Who Invented the Trinity?

Question

"Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God is one Lord." (Deuteronomy 6:4)

"...The first of all the commandments is, Hear, O Israel; the Lord our God is one Lord." (Mark 12:29)

"And your God is One God: There is no God but He, ..." (The Qur'an 2:163)

Who write this?
"...we worship one God in Trinity, and Trinity in Unity... for there is one Person of the Father, another of the Son, another of the Holy Ghost is all one... they are not three gods, but one God... the whole three persons are co-eternal and co-equal... he therefore that will be save must thus think of the Trinity..."
(excerpts from the Athanasian Creed)

Answer 1

Trinity in the Bible
References in the Bible to a Trinity of divine beings are vague, at best.

In Matthew 28:19, we find Jesus telling his disciples to go out and preach to all nations. While the "Great Commission" does make mention of the three persons who later become components of the Trinity, the phrase "...baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost" is quite clearly an addition to Biblical text - that is, not the actual words of Jesus - as can be seen by two factors:


1. Baptism in the early Church, as discussed by Paul in his letters, was done only in the name of Jesus; and
2. The "Great Commission" found in the first gospel written, that of Mark, bears no mention of Father, Son and/or Holy Ghost - see Mark 16:15.

The only other reference in the Bible to a Trinity can be found in the Epistle of I John 5:7, Biblical scholars of today, however, have admitted that the phrase "...there are three that bear record in heaven, the Father, the Word, and the Holy Ghost: and these three are one" is definitely a "later addition" to Biblical test, and it is not found in any of today's versions of the Bible.

It can, therefore, be seen that the concept of a Trinity of divine beings was not an idea put forth by Jesus or any other prophet of God. This doctrine, now subscribed to by Christians all over the world, is entirely man-made in origin.


The Doctrine Takes Shape
While Paul of Tarsus, the man who could rightfully be considered the true founder of Christianity, did formulate many of its doctrines, that of the Trinity was not among them. He did, however, lay the groundwork for such when he put forth the idea of Jesus being a "divine Son." After all, a Son does need a Father, and what about a vehicle for God's revelations to man? In essence, Paul named the principal players, but it was the later Church people who put the matter together.

Tertullian, a lawyer and presbyter of the third century Church in Carthage, was the first to use the word "Trinity" when he put forth the theory that the Son and the Spirit participate in the being of God, but all are of one being of substance with the Father.

A Formal Doctrine is Drawn Up
When controversy over the matter of the Trinity blew up in 318 between two church men from Alexandria - Arius, the deacon, and Alexander, his bishop - Emperor Constantine stepped into the fray.

Although Christian dogma was a complete mystery to him, he did realize that a unified church was necessary for a strong kingdom. When negotiation failed to settle the dispute, Constantine called for the first ecumenical council in Church history in order to settle the matter once and for all.

Six weeks after the 300 bishops first gathered at Nicea in 325, the doctrine of the Trinity was hammered out. The God of the Christians was now seen as having three essences, or natures, in the form of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.

The Church Puts Its Foot Down
The matter was far from settled, however, despite high hopes for such on the part of Constantine. Arius and the new bishop of Alexandria, a man named Athanasius, began arguing over the matter even as the Nicene Creed was being signed; "Arianism" became a catch-word from that time onward for anyone who did not hold to the doctrine of the Trinity.

It wasn't until 451, at the Council of Chalcedon that, with the approval of the Pope, the Nicene/Constantinople Creed was set as authoritative. Debate on the matter was no longer tolerated; to speak out against the Trinity was now considered blasphemy, and such earned stiff sentences that ranged from mutilation to death. Christians now turned on Christians, maiming and slaughtering thousands because of a difference of opinion.


Debate Continues
Brutal punishments and even death did not stop the controversy over the doctrine of the Trinity, however, and the said controversy continues even today.

The majority of Christians, when asked to explain this fundamental doctrine of their faith, can offer nothing more than "I believe it because I was told to do so." It is explained away as "mystery" - yet the Bible says in I Corinthians 14:33 that "... God is not the author of confusion..."

