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Encyclopedia > Trinitarianism

Trinitarianism is the Christian doctrine that God, although one being, exists in three distinct persons (hypostases) known collectively as the Holy Trinity. Trinitarianism was formally defined in fourth-century Christian ecumenical councils. The Councils met at a time when Christians radically disagreed, to the point of bloodshed, over the divine nature of Christ- whether Jesus was divine, whether God created Jesus, whether Jesus therefore was not God, but a distinct being, etc. The Byzantine Emperor Constantine in 325 convened an election to come up with a solution and remove dissent. Trinitarianism was postulated by Athanasius as a response to the Jesus is God/ Jesus Had Always Been God logical conundrum. The Council of Nicaea, in a controversial election marked by violence and intimidation, voted to adopt the notion of the Holy Trinity as an article of faith (creed). Other ideas, such as Arianism, regarding the nature of the Trinity and the nature of Christ within it, were declared heretical. Christianity is the worlds largest religion. ... Dogma (the plural is either dogmata or dogmas) is belief or doctrine held by a religion or any kind of organization to be authoritative. ... The term God is used to designate a Supreme Being; however, there are other definitions of God. ... A hypostasis, from the Greek word ὑπόστασις meaning foundation, base or that which stands behind is a term in linguistics to describe the relationship between a name and a known quantity, as a cultural personification (i. ... This article concerns the Holy Trinity of Christianity and related religious denominations. ... In Catholicism and Eastern Orthodoxy, an ecumenical council is a meeting of the bishops of the whole church convened to discuss and settle matters of Church doctrine and practice. ... People called Constantine Constantine is the name of many people: Rulers called Constantine Constantine I of the Roman Empire Constantine II of the Roman Empire Constantine III of Rome Constantine III of Byzantium Constantine IV Constantine V Constantine VI Constantine VII Constantine VIII of the Byzantine Empire Constantine IX Constantine... Athanasius of Alexandria (also spelled Athanasios) was a Christian bishop of Alexandria in the fourth century. ... A creed is a statement of belief—usually religious belief—or faith. ... Arianism was a Christological view held by followers of Arius in the early Christian Church, claiming that Jesus Christ and God the Father were not always contemporary, seeing the Son as a divine being, created by the Father (and consequently inferior to Him) at some point in time, before which... Christology is that part of Christian theology that studies and defines who Jesus Christ was and is. ... Heresy, according to the Oxford English Dictionary, is a theological or religious opinion or doctrine maintained in opposition, or held to be contrary, to the ‘catholic’ or orthodox doctrine of the Christian Church, or, by extension, to that of any church, creed, or religious system, considered as orthodox. ...


While its detractors believe it was invented in the fourth century when it was first expressly stated, adherents of Trinitarianism believe that the doctrine was nevertheless taught by Jesus Christ and the first apostles, being indicated throughout the Bible and foreshadowed in the Old Testament specifically. This 11th-century portrait is one of many images of Jesus in which a halo with a cross is used. ... Christ, from the Greek in english known as Χριστός, or Khristós, means anointed, and is equivalent to the Hebrew term Messiah. ... Alternate meanings: See Apostle (Mormonism), The Apostle (1997 movie) The Twelve Apostles (in Greek απόστολος apostolos= emissary) were probably Jewish men (10 names are Aramaic, 4 names are Greek) chosen from among the disciples, who were sent forth , by Jesus to preach the Gospel to both Jews and Gentiles, across the... The Old Testament or the Hebrew Scriptures (also called the Hebrew Bible) constitutes the first major part of the Bible according to Christianity. ...


Many Trinitarian Christians believe that the orthodox doctrine of the Trinity is so central to the Christian faith that to deny it is to reject the Christian faith entirely. They accordingly consider nontrinitarian or antitrinitarian groups to be non-Christian, even though such groups identify themselves as Christian. The nature of the dispute tends to revolve chiefly over the issues of the deity of Jesus and whether belief in a non-divine Jesus is sufficient to confer salvation. Nontrinitarianism or antitrinitarianism is the doctrinal description applied to rejection of the Trinitarian doctrine that God subsists as three distinct persons in the Holy Trinity. ... This 11th-century portrait is one of many images of Jesus in which a halo with a cross is used. ... Salvation means being saved from suffering of some kind. ...


Some have argued that the trinity was of pagan origin, and viewed trinitarian doctrines as a contamination of the Christian faith. Most of the ideas of one such author are described in his book The Two Babylons. That said, within several hundred years after the Council of Nicaea, received opinion among theologians affirmed that the doctrine of the Trinity is a central tenet of the Christian faith. Original cover of The Two Babylons, which alleges that many of the Roman Catholic churches doctrines and ceremonies came from ancient Babylonian culture. ...


According to Marcellus of Ancyra, On the Holy Church, 9:

"Valentinus, the leader of a sect, was the first to devise the notion of three subsistent entities (hypostases), in a work that he entitled On the Three Natures. For, he devised the notion of three subsistent entities and three persons — father, son, and holy spirit." [1]

  Results from FactBites:
 
Why be a Trinitarian? (4110 words)
Trinitarians believe that Jesus' communication with the Father, namely His prayers, compels us to conclude that the deity of the Father and the deity of the Son are distinct persons in the Godhead.
Trinitarian theology has to admit that a whole other person in the Godhead showed up on the scene in flesh, who is personally distinct from the personal God revealed in the OT.
While the Trinitarian model can account for the distinctions in the NT, it cannot account for the lack of such in the OT, nor the failure of the OT to mention "God the Son" (other than in prophetic passages), nor the non-existence of the Father-Son terminology before the incarnation.
  More results at FactBites »

 

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