Page 94 - THE ARMENIAN CHURCH_Neat

Essentials of Faith 95

Armenian Church understands one nature
as one hypostasis, namely one person of
the God-Logos who became incarnate. And
by ‘one nature’ (mia physis), the Armenian
christology does not mean a numerical one,
but a united one nature. The anti-Chal-
cedonian christology makes a clear distinc-
tion between mia (one) nature, and mono
(single) nature. The prefix mono emphasizes
the singular nature of Christ, while mia
allows for a compound nature. The Ar-
menian Church is neither Monophysite nor
Eutychian. Like other Oriental Orthodox
churches, it rejects Monophysitism as taught
by Eutyches, which was condemned at Chal-
cedon, and affirms Miaphysitism as taught
by St. Cyril of Alexandria, which holds
that both divinity and humanity are equally
present and united within one incarnate
divine-human nature of the Word of God.
The following proposal of Catholicos Ner-
ses could be considered, even today, a solid
basis for a christological consensus between
the Oriental Orthodox, Eastern Orthodox,
and Catholic churches: "If one nature is said for
the indissoluble and indivisible union and not for
the confusion, and two natures for being uncon-
fused and immutable and not for the division,
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both are within the bounds of orthodoxy."