Christ's saving death
- F09.1 Christ died for our sins and his death saves: consensus from Era I (high)
- F09.2 Christ’s one sacrifice on the cross is once for all and sufficient: consensus (the Eucharistic ‘offering’ is a remembrance that is ‘one and not many’) (high)
- F09.3 Christ truly died in the flesh, against Docetism: consensus from Era I (high)
Two separate measures, shown side by side; neither is combined with the other (confidence-weighted, out of 4; counts show how many of this doctrine's 3 questions each rests on; ⚠ marks coverage more than 10 points below the median, a less certain rank). This doctrine is first-order (tier weight 3). How scoring works · Scripture and tradition · Glossary · Every score with its citation
Closeness to Scripture
Closeness to the fathers
Charts: closeness to the fathers by question, and timeline
- c. 96 Clement of Rome F09.1
- c. 110 Ignatius F09.1
- c. 110 Ignatius F09.3
- c. 110 Ignatius F09.3
- c. 150 Ep. to Diognetus F09.1
- c. 180 Irenaeus F09.1
- c. 395 Chrysostom F09.2
- 1547 Trent VI Catholic
- 1562 Trent XXII Catholic
- 1646 Westminster Confession Presbyterian
- 1672 Confession of Dositheus Orthodox
F9 · Christ’s saving death
Christ died for our sins (1 Cor 15:3) and his death saves; how it saves is S20 and T6.
Tier: First-order (scoring weight 3). How the tiers were set: theological triage. Method: conventions. Traditions’ sources: confessional sources.
In short
Paul calls it ‘of first importance’ that Christ died for our sins. The earliest fathers say the same — and insist he truly suffered and died, not in appearance only. All nine traditions hold this; they differ only on how his death saves, which is a second-order question.
Plan
Question: F09.1: did Christ’s death save? How it saves is S20 and T06. Scripture: Isa 53:5–6; Mark 10:45; Rom 3:25; 5:8–10; 1 Cor 15:3; 2 Cor 5:21; 1 Pet 2:24; 3:18. Fathers: 1 Clement 7; Ignatius, Smyrnaeans 2; Diognetus 9; Irenaeus, Against Heresies V.1.1. F09.2: was Christ’s sacrifice once for all (Heb 10:10–14; Chrysostom, Homily 17 on Hebrews)? F09.3: did Christ truly die in the flesh, not in appearance only (Luke 23:46; John 19:30–34; Ignatius, Trallians 9 and Smyrnaeans 2)?
Questions
- F09.1 Did Christ’s death save?
- F09.2 Was Christ’s sacrifice once for all and fully sufficient?
- F09.3 Did Christ truly die in the flesh (real death, not apparent)?
Verdicts and trace
Weighed under the source-proximity principle: Scripture first, then the father eras I–IV.
F09.1 · Did Christ’s death save?
| Question | Verdict | Confidence | Reasoning | Key sources | Scripture (benchmark) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| F09.1 | Christ died for our sins and his death saves: consensus from Era I | High | F09.1.1 · F09.1.3 weighing | clement-of-rome-f09-s1 · ignatius-f09-s1 · diognetus-f09-s1 · irenaeus-f09-s1 | F09.1.4: high |
F09.2 · Was Christ’s sacrifice once for all and fully sufficient?
| Question | Verdict | Confidence | Reasoning | Key sources | Scripture (benchmark) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| F09.2 | Christ’s one sacrifice on the cross is once for all and sufficient: consensus (the Eucharistic ‘offering’ is a remembrance that is ‘one and not many’) | High | F09.2.1 · F09.2.3 weighing | chrysostom-f09-s1 | F09.2.4: high |
F09.3 · Did Christ truly die in the flesh (real death, not apparent)?
| Question | Verdict | Confidence | Reasoning | Key sources | Scripture (benchmark) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| F09.3 | Christ truly died in the flesh, against Docetism: consensus from Era I | High | F09.3.1 · F09.3.3 weighing | ignatius-f09-s2 · ignatius-f09-s3 | F09.3.4: high |
Post-750 development
Which of this doctrine’s questions each tradition stays closest to, or departs from. Each row links to the tradition’s notes; exact scores and bases are in the reasoning.
| Tradition | Closest to the fathers on | Departs or sharpens on |
|---|---|---|
| Catholic | F09.1, F09.2, F09.3 | — |
| Orthodox | F09.1, F09.2, F09.3 | — |
| Oriental Orthodox | F09.1, F09.2, F09.3 | — |
| Lutheran | F09.1, F09.2, F09.3 | — |
| Anglican | F09.1, F09.2, F09.3 | — |
| Presbyterian | F09.1, F09.2, F09.3 | — |
| Reformed Baptist | F09.1, F09.2, F09.3 | — |
| General Baptist | F09.1, F09.2, F09.3 | — |
| Anabaptist | F09.1, F09.2, F09.3 | — |
Overall verdict
All nine confess that Christ’s death saves. They differ on how (S20, T06), not on whether. All nine affirm its sufficiency (F09.2) and that he truly died in the flesh (F09.3).
Verification status
Trent VI.7, Dositheus 8, AC III, Art. XXXI, WCF VIII.5, SC 1660 art. 3 and Dordrecht IV verified against online texts.