Christians Are Not Monotheists - Essay Example

Running Header: Christians are not monotheists. They believe in three Gods. How would the Catholic theological tradition respond to this? Student’s Name: Instructor’s Name: Course Name & Code: Date of Submission: Introduction God is viewed as a mysterious and beyond human understanding and this is only talked when referring to analogy. D.A Jones refers to God as mysterious and fearful. He also shows that God is transcendent which means that God is beyond reality and therefore is supernatural. Monotheism is the belief in one single God where theism means the doctrine of believing in the existence of God. Delmonico (2004) describes that Christians’ believe that there is only one God as well as other religions such as Islam, Samaritanism, Judaism and Druzism. These religions therefore profess of the existence of one deity and are known as monotheistic religions. They however include plural concept of divine being for example Christianity believe in God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit. The above study develops the basic beliefs, methods, vocabulary as well as discourse used by Christians in theology. It also shows the development of Christianity, the ritual practices and its relevance in the Catholic Church in the contemporary world. Various Christian churches teach that God is a mystery which means that God is a being that should be made known through special revelation and not in general. In the earlier Christianity, there was debate over the nature of God. Some argued that God is a holy being while other revealed God as an Arian beginning of God. Dever (2003) shows the first Christianity council formed was in Nicaea which was located in Bithnia currently known as Turkey. This council was started by Roman Emperor Constantine and was the first in 325. The second one was the council of bishops which was the most significant as it united Christians and it was then called Nicene Creed. The creation of the creed later brought about statements of belief and principle of doctrine of orthodoxy. This means the purpose being of being capable to define the unity of beliefs found within the State church of the Roman Empire and being able to reduce unorthodox thoughts. The other purpose of the Christian council formed included resolution of disagreements among the Church of Alexandria which showed the nature of Jesus. The church argued whether Jesus was in relation to Father and whether it was the same as God the Father. Hans (1998) shows the Christian orthodox traditions which include Roman Catholic, Protestant, Evangelical and Eastern orthodox consider their God as a triune creature therefore referred as Trinity. This trinity comprise of God in three persons who include God the Father, God the Son and finally God the Holy Spirit. These three persons however are describes as being one substance and therefore monotheism belief is given to Christians. It is however asserted that God’s nature is infinite and that his being is beyond description. This therefore shows that it is not possible to refer to God as person but should be expressed as an idea (Whitelam, 1997). In normal speaking God may be referred as a supernatural, rational and moral man who is self conscious of his identity among the many changes. In real life experience shows that a person has a distinct personal essence where human nature is individualized though in God there is only one and not three. Whitelam (1997) shows Christianity is therefore criticised that as a result of the acceptance of the Triune concept of divinity, it is also a form of Tritheism and Polytheism. This concept was brought about by the Alexandrian Church which showed that since Jesus appeared later in the Bible, he is therefore distinct from his Father, God. Christians however declares that monotheism is their major key to their faith according to the Nicene Creed which shows Christianity as a Trinity which states that Christians believe in one God. There are however a group of Christians who do not believe in the theology of Trinitarian for example the Jehovah Witnesses, the Unitarians, Socinians and many others. These Christians fail to teach the doctrine of trinity and also reject the creedal structure of the Holy Trinity. These Christians show that there are three different individuals in one being though they belief in only one God. They show that this one God is a spirit that is visible many distinct ways which includes being the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. The earlier Christian tradition used Deism as a philosophy of religion. This name suggests and assumes that there is God in the modern world but he does not get involved in human matters. Unitarianism on the other hand is used in Christian Trinity and it assumes that Jesus is the human messiah. According to RevLady (2009) it is stated that Christians are not monotheists until the time they are born a new, given new mind, heart and vision as well as the will to seek first the Kingdom of God. This shows that in practice Christians are polytheists but in mind they are monotheists. This is because much of the Christian service is divided among many gods for example most Christians would give much respect to the government or family member than they would do to God. Nationalism has therefore taken the place for one nation under one God. National sovereignty has become a dangerous idol especially in the modern world which is faced by global problems. As Martin Luther King Jr. always criticized nationalism stated that it is not possible for one to serve two gods which include the false god of nationalism and the God of Christianity (RevLady, 2009). Christians and Muslims are referred as the two strongest monotheistic faiths and the two are influential factors in the stability of the world. The two faiths believe in loving God with all your might and loving neighbours as we love ourselves. The mother of Christianity which is Judaism does not clearly show Christianity as monotheism which was started in Israel to Babylon. Scholars who have studied Judaism states that after the separation of Babylon, some Hebrews returned home and their beliefs were different. Theologians have also speculated that believing in Satan was a theodicy concept which was facilitated by the post-exilic period. Theodicy shows the attempt to answer the problem of evil spirit. The concept of evil was intensified by the Jews who showed the attributes of God as good and evil. Dever (2003) puts it that they also supported Yahweh which showed a strong monotheism though they always wondered why God did evil things as shown in Isaiah 45: 6-7. According to Don (2010) this shows in the past, christens in Israel used dual agents to change the Jewish monotheism. One agent included Hellenistic influence and the other was the Zoroastrianism and other competing deities. Apart from the Jews seeing the importance of Satan, there is also the importance of angels in Judaism. The dilemma in theodicy theory affects monotheism in Christianity. Marcionism revealed in the first and the second century show the God of the New Testament being superior that that of the Old Testament. The dualistic philosophy that drives the world in good and evil is the Manichaeanism. It shows the principles of being good and evil. Catharism is the last evidence and a dualistic idea supporting God of good and the God of evil. In the modern Christianity, Satan functions in creating Orthodox dualism. This is evident where most Christians belief about Satan. One is where modern Christians view Satan as soft where they belief in him but can not see him affecting their lives. These kinds of Christians are those who tend to attribute both god and bad with God. They both praise him for good things and blame him when something bad occurs (Delmonico, 2004).  The dualistic idea is the other belief that reveals itself in the modern Christianity. This is where Christians have a strong idea of Satan existence as are able to see him being involved into their lives. These Christians praise God for the good and blame Satan for the bad deeds. Don (2010) argues that though Christianity regularly shows full belief in monotheism, the idea of dualism that strikes them is heavily condemned. This therefore shows that there is still existence of theodicy though it has changed focus and appearance. This is because today’s Christianity and others believe in theodicy and this therefore doubts whether Christians are true monotheists. It is also true that the problem of good and evil exists in the modern lives of Christians and other religious people including Catholics. RevLady (2009) explains that Christians are therefore not in the danger of losing their monotheists through the introduction of challenging concepts such as dualism questioning the beginning of goodness are not agreed on internally for example involving the mental, social and spiritual being. Conclusion Though the concept of Trinity is complex in both the traditional and modern Christianity, there is the belief that Christianity is complete monotheists despite the existence of dualism. This is because monotheists are those who believe in only one God for example Christians. They believe there is one God but the God manifests himself in three forms which include God the Son, God the Father and God the Holy Spirit. These three are therefore not three Gods but three forms of one God who is the Messiah. The idea of dualism is also not perfectly balanced as it does not show God being equal to Satan. This is because Satan is imagined as having lesser power than God as God is visualized to be all powerful, all knowing and compassionate. References Delmonico, N. (2004). "The history of Indic Monotheism and modern Chaitanya Vaishnavism". The Hare Krishna Movement: the Postcharismatic Fate of a Religious Transplant.  Dever, G. (2003). Who were the Early Israelites? Eerdmans Publishing Co., Grand Rapids, MI. Don, R. (2010). Are Christians today really Monotheists? (954) viewed 28 September 2011, Hans, K.  (1998). The concept of Monotheism in Islam and Christianity. Vienna: Braumüller. RevLady. (2009). We are not Monotheists yet, viewed 28 September 2011, Whitelam, K. (1997). The Invention of Ancient Israel, Routledge, New York. Read More

