When I hear modern day trinitarian debaters describe their dogma (I accidentally first wrote this word as "fogma", which is really kind of accurate, but I digress) with particular and peculiar language foreign to scripture, I immediately recognize that they're speaking from incessant indoctrination instead of simple and sacred revelation. I wonder how they would have described God and with what terminology were they not handed certain sets of words and philosophies. I would venture to hypothesize that they could not have in their wildest imaginations come up with the proposal, much less the acceptance, that God is a triune homoousios consisting of three coequal and consubstantial persons. How could one imagine such a thing given Jesus's consistent and prevailing declarations of being ignorant about the day and hour, having to grow in knowledge, being utterly reliant upon someone greater, etc.? They've been handed something from men who aren't Jesus, and hence aren't infallible or inspired, that they misuse to wreck Jesus's clarity and earnest declarations and revelations. The imagining of a trinity necessitated, yes, explicitly required, a foundation in Greek philosophical musings merged with Gnostic ideals. The same unbiblical terminology and concoctions used in the councils are the same as those used in current debates are the same words used by Plato! These are glaringly absent from the holy word of Yahweh! How bold must one be to quote Plato's musings as dogma instead of Christ's? Or to twist Christ's to make them fit Plato's? Or to not look into these things so voraciously that one might wind up compelled enough to purely listen to Christ, God's very word of truth to mankind, instead of paragons of trinitarian ideals and philosophies?
"The story of how Greek philosophy, with its synthesis of rationalism and mysticism, rhetorically [i.e. persuasively] penetrated and permeated the Christian tradition, forever altering Christian faith, is virtually an open secret insofar as it oozes out the pores of the literature of Church history and theology. The open secret continues to be kept, no doubt, due to its staggering implications." (Robert Hach "Possession and Persuasion", The Rhetoric of Christian Faith p. 120)
If one simply googles "Plato and the trinity" or anything similar, one will inevitably find a myriad of websites and an abundance of information about the Hellenistic infiltration of pagan ideas into Christianity. Frankly, it's undeniable and concerning. Clearly, theologians, scholars, and apologists shifted from the simple unconfusing language of the milk of God's word to the complex, mystical, confounding, and decidedly unbiblical ideas and rhetoric of Greek philosophers like Plato, whose own reasonings were intermingled with Talmudic Jewish and pagan theology.
Philo also gets cited frequently. From:
http://www.bibleanswerstand.org/philosophy.htm
"The Jewish philosopher Philo used his mix of theology and Platonic philosophy to develop an elaborate teaching, which in many ways prefigures the language of 3rd century Catholic creeds espousing Christology, and defining the Godhead. Some of the terms Philo used were later incorporated by the so-called ‘church fathers, such as Augustine, Eusebius, and many others.’
Also,
The trinity was "developed from integrating the philosophical teachings of Greeks such as Plato, Aristotle, Philo, and others, with theological concepts."
Clement of Alexandria said:
"For philosophy was a "schoolmaster" to bring the Greek mind to Christ, as the law brought the Hebrews. Thus philosophy was a preparation, paving the way towards perfection in Christ." (c. 200), Stromateis, I.v.28)
He also said:
"Greek philosophy purges the soul, and prepares it beforehand for the reception of faith, on which the truth builds up the edifice of Gnosis." (xia iii)
Quite frankly, Clement's quotes reminds me of how the Watchtower receives "new light" periodically to bring us "better truth" and more advanced revelation, because apparently the biblical ones weren't sufficient or altogether complete and satisfactory enough on their own. Fallible puffed-up men's ideas are being imposed tragically upon the flawless face of scripture and rendering it's simple glorious truths irrelevant in that they become entirely qualifiable or utterly bendable. Yes, what we've had throughout history, in both proclaimed "Orthodoxy" and also the Watchtower, are groups of men extremely proud of their own ideas garnered from philosophical and extrabiblical studies, perfectly willing to make Christ's truths that don't conform somehow magically fit their imaginations. We've gotten a mess of biblical truths conflated with men's falsehoods, forming strange and unwarranted creeds and policies and concoctions, that inevitably require intimidating forces to continue and flourish. Conscientious objectors have been silenced in myriads of ways and also reputations and intents demonized so that any opposing opinions can't or won't be heard. The simple truth gets muffled, squelched, swatted away. Stamped out, whatever can be done to it to keep it from thriving. Lives have even been lost to the cause of embracing and heralding Christ's words, often (historically speaking) taken by professed Christians unhappy with conscientious objector's non-conforming truth-telling ways! Arius was a rightful one of those in the days of some of the historical notorious councils and boy was he (and anyone supporting or entertaining his or Christ's unqualified ideas) sure to pay for it immensely! Constantine Augustus said to the bishops and laity:
"If any writing composed by Arius should be found, it should be handed over to the flames, so that not only will the wickedness of his teaching be obliterated, but nothing will be left even to remind anyone of him. And I hereby make a public order, that if someone should be discovered to have hidden a writing composed by Arius, and not to have immediately brought it forward and destroyed it by fire, his penalty shall be death. As soon as he is discovered in this offense, he shall be submitted for capital punishment."
