CURRENT ISSUE :
Vol. LXI - Issue No. 186 : September-December 2026
Purging Homoousios of Sabellian Imprint Athanasius’ Post-325 Clarification of The Nicene Faith
- DOI :
- https://doi.org/10.55997/3001pslxi186a1
- Author/s :
- Joseph Nguyen Huu Thap, OP & Jannel N. Abogado, OP
Abstract :
The First Council of Nicaea (325) declared the Son to be homoousios (of one substance) with the Father, affirming that the Son is God in the same way the Father is God. Despite its doctrinal significance, the term became the subject of heated controversy because of its non-biblical origin and earlier usages that did not match its later orthodox use. To better understand the controversies surrounding the term, this article investigates the diverse pre-Nicene uses, showing how they contributed to widespread misunderstanding of the Nicene definition. Specifically, it examines the role of Marcellus of Ancyra and the miahypostatic tradition in reinforcing the accusation that the Nicene formula collapsed the distinction between the Father and the Son. The study further analyzes the terminological ambiguity surrounding ousia and hypostasis and shows how this ambiguity shaped fourth- century Trinitarian debates. Finally, it highlights the decisive contribution of Athanasius of Alexandria, whose later theological works reclaimed homoousios by differentiating its orthodox Nicene meaning from both Sabellian modalism and Arian subordinationism.
Keywords : Council of Nicaea, homoousios, ousia, hypostasis, Athanasius of Alexandria, post-Nicene theology, Marcellus of Ancyra, Arianism, Sabellianism
Unity through Reconciled Diversity as a Re-Reception of Nicaea
- DOI :
- https://doi.org/10.55997/3002pslxi186a2
- Author/s :
- Cecilio Vladimir E. Magboo, OP
Abstract :
Churches see the First Council of Nicaea as a fundamental reference point for Christian Unity today. To uncover its power to unite Christians one must see that it also allows for a diversity of the expressions of faith. Christians can overcome their divisions by seeing their differences as reconcilable, without losing the vision of the faith professed at Nicaea. To navigate their doctrinal differences, and see how they can be reconciled, churches today can make use of the concept of the hierarchy of truths. This will enable them to find their doctrines in the whole body of the Truth of Faith with an uncompromising grounding on the Nicaea. Such process will also help the churches in their conversion. Hence, churches today can and must see that the Faith professed in Nicaea becomes a matter for Re-Reception if they are to grow in their faith and remain faithful to Christ.
Keywords : Ecumenical Council, Ecumenical Movement, Hierarchy of Truths, Reconciled Diversity, Re-Reception, Unity in Diversity
Excavating Creed: Reading and Preaching the Scriptures and Nicaea
- DOI :
- https://doi.org/10.55997/3003pslxi186a3
- Author/s :
- Clarence C. Marquez, OP
Abstract :
The paper offers an alternate commemoration and celebration of the Nicene Jubilee through a studied exploration of the Nicene Creed, analogously employing an “archaeological excavation” of layers of texts and traditions underneath its present formulation. It evokes a revisiting of Nicaea, site of the 1st Ecumenical Council, finding it submerged, resurfacing its material remains, juxtaposing artifact and text, discerning the intersecting discursive practices - historical, philosophical and theological, cultural and linguistic, orthodox and heretical, polemical and political, institutional and personal. It hopes to draw thoughts for theological reflections and points for preaching, as an incarnated moral response, a concrete form of sharing of such fruits of academic contemplation: what it means “to believe” in God the Son being “consubstantial with the Father” and “made flesh, becoming human.”
Keywords : Archaeology, Nicaea, Creed, Fathers of the Church, Arius, Orthodoxy, Heresy, Preaching
Nicaea and the Divinity of Jesus: Cross and Sword at the Crossroads
- DOI :
- https://doi.org/10.55997/3004pslxi186a4
- Author/s :
- Orlando B. Quevedo, OMI, DD
Abstract :
This article reflects on the Council of Nicaea (325) and its enduring significance for Christian faith, particularly its definitive affirmation of the divinity of Jesus Christ. Beginning with the apostolic confession of Jesus as the Messiah and Son of God, the article traces the development from the early Church’s lived faith to the theological reflection that culminated in the Nicene formulation. It examines the historical, political, and theological circumstances surrounding the Council of Nicaea, especially the controversy between Arius and Alexander of Alexandria. Particular attention is given to the role of Emperor Constantine in convening the Council and to the complex intersection of ecclesial authority and imperial power, symbolized by the image of the “Cross and Sword.” It further traces the post-Nicene struggle over the Creed, the use of imperial power in support of competing theological positions, and the eventual reaffirmation of the Nicene faith at Constantinople in 381. The article argues that Nicaea should be understood not simply as a historical resolution of a doctrinal controversy but as a decisive moment in the Church’s continuing effort to articulate the faith received from the apostles. Its enduring legacy lies both in its confession of Christ’s divinity and in its witness to the complex relationship between religious faith, ecclesial authority, and political power. Ultimately, the Nicene Creed remains both a proclamation and a prayer, inviting Christians in every age to confess Jesus Christ as Lord, Son of God, and Savior.