Hans (1998) shows the Christian orthodox traditions which include Roman Catholic, Protestant, Evangelical and Eastern orthodox consider their God as a triune creature therefore referred as Trinity. This trinity comprise of God in three persons who include God the Father, God the Son and finally God the Holy Spirit. These three persons however are describes as being one substance and therefore monotheism belief is given to Christians. It is however asserted that God’s nature is infinite and that his being is beyond description.

This therefore shows that it is not possible to refer to God as person but should be expressed as an idea (Whitelam, 1997). In normal speaking God may be referred as a supernatural, rational and moral man who is self conscious of his identity among the many changes. In real life experience shows that a person has a distinct personal essence where human nature is individualized though in God there is only one and not three. Whitelam (1997) shows Christianity is therefore criticised that as a result of the acceptance of the Triune concept of divinity, it is also a form of Tritheism and Polytheism.

This concept was brought about by the Alexandrian Church which showed that since Jesus appeared later in the Bible, he is therefore distinct from his Father, God. Christians however declares that monotheism is their major key to their faith according to the Nicene Creed which shows Christianity as a Trinity which states that Christians believe in one God. There are however a group of Christians who do not believe in the theology of Trinitarian for example the Jehovah Witnesses, the Unitarians, Socinians and many others.

These Christians fail to teach the doctrine of trinity and also reject the creedal structure of the Holy Trinity. These Christians show that there are three different individuals in one being though they belief in only one God. They show that this one God is a spirit that is visible many distinct ways which includes being the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. The earlier Christian tradition used Deism as a philosophy of religion. This name suggests and assumes that there is God in the modern world but he does not get involved in human matters.

Unitarianism on the other hand is used in Christian Trinity and it assumes that Jesus is the human messiah. According to RevLady (2009) it is stated that Christians are not monotheists until the time they are born a new, given new mind, heart and vision as well as the will to seek first the Kingdom of God. This shows that in practice Christians are polytheists but in mind they are monotheists. This is because much of the Christian service is divided among many gods for example most Christians would give much respect to the government or family member than they would do to God.

Nationalism has therefore taken the place for one nation under one God. National sovereignty has become a dangerous idol especially in the modern world which is faced by global problems. As Martin Luther King Jr. always criticized nationalism stated that it is not possible for one to serve two gods which include the false god of nationalism and the God of Christianity (RevLady, 2009). Christians and Muslims are referred as the two strongest monotheistic faiths and the two are influential factors in the stability of the world.

The two faiths believe in loving God with all your might and loving neighbours as we love ourselves. The mother of Christianity which is Judaism does not clearly show Christianity as monotheism which was started in Israel to Babylon. Scholars who have studied Judaism states that after the separation of Babylon, some Hebrews returned home and their beliefs were different. Theologians have also speculated that believing in Satan was a theodicy concept which was facilitated by the post-exilic period.

Theodicy shows the attempt to answer the problem of evil spirit. The concept of evil was intensified by the Jews who showed the attributes of God as good and evil.

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