The Unitarian denomination of Christianity has kept alive the teachings of Arius in saying that God is one; they do not believe in the Trinity. As a result, mainstream Christians abhor them, and the National Council of Churches has refused their admittance. In Unitarianism, the hope is kept alive that Christians will someday return to the preachings of Jesus: "...Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and Him only shalt thou serve." (Luke 4:8)

Answer 2

Myth 4: God Is a Trinity

00:0003:05
What is the origin of the myth?
“The impression could arise that the Trinitarian dogma is in the last analysis a late 4th-century invention. In a sense, this is true . . . 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.”—New Catholic Encyclopedia (1967), Volume 14, page 299.

“The Council of Nicaea met on May 20, 325 [C.E.]. Constantine himself presided, actively guiding the discussions, and personally proposed . . . the crucial formula expressing the relation of Christ to God in the creed issued by the council, ‘of one substance with the Father.’ . . . Overawed by the emperor, the bishops, with two exceptions only, signed the creed, many of them much against their inclination.”—Encyclopædia Britannica (1970), Volume 6, page 386.

What does the Bible say?
“Stephen, filled with the Holy Spirit, gazed into heaven and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing at God’s right hand. ‘Look! I can see heaven thrown open,’ he said, ‘and the Son of man standing at the right hand of God.’”—Acts 7:55, 56, The New Jerusalem Bible.

What did this vision reveal? Filled with God’s active force, Stephen saw Jesus “standing at God’s right hand.” Clearly, then, Jesus did not become God again after his resurrection to heaven but, rather, a distinct spiritual being. There is no mention of a third person next to God in this account. Despite attempts to find passages of Scripture to support the Trinity dogma, Dominican priest Marie-Émile Boismard wrote in his book À l’aube du christianisme—La naissance des dogmes (At the Dawn of Christianity—The Birth of Dogmas): “The statement that there are three persons in the one God . . . cannot be read anywhere in the New Testament.”

The dogma that Constantine championed was intended to put an end to dissensions within the fourth-century Church. However, it actually raised another issue: Was Mary, the woman who bore Jesus, “the Mother of God”?

Compare these Bible verses: Matthew 26:39; John 14:28; 1 Corinthians 15:27, 28; Colossians 1:15, 16

FACT:
The Trinitarian dogma is a late fourth-century invention

Answer 3

Trinity is three. I dont do religious people but. its the holy ghost that makes everything real . Its all energy. Because men had the strength they created the name God for a controlling factor. A nd for some reason people are having a hard time letting go of the lie.

Answer 4

Trinity in the Old Testament just to prove to you that its not made up.

Now the context of the verse "Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God is one (echad) Lord." (Deuteronomy 6:4) This is to show the Hebrews that we don't have gods but rather one God. The word used for 'ONE' in the Hebrew is 'Echad'. Which yes does mean one. However the same word 'echad' is used in Genesis 2:24 'That is why a man leaves his father and mother and is united to his wife, and they become one (echad) flesh.' So this verse is stating that two are one. And the same in Genesis 11:16 The LORD said, "If as one (echad) people speaking the same language they have begun to do this, then nothing they plan to do will be impossible for them.

So YES echad in Hebew does mean one but it can be used in compound unity such as 'One team' 'One Nation' 'One community'. And does not limit God to literally being one.

The trinity explained.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bUy-H5MmeGU

Trinity in the Old Testament
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BNt5NKSse0Y

Answer 5

Maybe Lenin: See Harper & Row 1964; "THE ATHENIAN CREED"

St. Ambrose has been proposed as a possible based on a 5th Century Christian Creed using many anchent words having similar phrasing. As have others.

IT IS LIKELY THAT LENIN FUSED IN HIS MIND THE DIFFERENT references available to him at the time & best guesses by scholars are that Lenin Probably was the author of what we call the "Athanasian Creed"
Go to Wikopedia & type in search term;
AUTHOR ATHANASIAN CREED. More references there than you would possibly have time to study but other Scholars & authors links seem to bring them back to an analysis of the 1964 Harper & Row Book, which is a study in itself.

Answer 6

Water can take the form of solid, liquid or gas but its components remain H2O. Jesus was made out of flesh and bones, and required basic necessities of life (food, shelter, etc).

If you create a computer, do you have to become that computer to understand what is good/bad for computers? I’m sure the creators of many Apple products didn’t become the product themselves before compiling a users guide/manual.

As humans, our logic is our yardstick to measure right from wrong. Using free will without logic defeats the purpose of free will. Thus if we choose to follow something we can’t prove is correct through logic then we are no better than animals who just follow without question. I feel that believing in the unknown and unseen is “Belief” whereas believing in the illogical is “Cult”.

