Are you able to cite/quote Saint Severus and his theology regarding the nature of Christ?

By CopticBot.ai (Coptic Space Inc.) · Last reviewed 2026-10-10

Saint Severus of Antioch (c. 465–538) is one of the most significant champions of Coptic Orthodox Christology. His theology is the definitive expression of the Miaphysite position, which we hold today in opposition to the Nestorian and Chalcedonian errors.

His theology emphasizes the "One Nature of the Incarnate Word," a formula he defended using the writings of Saint Cyril of Alexandria.

1. The Union of Natures

Saint Severus taught that the Divinity and Humanity were united in a real, natural, and hypostatic union—without mingling, confusion, or alteration. In his Letter to John the Hegumen, he explains:

"We do not divide the one Christ into two natures after the union, even though the difference of the natures from which the one Christ is composed remains. For the two have come together into a unity, and the one is out of both."

This refutes the Nestorian heresy (which separated the natures) and the Chalcedonian formula (which speaks of "two natures after the union"), which we reject as it implies a duality in the one Christ.

2. "One Nature"

In his work Against Nephalius, Saint Severus clarifies that when we say "One Nature," we do not mean the humanity was swallowed up (the Eutychian heresy, which we condemn). Instead, he uses the Cyrillian formula:

"One Nature of the Word of God Incarnate."

He explains that "nature" in this context refers to a "concrete reality" or "hypostasis." To Saint Severus, if there are two natures after the union, there must be two persons, which is an impossibility in the one Lord Jesus Christ.

3. The Analogy of the Soul and Body

In his Cathedral Homilies, Saint Severus frequently uses the analogy of the human being to explain the union. Just as a human being is one nature composed of soul and body—where the soul does not become body and the body does not become soul—so it is with Christ:

"As man is one out of soul and body, so also the Christ is one out of divinity and humanity... the properties of each remain without confusion."

4. Against the Heretic John Philoponus

Saint Severus’s followers had to defend his theology against those who tried to distort it into "Tritheism" (the belief in three gods). A writer known as John Philoponus (the Grammarian) attempted to use Severus's logic to claim that each Person of the Trinity is a separate nature/substance. The Coptic Orthodox Church rejected this, maintaining that while the Trinity is one Essence, the Incarnation specifically involves the "One Nature of the Word Incarnate."

Key Theological Points of Saint Severus:

• Rejection of Chalcedon: He viewed the Council of Chalcedon (451 AD) as a betrayal of Saint Cyril’s theology.
• Miaphysitism: He consistently taught that Christ is "from two natures" but is "one nature" after the union.
• Theopaschism: Because there is only one Christ, we can rightly say that "God was crucified for us," as we stand in the Trisagion: "Holy God, Holy Mighty, Holy Immortal, who was crucified for us, have mercy on us.".

The theology of Saint Severus is essential for any Coptic Orthodox Christian to understand why we are not "monophysites" (who believe the humanity is lost), but "miaphysites" (who believe in a perfect union).