Annotation CCCXXXI

”Thou hast lessened him a little less than the Angels.” — Hebrews 2:7

Whether Christ was diminished from God.

Thomas Cajetan, explaining these [words] in the commentaries, Ambrose [of Compsa], [in] the fourth book of the Annotations, accuses with these words: “NEW, and unheard-of, and unspeakable [is that which] he teaches in this place — namely, that Christ is a little diminished from God according to substantial being; because he is God personally. But God is God both naturally and personally. Therefore he is a little diminished from God, because he is indeed God according to personal being (which is agreed to be substantial), but not according to nature. Thus he.” But what theologian ever spoke thus, and in the same person separated these — namely, person and essence? Falsely, then, did the most holy synod and the whole church acclaim the homoousion — that is, consubstantial or co-essential! Besides, whatever is less than God in any manner whatsoever is not “a little less,” as he teaches, but is infinitely less than He. I pass over [the fact] that he destroys his own self: for if personal being is substantial being, as he says, then to be God according to personal being is to be God according to substantial being. Let the learned, therefore, see to these [things] — whether they be to be approved, or to be eliminated — which so clearly fight with the celebrated profession of our faith.