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ARTICULI FIDEI

Holy Father, keep through thine own name those whom thou hast given me, that
they may be one, as we are...That they all may be one; as thou, Father, art in
me, and I in thee, that they also may be one in us: that the world may believe
that thou hast sent me. - John 17:11b, 21


FRIDAY, JANUARY 12, 2024


ATHANAIUS: DID HE TEACH SABELLIANISM (I.E. MODALISM) ???



I have recently encountered the proposition that Athanasius of Alexandria (c.
296-373) was not a Trinitarian, but rather, that he was a Sabellian (i.e.
modalist).

The first instance of connecting Athanasius with Sabellianism that I came across
occurred back on 11-26-2023 via my reading of a post published by Andries van
Niekerk on his blog From Daniel to Revelation under the title, 'The Sabellians
of the Fourth Century'. Andries wrote:

Note that the West also vindicated Athanasius. His theology was similar to the
Sabellians...

And:

Another article provides further evidence of the Sabellian leaning of the
theologies of Alexander and Athanasius. For example, “Studer’s account here
follows the increasingly prominent scholarly position that Athanasius’ theology
offers a strongly unitarian Trinitarian theology whose account of personal
differentiation is underdeveloped.” (LA, 238) The question is, why did the West
vindicate these two Sabellians?

The 'Another article' mentioned (and linked to) by Andries was published under
the title, 'Was Athanasius a Sabellian?' From that post we read:

There is no real difference between the theology of Alexander and Athanasius and
the main Sabellians of their time; Eustathius and Marcellus. As ‘one hypostasis’
theologians, Alexander and Athanasius were part of a minority in this church.
And since both Sabellius’ theology and the term homoousios were already formally
rejected as heretical by the church during the preceding century, they followed
an already discredited theology.

The Western Council of Serdica in 343, where Athanasius played a dominant part,
is devastating evidence. It explicitly describes the Father, Son, and Holy
Spirit as one hypostasis and Athanasius approved and supported this creed.
People struggle with this conclusion is that it shows that Athanasius, who is
regarded as the hero of the Arian Controversy, was a Sabellian; not a
Trinitarian.

Before moving on to my second recent encounter with the notion that Athanasius
was a Sabellian, I would like to mention I have been following Andries blog for
over two years now. It began shortly after Andries posted a few comments back in
late November 2021 in an old thread here at AF [LINK]. (Interestingly enough,
earlier this week during some online research I discovered that Andries had also
published the material from the two above mentioned threads at the Christianity
Stack Exchange [LINK].)

With this background information in place, I suspect that folks reading this
post will be as surprised as I was that in a mere seven days after reading
Andries’ posts on Athanasius and Sabellianism, I began receiving emails from a
knowlegable member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints who has
embraced the proposition that Athanasius was a modalist/Sabellian. (My December
10, 2023 AF post  was inspired by our email exchanges.)

Prior to all this, I was involved in an email exchange—beginning on August
30th—with an advocate of neo-modalism who had questions concerning my AF post,
James White's (mis)use of Melito of Sardis as an early witness to the
incarnation of God (the Son) [December 5, 2011 - LINK].

There is one more connection that warrants mentioning: the LDS gent mentioned
above is a friend with Errol Amey. Errol has a keen interest in patristics, and
has contributed a number of informative comments in a few threads here at AF.
And so, we have four gents mentioned above, that have at least three interests
in common—patristics, theology, and challenging/respectful dialogue—who are in
one way or another linked to this current post.

It is now time to delve into why I maintain Athanasius was not a
Sabellian/modalist. One of Andries’ arguments—which initially seems quite strong
and compelling—is that,"Athanasius opposed the concept of 'three hypostases'"
and taught the "Father and Son are only one Hypostasis". (LINK)

Though Athanasius wrote in at least two extant documents that the Father and Son
are 'one hypostasis', he also acknowleged that they are 'three hypostases'. Note
the following:

