Early Church History
Notes
Transcript
Timeline of Events
Timeline of Events
The Apostles (33 AD–90 AD)
They were largely One-God Jews. After the era of the apostles, who were One-God believers, Greek philosophy began to be merged with Christianity.
Post Apostolic Fathers (90–140 AD)
They were Greek and Latin Bishops that were well versed in Platonism and brought forward the Greek concept of The Trinity. Some of them were Clement of Rome, Ignatius, Polycarp, Shepherd Hermas, and Justin Martyr.
we must remember that the followers of Christ where under great persecution. therefor, the religious affiliates where looking for an alternative
a new religion or belief system that would appease the religious authority of that day.
Greek Apologists (130–180 AD)
One of them, Theophilus, used the words Triad and Tridos to describe his concept of God.
Old Catholic Age (170–325 AD)
Tertullian , an Egyptian lawyer (150-225 AD), plagiarized Theophilus and called it Trinitas. Later, he coined the word Trinity. He was the first to use the formula, “una substantia et tres personae” (three persons in one substance).
Origen (185- 254 AD)
followed the tradition of the Greek Apologist. He spoke of Christianity as the highest philosophy and stated that his purpose was to synthesize, or blend together, the Bible and Greek philosophy. [26]
Athenasius (296- 373 AD)
a Catholic deacon from Alexandria Egypt, furthered Tertullian’s Trinity. He was blamed for writing the Athenasian creed.
Why the City of Nicaea?
Why the City of Nicaea?
Nicaea was a place of luxury and worldliness for Catholic hierarchy.
Constantine provided the Bishops with much sensual pleasure during leisure hours and stated if he saw a bishop committing adultery, he would throw his imperial robe over the unlawful act, lest any should witness the scene.
It was The Hotbed of Greek Philosophy
Nicaea had been the hotbed of Greek philosophy for many years. It was also chosen because of its unique geographical location.
The Center of the Globe
The Greeks and Romans believed it was the center of the globe.
Nicaea was located where the Greenwich Meridian at 0 degrees longitude crosses the equator at 0 degrees latitude. Mariners call it the center of the globe. The longitude and latitude create a right angle with the top being at Nicaea Turkey.
Bithynia
Nicaea was a city in the country of Turkey. It was known in the days of the apostles as Bithynia.
God would not allow Paul and Timothy to go to Bithynia.
7 After they were come to Mysia, they assayed to go into Bithynia: but the Spirit suffered them not.
Apparently, God did not want these One-God believers mixed up with the Greek philosophy of Nicaea.
MODERN TRINITY
MODERN TRINITY
Historical Christianity has given us a Greek philosophy called The Trinity.
Even though it can neither be comprehended nor explained, it is still accepted by some as being infallible.
It has been passed from the Catholic Church to the mainstream Protestant Churches as a tradition .
Biblical Scribe
Pope Gregory I (604 -590 AD) [27] , stated that “ tradition was equal with the scriptures, just as the Holy Spirit had inspired the writers of the scripture, so the Holy Spirit inspired the church fathers, councils, and popes to proclaim truth.”
The council of Trent 1545 made an official declaration that tradition is equal to the teaching of the bible.
The Apostle Paul gives us a warning about this very thing in the bible:
8 Beware lest any man spoil you through philosophy and vain deceit, after the tradition of men, after the rudiments of the world, and not after Christ.
9 For in him dwelleth all the fulness of the Godhead bodily.
The idea and teaching of the Trinity Is Not a Biblical Thought.
As we know, the word Trinity is not found in the Bible . . .
It did not find a place formally in the theology of the church till the fourth century.
The Illustrated Bible Dictionary Yale University Professor E. Washburn Hopkins stated:
"To Jesus and Paul the doctrine of The Trinity was apparently unknown… they say nothing about it.
According to the book, " Origin and Evolution of Religion.
Emil Brunner , Protestant Trinitarian theologian, stated, “The doctrine of The Trinity itself, however, is not a biblical doctrine and this indeed not by accident but of necessity. It is the product of theological reflection upon the problem… The ecclesiastical doctrine of The Trinity is not only the product of genuine biblical thought, it is also the product of philosophical speculation, which is remote from the thought of the Bible.” [28]
According to the New Encyclopedia Britannica :
"Neither the word Trinity nor the explicit doctrine appears in the New Testament."
