In the course of growing as a Christian and as an intellectual it is absolutely necessary to challenge the Biblicality of whatever doctrines are put forth by the majority of Christians. Understanding the necessity of this for Christian growth, I want to thoroughly examine the claims of Trinitarianism and demonstrate that it is a deficient ideology. Trinitarianism is the belief in the Christian Trinity, which is itself the belief that the Christian God consists of three persons who are distinct from each other yet each the same divine being. Trinitarians reject all charges of polytheism (belief in multiple deities) and might claim that they embrace a mystery that is not comprehensible by reason and yet does not violate reason. But . . . as anyone with a very minor grasp on logic and mathematics knows, three does not equal one and different beings cannot be identical to each other. And I call bullshit!
Why is Biblically proving or disproving Trinitarianism a big deal? Well, as I have told people in person, belief in the Trinity actually impacts very little of the lives of most Trinitarians. The very esoteric, illogical, abstract nature of the Trinity makes it very difficult to actually live, pray, and act differently in one's everyday life because of belief in the Trinity. The importance of examining the concept of Trinitarianism has nothing to do with some resulting transformation of one's spirituality; the importance has to do with the fact that if the Trinity is logically impossible and if the Bible teaches the Trinity, then at least the parts of the Bible speaking of the Trinity are objectively false and cannot be true. The very credibility and veracity of Christianity are at stake!
Lest I get accused of heresy over my opposition to Trinitarianism, let me explain what heresy actually is. Heresy is a claim about God's nature that contradicts his actual nature; thus, in the Christian sense heresy is something that contradicts what the Bible teaches about God's character or nature [1]. I cannot know God's moral character, will, or much of his nature at all (beyond what logic and philosophical metaphysics can prove) unless God reveals those things to me. All the cries of pastors and lay Christians alike do not and cannot make something heresy. Even if it was impossible to logically and Biblically disprove Trinitarianism (and it is certainly possible!), unless Trinitarians could prove their position from the Bible they would have no basis to call me or any other non-Trinitarian a heretic.
Many beliefs accepted by Christians are in fact heretical. It is heresy to say that moral obligations regarding justice (criminal punishments) changed between the Old and New Testament, for morality is a reflection of God's nature and God's nature does not change (Malachi 3:6)--not to mention that Jesus did not come to abolish the Law and affirmed it repeatedly (Matthew 5:17-19). It is a heresy to represent God as a being who will torment all unsaved beings eternally when the Bible says the destination of the human unsaved is annihilation (Matthew 10:28, 2 Peter 2:6, Romans 6:23, Ezekiel 18:4)--not to mention that his own moral revelation in Mosaic Law contradicts the very idea of eternal conscious torment (Deuteronomy 25:3, Exodus 21:23-25). It is heresy to condemn the naked human body as sinful when it is the epitome of God's creation (Genesis 2:25), which he called good (Genesis 1:31) and which is not ever condemned in itself--not to mention that God, who cannot tempt people to sin (James 1:13), commanded the prophet Isaiah to go naked for three years (Isaiah 20:1-6). It is heresy to claim that God does not hate at least some sinners, as Scripture is clear that he does (Psalm 5:5-6, 11:5, Proverbs 3:32).
Although each of these things is a heresy in its own right, it is not in any way uncommon to find them preached in the name of Christian teachings. And yet they are false and destructive lies! As Jesus said, the truth will set us free (John 8:32). Only knowledge of truth can liberate humans from bondage to ignorance and error. The unfortunate truth is that many humans who read the Bible do not seem to start with no inherited assumptions about the text and then proceed to ascribe to the Bible only what the Bible teaches. This methodology is the only reliable way of investigating anything at all--no assumptions, just starting with foundational principles and working upward from there in accordance with reason.
Can Trinitarianism survive a confrontation with logic and Scripture? In the next parts in this series I will examine the laws of logic and Biblical passages relevant to this issue. For now, it is sufficient that I have defined heresy and shown that if Trinitarianism does not have airtight Biblical support, then even if it was true it would not have the status of some indisputable central doctrine of Christianity. Expect the follow ups soon!
[1]. https://thechristianrationalist.blogspot.com/2017/05/on-heresy.html
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