote - be it a
Successor of Peter or a Doctor of the Church or an alleged Saint
(according to Roman Catholicism) is a liar whose fate is worse than
that of a lukewarm soul:
But because thou art lukewarm, and neither
cold, not hot, I will begin to vomit thee out of my mouth. [Rev.3:16]
To kill a human being in the Name of God is a blasphemy!
NOTES
(1)
Source
(2) Meet
the Bernard You may be surprised with his brand
of "holiness" - he sounds and acts more like a blood thirsty jihadist
than a disciple of Jesus Christ.
(3) Ignatius Press. Paulines
Press. 2011
(4) Search
Results
Published on May 7th, 2011
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