Also,
"Since Arius is an imitator of the wicked and the ungodly, it is only right that he should suffer the same dishonor as they."
Arius thought Jesus was the Son of God instead of God the Son, and to the warped minds ready to slay the so-called heretics, this was anathema, inexcusable, criminal, and highly punishable. He was sure to pay! He said:
"We are persecuted because we have said that the Son has a beginning. We are persecuted because of that and for saying he came from non-being. But we said this because he is not a portion of God nor of anything in existence. That is why we are persecuted." ~~Arius
Sorry, Arius, but common sense application of inspired texts apparently wasn't as appetizing as the complex philosophies that fly in the face of straighforward less mystical expressly biblical professions and confessions.
Eusebius of Nicodemia comprehended Arius with a simple utilization of his own common sense and said:
"Since you think properly, pray that everyone will think this way. For it is clear to all that the thing which is made did not exist before it came into being; but rather what came into being has a beginning to its existence!"
Scripture says:
"If anyone teaches a different doctrine and does not agree with the sound words of our Lord Jesus Christ and the teaching that accords with godliness, he is puffed up with conceit and understands nothing. He has an unhealthy craving for controversy and for quarrels about words, which produce envy, dissension, slander, evil suspicions, and constant friction among people who are depraved in mind and deprived of the truth." (1 Timothy 6:3-5)
If anyone has ever sounded puffed up with pride and conceit, you can place your bets it was unashamed philosophers like Athanasius spewing their venom and uncompromising hate-filled judgments against conscientious objectors like Arius! Athanasius was "full of envy, slander, and evil suspicions", fulfilling 1 Timothy's declarations!
Yes, certain Jesus-is-God believers', such as Athanasius, unabashed vitriol and vigorous hatred toward and against all things unitarian have clouded their sensibilities. The fact that they think it's their duty to shut up the mouths of those they believe are heretics at all costs, while discarding reason, intellectual honesty, compassion, mercy, and biblical principles in the process, causes concern because this is the same attitude and spirit that causes the Watchtower to call conscientious objectors slanderous names and single-mindedly willfully misrepresent them so that their message might not be heard! There is sometimes a devious poisoning of the well with lies, slander, and labels so that outsiders or even other advocates of the belief that Jesus is God won't consider the One God message, due to it's unwarranted attachment with horrendous labels and condemnation.
Yes, Athanasius was decidedly vituperous and venomous in his degradation of and pronounced judgment against Arius, despite Arius being described by some as being a good man of morals, character, and conviction. Athanasius called his position everything from "irreligious" to "vomit." He said he was an "enemy of God" and called those who believed like him "Ario-maniacs." It was proposed that Arianism was an abominable heresy, Satanic even, assailing Arius's character and poisoning the well, profusely.
Athanasius was an Egyptian from Alexandria whose philosophy had it's root in Platonic ideals.
"The Alexandrian catechetical school, which revered Clement of Alexandria and Origen, the greatest theologians of the Greek Church, as it's heads, applied the allegorical method to the explanation of Scripture. Its thought was influenced by Plato: its strong point was theological speculation. Athanasius and the three Cappodocians had been among its members." (Ecumenical Councils of the Catholic Church, by Hubert Jedin, p. 29)
The New Living Translation says:
"Don't let anyone capture you with empty philosophies and high-sounding nonsense that come from human thinking and from the spiritual powers of this world, rather than from Christ." (Colossians 2:8)
Ouch. Bible tellin' it like it is, always!
I won't be delving into the intricacies of Plato's or Philo's philosophies or the peculiar profundities of Gnostic ideals, all of which and in addition to numerous other beliefs, undeniably and voraciously informed some of the early church fathers within the coucils where our modern day creeds were formulated. They're certainly not my specialty, and there are a plethora of sources out there to get you informed on them and their ideas if you crave to understand them. Apparently there is something bewitching and persuasive inherent in their ruminations and philosophies though, so proceed with caution. Many have been so beguiled by their uninspired philosophies that they have been used as an unwarranted accompaniment to holy texts by many a professed Christ follower. This, of course, has been to the detriment of the furtherance of Christ's wonderful and simple teachings that need no further "light" shone upon them. I would have no problem or issue with professed believers ruminating poetically and philosophically upon inspired texts, unless it were to the point of murdering the biblical author's less complex and mystical intent! And it has assuredly gone that far, over the cliff and into the mystic. With Van Morrison. ;)
Arius's teachings were burnt up, and if any survived, they were later destroyed by haters. It's questionable whether quotes from him from churchmen are reliable given that they denounced him as an egregious heretic. Many scholarly studies have suggested that Arius was poisoned by his opponents, while his dissenters ridiculously presume his death was a miracle from the heart and hands of God, as a direct result of the abominable heresies spewing from his lips and pen.
