Copyright © 2006 By Doug Lawrence. All Rights Reserved.
Catechism Of The Catholic Church Reprinted With Permission.
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God’s Truth From The Catechism Of The Catholic Church – cont.
He distinguished his sonship from that of his disciples by never saying "our Father", except to
command them: "You, then, pray like this: 'Our Father'", and he emphasized this distinction, saying
"my Father and your Father".
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444 The Gospels report that at two solemn moments, the Baptism and the Transfiguration of
Christ, the voice of the Father designates Jesus his "beloved Son".
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Jesus calls himself the "only
Son of God", and by this title affirms his eternal pre-existence.
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He asks for faith in "the name of
the only Son of God".
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In the centurion's exclamation before the crucified Christ, "Truly this man
was the Son of God",
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that Christian confession is already heard. Only in the Paschal mystery can
the believer give the title "Son of God" its full meaning.
445 After his Resurrection, Jesus' divine sonship becomes manifest in the power of his glorified
humanity. He was "designated Son of God in power according to the Spirit of holiness by his
Resurrection from the dead".
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The apostles can confess: "We have beheld his glory, glory as of
the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth."
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IV. LORD
446 In the Greek translation of the Old Testament, the ineffable Hebrew name YHWH, by which
God revealed himself to Moses,
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is rendered as Kyrios, "Lord". From then on, "Lord" becomes the
more usual name by which to indicate the divinity of Israel's God. The New Testament uses this full
sense of the title "Lord" both for the Father and - what is new - for Jesus, who is thereby
recognized as God Himself.
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447 Jesus ascribes this title to himself in a veiled way when he disputes with the Pharisees about
the meaning of Psalm 110, but also in an explicit way when he addresses his apostles.
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Throughout his public life, he demonstrated his divine sovereignty by works of power over nature,
illnesses, demons, death and sin.
448 Very often in the Gospels people address Jesus as "Lord". This title testifies to the respect
and trust of those who approach him for help and healing.
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At the prompting of the Holy Spirit,
"Lord" expresses the recognition of the divine mystery of Jesus.
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In the encounter with the risen
Jesus, this title becomes adoration: "My Lord and my God!" It thus takes on a connotation of love
and affection that remains proper to the Christian tradition: "It is the Lord!"
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449 By attributing to Jesus the divine title "Lord", the first confessions of the Church's faith affirm
from the beginning that the power, honor and glory due to God the Father are due also to Jesus,
because "he was in the form of God",
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and the Father manifested the sovereignty of Jesus by
raising him from the dead and exalting him into his glory.
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450 From the beginning of Christian history, the assertion of Christ's lordship over the world and
over history has implicitly recognized that man should not submit his personal freedom in an
absolute manner to any earthly power, but only to God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ:
Caesar is not "the Lord".
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"The Church. . . believes that the key, the center and the purpose of the
whole of man's history is to be found in its Lord and Master."
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451 Christian prayer is characterized by the title "Lord", whether in the invitation to prayer ("The
Lord be with you"), its conclusion ("through Christ our Lord") or the exclamation full of trust and
hope: Maran atha ("Our Lord, come!") or Marana tha ("Come, Lord!") - "Amen Come Lord Jesus!"
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