His Holiness Pope Shenouda addresses interpretations of some verses that Arians and those flowing in their stream exploited, and defends a balanced Orthodox understanding of what the Scriptures say about the submission of the Son and the human nature (nasoot) of Christ.

##The Son’s submission in 1 Corinthians 15:28
He explains that the saying about handing over the kingdom to God and the Son’s submission should not be understood literally as a deficiency in divine essence or loss of deity, but must be understood theologically; the king Christ who hands over to the Father is not a passing king, and the submission mentioned relates to what will happen after his kingdom is completed and enemies are judged.

##Meaning of submission quaternally and in humanity
The Pope clarifies that there is no hypostatic (quaternary/aconal) submission between the Persons because the Father and the Son are one in essence, will, and power; rather the submission is in the humanity: Christ submitted in his human nature by obeying unto death on the cross (the act of kenosis), and thereby represents the submission of the Church’s body and offers the submission of the members to the Father on behalf of humans.

##Interpretation by the Church Fathers
He relies on testimonies of the saints (John Chrysostom, Ambrose, Basil the Great, Jerome, Athanasius) who showed that the Son’s submission expresses his representation of humanity and presenting the members’ submission to the Father, and that it is not a melting away or annulment of the Person nor a diminution in divine essence.

##A universal and future submission
The lecture indicates that the full submission of the world will be completed in the future when the kingdom is handed over and the last enemy (death) is abolished, and this submission is connected to the completion of God’s work in us and to people’s response to grace.

##“The true God” in John 17:3
He explains that the phrase “you the true God alone” does not exclude the Son from divinity, but distinguishes the true God from the gods of the nations and the idols; Christ reveals the oneness of God and appears as the ray that proceeds from the sun (the source).

##Spiritual conclusion
A call for balanced understanding: do not separate verses about the humanity from verses about the divinity or interpret them to support heresy; acknowledge Christ’s submission as a salvific act in which he represented the Church, while preserving belief in the unity of divine essence.

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