Jehovah’s Witnesses believe that Christ is the angel Michael.

His Holiness Pope Shenouda III replies to the claim of some sects (especially Jehovah’s Witnesses and the Sabbatarians) that Christ is the angel Michael, and clarifies that this interpretation is wrong because the Holy Scripture affirms the divinity of Christ and his status superior to the angels.

Biblical evidence and methodology

• He appeals to texts from the New Testament: the Epistle to the Hebrews which clarifies that the Son is above the angels, and the books (Gospels) Mark, Philippians and Colossians that emphasize that all things were created by the Son and that creation is subject to him.

• The speaker also explicitly mentions verses from Revelation and the post-resurrection appearances where he ate and drank with the disciples as evidence of his bodily resurrection.

The spiritual and educational dimension from the perspective of our Coptic Orthodox faith

• Emphasis on the divinity of Christ and the eternality of his sonship: the eternal birth of the Son (the Logos) is not a temporal birth but a birth from the divine essence before the ages.

• Holding fast to the doctrine of the bodily resurrection: resurrection is meant to be the rising of the body united to the spirit, and what the Church believes about the resurrection does not agree with the idea that Christ did not rise in his earthly body.

Practical defensive points for believers

• When arguing with Jehovah’s Witnesses, His Holiness Pope Shenouda III directs to show their contradictions and to hold to the clear scriptural points, highlighting that angels are creatures and that the whole creation was created by Christ.

• He shows that statements about divine appearances in the Old Testament (such as the angel of the Lord or appearing in human form) are divine appearances and are not an incarnation that removes the meaning of divinity or redefines angels as God.

Interpretation of the wounds and pains after the resurrection

• The wounds of Christ and mention of the marks of the spear and the nails are read as signs of love and a testimony to the sacrifice, and not evidence of disfigurement or deficiency in his divinity after the resurrection.

Conclusion and the spirit of the text

His Holiness Pope Shenouda III links the steadfastness of the apostolic faith (the divinity of the Son and the bodily resurrection) with the need for clarity in dialogue with opposing groups, calling believers to cling to the Scriptural text and the teachings of the Church in defending the faith.

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