And how do the impious men venture to speak folly, as they ought not, being men
and unable to find out how to describe even what is on the earth? But why do I
say 'what is on the earth?' Let them tell us their own nature, if they can
discover how to investigate their own nature? Rash they are indeed, and
self-willed, not trembling to form opinions of things which angels desire to
look into (i Pet. i. 12), who are so far above them, both in nature and in rank.
For what is nearer [God] than the Cherubim or the Seraphim? And yet they, not
even seeing Him, nor standing on their feet, nor even with bare, but as it were
with veiled faces, offer their praises, with untiring lips doing nought else but
glorify the divine and ineffable nature with the Trisagion. And nowhere has any
one of the divinely speaking prophets, men specially selected for such vision,
reported to us that in the first utterance of the word Holy the voice is raised
aloud, while in the second it is lower, but in the third, quite low,—and that
consequently the first utterance denotes lordship, the second subordination, and
the third marks a yet lower degree. But away with the folly of these haters of
God and senseless men. For the Triad [Τριὰς], praised, reverenced, and adored,
is one and indivisible and without degrees (ἀσχηματιστός). It is united without
confusion, just as the Monad also is distinguished without separation. For the
fact of those venerable living creatures (Isa. vi. ; Rev. iv. 8) offering their
praises three times, saying 'Holy, Holy, Holy,' proves that the Three
Subsistences [τρεῖς ὑποστάσεις] are perfect, just as in saying 'Lord,' they
declare the One Essence. They then that depreciate the Only-begotten Son of God
blaspheme God, defaming His perfection and accusing Him of imperfection, and
render themselves liable to the severest chastisement. For he that blasphemes
any one of the Subsistences [τῶν ὑποστάσεων] shall have remission neither in
this world nor in that which is to come. But God is able to open the eyes of
their heart to contemplate the Sun of Righteousness, in order that coming to
know Him whom they formerly set at nought, they may with unswerving piety of
mind together with us glorify Him, because to Him belongs the kingdom, even to
the Father Son and Holy Spirit, now and for ever. Amen. [Athanasius, In Illud
‘Omnia’, Mihi Tradita – On Luke x. 22 (Matt. Xi. 27) - NPNF 4.90]

And:

And prohibit even the reading or publication of the paper, much talked of by
some, as having been drawn up concerning the Faith at the synod of Sardica. For
the synod made no definition of the kind. For whereas some demanded, on the
ground that the Nicene synod was defective, the drafting of a creed, and in
their haste even attempted it, the holy synod assembled in Sardica was
indignant, and decreed that no statement of faith should be drafted, but that
they should be content with the Faith confessed by the fathers at Nicaea,
inasmuch as it lacked nothing but was full of piety, and that it was undesirable
for a second creed to be promulged, lest that drafted at Nicaea should be deemed
imperfect, and a pretext be given to those who were often wishing to draft and
define a creed. So that if a man propound the above or any other paper, stop
them, and persuade them rather to keep the peace. For in such men we perceive no
motive save only contentiousness. For as to those whom some were blaming for
speaking of three Subsistences [τρεῖς λέγοντας ὑποστάσεις], on the ground that
the phrase is unscriptural and therefore suspicious, we thought it right indeed
to require nothing beyond the confession of Nicaea, but on account of the
contention we made enquiry of them, whether they meant, like the Arian madmen,
subsistences [τριοουσίους] foreign and strange, and alien in essence [οὐσίας]
from one another, and that each Subsistence [ὑπόστασιν] was divided apart by
itself, as is the case with creatures in general and in particular with those
begotten of men, or like different substances, such as gold, silver, or brass
;—or whether, like other heretics, they meant three Beginnings and three Gods,
by speaking of three Subsistences [τρεῖς ὑποστάσεις λέγωσι].

They assured us in reply that they neither meant this nor had ever held it. But
upon our asking them 'what then do you mean by it, or why do you use such
expressions?' they replied. Because they believed in a Holy Trinity [ἁγίαν
Τριάδα], not a trinity [Τριάδα] in name only, but existing and subsisting in
truth, 'both a Father truly existing and subsisting, and a Son truly substantial
and subsisting, and a Holy Spirit subsisting and really existing do we
acknowledge,' and that neither had they said there were three Gods or three
beginnings, nor would they at all tolerate such as said or held so, but that
they acknowledged a Holy Trinity [ἁγίαν μὲν Τριάδα] but One Godhead [μίαν δὲ
θεότητα], and one Beginning, and that the Son is coessential [ὁμοούσιον] with
the Father, as the fathers said; while the Holy Spirit is not a creature, nor
external, but proper to and inseparable from the Essence [τῆς οὐσίας] of the
Father and the Son. (Athanasius, Tomus ad Antiochenos - Tome to the People of
Antioch, Paragraph 5 - NPNF 4.484)

Having accepted then these men's interpretation and defence of their language,
we made enquiry of those blamed by them for speaking of One Subsistence, whether
they use the expression in the sense of Sabellius, to the negation of the Son
and the Holy Spirit, or as though the Son were non-substantial, or the Holy
Spirit impersonal. But they in their turn assured us that they neither meant
this nor had ever held it, but 'we use the word Subsistence thinking it the same
thing to say Subsistence or Essence [ὑπόστασιν μὲν λέγομεν ἡγούμενοι ταὐτὸν
εἶναι εἰπεῖν ὑπόστασιν καὶ οὐσίαν];' 'But we hold that there is One, because the
Son is of the Essence of the Father [ἐκ τῆς οὐσίας], and because of the identity
of nature [τὴν ταυτότητα τῆς φύσεως]. For we believe that there is one Godhead
[μίαν γὰρ θεότητα], and that it has one nature [φύσιν],  and not that there is
one nature of the Father, from which that of the Son and of the Holy Spirit are
distinct.' Well, thereupon they who had been blamed for saying there were three
Subsistences [τρεῖς ὑποστάσεις] agreed with the others, while those who had
spoken of One Essence, also confessed the doctrine of the former as interpreted
by them. And by both sides Arius was anathematised as an adversary of Christ,
and Sabellius, and Paul of Samosata, as impious men, and Valentinus and
Basilides as aliens from the truth, and Manichasus as an inventor of mischief.
And all, by God's grace, and after the above explanations, agree together that
the faith confessed by the fathers at Nicaea is better than the said phrases,
and that for the future they would prefer to be content to use its language.
(Athanasius, Tomus ad Antiochenos - Tome to the People of Antioch, Paragraph 6 -
NPNF 4.484, 485)

