CatholicTheology.info

Choose a topic from Part 3a:

• The Incarnation
• Our Blessed Lady
• Our Lord Jesus Christ
  • 31. Our Lord's Body
  • 32. The Conception of Christ
  • 33. The Mode of Our Lord's Conception
  • 34. The Perfection of Our Lord Before His Birth
  • 35. The Nativity of Christ
  • 36. The Manifestation of the New-Born Christ
  • 37. Legal Observances Regarding the Christ Child
  • 38. The Baptism of St. John the Baptist
  • 39. The Baptizing of Christ by St. John the Baptist
  • 40. Our Lord's Life
  • 41. The Temptation in the Desert
  • 42. The Preaching of Christ
  • 43. The Miracles of Christ: In General
  • 44. Miracles of Christ: In Particular
  • 45. The Transfiguration
  • 46. The Passion of Christ
  • 47. The Effecting Cause of the Passion
  • 48. The Efficacy of the Passion of Christ
  • 49. Actual Effects of the Passion of Christ
  • 50. The Death of Our Lord
  • 51. The Burial of Our Lord
  • 52. The Descent Into Hell
  • 53. The Resurrection
  • 54. The Risen Christ
  • 55. The Manifestation of the Risen Christ
  • 56. Causal Power of the Resurrection
  • 57. The Ascension
  • 58. Our Lord at the Father's Right Hand
  • 59. Our Lord's Power as Judge
• The Sacraments in General
• Baptism
• Confirmation
• The Holy Eucharist
• Penance

48. The Efficacy of the Passion of Christ

1. Christ as man suffered voluntarily to redeem mankind.He suffered for justice, and therefore grace came to him asmerited, and this merited grace overflows into the members ofChrist, the children of his Church, and indeed all men. Thus Christby his Passion merited salvation for his members.

2. Because he suffered willingly, out of love andobedience towards God, our Lord gave back to God more than enoughto compensate for the offenses of the whole human race. Hence, thePassion is a superabundant atonement for the sins ofmankind. Scripture says (I John 2:2): "He is the propitiationfor our sins; and not for ours only, but for those of the wholeworld."

3. A sacrifice is something acceptable to God, offered toappease him and to manifest his supreme dominion over all things.The sacrifice offered by our Lord in the Passion was the mostperfect sacrifice possible.

4. And the Passion was our redemption. To redeem a man isto secure his release from captivity. Man was a captive of sin,which is the bondage of the devil; man lay also under the bondageof God'soffended justice. Now, the Passion of Christdissolved both bonds, releasing man from the thrall of sin andSatan, and atoning to God for man's rebellion against him.Therefore, the Passion is truly a work of redemption.

5. God in Trinity is the first cause of our redemption.But the immediate cause is Christ. The life of Christ (or hisblood, which makes life possible), is the price paid to redeem us.Our Lord voluntarily paid this price. Hence, in the sense ofimmediate action and payment, our redemption was accomplished byour Lord alone. Thus Christ alone is our Redeemer.

6. The principal effecting cause of man's salvation isGod. And the humanity of Christ is the instrument of the Godhead inworking out man's salvation. All that Christ as man does andsuffers for us, is truly done by him instrumentally; that is, ascarrying out the effectiveness rooted in, and proceeding from, theGodhead. Now, what Christ does and suffers for us is called hisPassion. Therefore, the Passion of Christ is the effecting cause ofman's salvation.

"God has no need of men."
St Philip Neri

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"Though the path is plain and smooth for people of good will, those who walk it will not travel far, and will do so only with difficulty if they do not have good feet, courage, and tenacity of spirit. "
St John of the Cross, OCD - Doctor of the Church

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"Happy is the youth, because he has time before him to do good. "
St Philip Neri

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