The Second Article

"and in Jesus Christ His only Son, our Lord"

COMPENDIUM

The Second Article of the Creed teaches us that the Son of God is the Second Person of the Blessed Trinity, and that He is God eternal, omnipotent, Creator and Lord, like the Father, and that the Son of God made man is called Jesus Christ.

The Second Person is called the Son, because He is begotten by the Father from all eternity by way of the mind from all eternity, and on this account, He is also called the eternal Word of the Father. He is called the only Son of God the Father, because He alone is His Son by nature, whereas we are His sons by creation and adoption.

He is called our Lord, because, together with the Father and the Holy Ghost, He has created us as God, and, as God and man, He has further redeemed us.

He bears the name of Jesus, which means 'Savior,' because He has saved us from the eternal death deserved by our sins. The Father Himself gave Him the name of Jesus through the Archangel Gabriel when the latter was sent to announce the Mystery of the Incarnation to the Virgin.

The Son of God is called also Christ, which means 'anointed' and 'consecrated,' because formerly kings, and priests, and prophets were anointed; and Jesus is King of kings, and High Priest, and greatest of Prophets. The unction of Jesus Christ was not bodily like that of the kings, priests and prophets of old, but wholly spiritual and divine, because the fullness of the divinity dwelt in Him essentially.

Even before His coming, men knew of Jesus Christ through the promise of the Messiah, which God made to our first parents, Adam and Eve, and which He renewed to the Holy Patriarchs, and through the prophecies and many figures that pointed to Him. We know that He is truly the Messiah and promised Redeemer, because in Him were fulfilled:

1. All that the prophecies foretold.
2. All that the figures and types in the Old Testament signified.

Prophecies predicted the Redeemer's tribe, and the family from whence He was to arise; His miracles, and the smallest details of His Passion and Death; His Resurrection and Ascension into heaven; and His spiritual, universal and eternal Kingdom, the Holy Catholic Church. The chief types of our Lord in the Old Testament are the innocent Abel, the High Priest Melchizedek, the sacrifice of Isaac, Joseph sold by his brethren, the prophet Jonas, the paschal lamb, and the brazen serpent lifted up by Moses in the wilderness.

We know that Jesus Christ is truly God:

1. From the witness of the Father when He said, "This is My beloved Son in whom I am well pleased, hear Him."
2. By the witness of Jesus Christ Himself confirmed by the most wonderful miracles.
3. Through the teaching of the Apostles.
4. Through the constant Tradition of the Catholic Church.

The principal miracles wrought by Jesus Christ, over and above His Resurrection, are the restoration of health to the sick, of sight to the blind, of hearing to the deaf and of life to the dead.

CATECHISM

69. What are we taught in the Second Article: And in Jesus Christ His only Son our Lord?

The Second Article of the Creed teaches us that the Son of God is the Second Person of the Blessed Trinity; that, like the Father, He is God eternal, omnipotent, Creator and Lord; that He became man to save us; and that the Son of God, made man, is called Jesus Christ.

70. Why is the Second Person called the Son?

The Second Person is called the Son because He is begotten by the Father from all eternity by way of intelligence; and, for this reason, He is also called the eternal Word of the Father.

71. Since we also are sons of God, why is Jesus Christ called the only Son of God the Father?

Jesus Christ is called the only Son of God the Father, because He alone is His Son by nature, whereas we are His sons by creation and adoption.

72. Why is Jesus Christ called our Lord?

Jesus Christ is called our Lord because not only did He as God, together with the Father and the Holy Ghost, create us, but He has also as God and Man redeemed us.

73. Why is the Son of God, made man, called Jesus?

The Son of God, made man, is called Jesus, that is to say, 'Savior,' because He has saved us from the eternal death merited by our sins.

74. Who gave the name of Jesus to the Son of God made man?

The Eternal Father Himself, through the Archangel Gabriel, gave the name of Jesus to the Son of God made man at the moment when the Archangel announced to the Blessed Virgin the mystery of the Incarnation.

75. Why is the Son of God made man also called Christ?

The Son of God made man is also called Christ, that is to say, "anointed" or "consecrated," because kings, priests and prophets were anointed of old; and Jesus is the King of kings, High Priest, and Supreme Prophet.

76. Was Jesus Christ really anointed and consecrated with a material anointing?

The anointing of Jesus Christ was not material, like that of the kings, priests and prophets of old, but wholly spiritual and divine, because the fullness of the Divinity dwells in Him substantially.

77. Had men any idea of Jesus Christ previous to His coming?

Yes, previous to His coming men had some idea of Jesus Christ in the promise of the Messiah, which God made to our first parents, Adam and Eve, and which He renewed to the Holy Patriarchs; and also in the prophecies and the many figures which foreshadowed Him.

78. How do we know that Jesus Christ is truly the Messiah and Promised Redeemer?

We know that Jesus Christ is truly the Messiah and Promised Redeemer from the fact that in Him are verified: 1. all that the prophecies foretold; 2. and all that the figures of the Old Testament foreshadowed.

79. What did the prophecies foretell of the Redeemer?

Regarding the Redeemer, the prophecies foretold the tribe and the family from which He was to come; the place and time of His birth; His miracles and the most minute circumstances of His Passion and Death; His Resurrection and Ascension into heaven; and His spiritual, perpetual and universal Kingdom, that is, the Holy Catholic Church.

80. Which are the principal figures of the Redeemer in the Old Testament?

The principal figures of the Redeemer in the Old Testament are: the innocent Abel; the High Priest Melchizedek; the sacrifice of Isaac; Joseph sold by his brethren; the prophet Jonas; the paschal lamb; and the brazen serpent set up by Moses in the desert.

81. How do we know that Jesus Christ is true God?

We know that Jesus Christ is true God: 1. from the testimony of the Father saying, "This is My beloved Son in whom I am well pleased, hear ye Him;" 2. from the attestation of Jesus Christ Himself, confirmed by the most stupendous miracles; 3. from the teaching of the Apostles; 4. from the unvarying Tradition of the Catholic Church.

82. Mention the chief miracles wrought by Jesus Christ.

Besides His Resurrection, the chief miracles wrought by Jesus Christ are the restoring of health to the sick, of sight to the blind, of hearing to the deaf, and of life to the dead.