Clearly, Athanasius used the term 'hypostasis/hypostases' in two, distinct
senses. In one sense, he equated 'hypostasis' with 'ousia' and 'theotēs', and in
a second sense, with the personal distinctions of the three members of the
Trinity. He he also made it quite clear that he separated himself from those
folk who embraced a Sabellian sense of the term. With these facts in place, I
must conclude that Athanasius did not embrace Sabellianism.




Grace and peace,

David


Posted by David Waltz at 11:12 AM 15 comments
Labels: Athanasius, Modalistic Monarchianism, Trinity



SUNDAY, DECEMBER 10, 2023


HOMOOUSIOS, MONOOUSIOS AND TAUTOOUSIOS



This last week, I have been dialoguing with a gent via email on the topic
concerning the development of the doctrine of the Trinity. Folk familiar with
this blog are aware that I prefer to speak of differing Trinitarian concepts,
rather than ‘the doctrine of the Trinity’—but I digress…

Our dialogue has touched on the terms homoousios and hypostasis as used in the
original Nicene Creed (325), as well as the subsequent period of doctrinal
development up to the Council of Constantinople. Two previous threads published
here at AF, have been referenced during the discussion—The original Nicene Creed
and semantic confusion and Monoousios vs. Homoousios—which should be useful for
folk interested in our topic at hand.

Our ongoing dialogue has precipitated some renewed research on my part into the
issues being raised, and this last Friday (12-08-23) I discovered an informative
essay by Prof. John S. Romanides—The Christological Teaching of St. John of
Damascus—that is germane to the discussion. The following from the essay caught
my eye:

Differing terminology pointing to one single concrete revelatory reality was
seen clearly by St. Athanasius in regard to those who rejected the homoousios
but accepted that the Logos is of an ousia similar in everything to that of the
Father and from the ousia of the Father. St. Athanasius claims that this is
exactly what he himself means by homoousios.

The “those" being refernced by Fr. Romanides are those bishops who preferred the
term homoiousios, when speaking of the relationship between the Son of God and
God the Father. Concerning these folk, Athanasius wrote:

...those, however, who accept everything else that was defined at Nicaea, and
doubt only about the Coessential, must not be treated as enemies ; nor do we
here attack them as Ariomaniacs, nor as opponents of the Fathers, but we discuss
the matter with them as brothers with brothers, who mean what we mean, and
dispute only about the word. For, confessing that the Son is from the essence of
the Father, and not from other subsistence, and that He is not a creature nor
work, but His genuine and natural offspring, and that He is eternally with the
Father as being His Word and Wisdom, they are not far from accepting even the
phrase, 'Coessential.' [On the Councils of Ariminum and Seleucia (de Synodis) -
NPNF series 2, 4.472.]

In his essay, Fr. Romanides points out that differing terminology in certain
contexts meant the same thing—i.e. homoousios and homoiousios—whilst the same
term could mean something different. The term homoousios was a prime example;
some folk understood the term in a strict numerical sense (one essence), whilst
others in a generic sense (same essence)—see the Monoousios vs.
Homoousios thread. Concerning this issue, Fr. Romanides mentions a term—
tautoousios —that I did not recall reading about in my previous studies; note
the following:

...the Orthodox themselves were split over the use of the term "homoousios"
because many were afraid that it denoted a Sabellian confusion of the Hypostases
and could be taken to mean "tautoousios." This was finally precluded by the
general acceptance of the Cappadocian distinction between Hypostases and ousia,
which Augustine and the Franks who followed him never understood.

