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Heretical Views of the Doctrine of the Trinity Gregg R Denials of Orthodoxy: Heretical Views of the Doctrine of the Trinity Gregg R. Allison s this issue of SBJT explores the doctrine without its challenges. The purpose of this article of the Trinity—that God eternally exists as is to identify, describe, and critique these denials A 9 three persons, the Father, the Son, and the Holy of the orthodox view of the Trinity. Spirit, each of whom is fully God, yet there is only one God—it is good to remember that this ortho- MONARCHIANISM: DENYING THE dox position was hammered out DISTINCTIONS OF THE THREE Gregg R. Allison is Professor of amid challenges to a “Trinitarian PERSONS Christian Theology at The Southern consciousness” that arose in the The first significant challenge to the early Baptist Theological Seminary. early church. By this consciousness church’s Trinitarian consciousness was the view Dr. Allison served many years as a I mean a sense, grounded in the that later came to be called monarchianism, a posi- staff member of Campus Crusade, teaching of Scripture, that devel- tion that emphasized “the unity of God as the only where he worked in campus ministry oped in the church as it reflected on monarchia, or ruler of the universe.”10 This error and as a missionary to Italy and 1 11 Switzerland. He also serves as the nature of God; baptized new developed two forms. Dynamic monarchianism the Secretary of the Evangelical Christians;2 prayed;3 worshipped;4 was promoted by two men named Theodotus Theological Society and the book constructed its ecclesiology;5 and (Theodotus the Tanner, Theodotus the Money- review editor for theological, 12 historical, and philosophical studies as it developed its apologetics Changer) and Paul of Samosata of Antioch. Hip- 6 for the Journal of the Evangelical against pagans. Eventually, this polytus described the key tenets of this position: Theological Society. Dr. Allison is the Trinitarian sense was articulated author of several books, including in explicit theological affirma- Jesus was a (mere) man, born of a virgin, accord- most recently Historical Theology: 7 An Introduction to Christian Doctrine tions—the rule of faith, the canon ing to the counsel of the Father. After he had lived (Zondervan, 2011) and Sojourners of truth,8 and the early creeds. But indiscriminately with all men and had become and Strangers: The Doctrine of the this developing consciousness and preeminently religious, he subsequently—at his Church (Crossway, forthcoming). theological formulation was not baptism in the Jordan River—received Christ, 18 SBJT 16.1 (2012): 18-27. who came from above and descended (upon him) Spirit.” Thus, God is Father, God is Son, and God in the form of a dove. This was the reason, accord- is the Holy Spirit: one God with three names or ing to Theodotus, why (miraculous) powers did modes, but not one God who eternally exists as not operate within him prior to the manifestation three distinct persons. in him of that Spirit which descended and which These two forms of monarchianism were proclaims him to be the Christ.13 denounced by the leaders of the early church. Dynamic monarchianism was found wanting Accordingly, Jesus was just an ordinary— because it considered Jesus Christ to be a mere though particularly good and holy—man upon man, whereas Scripture portrays him as fully whom the Spirit (or Christ, the presence of God) divine and fully human. Modalistic monarchian- descended at his baptism, thereby empower- ism was assessed as emphasizing the oneness of ing him to perform miracles without rendering God while minimizing the distinctive threeness him divine. Additionally, the Spirit was merely of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, thus losing the a divine influence. Dynamic monarchianism, three in the one. which thankfully exerted little influence in the Tertullian, defending the early church’s Trini- early church, held that Jesus was not God and the tarian consciousness, argued against these here- Spirit was not God. sies and articulated a precise notion of the Trinity. The second and much more widespread form of Speaking of the three persons, he affirmed: this error, modalistic monarchianism, was spread by Praxeas of Rome, Noetus of Smyrna, Zephyrinus All are one, by unity … of substance; while the and Callistus (both bishops of Rome), and Sabel- mystery of the economy is still guarded, which lius (hence, this error is also referred to as Sabel- distributes the unity into a Trinity, placing in lianism). Again, Hippolytus described the key their order the three persons—the Father, the tenets of this position as promoted by Callistus: Son, and the Holy Spirit. Three, however, not in condition, but in