From:
http://www.arian-catholic.org/arian/arius.html
"Poison was a very common method used by Pagan Romans. Throughout the dark and middle ages trinitarians have brutally attempted to stamp out Arianism, but even the Spanish Inquisition could not quell Arius's beliefs. As Roman Catholicism began to decline in central Europe, Arianism rose again, even in the Church of England!"
Hmm.. very strange indeed that trinitarians just haven't been able to get the whole "Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the Living God" heresy completely eradicated, in all it's sufficiency. Sorry for the sarcasm. Maybe.
In the notorious Nicene council, this tragically occurred:
"Constantine dropped his bombshell on the council. He suggested that the relation of the son to the father might be by the word "homoousios", of one essence"~A.H.M Jones." (Constantine and the conversion of Europe p. 161)
There we have it folks, why it is that trinitarians well schooled on the idea are spouting such philosophical unbiblical terminology. It's from Constantine, not God. Rhetoric and concepts instigated by the words of imaginative famous philosophers and not by the terminology or declarations of the Lord.
"Toward the end of the 1st century, and during the 2nd, many learned men came over from both Judaism and paganism to Christianity. These brought with them into the Christian schools of theology their Platonic ideas and phraseology." (article "Trinity," Vol. 10, p. 553)
mm hmm..obvi.
"Knowledge puffs up while love builds up." (1 Cor. 8:1)
There was a whole lot of philosophically informed worldly knowledge inherent in the furtherance of the trinity dogma accompanied by a severe and concerning lack of love and mercy. That continues to this day on a somewhat less tragic scale. Though there's less blood, thankfully, the condemnation to eternal damnation and threats of a loss of favor with God and Christians still reign supreme as just a couple of the weapons of intellectual intimidation commonly wielded to keep the so-called heretics in line. That isn't any more appetizing or less egregious than the Watchtower organization's shunning, labelling, and condemnation of conscientious objectors.
"The term "Trinity" is not a biblical term, and we are not using biblical language when we define what is expressed by it as a doctrine." (The International Standard Bible Encylopedia, article "Trinity," p. 3012)
"Let no one deceive himself. If anyone among you thinks that he is wise in this age, let him become a fool that he may become wise. For the wisdom of this world is folly with God. For it is written, “He catches the wise in their craftiness,” and again, “The Lord knows the thoughts of the wise, that they are futile.” So let no one boast in men." (1 Cor. 3:18-20)
Philosophers, scholars, and religious leaders are frequently hailed as heroes with profitable knowledge, wise words, and pure intent. This often isn't the case, and all great minds should be conscientiously and wholeheartedly questioned because they're not all in line with the mind of Christ. Christ unhesitatingly and humbly revealed his identity left and right, yet ideas that don't seem to be his at all get thrown in the air, caught, and held tightly by traditionalists, either in addition to or altogether in opposition to his own. Much like it is with the Watchtower, there are some benevolent and trustworthy foundational truths being believed within the realms of Orthodoxy, but regrettably they are mixed with a heaping helping of insidious deceptions tainting their beauty. Most are sincere servants sincerely deceived. Therefore, God will have mercy and cause the truth to light up in the humblest of hearts ready to seek and find Him in the grandest sense possible. Hopefully sooner than later! When the simple Christ-told truth smacks you in the face, you might feel like I did when I learned the truth about the Watchtower's lies. You will be bumfuzzled how you could've believed the intricate web of deceitful lies, but ultimately you'll be glad to know the truth, which can only set you free and cause your heart to swell.
I for one won't be trusting any philosopher or scholar to tell me Jesus is consubstantial and coequal (words that are expressly unbiblical) to his father when Jesus himself said "the Father is greater than I" and "Why do you call me good? No One is good but God alone." (John 14:28, Mark 10:18) Amongst about a million (slight exaggeration) other things that common sense should tell us prove he isn't the Most High God.
I have heard trinitarians make a mockery of these texts with their equivocation and denial of their obvious intentions. Were those around supposed to know he meant he was inferior but only by the haphazard limitation of a supposed human nature to at least one of the three persons in a One God essence that's three? Surely not. If so, specification at any point in the New Testament would have been appreciated for clarification.
The cementing and furtherance of the 4th century trinity dogma was certainly not full of the fruits of the spirit! The trinity wasn't the only highly questionable belief or practice adopted in the Council of Nicea, which was full of many uninspired vindictive men. December 25th was imagined as Christ's birth to appease the pagans, further incorporating blatant paganism into Christianity. The holy day Saturday was changed to Sunday to accommodate sun worshipers. Just to give you an idea of what kind of spirit was present and pervasive within this council. Any revelation or imagining is only as good as the spirit behind it and it's preservation. If it has a trail of blood and pagan implications, it should be unquestionably questioned.
