Did you know that prior to 325AD, Jesus was not considered....?

Question

to be Divine, was not considered the Son of God, and was not thought to have been born of a virgin? Do you realize that these "facts" were voted upon by the Council of Nicea and the Council of Hippo in 325 and 360AD???

I realize that doesnt change what the man (allegedly) taught - but how does that make one feel?? Jesus' divinity was voted upon, his virgin birth was voted on.....
We can all agree that Bush was voted President of the US for a second term - and this was a mistake. Could not the vote on Jesus' divinity been a mistake too?

Answer 1

Your basic assertion is correct, the church as an institution did not recognize Jesus as a divine being until 325. However, there were Christian sects that did recognize him as divine (most especially, the party that eventually became known as the orthodox party). However, there were many Christian sects that either did not recognize Jesus' divine status and considered him just a human being(like the Ebionites), those who recognized him as divine yet separate from God, as well as those who thought he was fully God and different from the God of Israel.

That Jesus was voted by the church to be divine is incontrovertible, and that it was a power play, orchestrated primarily by Athanasius is also well documented. Certainly, the canonical gospels point to the divinity of Jesus, but that is also due to the fact that those who maintained Jesus' divinity decided which books to include in the N.T. (and there were many in circulation that never made it in).

The interpretation of Nicea is up for grabs I imagine. Some could say that it was divinely ordained that things ended up the way they did. Others would see the political power plays at work as see the doctrine of Jesus' divinity as a completely human construction.

In my own opinion, to sway to far toward either of those poles in an absolute sense smacks of arrogance, since we cannot know what Jesus' divine/human status was since none of us were there. Rationally, it would seem that Jesus was just a human, who was later developed into the divine Christ figure by develping church tradition (which is my own position), but, at the end of the day, an alternative reading of history is also possible. Good question.

Just wanted to add that I've often seen many appeal to Strobel and McDowell in order to assert that the Bible is all it claims to be. It is understandable to point to these men, but it is also possible to point to many who set out to prove the faith and ended up atheist, finding many holes, contradictions, and irrationality in the pages of the Bible and church history. Many of these are equally brilliant people who once had great faith in the Biblical text.

Answer 2

This is one of the weirdest historical myths I have heard.

All you have to do is pick up a copy in the library of the 'Apology' and 'Dialogs with Tycho' by Justin Martyr from 120 AD [note that date?] and you'll see that all the Council of Nicene taught he said well beforehand. Then, look for Polycarp and some letters from Ignatius and you'll find the same, the later dating in the 90's AD [do you notice that date?].

Duckphub,

Not only was your post too long but it was to short on primary historical documents that no one disputes, such as I referenced. Set aside your prejudice against the Roman Church and try and find what are the most basic and supported historical facts, not the 4th century version of black helicopters!

Answer 3

Your information is incorrect. They did not vote on whether it was true or not, but whether to include what they already knew to be true in the creed they formed. So no, not at all possible that it was a mistake.

Jesus' divinity is found throughout the New Testament writings and was never subject to controversy in the early church. His disciples witnessed Jesus telling the Jews that He was the "I AM" that Moses saw in the burning bush. (John 8:58) It was obvious that this is precisely what those who heard Him believed He said (that He claimed He was God) because they picked up stones to stone Him for blasphemy, that He claimed to be God.

Colossians 1 says that Jesus created the world. That would make Him God Himself because only God created the world. That means that about 60 AD Paul was considering Jesus as God. That pretty much completely destroys your premise statement.

Answer 4

This conviction goes all the way back to Jesus' first disciples, who believed that He wasn't just another man but He was God in human flesh. Thomas, for example, didn't believe Jesus had come back from the dead, but once he saw the risen Christ, he immediately exclaimed, "My Lord and my God!" (John 20:28)—thus affirming Jesus' divine nature.

Why did they believe Jesus was God and not just a man? One reason is because this is what Jesus repeatedly taught about Himself. On one occasion, He declared, "I and the Father are one" (John 10:30). Another time, He stated, "Anyone who has seen me has seen the Father" (John 14:9). Even some of his enemies understood that this was His claim, since "he was even calling God his own Father, making himself equal with God" (John 5:18).

Those first disciples also believed Jesus was divine because of what He did. They witnessed His miracles, and they saw Him exercise authority over the forces of nature. Most of all, they were witnesses to the greatest miracle: His resurrection from the dead, which confirmed His claims.

Why is this important? For one reason: Only a divine Savior could save us from our sins. We cannot save ourselves, nor can anyone else save us. But Christ can—and He did, through His death on the cross for us. Open your heart to Him today, for He alone is "the way and the truth and the life" (John 14:6).

Answer 5

That's not true. There was never any question as to Christ's divinity. There was, however, question as to whether or not He was, in fact, God, or equal TO God.
Sorry, that's false information.
Read church history, documents on the Council of Nicea (Christ was acknowledged as the Son of God throughout the time He was alive, by His disciples), and also, consider reading just about any book by Lee Strobel or Josh McDowell. IF, that is, you want to know the truth. Those two authors are former atheists, who set out to prove Christianity wrong, and instead found that Jesus is and was exactly who He said He was.

Answer 6

ROFLMAO
before 325 some said he was some said he was not!
The council only made it for everyone that he was!

And Thank God we have GW Bush! It will take 16 years to clean up the God Damn mess of Bill C.

Answer 7

Many things happened before the Nicean creed which should cause more questions then the one you posed. It is my belief that Jesus is the man portrayed to be in the Bible. When he was on earth he established his church. After he died, Peter, Paul & the crew did their best to spread the church through their missionary efforts. They were eventually killed in the cruelest of ways. This sudden loss of church leaders caused an apostasy or a falling away. This means that there was no longer men on earth qualified to lead and direct the church that Jesus had established. This falling away was predicted by Paul and Jesus in the New Testament. The Catholic church claims that the line of authority continued on through their popes, but an examination of the Catholic church and their practicies compared to Jesus' church will show that the Catholic church is missing the point.

During this apostasy, there was little improvement in life's ways. Then during the Renaissance period there began to be an enlightening among the people. It started with the printnig press which allowed the common man to read the bible instead of the elect few. With that, certain men came forward such as Martin Luther who stated their opposition to the Catholic church and their divinity. This started what is now referred to as the protestant churches. The protested the Catholic church's teachings and formed their own churches with their own differences.

While these new churches were formed with the best of intentions, they weren't done by the power of God with his authority and direction. That is a necessary element when forming a church. Just because you form a church, doesn't make you a "man of god."

This brings me to our modern day. If you haven't ever heard of Joseph Smith then you should read his story. Go to www.mormon.com and you can get more information. It's very interesting. On top of that, their missionaries are very friendly and can teach you their doctrines and won't be pushy at all. I hope this helps clarify some of your concerns.

Answer 8

You make several false statements.

Since it is full of FALSE CLAIMS, your question is meaningless.

Jesus was divine and was considered that when the church began. SOME Christians may have disagreed, but the majority agreed with the scriptures and the apostles' teaching.

Since the vote for Mr. Bush clearly was not mistaken either, as the islamo-fascist are showing us every day, your whole question is full of false statements.

Try learning a little bit of truth so you can ask meaningful questions.

Answer 9

I guess you missed the parts in the Bible where people recognised him as God even while he was still alive. That was just a bit before 325 AD.

Answer 10

Jesus' deity was recognized while He was still on earth. Put down your fiction novel, The DaVinci Code.