The Incarnation

The Incarnation

First Published in the Anthroposophical Quarterly, IV:4, Winter, 1959

The Incarnation is the central doctrine of the Christian Faith. “The word became flesh and dwelt among us.” It is a belief that to other religions and to the modern scientific mind is the great stumbling block to the acceptance of Christianity, but without it the Christian gospel loses all of its significance. It is expressed in the New Testament in the narrative stories of St. Matthew and St. Luke, but it was not the subject of debate in the early years of the Christian Church. The Problem that St. Paul discussed were the cross and the Resurrection. The divinity of those who had been witnesses of His Resurrection. – Opening Paragraph

About the Author

Arthur Pearce Shepherd, DD (31 December 1885 – 27 February 1968) was Archdeacon of Dudley from 1934 until 1951. Shepherd was educated at Cardiff High School and Jesus College, Oxford; and ordained in 1911. After a curacy at All Saints, Northampton he was Assistant Secretary for Young People’s Work at the Church Mission Society. Later he held incumbencies in Northampton, St James the Greater, Leicester and Dudley. He was a Canon Residentiary of Worcester Cathedral from 1945 to 1965; and Proctor in Convocation for the Diocese of Worcester from 1951 until 1964. In 1954, Shepherd authored a biography of Rudolf Steiner.