"What if instead of being so banished, a large dose of paganism was actually absorbed into the Christian faith? What if the pure apostolic faith firmly rooted in Jesus of Nazareth was very early on being divorced from its historical context? Many fine Biblical scholars have put forward a seemingly unassailable case that the Jesus of Jewish history has been buried under generations of accumulated myth; the Jesus of history has been supplanted by the Christ of mythology. The well-known dictum of Canon Goudge who considered that the infiltration of Roman and Greek ideas into the Christian church represents “a disaster from which we have never recovered, either in doctrine or practice” is well worth pondering." ("They Never Told me This in Church" p. 14 Greg Deuble)
Let GOD be found true, though many a man who claims to be born again may lie to you. They know not what they do. I hope they don't.
"When one does speak of unqualified trinitarianism, one has moved from the period of Christian origins to say, the last quadrant of the fourth century. It was only then that what might be called the definitive trinitarian dogma "one God in three persons" became thoroughly assimilated into Christian life and thought." (New Catholic Encyclopedia, articale "Trinity," Vol. 14, p. 295)
If it didn't fully materialize till the 4th century, you can confidently place your bets that it's a different doctrine! Sounds like new light very similar to the Watchtower's, which is usually detectably assailable.
Preposterous egregious anathematization of supposed non-adhering heretics was cemented full-force in Nicea, so professed Christians today who condemn and dechurch fellow professed Christians who think that God is only one person and Christ is that One's heir and Son, are, even if perhaps unknowingly, bowing at the throne of Constantine instead of Christ.
Kegan Chandler beautifully sums the whole mess up when he says:
"It is essentially a theory constructed on what is not said in the Bible, and a theory which could not exist without a parallel metaphysical framework that is fundamentally alien to it. Our premise in this regard is that the biblical interpretations of later Christian orthodoxy would never have been arrived at from the Jewish Scriptures and the inherited Jewish worldview of the Apostles alone. Those metaphysical interpretations were expressly and only facilitated by external philosophies grafted onto the biblical writings by later religious synthesizers. This process resulted in a grand transformation of the original faith of the first Jewish believers in Jesus.
He goes on to say:
"Ultimately, it will be demonstrated that the orthodox dogma about God is primarily the product of unnecessary problem-solving. The philosophers of the late Roman Empire were attempting to unravel two non-issues: First, Christianity’s implications for Greek philosophy. If the Jesus movement were to succeed amongst the academics, it needed, in their view, to be able to mesh with the established intellectual systems of their age, or to outperform them philosophically. Without raising questions about their piety or intentions, we may easily recognize how advantageous such a reconciliation was. Second, they were attempting to solve what they supposed were inconsistencies between the Old and New Testaments. In the record of the Jesus incident they had perceived the incarnation of a second divine being, or wanted to, and the event needed to make sense in light of a monotheism which had always distinguished the biblical community from the surrounding pagans. Admittedly, the solutions they constructed were often ingenious. However, as we will see, the problems for which they were created did not really exist. The apparent discrepancies encountered by the Gentile philosophers were only misunderstandings enabled by their separation from the Jewish worldview, while the conclusions they ultimately formed were enabled only by their Platonic, and even Gnostic, saturation. These two stumbling blocks, the Jewish disconnect and the infatuation with Hellenistic formulae, were evidently enough to skew the religious mind of the early Christians so that they not only mishandled the original faith, but created an entirely new one."
(Chandler, Kegan. The God of Jesus in Light of Christian Dogma (Kindle Locations 437-461). Restoration Fellowship. Kindle Edition.)
Everything about some of these councils screams "How can we appease the pagans and merge our Hellenistic ideals with Christian ones?!" Certain pagan holidays and dogmas hence emerged and have become concerningly solidified with no conscience qualms from many professed believers. Additionally, certain less-acceptable-to-the-modern-professed-believer ideas and orders were cemented within these councils that Christians claim were chockfull of only the godliest of men who we'd do well to imitate and trust. Kegan Chandler, again, illuminates:
"Most disconcerting is the fact that a great deal of today’s evangelicals who claim and demand adherence to “orthodox” theology actually stand in direct opposition to many of the orthodox council decrees. For example, the same council which affirmed the divine nature of Christ also concluded that Mary was the “Theotokos” or “Mother of God” and not just the mother of the human Jesus. The council also determined that it was God who actually suffered on the cross, and not just the human nature. Furthermore, the councils also concluded that any military service, even becoming a chaplain, was forbidden for the true Christian. These are all conclusions with which most evangelical and Protestant communities today sharply disagree, and yet the Canons of the councils read: “if anyone should in any way attempt to set aside the orders made by the holy Synod… they shall be excommunicated.” While one may often hear the arguments of the evangelical littered with accusations of heresy against Christians who do not align with their denominational theology, how many realize that they might also be anathematized as heretics themselves? As Stefan Zweig rightly stated in his book on heresy in the Reformation: “In and by itself, the very notion of a ‘heretic’ is absurd as far as a Protestant Church is concerned, since Protestants demand that everyone shall have the right of interpretation.”