Keywords : Council of Nicaea, Divinity of Christ, Nicene Creed, Arian Controversy, Homoousios
Early Images of Our Lady of Guadalupe in the Philippines (PHILIPPINIANA RECORDS)
- DOI :
- https://doi.org/10.55997/3005pslxi186pr1
- Author/s :
- Regalado Trota José, Jr.
Abstract :
The devotion to Our Lady of Guadalupe in the Philippines is visualized in two different images: the image of Our Lady of Guadalupe in Spain, and that in Mexico. This article describes various images of Our Lady of Guadalupe from the Spanish Period of the Philippines, in anticipation of the 500th anniversary of the apparition of Our Lady of Guadalupe in Mexico.
Keywords : Ayate, Our Lady of Guadalupe of Extremadura, Our Lady of Guadalupe of Mexico, vírgenes negras
“Fr. Martín de Aguirre’s account on the eruptions of Taal volcano in 1754” (PHILIPPINIANA RECORDS)
- DOI :
- https://doi.org/10.55997/3006pslxi186pr2
- Author/s :
- Jorge Mojarro
Abstract :
Keywords :
Le Goff, Jacques. Il cielo sceso in terra. Le radici medievali dell’Europa. Translated by Francesco Maiello (original French: L’Europe est-elle née au Moyen Âge?, Paris: Éditions du Seuil, 2003; first Italian ed., Roma- Bari: Editori Laterza, 2004), Roma-Bari: Editori Laterza, 2023. pp. 352. (I Robinson / Letture) ISBN 978-88-581-5179-2. (REVIEWS & NOTICES)
- DOI :
- https://doi.org/10.55997/3007pslxi186br1
- Author/s :
- Hilario V. Sicat Jr., OP
Abstract :
Keywords :
Burton, Neel. The Gang of Three: Socrates, Plato, Aristotle. Acheron Press, 2023. pp. 392. ISBN: 978-1913260422. (REVIEWS & NOTICES)
- DOI :
- https://doi.org/10.55997/3008pslxi186br2
- Author/s :
- Jose Adriand Emmanuel L. Layug
Abstract :
Keywords :
Hewitt, Simon. Life after Death after Marx. New York: Cambridge University Press, 2025. pp. 53. ISBN: 978-1-009-52684-5. (REVIEWS & NOTICES)
- DOI :
- https://doi.org/10.55997/3009pslxi186br3
- Author/s :
- Dan Joseph DC Guillermo
Abstract :
Keywords :
Burgos, Juan Manuel. Personalism and Metaphysics: Is Personalism a First Philosophy? Wilmington, Delaware: Vernon Press, 2023. pp. 114. ISBN- 13: 978-1648897177. (REVIEWS & NOTICES)
- DOI :
- https://doi.org/10.55997/3010pslxi186br4
- Author/s :
- Justin Sean Luis Canaria
Abstract :
Keywords :
Braver, Lee. Heidegger on Thinking. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2024. pp. 61. ISSN 2976-5668. (REVIEWS & NOTICES)
- DOI :
- https://doi.org/10.55997/3011pslxi186br5
- Author/s :
- Reynante L. Labao, Jr.
Abstract :
Keywords :
Editor's Note
Rev. Fr. Clarence Victor C. Marquez, O.P., SThD
Editor-in-chief
לשמע בקול תודה ולספר כל נפלאותיך׃
“That I may publish with the voice of thanksgiving, and tell of all thy wondrous works”
(Psalm 26:7 KJV)
The sufficient reason for the Office for Ecclesiastical Publications, for the enduring publishing of Philippiniana Sacra (since 1966) and Boletin Eclesiastico de Filipinas (since 1923), is Preaching, the unhindered proclamation of the gospel for salvation of souls, which remains as the true mission of the University of Santo Tomas, indeed, of the Order of Preachers.
Ours is a ministry of the Word - received and read, thought and taught in the Ecclesiastical Faculties of UST, through the Philippiniana Sacra; as texts written and published, disseminated and distributed in the service of the different dioceses of the Church in the Philippines, through the Boletin Eclesiastico de Filipinas.
And in this age of social communications and artificial intelligence, we take up the challenge and task of exploring and utilizing ethically these modern means in order to further the reach of our preaching, to render our message ever ancient, ever new, through means and media relevant and responsive, to be present in these new areopagi, to engage in the dialogue of life and of faith, to serve the truth in charity, to seek to sustain our efforts with focused studies and strategies, to journey with the people of God, especially the poor and the afflicted, towards the reign of God.
“Come and see…,” “ask, seek, knock…” Let these texts, both in printed and in digital forms, be testaments and testimonies to the TRUTH that sets us free, the WORD made human, “who was from the beginning, whom we have heard, whom we have seen with our eyes, whom we have looked upon, and touched with our hands, the WORD of Life… so that you too may have fellowship… so that our joy may be complete” (cf. 1 John 1:1-4).