The New Catholic Encyclopedia states:
“There is the recognition on the part of exegetes and Biblical theologians… that one should not speak of Trinitarianism in the New Testament without serious qualifications… New Testament exegesis is now accepted as having shown that not only the verbal idiom, but even the patterns of thought characteristic of the patristic (church fathers) development would have been quite foreign to the mind and culture of the New Testament writers.”
"The word [trinity] itself does not occur in the Bible... The explicit formula was thus formulated in the post-biblical period… Attempts to trace the origin still earlier (to the Old Testament literature) cannot be supported by historical-critical scholarship, and these attempts must be understood as retrospective interpretations of this earlier corpus of Scripture in the light of later theological developments." This according to the, Harper Collins Study Bible Dictionary
Tom Harper states,
"As early as the 8th century, the Theologian St. John of Damascus frankly admitted what every modern critical scholar of the NT now realizes: that …the Doctrine of The Trinity …is not explicitly set out in scripture. In fact, if you take the record as it is and avoid reading back into it the dogmatic definitions of a later age, you cannot find what is traditionally regarded as orthodox Christianity in the Bible at all."
Historian Arthur Weigall :
"Jesus Christ never mentioned such a phenomenon, and nowhere in the New Testament does the word 'Trinity' appear. The idea was only adopted by the Church three hundred years after the death of our Lord." According to: The Paganism in Our Christianity
The New Encyclopedia Britannica :
"Neither the word Trinity, nor the explicit doctrine as such, appears in the New Testament, nor did Jesus and his followers intend to contradict the Shema in the Old Testament:
'Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God is one Lord' Deut. 6:4 .
.. . The doctrine developed gradually over several centuries and through many controversies . . . By the end of the fourth century . . . the doctrine of The Trinity took substantially the form it has maintained ever since." Micropaedia, Vol. X , p.126. (1976)
The New Catholic Encyclopedia states:
"The formulation 'one God in three Persons' was not solidly established, certainly not fully assimilated into Christian life and its profession of faith, prior to the end of the fourth century.
But it is precisely this formulation that has first claim to the title the Trinitarian dogma. Among the Apostolic Fathers, there had been nothing even remotely approaching such a mentality or perspective." (1967), Vol. XIV, p. 299.
The Encyclopedia Americana :
"Christianity derived from Judaism and Judaism was strictly Unitarian [believing that God is one person]. The road which led from Jerusalem to Nicaea was scarcely a straight one. Fourth century Trinitarianism did not reflect accurately early Christian teaching regarding the nature of God; it was, on the contrary, a deviation from this teaching." (1956), Vol. XXVII, p.294.
The Nouveau Dictionnaire Universel:
"The Platonic trinity, itself merely a rearrangement of older trinities dating back to earlier peoples, appears to be the rational philosophic trinity of attributes that gave birth to the three hypostases or divine persons taught by the Christian churches . . .
This Greek philosopher's [Plato, fourth century BC] conception of the divine trinity . . . can be found in all the ancient [pagan] religions." -- (Paris, 1865-1870), edited by M. Lachâtre, Vol. 2, p. 1467.
Trinitarian definitions arose as the result of long controversies in which these terms and others such as "essence" and "substance" were erroneously applied to God by some theologians." Dictionary of the Bible by John L. McKenzie, S.J. p. 899
According to Robert A. Heinlein
"Anyone who can worship a trinity and insist that his religion is monotheism can believe anything."
Ecumenical Councils
All of the historical councils were considered to be ecumenical councils,
Ecumenical meaning:
a: of, relating to, or representing the whole of a body of churches
b: promoting or tending toward worldwide Christian unity or cooperation
they were held in order to bring unity to beliefs, establish orthodoxy, and to eliminate heretics.
The Catholic Church today is a strong promoter of the Ecumenical movement (interfaithism). The purpose is to lay aside doctrinal differences for the sake of unity.
As strange as it seems, there are many Protestant leaders who are rallying around The Trinity doctrine and the creeds that came out of the early councils.