(Chandler, Kegan. The God of Jesus in Light of Christian Dogma (Kindle Locations 657-675). Restoration Fellowship. Kindle Edition.)
This strikingly reminds me of the how the modern day Watchtower powers-that-be would anathematize, disfellowship, and shun any of it's own members who would dare to adhere to some of the principles and dogmas they used to call essential. Yes, "new light" hath swept across the horizon and more current essentials pulled the curtain on the antiquated ones. In other words, this so-called "orthodox" and "essential" dogma business, when examined historically and honestly, has been haphazard, unfair, and hypocritical at times. To horribly label and kick straight from the kingdom those who won't grasp and herald doctrines that scripture never explicitly states is what should be anathema.
"The story of how Greek philosophy, with its synthesis of rationalism and mysticism, rhetorically [i.e. persuasively] penetrated and permeated the Christian tradition, forever altering Christian faith, is virtually an open secret insofar as it oozes out the pores of the literature of Church history and theology. The open secret continues to be kept, no doubt, due to its staggering implications." (Robert Hach "Possession and Persuasion", The Rhetoric of Christian Faith p. 120)
If one simply googles "Plato and the trinity" or anything similar, one will inevitably find a myriad of websites and an abundance of information about the Hellenistic infiltration of pagan ideas into Christianity. Frankly, it's undeniable and concerning. Clearly, theologians, scholars, and apologists shifted from the simple unconfusing language of the milk of God's word to the complex, mystical, confounding, and decidedly unbiblical ideas and rhetoric of Greek philosophers like Plato, whose own reasonings were intermingled with Talmudic Jewish and pagan theology.
Philo also gets cited frequently. From:
http://www.bibleanswerstand.org/philosophy.htm
"The Jewish philosopher Philo used his mix of theology and Platonic philosophy to develop an elaborate teaching, which in many ways prefigures the language of 3rd century Catholic creeds espousing Christology, and defining the Godhead. Some of the terms Philo used were later incorporated by the so-called ‘church fathers, such as Augustine, Eusebius, and many others.’
Also,
The trinity was "developed from integrating the philosophical teachings of Greeks such as Plato, Aristotle, Philo, and others, with theological concepts."
Clement of Alexandria said:
"For philosophy was a "schoolmaster" to bring the Greek mind to Christ, as the law brought the Hebrews. Thus philosophy was a preparation, paving the way towards perfection in Christ." (c. 200), Stromateis, I.v.28)
He also said:
"Greek philosophy purges the soul, and prepares it beforehand for the reception of faith, on which the truth builds up the edifice of Gnosis." (xia iii)
Quite frankly, Clement's quotes reminds me of how the Watchtower receives "new light" periodically to bring us "better truth" and more advanced revelation, because apparently the biblical ones weren't sufficient or altogether complete and satisfactory enough on their own. Fallible puffed-up men's ideas are being imposed tragically upon the flawless face of scripture and rendering it's simple glorious truths irrelevant in that they become entirely qualifiable or utterly bendable. Yes, what we've had throughout history, in both proclaimed "Orthodoxy" and also the Watchtower, are groups of men extremely proud of their own ideas garnered from philosophical and extrabiblical studies, perfectly willing to make Christ's truths that don't conform somehow magically fit their imaginations. We've gotten a mess of biblical truths conflated with men's falsehoods, forming strange and unwarranted creeds and policies and concoctions, that inevitably require intimidating forces to continue and flourish. Conscientious objectors have been silenced in myriads of ways and also reputations and intents demonized so that any opposing opinions can't or won't be heard. The simple truth gets muffled, squelched, swatted away. Stamped out, whatever can be done to it to keep it from thriving. Lives have even been lost to the cause of embracing and heralding Christ's words, often (historically speaking) taken by professed Christians unhappy with conscientious objector's non-conforming truth-telling ways! Arius was a rightful one of those in the days of some of the historical notorious councils and boy was he (and anyone supporting or entertaining his or Christ's unqualified ideas) sure to pay for it immensely! Constantine Augustus said to the bishops and laity:
"If any writing composed by Arius should be found, it should be handed over to the flames, so that not only will the wickedness of his teaching be obliterated, but nothing will be left even to remind anyone of him. And I hereby make a public order, that if someone should be discovered to have hidden a writing composed by Arius, and not to have immediately brought it forward and destroyed it by fire, his penalty shall be death. As soon as he is discovered in this offense, he shall be submitted for capital punishment."
Also,
"Since Arius is an imitator of the wicked and the ungodly, it is only right that he should suffer the same dishonor as they."
Arius thought Jesus was the Son of God instead of God the Son, and to the warped minds ready to slay the so-called heretics, this was anathema, inexcusable, criminal, and highly punishable. He was sure to pay! He said:
"We are persecuted because we have said that the Son has a beginning. We are persecuted because of that and for saying he came from non-being. But we said this because he is not a portion of God nor of anything in existence. That is why we are persecuted." ~~Arius
Sorry, Arius, but common sense application of inspired texts apparently wasn't as appetizing as the complex philosophies that fly in the face of straighforward less mystical expressly biblical professions and confessions.
