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Glite Dictionary
homoousion

homoousion

9.9
A Christian belief that the Father and the Son are the same being
  • noun
  • /ˌhoʊməˈuːziən/
  • Formal
translation icon : homoousion
  • The concept of homoousion asserts that the Father and the Son are of the same substance in Christian belief.

Examples

  • What was Athanasius doing when he fought his great fight for the Homoousion?

    Academic text (2017)

  • Athanasius's defense of the doctrine of homoousion helped to shape the foundation of Christian theology.

  • In the Council of Nicaea, the term homoousion was pivotal in the discussion about Christ's relationship to God the Father.

Synonyms

Athanasianism
vshomoousion
  • Specialized
9.9

A Christian belief that Jesus is fully God like the Father

is the doctrine itself without naming a particular teacher
consubstantiality
vshomoousion
  • Formal
9.9

A state in which two things have the same nature, often used about God in religion

is the Christian doctrine stating the Son and Father share one substance

Surface Forms

homoousion singular
homoousions plural

Morphology

homoousion = homo + ousion

Although the combining form 'homo-' means 'same', the core element 'ousion' is a specialized Greek theological borrowing ('essence') not recognizable to an average B1 learner, so the meaning cannot be reliably derived from the parts.

Etymology

Homoousion comes from the Greek parts homo- 'same' and ousia 'being' or 'essence'. So homoousion means that the Father and the Son share the same being or substance, which is why the word was used to say they are of one essence in early Christian debates.