The Holy Trinity : Is Not Just For Non Christians?

In the 4th century there are different schools of thought that were developed in Antioch, were they try to literarily interpret the Scriptures with a great deal of emphasis on the historical context of Trinity. Arius who is also known as Nicene, came up with the Nicene Creed by arguing the fact that Jesus was not God, and the Father by itself is true God. Base on the fact that God created Jesus, Arius was able to support his argument with the books of (Proverbs 8:22 and John 14:28) “the Father is greater than I” as a proof.

The Council of Nicaea, however, rejected Arianism and affirmed that Jesus was not created like all other things were. They said that Jesus and God share the same divine substance, which means that Jesus is one with God the Father. Essentially, Jesus is God. Saint Athanasius, who was a bishop of Alexandria at the time of the Nicene council, shared a similar theology to that set out in the council. Athanasius

In 325, the Council of Nicea set out to formally characterize the relationship of the Son to the Father, in light of the dubious lessons of Arius. Driven by Bishop Athanasius, the gathering confirmed the precept of the Trinity as conventionality and censured Arius ' showing that Christ was the first making of God. The ideology received by the committee depicted Christ as "God of God, Light of Light, very God of very God, begotten, not made, being of one substance (homoousios) with the Father."

Bishops were arguing and debating about the divinity of Christ and other topics. Constantine had looked to the church to help unify Rome, but the Church itself was far from united. After trying other means of resolving the Church’s squabbles, Constantine set up councils to discuss the issues. The most memorable council was the Council of Nicea, which was called to address the teachings of Arius. After listening to what Arius had to say, they decided his teachings were a heresy and he was excommunicated. The Nicene Creed was also developed as a reaction against Arianism during the council. Constantine himself was at the council, and sided with the bishops who were against Arius. Although Arianism continued to persist for years after, the council was an important step in stopping that heresy. Even with all of Constantine’s contributions to Christianity, it can be argued that his influence was detrimental to the

, that lead to the Nicaea Council was the Arian Crisis. It challenged the divinity of God the father and God the son, which were the very foundations of the Christian Church. The essence of the debate, was theological rather than christological and lied mainly with the wording of the creed; ‘ We believe in God the father, Almighty and Jesus christ his begotten son’ Theologians such as Arius from Alexandria , took on the adoptionist approach, that Jesus couldn't be divine as he suffered and changed. The son was therefore subsequently inferior to the Father. He goes further to suggest that it both the father and the son are eternal beings in their own right; then arguably there are two Gods- this goes against the original monotheism of the church and argued that this was inaccurate, as the church was meant to be monotheism. The creed was open to interpretation and the church was unable to explain the trinity. Arius raised the Question about the Son's relationship to the father to a metaphysical and ontological, in defining the divinity of the logus. Arius produces two presuppositions; ‘God for Arius was above all One, a 'Monad'

The growth of a Christian ruling class under Constantine was growing as it ensured the faith's increasing and enduring dominance within the Roman Empire. But Christianity was still young at the time and a lot of disagreements about the faith were going on between the different sects. The Christian doctrine was disorganized, especially when it came to the central question of Jesus' relationship to God. So in 325 A.D., Constantine summoned bishops from all over the empire to Nicaea to sit down and create one solidifying Christian doctrine (National Geographic).

Explain the Significance of Peter, Paul, Constantine and the Council of Nicaea, and the Schism of 1054

The debate, however, was furthered because of Greek philosophy. Even in the monotheistic response to the doctrine of the Logos, there was an answered required by the hellenistically infused mind about the humanity of Jesus. Monarchianism attempted to combat this and there were several different waves of this reaction. One of the better articulated views would be dynamic monarchianism. This view, which was a precursor to adoptionism, claimed that Jesus was born a man from the union of Mary and the Holy Spirit and then received His power at His baptism when the power of God descended upon Him. This was monarchianism’s way to disprove the Logos doctrine, whilst still trying to answer the questions the Greek minds were asking. However controversial