Eusebius of Nicodemia comprehended Arius with a simple utilization of his own common sense and said:
"Since you think properly, pray that everyone will think this way. For it is clear to all that the thing which is made did not exist before it came into being; but rather what came into being has a beginning to its existence!"
Scripture says:
"If anyone teaches a different doctrine and does not agree with the sound words of our Lord Jesus Christ and the teaching that accords with godliness, he is puffed up with conceit and understands nothing. He has an unhealthy craving for controversy and for quarrels about words, which produce envy, dissension, slander, evil suspicions, and constant friction among people who are depraved in mind and deprived of the truth." (1 Timothy 6:3-5)
If anyone has ever sounded puffed up with pride and conceit, you can place your bets it was unashamed philosophers like Athanasius spewing their venom and uncompromising hate-filled judgments against conscientious objectors like Arius! Athanasius was "full of envy, slander, and evil suspicions", fulfilling 1 Timothy's declarations!
Yes, certain Jesus-is-God believers', such as Athanasius, unabashed vitriol and vigorous hatred toward and against all things unitarian have clouded their sensibilities. The fact that they think it's their duty to shut up the mouths of those they believe are heretics at all costs, while discarding reason, intellectual honesty, compassion, mercy, and biblical principles in the process, causes concern because this is the same attitude and spirit that causes the Watchtower to call conscientious objectors slanderous names and single-mindedly willfully misrepresent them so that their message might not be heard! There is sometimes a devious poisoning of the well with lies, slander, and labels so that outsiders or even other advocates of the belief that Jesus is God won't consider the One God message, due to it's unwarranted attachment with horrendous labels and condemnation.
Yes, Athanasius was decidedly vituperous and venomous in his degradation of and pronounced judgment against Arius, despite Arius being described by some as being a good man of morals, character, and conviction. Athanasius called his position everything from "irreligious" to "vomit." He said he was an "enemy of God" and called those who believed like him "Ario-maniacs." It was proposed that Arianism was an abominable heresy, Satanic even, assailing Arius's character and poisoning the well, profusely.
Athanasius was an Egyptian from Alexandria whose philosophy had it's root in Platonic ideals.
"The Alexandrian catechetical school, which revered Clement of Alexandria and Origen, the greatest theologians of the Greek Church, as it's heads, applied the allegorical method to the explanation of Scripture. Its thought was influenced by Plato: its strong point was theological speculation. Athanasius and the three Cappodocians had been among its members." (Ecumenical Councils of the Catholic Church, by Hubert Jedin, p. 29)
The New Living Translation says:
"Don't let anyone capture you with empty philosophies and high-sounding nonsense that come from human thinking and from the spiritual powers of this world, rather than from Christ." (Colossians 2:8)
Ouch. Bible tellin' it like it is, always!
I won't be delving into the intricacies of Plato's or Philo's philosophies or the peculiar profundities of Gnostic ideals, all of which and in addition to numerous other beliefs, undeniably and voraciously informed some of the early church fathers within the coucils where our modern day creeds were formulated. They're certainly not my specialty, and there are a plethora of sources out there to get you informed on them and their ideas if you crave to understand them. Apparently there is something bewitching and persuasive inherent in their ruminations and philosophies though, so proceed with caution. Many have been so beguiled by their uninspired philosophies that they have been used as an unwarranted accompaniment to holy texts by many a professed Christ follower. This, of course, has been to the detriment of the furtherance of Christ's wonderful and simple teachings that need no further "light" shone upon them. I would have no problem or issue with professed believers ruminating poetically and philosophically upon inspired texts, unless it were to the point of murdering the biblical author's less complex and mystical intent! And it has assuredly gone that far, over the cliff and into the mystic. With Van Morrison. ;)
Arius's teachings were burnt up, and if any survived, they were later destroyed by haters. It's questionable whether quotes from him from churchmen are reliable given that they denounced him as an egregious heretic. Many scholarly studies have suggested that Arius was poisoned by his opponents, while his dissenters ridiculously presume his death was a miracle from the heart and hands of God, as a direct result of the abominable heresies spewing from his lips and pen.
From:
http://www.arian-catholic.org/arian/arius.html
"Poison was a very common method used by Pagan Romans. Throughout the dark and middle ages trinitarians have brutally attempted to stamp out Arianism, but even the Spanish Inquisition could not quell Arius's beliefs. As Roman Catholicism began to decline in central Europe, Arianism rose again, even in the Church of England!"
Hmm.. very strange indeed that trinitarians just haven't been able to get the whole "Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the Living God" heresy completely eradicated, in all it's sufficiency. Sorry for the sarcasm. Maybe.