They declare that the creeds of historical Christianity are the only thing we have in common and we must unite around them.
It is, to me, a wonder how Protestant churches can embrace a doctrine that is not a Bible doctrine and is tainted with so much Protestant blood.
What should Christians do?
We as Christians can not and should not, rallying around an unbiblical doctrine that was passed to Christianity from paganism,
We should, as Christians, separate ourselves from it.
The Bible clearly talks against this…it mandates that churches that have been deceived by The Trinity should denounce The Trinity and come out from those churches that embrace it.
Lets take a look at the Explanation of Mystery Babylon
History and the Bible prove that the Babylonian trinity was passed down through history and became the Catholic trinity.
The Book of Revelation puts it in bold letters.
4 And the woman was arrayed in purple and scarlet colour, and decked with gold and precious stones and pearls, having a golden cup in her hand full of abominations and filthiness of her fornication:
5 And upon her forehead was a name written, MYSTERY, BABYLON THE GREAT, THE MOTHER OF HARLOTS AND ABOMINATIONS OF THE EARTH.
6 And I saw the woman drunken with the blood of the saints, and with the blood of the martyrs of Jesus: and when I saw her, I wondered with great admiration.
To identify this harlot, the Bible gives a description of a woman arrayed in purple and scarlet color.
It is well known that the colors of the Catholic hierarchy are purple and red. The Cardinals wear red while the Bishops wear purple.
The mother of harlots then would be the Catholic Church and the daughters would be the Protestant churches that teach The Trinity .
The Book of Revelation continues with what Christians should do. Both Catholics and Protestants should come out of her.
3 For all nations have drunk of the wine of the wrath of her fornication, And the kings of the earth have committed fornication with her, And the merchants of the earth are waxed rich through the abundance of her delicacies.
4 And I heard another voice from heaven, saying, Come out of her, my people, That ye be not partakers of her sins, And that ye receive not of her plagues.
The name “Vatican” means house of sorcery. This name was given to a hillside on the west bank of the Tiber River in Rome because daily lineups of fortunetellers used to hawk their "wares" there to passersby on the street.
After the Catholic Church bought the property, they never changed the name.
Isn’t it amazing that Protestant Christians are such ardent supporters of The Trinity doctrine.
ONENESS STATEMENTS BY MODERN TRINITARIANS
ONENESS STATEMENTS BY MODERN TRINITARIANS
Frank Stagg , a retired Southern Baptist seminary professor stated, “Jesus Christ is God uniquely present in a truly human life, but he is not a second God, nor only one third of God… The Word which became flesh was God, not the second person of The Trinity with us. Emmanuel is God with us.” [29]
W. A. Criswell , past president of the Southern Baptist Convention, stated, “We are not going to see three Gods in heaven… There is one great Lord God. We know Him as our Father, we know Him as our savior, we know him as the Holy Spirit in our hearts. There is one God and this is the great God, called in the Old Testament, Jehovah, and incarnate, called in the New Testament, Jesus.” [30]
THE DEBATE CONTINUES
Today, many Christians believe the Oneness doctrine, they simply attach the term Trinity to their beliefs, not knowing and understanding what The Trinity actually teaches.
The doctrine of The Trinity has been re-written many times and is in the process of being re-written today. Why? Because its terms are still not clear as to what it teaches.
Alister McGrath, a member of the Oxford Faculty of Theology and lecturer at Wycliffe Hall, asks, “How can God be three persons and one person at the same time?” He continued, “The word ‘person’ has evolved and changed meanings over the centuries. The word person was originally derived from the Latin word ‘persona’, meaning an actor’s mask, and, by extension, the role which an actor takes in a play. By stating that there are three persons, but only one God, Tertullian was asserting that all three major roles in the great drama of human redemption are played by the one and same actor—God”.
McGrath continued, “Today when we talk about God as a person, we naturally think of God as being one person. So when we talk about God as one person, we mean one person in the modern sense of the word (one person), and when we talk about God as three persons, we mean three persons in the ancient sense of the word (three roles)”.
McGrath further stated, “Confusing these two senses of the word person inevitably leads to the idea that God is actually a committee which is a thoroughly confusing way of thinking about God”. [31]
It seems it would be so much easier to just throw out the unbiblical term of “persons” and use a biblical term such as “manifestations” and solve all the confusion?