This Christian sect maintained that in the doctrine of the Trinity, the Son was not co-equal or co-eternal with the Father, but only the first and highest of all finite beings, created out of nothing by an act of God's free will. (Adamson 1960, p. 270) Arians, dominated in the Eastern Empire, whereas the Orthodox Church, which were dominate in the Western Empire, firmly believed in the Holy Trinity – that the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit were equal. This belief threatened the Orthodoxy dogma of the early Christian church. At stake was the unity of the Roman empire, Constantine wrote letters to the Orthodox Bishop Alexander and to Arius, urging them to come to an agreement and forgive each other. That effort failed, he then convened an ecumenical council of the entire Christian Church, and this was the first worldwide gathering of bishops. Constantine aided this historic gathering by paying the travel expenses of bishops coming from the far reaches of the

Though Arius had supporters, the majority the bishops present at Nicaea disagreed with his formations. Eusebius is the main source of information when researching this council, besides for the creed itself. This council took place in 325 and has left its mark throughout history. To “defeat” the Airian ideal, the council adopted the words homoousios, hypostasis, and ousia. However, these words are not present within their sacred texts and were used in reaction against Airian teachings, rather than objectively trying to figure out the mystery of the incarnation. Homoousios had a very loose meaning during the council and typically meant that “Jesus Christ was fully God, sharing in some way the same divine nature as the Father.” However, if one

The first ecumenical council, Nicaea, provided a foundation on which all other church councils would operate. This council was called to order for the Airian controversy needed to be addressed. Arius developed a doctrine, deemed heretical by the council, that declared: “There was (once) when Christ was not.” Which understood the idea of “begetting” as “creating.” Differing theological ideas were the norm in that era as people wrestled with questions surrounding the incarnation and various other religion-based qualms. However, a fierce opponent rose against Arius, his name was Athanasius. During this time Constantine was in power and intended to make a united religion, but Arius’ thoughts were causing a schism that Constantine thought needed

As a result, fellowship, prayer, Bible study, worship, and most importantly salvation in its purest form can be discerned and acted upon correctly. In addition, a further understanding can be thus gained regarding the person of Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit. Finally, heresies and heretical groups or beliefs can lead God’s followers astray from the truth and create an improper understanding, and thus relationship with God. Positions past and present have, and are, attempting to mislead Christians about the Trinity. A skewed view of the Trinity can result in a view of God as either divinely apart from creation or simply a better version of all the best attributes of humans. Some positions even take away from the Divinity of Jesus Christ. All of these views severely diminish who God is and alters a proper and true relationship and worship. It is a necessity that these errant views be exposed as a hindrance to God in order not to mislead God’s followers. Likewise a Biblically sound explanation of the Trinity is needed. As a result, a true and pure knowledge of the concept of the Trinity is crucially needed to understand God and be obedient to the Bible.

The Trinity is a doctrine that has and will continue to bring much controversy to the Christian faith. Yet it is important to understand that a practical approach to this topic can be very important. Having a full understanding of the Trinity is vital to the life of a Christian. The distinct, yet interwoven aspects of God’s character will affect every aspect of a believer’s life.

On the other hand, Athanasius, the leader of the bishops in the west, claimed that the Father and Son were equal and of the same substance. In 325, as a mediator, Constantine called together a council of bishops at Nicaea in Asia Minor. While condemning Arius and his teachings, the council declared the complete equality of God the Father and the Son. The teaching that Father and Son were made up "of one substance" became part of the Nicene Creed, the statement that helped to unite Christianity. The council addressed other issues as well, including the method for consecrating bishops.

One of the most important events in church history includes the Council of Nicea. The First Council of Nicea happened in 325 and involved the first gathering of Christian bishops and the Roman Empire not as enemies but as allies. The bishops wanted to solve the dispute over Arianism. Arianism is the belief that Christ was more than human but something less than God. Arianism taught the people that Jesus