Tertullian’s On the Flesh of Christ

Tertullian, the founder of Latin Christianity and a man of great intellect, was born in Carthage to a proconsular centurion sometime around A.D. 145. He was likely educated in Rome as an expert in law and joined the Church around 185, becoming a presbyter in 190. His writings profoundly influenced Augustine and Cyprian who, in turn, provided inspiration to the Reformers in Europe and in the Anglican Church. 

In his later years Tertullian embraced Montanism, a movement, labeled a heresy by the Church, which claimed to have further revelation from the Holy Spirit, held to a strict moral code, and elevated female prophets. Tertullian perhaps embraced this because he was discontent with the orthodox church of his day and found the uncompromising morality of Montanism appealing. Despite this, he is recognized as the founder of Latin Christianity and an incredibly influential Christian thought leader and writer.

In this treatise Tertullian addresses a number of arguments pertaining to Jesus’ physical body, ranging from assertions that Christ was only spiritual to that his human nature was different in some significant way from ours. Tertullian’s response is fairly straightforward; he uses the Bible to clearly demonstrate that the Apostles experienced Jesus as a human. Looking at the heretics’ argument as a whole, they often attempt to reinterpret Scripture to fit their understanding of the world. Once again, their error reminds us to come humbly to the Bible to learn from God rather than imposing our own cultural, rational, or theological assumptions on what He has to say.

And now, please enjoy this rendition of Tertullian’s On the Flesh of Christ.

If you would like to read more of the writings of the Early Christian Fathers, please visit ccel.org to view the full collection.