Why the Concept of the Holy Trinity is Problematic
How Christianity’s view of Jesus derailed his message
The Trinity is a foundational doctrine of the Christian faith. It declares that God is one divine Spirit yet three divine individual entities: the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit (depicted above as a dove).
But did you know that the word “trinity” doesn’t appear in the Bible?
In fact, it was an idea that came quite sometime later in church history. Let me explain:
The Nicene Creed
The “Church Father” Tertullian (AD 160–225) was the first to apply the term “Trinity” to God. Then, the doctrine of the Trinity was officialized at the First Council of Nicaea in AD 325. The Council adopted the Nicene Creed, which described Christ as “God of God, Light of Light, very God of very God, begotten, not made, being of one substance with the Father.”
The Nicene Creed was intended to settle Christian disputes that divided the early church, particularly the Arian controversies — a series of disputes between Arius and Athanasius of Alexandria, two Christian theologians, over the nature of Christ.
The Nicene Creed also referred to the “Holy Ghost” as the one by which the Virgin Mary conceived.
The critical question of Christology
The early Christians, including the disciples John and Peter, thought of Jesus as a man. The suggestion that Jesus was God or a unique and special Son of God evolved and eventually raged on as critical controversies amongst the early theologians.
The pronouncement of the Trinity concept effectively deified Jesus but did not satisfy all parties. There is reason to believe that this decision of the fourth-century bishops was to settle significant controversies in a way that would satisfy the Roman Emperor.
Nevertheless, the deification of Jesus might have been a wise political decision, but, in the view of many, it also may have distorted the original message of Jesus.
This critical question of Christology is still burning because of its consequences for humanity:
Was Jesus a god or a human being?
An artificial separation between Jesus and humanity
The fourth-century bishops erected a barrier between Jesus and humanity that I believe was not part of Jesus’ theology. The Trinity enshrined Jesus’ Godlikeness and divinity, becoming an essential pillar of Christian dogma.
I prefer and share the belief that Jesus was an exceptional man who rose so high in consciousness that he could make miraculous demonstrations supporting his teaching of our divinely given purpose to rise in consciousness.
My position is supported by the fact that Jesus indicated to his followers that they could and should not only emulate him but were even capable of doing more.
In John 14:12, Jesus said, “Very truly I tell you, whoever believes in me will do the works I have been doing, and they will do even greater things than these because I am going to the Father.”
It should be clear that if Jesus considered himself a god, he would not have made this statement in John 14:12. If he had considered himself God-like and therefore unlike us, he would not have said that we, as human beings, could do what he could do.
Conversely, his statement would make sense if he knew himself to be 100% human like his disciples. And that statement in John 14:12 should move us to rise in consciousness as Jesus did.
The derailment
Jesus does not want us to rely on some outside source to resolve our issues. Jesus wants us to assume our divine endowment and responsibility as Children of God to rise in consciousness and become able to resolve our own issues, needs, and challenges.
That point should be clear if we understand the fullness of his message in the Sermon on the Mount. Jesus is a way-shower relevant to human beings only to the extent that he was a man who rose in consciousness and reached the level of Christhood.
By making a god of Jesus, Christianity derailed his message because it made the proposition of emulating Jesus an impossibility. In effect, this robbed humanity of Jesus’ great gift, his message of “Good News.”
The challenge for Christianity
The status quo will persist, and changes will become impossible if Christianity does not accept the imperative to recognize the humanity of Jesus. This conceptual shift would support more coherence with ideas that may seem new but more authentic to the core of Jesus’ message.
The most difficult change will be to address the primary question in Christology: Was Jesus the personification of God, or was he a human man?
Believing that he was a man implies that he was one of the most advanced mystics the world has known. Yet, even in that respect, his experience was not entirely unique. Other religions have produced significant mystics capable of miracles and had disciples who went on to perform miracles.
The lesson from these observations of mystics and other spiritual masters within and outside Christianity confirms that Jesus meant what he said in John 12:14, encouraging his disciples — and ultimately all of his followers — to emulate him.
Unfortunately, that crucial part of his teaching was silenced. The time has come to reclaim this teaching as central to the ideology of a New Christianity.
Jon Canas
Debunking false creeds. Reclaiming the Soul of Christianity.
Site: https://bio.site/ChristicSoul
Email me
My book: Religion, Politics, and Reclaiming the Soul of Christianity: A Spiritual Imperative for Our Time and Our Nation
