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In Christian theology, patripassianism is the view that God the Father suffers ( from Latin patri-" father " and passio " suffering ").

Its adherents believe that God the Father was incarnate and suffered on the cross and that whatever happened to the Son happened to the Father and so the Father co-suffered with the human Jesus on the cross.

This view is opposed to the classical theological doctrine of divine apathy.

According to classical theology it is possible for Christ to suffer only in virtue of his human nature.

The divine nature is incapable of suffering.

Classical theology is heavily influenced by Greek metaphysics and especially Neo-Platonic and Stoic conceptions of God.

As a result, there is considerable debate among Christian theologians as to how much of classical theology is actually required for Christian orthodoxy.

The early church considered patripassianism to be heresy.