The discovery of Jesus: The early Christological debates and their relevance for us

Every generation is called to rediscover the infinite richness of the person of Jesus. When this task is not carried out, his figure seems to wear out and become irrelevant. This book aims to be a guide to help men and women of today to rediscover Jesus by following the challenging path taken by the first Christians. Through their discussions, agreements, controversies and decisions, they brought to light the face of Christ, the Son of God who assumed our humanity. Revisiting these ancient discussions does not only seek to inform about the past of theology, but it also wants to help us “re-know” and make our own the eternal and ever new experience of Jesus. The Docetists and Ignatius of Antioch, Marcion, the Gnostics and Irenaeus of Lyon, Celsus and Origen, Noetus and Hippolytus, Arius, Athanasius and Hilary, Apollinaris and Gregory of Nazianzus, Nestorius and Cyril are some of the contenders in this fascinating history of the beginnings, where the identity of Jesus becomes something more than a mere discussion, since it implicates the very lives of those who wish to clarify it. Revisiting these early controversies shows that the content of those debates retains all its relevance and timeliness. Samuel Fernández (1963) is a professor of Christology and patrology at the Pontifical Catholic University of Chile.

SAMUEL FERNÁNDEZ

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