Rules of Debate
In 1697, the general Baptists resolved that if members debate The Trinity, they must do so in Scripture words and terms and in no other terms. They held to that throughout the following century. (Michael R. Watts, The Dissenters )
President Thomas Jefferson (1743-1826)
Made This Observation: “ Despite their orthodox confession of The Trinity, Christians are, in their practical life, almost mere monotheists. We must be willing to admit that, should the doctrine of The Trinity have to be dropped as false, the major part of religious literature could well remain virtually unchanged." Karl Rahner, The Trinity , J. Donceel, trans, p.10
We’ve all heard the analogy:
The story is told of a young woman who received a ticket for speeding. When she went to court, the judge read the citation and inquired, “Guilty or not guilty?” She replied, “Guilty”. The judge fined her $100.00. He then took off his robe, walked around in front of the podium, took out his wallet and paid the fine. What’s the explanation? The judge was her father. He loved her, yet he was a just judge and could not dismiss the fine.
God cannot dismiss our penalty of sin or He would not be just. So, He took off His royal robe and came Himself and paid our debt of sin.
The Crux of the Matter
The Crux of the Matter
Lets consider Water Baptism
Satan has caused confusion and endless debate on the subject of the godhead through the centuries.
Division and bloodshed remain till this day. While the Godhead is without excuse (Romans 1:20)
20 For the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even his eternal power and Godhead; so that they are without excuse:
This though, is not the ultimate goal of Satan.
His ultimate plan was to change the simple Oneness concept of God and Jesus name baptism to The Trinity baptism to coincide with The Trinity concept.
his plan was to disrupt, not only the understanding of the message, but to disrupt the whole plan of salvation.
The Catholic Church adopted The Trinity concept and changed the formula for water baptism at the same council in Nicea 325 AD.
Since water baptism is an integral part of the gospel of salvation, this change in formula is detrimental to eternal souls.
Trinitarians misinterpret the words of Jesus in Matthew 28:19 to promote their Trinitarian view, while the Apostles throughout the book of Acts interpreted this passage to mean baptism in the name of Jesus (Acts 2:38;8:16;10:48;19:5).
WHAT’S THE BOTTOM LINE?
The bottom line is this. Do we believe that the Godhead is a committee of persons or is Jesus Christ the only one person in the Godhead?
The bible tells us that Jesus promises to reveal Himself to us!
21 In that hour Jesus rejoiced in spirit, and said, I thank thee, O Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that thou hast hid these things from the wise and prudent, and hast revealed them unto babes: even so, Father; for so it seemed good in thy sight.
22 All things are delivered to me of my Father: and no man knoweth who the Son is, but the Father; and who the Father is, but the Son, and he to whom the Son will reveal him.
the Focus being: “and he to whom the Son will reveal him”
21 He that hath my commandments, and keepeth them, he it is that loveth me: and he that loveth me shall be loved of my Father, and I will love him, and will manifest myself to him.
God has manifested himself to us....those that are believers and keep his commandments.
meaning to those who not only know him but follow him in truth.
We can know assuredly, who he is, for Jesus Christ has already revealed in his word, who God is as well as who he is....People just don’t see it.
they have been led astray by the traditions and philosophy's of men.
The bible says that in the last days there shall be a famine in the land....not of bread, but of my word.
45 Then opened he their understanding, that they might understand the scriptures,
and what did he open their eyes to???
46 And said unto them, Thus it is written, and thus it behoved Christ to suffer, and to rise from the dead the third day:
47 And that repentance and remission of sins should be preached in his name among all nations, beginning at Jerusalem.
We as christians, must believe the whole gospel...
just like putting on the whole armor of God, we must believe and obey the whole gospel.
it also says in John 8:24
24 I said therefore unto you, that ye shall die in your sins: for if ye believe not that I am he, ye shall die in your sins.
Is it easier to believe that “i am he” means:
Jesus Christ is the son of God....
or to say, Jesus Christ is the express image of God....the only begotten or created of the father…God manifested in the flesh.
either way, it means the same thing