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Defining the godhead - an open discussion on Unitarianism, Binitarianism and Trinitarianism

Mr E said:
t's funny because it's true. I take exception when someone insists that:

Their view is the only view, or the only correct and acceptable view.
That someone else's view is inherently evil, because it's different, or God forbid- unorthodox.
That their view is the only proper Biblical understanding.
That God is going to punish people who stray away from the truth (according to their understanding of it).
That their doctrine can't or shouldn't be challenged.
That your God isn't the true God, because your view of Him is different than their ideas.
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The problem is, this is a legitimate perspective on what it means to be a Christian in numerous versions of Christianity. If my understanding of the Bible and Christianity is correct - and my pastor and the Holy Spirit tell me it is - then ipso facto yours is wrong at best and demonic at worst.

One of the most common complaints of nonbelievers is that they wish Christians would just shut up and stop trying to promote their religion; they fail to grasp that proselytizing in fulfillment of the Great Commission is the very essence of being a Christian for many believers. The nonbelievers don't understand that the Christians aren't just being nuisances - they are attempting to live their religion as they understand it.

I don't believe there is any answer to this perspective that my Christianity is the only real Christianity. You or I may have a more flexible perspective, but many (surely most) Christians don't. To call it intolerance seems to me much the same thing as when the woke community accuses Christians of being "intolerant" toward the LGBTQ community: What appears to be intolerance from the woke perspective is simply part and parcel of what it means to be a Christian for many believers, and the supposed "intolerance" is actually a species of love in the minds of these believers (while the woke perspective itself seems intolerant to the Christians).

It all depends on whose ox is being gored, as the saying goes. I think we just have to live with it. The fact that Denominations X, Y and Z think I'm no Christian at all and am destined for a fiery hell is water off a duck's back to me.

Mr E said:
The topic is still there and open.... that doesn't seem to be the offending post.
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And so are the posts that got me banned, as are the posts of APAK's that were in clear violation and that I complained about. I believe the moderation there is pretty much nonexistent. With @SteVen and I, I assume someone just decided "Eh, more trouble than they're worth," banned us with no more thought than that, and went back to watching "Days of Our Lives."
 
O'Darby III said:
The term "unitarian" has too much baggage for me to use it, but my basic concept is that - one God, period. "The singular and unique creator of the universe," as the Wikipedia article on Unitarianism states.
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The deity of Christ and the person of the Holy Spirit?

'
 
SteVen said:
The deity of Christ and the person of the Holy Spirit?

'
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Jesus may have been "divine" in the same way that the son of a king is "royal," but I don't think he was God any more than the son of a king is the king. I don't see the Holy Spirit as a separate being apart from the one God.

The OT personifies aspects of God as the Word and Wisdom and the Angel of the Lord and that sort of thing, and most of the supposed heresies had some notion of the one true God manifesting through emanations and whatnot, so my thinking may allow for something along those lines - one God who can manifest as he/she/it wishes.

As my one blog entry at CB explained, I really lean toward Idealism - all of reality being a construct of a single Master Consciousness we call God. Whoever and whatever Jesus was, he like everything else would have been a construct of the Master Consciousness. Far from being whacked-out speculation, Idealism actually has a great deal of scientific support.
 
O'Darby III said:
As my one blog entry at CB explained, I really lean toward Idealism - all of reality being a construct of a single Master Consciousness we call God. Whoever and whatever Jesus was, he like everything else would have been a construct of the Master Consciousness. Far from being whacked-out speculation, Idealism actually has a great deal of scientific support.
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That's interesting. (reminds me of the Matrix)
It might explain some of the biblical passages where the "physical" and the "spiritual" intersect. (to use the biblical terms)
- Jesus' baptism
- The Stoning of Stephen
- The Transfiguration
- Jacob's Ladder
- Abraham's' visitors
- Lot's visitors
- The Burning Bush
- Moses on Mt. Sinai

And just our general inability to "see" the other realm.

I haven;t read the religious texts of other religions.
But I wonder if they have stories as well. ???

[
 
Wrangler said:
So, you do t know what to think of Deut 6:4 or Is 45:5.
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Judaism is the world's oldest monotheistic religion dating back to 2,100 BC. The belief is that the 'one God' revealed Himself to Abraham the founder of Judaism.