In the notorious Nicene council, this tragically occurred:
"Constantine dropped his bombshell on the council. He suggested that the relation of the son to the father might be by the word "homoousios", of one essence"~A.H.M Jones." (Constantine and the conversion of Europe p. 161)
There we have it folks, why it is that trinitarians well schooled on the idea are spouting such philosophical unbiblical terminology. It's from Constantine, not God. Rhetoric and concepts instigated by the words of imaginative famous philosophers and not by the terminology or declarations of the Lord.
"Toward the end of the 1st century, and during the 2nd, many learned men came over from both Judaism and paganism to Christianity. These brought with them into the Christian schools of theology their Platonic ideas and phraseology." (article "Trinity," Vol. 10, p. 553)
mm hmm..obvi.
"Knowledge puffs up while love builds up." (1 Cor. 8:1)
There was a whole lot of philosophically informed worldly knowledge inherent in the furtherance of the trinity dogma accompanied by a severe and concerning lack of love and mercy. That continues to this day on a somewhat less tragic scale. Though there's less blood, thankfully, the condemnation to eternal damnation and threats of a loss of favor with God and Christians still reign supreme as just a couple of the weapons of intellectual intimidation commonly wielded to keep the so-called heretics in line. That isn't any more appetizing or less egregious than the Watchtower organization's shunning, labelling, and condemnation of conscientious objectors.
"The term "Trinity" is not a biblical term, and we are not using biblical language when we define what is expressed by it as a doctrine." (The International Standard Bible Encylopedia, article "Trinity," p. 3012)
"Let no one deceive himself. If anyone among you thinks that he is wise in this age, let him become a fool that he may become wise. For the wisdom of this world is folly with God. For it is written, “He catches the wise in their craftiness,” and again, “The Lord knows the thoughts of the wise, that they are futile.” So let no one boast in men." (1 Cor. 3:18-20)
Philosophers, scholars, and religious leaders are frequently hailed as heroes with profitable knowledge, wise words, and pure intent. This often isn't the case, and all great minds should be conscientiously and wholeheartedly questioned because they're not all in line with the mind of Christ. Christ unhesitatingly and humbly revealed his identity left and right, yet ideas that don't seem to be his at all get thrown in the air, caught, and held tightly by traditionalists, either in addition to or altogether in opposition to his own. Much like it is with the Watchtower, there are some benevolent and trustworthy foundational truths being believed within the realms of Orthodoxy, but regrettably they are mixed with a heaping helping of insidious deceptions tainting their beauty. Most are sincere servants sincerely deceived. Therefore, God will have mercy and cause the truth to light up in the humblest of hearts ready to seek and find Him in the grandest sense possible. Hopefully sooner than later! When the simple Christ-told truth smacks you in the face, you might feel like I did when I learned the truth about the Watchtower's lies. You will be bumfuzzled how you could've believed the intricate web of deceitful lies, but ultimately you'll be glad to know the truth, which can only set you free and cause your heart to swell.
I for one won't be trusting any philosopher or scholar to tell me Jesus is consubstantial and coequal (words that are expressly unbiblical) to his father when Jesus himself said "the Father is greater than I" and "Why do you call me good? No One is good but God alone." (John 14:28, Mark 10:18) Amongst about a million (slight exaggeration) other things that common sense should tell us prove he isn't the Most High God.
I have heard trinitarians make a mockery of these texts with their equivocation and denial of their obvious intentions. Were those around supposed to know he meant he was inferior but only by the haphazard limitation of a supposed human nature to at least one of the three persons in a One God essence that's three? Surely not. If so, specification at any point in the New Testament would have been appreciated for clarification.
The cementing and furtherance of the 4th century trinity dogma was certainly not full of the fruits of the spirit! The trinity wasn't the only highly questionable belief or practice adopted in the Council of Nicea, which was full of many uninspired vindictive men. December 25th was imagined as Christ's birth to appease the pagans, further incorporating blatant paganism into Christianity. The holy day Saturday was changed to Sunday to accommodate sun worshipers. Just to give you an idea of what kind of spirit was present and pervasive within this council. Any revelation or imagining is only as good as the spirit behind it and it's preservation. If it has a trail of blood and pagan implications, it should be unquestionably questioned.
"What if instead of being so banished, a large dose of paganism was actually absorbed into the Christian faith? What if the pure apostolic faith firmly rooted in Jesus of Nazareth was very early on being divorced from its historical context? Many fine Biblical scholars have put forward a seemingly unassailable case that the Jesus of Jewish history has been buried under generations of accumulated myth; the Jesus of history has been supplanted by the Christ of mythology. The well-known dictum of Canon Goudge who considered that the infiltration of Roman and Greek ideas into the Christian church represents “a disaster from which we have never recovered, either in doctrine or practice” is well worth pondering." ("They Never Told me This in Church" p. 14 Greg Deuble)
Let GOD be found true, though many a man who claims to be born again may lie to you. They know not what they do. I hope they don't.