degree; not in substance, but in Callistus alleges that the Logos himself is Son form; not in power, but in appearance. Yet they and is himself Father. Although called by a differ- are of one substance and of one condition and ent title, in reality he is one indivisible spirit. And of one power, inasmuch as he is one God from he maintains that the Father is not one person whom these degrees and forms and aspects are while the Son is another, but that they are one reckoned under the name of the Father and of and the same; and that all things are full of the the Son and of the Holy Spirit.15 divine Spirit…. And he affirms that the Spirit, which became incarnate in the virgin, is not dif- Tertullian’s wording became the foundation for ferent from the Father, but is one and the same.14 the church’s definition of the Trinity: God is one in essence or substance, yet three in persons. He Modalistic monarchianism emphasized that also affirmed the deity of the Holy Spirit (referred the one God is designated by three different to as “the Paraclete” or “Comforter” in the Gos- names—“Father,” “Son,” and “Holy Spirit”—at pel of John), an important element in the church’s different times, but these three are not distinct developing doctrine of the Trinity: persons. Rather, they are differentmodes (hence, modalism) of the one God. As Creator of the world There is the Paraclete or Comforter, for whom and Lawgiver, God can be called “Father;” as the the Lord promises to pray to the Father and incarnate Jesus Christ, God can be called “Son”; to send from heaven after he had ascended to as God in the church age, he can be called “Holy the Father. He is called “another Comforter” 19 indeed (John 14:16)…. “He shall receive of highest of all created beings, and the one through mine,” says Christ (John 16:14), just as Christ whom all created beings were created—but he was himself received of the Father’s. Thus the con- a created being nonetheless. nection of the Father in the Son, and of the For Arius, this reality implied that there was Son in the Paraclete, produces three coherent a time when the Son did not exist: “The Son, persons, who are yet distinct from one another. being begotten apart from time by the Father, These three are one essence, not one person.16 and being created and founded before ages, did not exist before his generation;” thus, the Son God is one, not three, in essence; and he is three “is not eternal or co-eternal or co-unoriginate persons, not one person known by different names. [without beginning] with the Father.”20 A further implication was that the Son has a nature that is ARIANISM: DENYING THE DEITY different from that of the Father; that is, the Son OF THE SON is heteroousios—of a different hetero( ) substance Other challenges to the Trinitarian conscious- or essence (ousios)—not homoousios—of the ness of the early church took the form of denials same (homo) substance or essence (ousios)—as of the deity of the Son. In particular, Arianism the Father. The Son is not God. emphasized monotheism—the belief in only one Though Arius’s position focused on a rejection God. Arius, the chief proponent for whom this of the deity of the Son, it included a rejection of the view is named, maintained: “We acknowledge deity of the Holy Spirit as well. “Just as he denied one God, the only unbegotten, the only eternal, that the Son was of the same divine substance as the only one without beginning, the one true, the Father (and, thus, something other than fully the only one who has immortality, the only wise, divine), so Arius insisted that the Holy Spirit was the only good, the only sovereign.”17 This totally not of the same substance of the Father and the Son unique God could not communicate, or share, his (and, thus, not fully divine).”21 Specifically, Arius divine essence or attributes with anything or any- proclaimed: “The essences of the Father and the one else; to do so would result in a duality of gods, Son and the Holy Spirit are separate in nature, and which would contradict the uniqueness of the one estranged, and disconnected, and alien, and with- God. Furthermore, this completely unique God out participation of each other … utterly unlike created a Son: “[God] begat an only-begotten Son each other in essence and glory, unto infinity.”22 before eternal times…. He made him exist at his The Arian supporter Eusebius of Caesarea, citing own will, unalterable and unchangeable. He was a John 1:3, further darkened the tragic situation by perfect creature of God, but not as one of the crea- affirming that the Holy Spirit is “one of the things tures; he was a perfect offspring, but not as one which have come into existence through the Son.”23 of things begotten….
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