If all humans don’t completely understand the concept of trinity then either Christianity is not the true religion or trinity doesn’t belong in the Bible. If some highly educated scholar preaches trinity and if he has a large following then it doesn’t mean that trinity must be true. I’m going to be judged on my own understanding; there shouldn’t be any pre-requisites in religion if that religion is for people of all types.

Here are some references from the Bible which point out that God, Jesus and Holy Spirit/Ghost can’t be ONE.

John Chapter 14 Verse 28
Ye have heard how I said unto you, I go away, and come again unto you. If ye loved me, ye would rejoice, because I said, I go unto the Father: for my Father is greater than I.

John Chapter 10 Verse 29
My Father, which gave them me, is greater than all; and no man is able to pluck them out of my Father's hand.

John Chapter 5 Verse 30
I can of mine own self do nothing: as I hear, I judge: and my judgment is just; because I seek not mine own will, but the will of the Father which hath sent me.

Matthew Chapter 12 Verse 28
But if I cast out devils by the Spirit of God, then the kingdom of God is come unto you.

Luke Chapter 11 Verse 20
But if I with the finger of God cast out devils, no doubt the kingdom of God is come upon you.

Answer 7

properly, so which you like Arianism. it fairly is okay yet you have got purely given a URL to the diatribe published. as a rely of actuality that the Trinity exchange into the Christian theory from the beginning up and the Council of Nicaea shown the coaching in no doubtful words in step with the Arian heresy and likewise some Gnostic coaching. definitely the Jew's have yet another information as do the Muslims however the character of the God that Muslims worship is very distinctive than the Judeo-Christian God. of direction, the Jews deny the deity of Jesus as do the Arians and the Gnostics yet additionally they deny the Christian information of Christ. as a rely of actuality that for Christians there is not any different information that is reconciled with the entire physique of Scriptures and that's why the Arians and the Muslims oppose the doctrine as they suspect their doctrines in step with human reason and carnal information the place Christians base their theory on the coaching of Jesus and the apostles as contained in Scriptures and Sacred custom. such coaching compells genuine Christians to settle for the miracles and mysteries of God on faith. To a Christian all of us be attentive to by using Jesus' words that faith is greater significant than information because of the fact the discourse between St. Thomas and Jesus demonstrate. Jesus is the God of the apostles and the God of all Christians understood as a Trinity. Of this there could be little question lest we deny our Lord and Savior on a sparkling direction to destruction. might the LOrd have mercy on people who have not got self belief that Jesus is our Lord and our God. In Christ Fr. Joseph

Answer 8

Not sure if it was invented although someone did come up with the words to describe it or label the meaning:

The Father, Son and Holy Ghost OR

Mind, Body and Spirit

May the Sacred three be over thee

Answer 9

Saint Augustine was the one that came up the with trinity between 354-430 A.D.

Answer 10

So as you see from your "Best Answer" it developed from the 3rd century and Constantine the first pope.
NOT from the Bible. And you are correct in your question it was invented.

If it were the Main teaching of Christianity as some declare, that it would be plain and straight forward in the scriptures? As are other things like Gods Kingdom, Jesus came to earth to declare Gods kingdom and for a ransom for our sins?
Why Does the Bible state several times "God the Father" but not once God the Son or God the Holy Spirit?
1 Corinthians 11:3
Authorized (King James) Version (AKJV)
3 But I would have you know, that the head of every man is Christ; and the head of the woman is the man; and the head of Christ is God. (WAS HE HIS OWN HEAD?) note the subjection it says not just the father but GOD. Showing he is NOT God.
John 14:28
Ye have heard how I said unto you, I go away, and come again unto you. If ye loved me, ye would rejoice, because I said, I go unto the Father: for my Father is greater than I.

remember when the Devil tempted Jesus 3 times.. How would that work if he were Almighty God?
For a temptation to be such it would have to be something you could actually do, could GOD do an act of worship to Satan? or any of the 3 temptations and if he had submitted to one of them how would that work out?
Jesus himself very plainly stated
John 14:28
Ye have heard how I said unto you, I go away, and come again unto you. If ye loved me, ye would rejoice, because I said, I go unto the Father: for my Father is greater than I.

And there are soooo many more.
Just think for a moment, in any of the visions of Heaven mentioned in the Bible does it even ONCE depict a trinity? No in fact it only depicts The Father or the Son or both and NEVER as a trinity.