Question; what was the NAME of this 'one God' before Abraham?

So does the name of God determine who/what 'one God' is? Or does how the "one God" manifests Himself to people determine who what 'one name' He is using or called by?

EXO 6:2-3 And God/elohim spake unto Moses, and said unto him, I am the LORD/Jehovah:
3 And I appeared unto Abraham, unto Isaac, and unto Jacob, by the name of God Almighty/EL Shaddai, but by my name JEHOVAH was I not known to them.

So the name of the 'ONE GOD' which was manifested to Abraham, Issac, and OLD name of Jacob was EL SHADDAI.

But the name of the' ONE GOD'' manifested to NEW name of ISRAEL was JEHOVAH

So, Israel didn't have its beginning until 1,000 BC, coming out of Jacob who never knew the ONE GOD LORD/JEHOVAH.

DEU 6:4 Hear, O Israel/yisra/el: The LORD our God is one LORD:

So are you saying that the 'ONE GOD' only name is LORD/JEHOVAH?
While SHEMA scripture is plainly saying THE LORD IS ONE LORD???? And that ONE LORD is GOD ruling NAME for Israel

ISRAEL; Strong's 3478 Yisra'el: he will rule as God; Jisrael, a symbolical name of Jacob; also (typically) of his posterity

I have to admit I don't know why you think it says what you believe. Let me tell you what I believe it says;

God puts a different name on the hat he is wearing depending on whom He is manifesting Himself to on earth.

And what NAME is the ONE GOD manifesting His ONE LORDship through for the last 2,000 years? Why even doubting Thomas understood that.

JOH 20:28 And Thomas answered and said unto him, My Lord and my God.

And he answered as a "Jew after the flesh" but more importantly "a Jew after the spirit" of Christ in him.

I don't care if you believe what I believe, I just hope you can see why I believe what I believe...scripturally.

I'm stopping here and will deal with your Isa. 45:5 next.
 
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Hillsage said:
EXO 6:2-3 And God/elohim spake unto Moses, and said unto him, I am the LORD/Jehovah:
3 And I appeared unto Abraham, unto Isaac, and unto Jacob, by the name of God Almighty/EL Shaddai, but by my name JEHOVAH was I not known to them.

So the name of the 'ONE GOD' which was manifested to Abraham, Issac, and OLD name of Jacob was EL SHADDAI.
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That's not right. Appearing as Almighty God is not his name. His name is YHWH. Consider a clearer translation:

2 God spoke to Moses and said to him, “I am Yahweh. 3 And I appeared to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, as El Shaddai,a but by my name Yahweh I was not known to them.
 
Here is a slightly tongue-in-cheek version of Exodus 3:13-14:

But Moses said to God, ‘If I come to the Israelites and say to them, “The God of your ancestors has sent me to you,” and they ask me, “What is his name?” what shall I say to them?’

God said to Moses, ‘I AM WHO I AM – and just exactly Who that is is none of your business! You humans use proper names because there are many of you, and it’s how you distinguish yourselves one from another. But there is only one God – ME! So why on earth (or in heaven, for that matter) would I need a proper name?’

Moses replied, ‘Point taken. But I still have to tell them something.’

God replied, ‘Just say “I AM has sent me to you.” I’ll take it from there.’
 
Wrangler said:
That's not right. Appearing as Almighty God is not his name. His name is YHWH. Consider a clearer translation:

2 God spoke to Moses and said to him, “I am Yahweh. 3 And I appeared to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, as El Shaddai,a but by my name Yahweh I was not known to them.
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The word for GOD in Hebrew is the word elohim or 'elohiym (ʼĕlôhîym) is a grammatically plural noun for "gods" or "deities" or various other words in Biblical Hebrew. In Hebrew, the ending -im normally indicates a masculine plural.
So who is the "US" and "OUR" in this verse below?

GEN 1:26* Then God (GODS) said, "Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness;

I was taught it was considered as "communion within the GODHEAD". And it was singular and not GODHEADS.
Does your version of the bible think the elohim GODS needed help from in creation?
What translation do you use?
 
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