Blainer wrote: > Well, OK. I guess the answer is "yes." That won't > cost me any money to say that. It is just that I am > not sure what you mean when you include the word > "Trinity." If this word has just general meaning, OK, > but if it has some special meaning, in reference to some > thing or event in particular, then I have to be more cautious. > I do believe Jesus is God's Son, and that he is God > because he is one of the Godhead--made up of three > individuals--the Father, the Son and the Holy Ghost, > which is ONE GOD.
Blaine, I'm going to try real quickly to explain this. Unfortunately, I think you might reverse yourself when you hear the answer. :-) The word "Trinity" historically does have a special meaning. It is a word meant to designate a Godhead that, while being 3 persons, is also of the SAME substance. The entire argument between the Arians and the Trinitarians hinged on a single letter in one Greek word that described the relationship between Jesus and the heavenly Father. This is kind of ironic for a subject of such supposed magnitude, especially when you consider that the single letter in dispute is the letter iota. So the whole debate rests upon a single iota! LOL Arius taught that Jesus was a created being, so that he is our Creator and we worship him as such, but technically, he is not deity. The word favored by most Arians was "homoi-ousius" which means, "of like essence." The word favored by the Trinitarians as "homo-ousius" which means ("of the same essence"). The question was if Jesus was of like substance / essence as the Father, or if he was of the same substance / essence as the Father. There was a third view called Sabellianism, but this was rejected as heretical prior to this debate between the Arians and the Trinitarians. In fact, the Trinitarians were accused by the Arians as being Sabellians with their view of three persons being of the same substance. Sabellianism is basically the "Oneness" teaching that some Christians embrace today, which considers the Father, Jesus, and the Holy Spirit as one person. The Mormon view technically is kind of like the Arian view. Arius worshipped Jesus just like Mormons do, and he considered Jesus as the creator of all the earth, and he viewed Jesus himself being a created person. The difference is that Arius thought that because Jesus was created, he technically was not deity. This was important to Arius in order to distinguish themselves as a monotheistic religion rather than a polytheistic religion. Mormons say that Jesus is deity, apparently considering themselves to embrace a henotheistic form of polytheism. It's kind of interesting that Arians and Trinitarians divide over a single iota, but Mormons seem to find a division even between this division. How thin can the pie be cut before it just crumbles? Peace be with you. David Miller. ---------- "Let your speech be always with grace, seasoned with salt, that you may know how you ought to answer every man." (Colossians 4:6) http://www.InnGlory.org If you do not want to receive posts from this list, send an email to [EMAIL PROTECTED] and you will be unsubscribed. If you have a friend who wants to join, tell him to send an e-mail to [EMAIL PROTECTED] and he will be subscribed.