What is the origin of the
Trinity doctrine?
The
New Encyclopædia Britannica says: “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 4th century .
. . the doctrine of the Trinity took substantially the form it has maintained
ever since.”—(1976), Micropædia, Vol. X, p. 126.
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 4th
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.
In The
Encyclopedia Americana we read: “Christianity derived from Judaism and
Judaism was strictly Unitarian [believing that God is one person]. The road
which led from Jerusalem to Nicea 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. 294L.
According
to 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 B.C.E.]
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.
John
L. McKenzie, S.J., in his Dictionary of the Bible, says: “The
trinity of persons within the unity of nature is defined in terms of ‘person’
and ‘nature’ which are G[ree]k philosophical terms; actually the terms do not
appear in the Bible. The 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.”—(New York, 1965), p. 899.
Paul Orbinson.
2015. Do Christians worship God or Jesus, the son of God?
My Catholic priest pal tells me he worships Jesus, not God. What is the
difference? Quora.com.
https://www.quora.com/Do-Christians-worship-God-or-Jesus-the-son-of-God-My-Catholic-priest-pal-tells-me-he-worships-Jesus-not-God-What-is-the-difference,
retrieved Wednesday, 28 November, 2018
