More than two centuries before the Reformation, a theological debate broke out pitting the premier theologian Thomas Aquinas against an upstart Franciscan priest from Britain, John Duns Scotus. The heart of the debate circled around the question, “Would the event we celebrate at Christmas have occurred if humanity had not disobeyed God?” Like most theologians, Aquinas viewed the incarnation as God’s remedy for a fallen planet, a rescue plan that God first prophesied in Genesis 3. Aquinas pointed to Bible ...