"When one does speak of unqualified trinitarianism, one has moved from the period of Christian origins to say, the last quadrant of the fourth century. It was only then that what might be called the definitive trinitarian dogma "one God in three persons" became thoroughly assimilated into Christian life and thought." (New Catholic Encyclopedia, articale "Trinity," Vol. 14, p. 295)
If it didn't fully materialize till the 4th century, you can confidently place your bets that it's a different doctrine! Sounds like new light very similar to the Watchtower's, which is usually detectably assailable.
Preposterous egregious anathematization of supposed non-adhering heretics was cemented full-force in Nicea, so professed Christians today who condemn and dechurch fellow professed Christians who think that God is only one person and Christ is that One's heir and Son, are, even if perhaps unknowingly, bowing at the throne of Constantine instead of Christ.
Kegan Chandler beautifully sums the whole mess up when he says:
"It is essentially a theory constructed on what is not said in the Bible, and a theory which could not exist without a parallel metaphysical framework that is fundamentally alien to it. Our premise in this regard is that the biblical interpretations of later Christian orthodoxy would never have been arrived at from the Jewish Scriptures and the inherited Jewish worldview of the Apostles alone. Those metaphysical interpretations were expressly and only facilitated by external philosophies grafted onto the biblical writings by later religious synthesizers. This process resulted in a grand transformation of the original faith of the first Jewish believers in Jesus.
He goes on to say:
"Ultimately, it will be demonstrated that the orthodox dogma about God is primarily the product of unnecessary problem-solving. The philosophers of the late Roman Empire were attempting to unravel two non-issues: First, Christianity’s implications for Greek philosophy. If the Jesus movement were to succeed amongst the academics, it needed, in their view, to be able to mesh with the established intellectual systems of their age, or to outperform them philosophically. Without raising questions about their piety or intentions, we may easily recognize how advantageous such a reconciliation was. Second, they were attempting to solve what they supposed were inconsistencies between the Old and New Testaments. In the record of the Jesus incident they had perceived the incarnation of a second divine being, or wanted to, and the event needed to make sense in light of a monotheism which had always distinguished the biblical community from the surrounding pagans. Admittedly, the solutions they constructed were often ingenious. However, as we will see, the problems for which they were created did not really exist. The apparent discrepancies encountered by the Gentile philosophers were only misunderstandings enabled by their separation from the Jewish worldview, while the conclusions they ultimately formed were enabled only by their Platonic, and even Gnostic, saturation. These two stumbling blocks, the Jewish disconnect and the infatuation with Hellenistic formulae, were evidently enough to skew the religious mind of the early Christians so that they not only mishandled the original faith, but created an entirely new one."
(Chandler, Kegan. The God of Jesus in Light of Christian Dogma (Kindle Locations 437-461). Restoration Fellowship. Kindle Edition.)
Everything about some of these councils screams "How can we appease the pagans and merge our Hellenistic ideals with Christian ones?!" Certain pagan holidays and dogmas hence emerged and have become concerningly solidified with no conscience qualms from many professed believers. Additionally, certain less-acceptable-to-the-modern-professed-believer ideas and orders were cemented within these councils that Christians claim were chockfull of only the godliest of men who we'd do well to imitate and trust. Kegan Chandler, again, illuminates:
"Most disconcerting is the fact that a great deal of today’s evangelicals who claim and demand adherence to “orthodox” theology actually stand in direct opposition to many of the orthodox council decrees. For example, the same council which affirmed the divine nature of Christ also concluded that Mary was the “Theotokos” or “Mother of God” and not just the mother of the human Jesus. The council also determined that it was God who actually suffered on the cross, and not just the human nature. Furthermore, the councils also concluded that any military service, even becoming a chaplain, was forbidden for the true Christian. These are all conclusions with which most evangelical and Protestant communities today sharply disagree, and yet the Canons of the councils read: “if anyone should in any way attempt to set aside the orders made by the holy Synod… they shall be excommunicated.” While one may often hear the arguments of the evangelical littered with accusations of heresy against Christians who do not align with their denominational theology, how many realize that they might also be anathematized as heretics themselves? As Stefan Zweig rightly stated in his book on heresy in the Reformation: “In and by itself, the very notion of a ‘heretic’ is absurd as far as a Protestant Church is concerned, since Protestants demand that everyone shall have the right of interpretation.”
(Chandler, Kegan. The God of Jesus in Light of Christian Dogma (Kindle Locations 657-675). Restoration Fellowship. Kindle Edition.)
This strikingly reminds me of the how the modern day Watchtower powers-that-be would anathematize, disfellowship, and shun any of it's own members who would dare to adhere to some of the principles and dogmas they used to call essential. Yes, "new light" hath swept across the horizon and more current essentials pulled the curtain on the antiquated ones. In other words, this so-called "orthodox" and "essential" dogma business, when examined historically and honestly, has been haphazard, unfair, and hypocritical at times. To horribly label and kick straight from the kingdom those who won't grasp and herald doctrines that scripture never explicitly states is what should be anathema.
Excellently researched and nicely put (even if a little beyond the average reader in vocabulary). But that is what the videos are for right? ;-P
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