Catechism of the Catholic Church

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441 In the Old Testament, "son of God" is a title given to the angels, the Chosen People, the children of Israel, and their kings. ⁴⁴ It signifies an adoptive sonship that establishes a relationship of particular intimacy between God and his creature. When the promised Messiah-King is called "son of God", it does not necessarily imply that he was more than human, according to the literal meaning of these texts. Those who called Jesus "son of God", as the Messiah of Israel, perhaps meant nothing more than this. ⁴⁵

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

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PART ONE: THE PROFESSION OF FAITH

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SECTION TWO: THE PROFESSION OF THE CHRISTIAN FAITH

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CHAPTER TWO: I BELIEVE IN JESUS CHRIST, THE ONLY SON OF GOD

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ARTICLE 2: "AND IN JESUS CHRIST, HIS ONLY SON, OUR LORD"

Notes for the above paragraph:

44 Cf. Deut 14:1; (LXX) 32:8; Job 1:6; Ex 4:22; Hos 2:1; 11:1; Jer 3:19; Sir 36:11; Wis 18:13; 2 Sam 7:14; Ps 82:6.

45 Cf. I Chr 17:13; Ps 2:7; Mt 27:54; Lk 23:47.

English Translation of the Cathechism of the Catholic Church for the United States of America © 1997, United States Catholic Conference, Inc.

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