From Theory to Practice. Understanding the Incarnation as a Mode of Unio

The Church, particularly within the Gospels, and also the Pauline corpus, has understood the evolving doctrine of the Incarnation of the Second Person of the Trinity to be intimately connected in a way that praxis- a lived spirituality with tangible aspects- is constructed on the foundation of theoria, the underlying doctrinal rationale motivating choices taken by believers. This is amply attested to by scriptural as well as patristic authors and forms a core of the Church’s experience to modern times. The Franciscan movement, beginning with the experience of the founder, Francis of Assisi, forms an important, even essential, part of this intricate story that extends from the thirteenth century to the present.