Immediately after coming across the term, I pulled Lampe’s exhaustive tome, A
Patristic Greek Lexicon, off of the shelf and read:

*tautoousios (*tautousios), of the same substance, identical in essence; Trin. ;
1. dist. from homoousios and rejected by orthodox...Epiph.Aaer.65.8 (p.11, 10;
M.42.25A); [p.1377]

The following is Frank Williams' English translation of the Epiph.Aaer.65.8 
reference listed by Lampe:

8,1 And so there are not two Gods, because there are not two Fathers. And the
subsistence of the Word is not eliminated, since there is not one [mere]
combination of the Son’s Godhead with the Father. For the Son is not of an
essence different [ἑτεροούσιος] from the Father, but of the same essence
[ὁμοούσιος] as the Father. He cannot be of an essence different [ἑτεροούσιος]
from his Begetter’s or of the identical essence [ταυτοούσιος]; he is of the same
essence [ὁμοούσιος] as the Father. (Frank Williams, The Panarion of Epiphanius
of Salamis, 1994, p. 217)

Epiphanius is making clear distinctions between those who teach that the Son is
of a ‘different essence’ [ἑτεροούσιος] than the Father (i.e. Arians) and those
who believe he is of an ‘identical essence’ [ταυτοούσιος] (i.e.
Sabellians/modalists) with the Father, with the ‘orthodox’ who maintain that he
is of the ‘same essence’ [ὁμοούσιος] as the Father.

Athanasius makes a similar distinction between monoousios and homoousios,
referencing the Sabellians. The following is from the Monoousios vs.
Homoousios thread:

>>In the selections provided above, our esteemed authors identify four prominent
4th century Church Fathers who interpreted homoousios in the generic
sense—Eusebius of Caesarea, Basil of Caesarea, Gregory of Nyssa, and Gregory of
Nazianzus. I would now like to introduce a fifth Church Father from the 4th
century who affirmed the generic understanding, and also explicitly
differentiated between monoousios and homoousios—Athanasius. From his Expositio
Fidei we read:

For neither do we hold a Son-Father, as do the Sabellians, calling Him of one
but not of the same essence, and thus destroying the existence of the Son.
(Statement of Faith, 2.2 - A Select Library of Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers -
Second Series, Vol. 4.84)

The phrase, "calling Him of one but not of the same essence", is a non-literal
translation of the Greek, and a bit misleading. The Greek reads as follows:

λέγοντες μονοούσιον καὶ οὐχ ὁμοούσιον  (legontes monoousion kai ouch homoousion)

My translation: saying [he is of] one essence and not [of the] same essence

[Full Greek text of 2.2—οὔτε γὰρ υἱοπάτορα φρονοῦμεν ὡς οἱ Σαβέλλιοι λέγοντες
μονοούσιον καὶ οὐχ ὁμοούσιον καὶ ἐν τούτῳ ἀναιροῦντες τὸ εἶναι
υἱόν—Migne, PG 25.204.]

Athanasius identifies the strict numeric understanding of the relationship
between the Father and the Son with the Sabellians, contrasting the
term monoousion from that of homoousion to drive home his point.

This generic understanding found in Athanasius, Eusebius of Caesarea, Basil of
Caesarea, Gregory of Nyssa, and Gregory of Nazianzus (and other Church Fathers),
is the dominant understanding of many Eastern Orthodox theologians—theologians
who adamantly maintain that it is the only consistent understanding of the use
of homoousion in the Nicene Creed and Chalcedonian Definition.>>

Conclusion: in many doctrinal discussions, it is important to realize that
different terms can sometimes be used to mean the same thing, whilst the same
term can carry a different meaning for opposing sides when attempting to define
their respective positions.




Grace and peace,

David


Posted by David Waltz at 4:35 PM 0 comments
Labels: Athanasius, Epiphanius, Homoousios, Monoousios, Trinity



SUNDAY, OCTOBER 15, 2023


EUSEBIUS OF CAESAREA: HIS DOCTRINE OF GOD, CHRISTOLOGY, AND SUBORDINATIONISM



Last week, I started rereading Eusebius' Church History (volume one in the
second series of The Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers, edited by Schaff and Wace).
It had been a number of years ago since I began reading this book from the
beginning, and this reading is different than any previous one. In addition to
Arthur Cushman McGiffert’s NPNF English translation, I am also using Kirsopp
Lake's parallel Greek-English edition from the Loeb Classical Library—Volume
153, Eusebius Ecclesiastical History I (1926).

This new endeavor has become quite informative and revealing. I did not get very
far—the third chapter of book one—before realizing that during my past readings
of Eusebius' Church History I had failed to grasp the import of certain passages
concerning the relationship between God the Father and His only-begotten Son,
Jesus Christ that are contained in the second and third chapters of book one. By
comparing the English translations of these passages with the Greek, I began to
discern that my previous understanding of Eusebius’ doctrine of God and
Christology was not as fully formed as I had thought.

The English translation(s) passages concerning the doctrine of God and
Christology contained in chapters two and three of Eusebius' Ecclesiastical
History, brought back to mind the germane passages I had read in two of
Eusebius’ extensive apologetic works: Preparation for the Gospel and The Proof
of the Gospel. I pulled both books off of the shelf and started comparing the
relevant passages found in all three works with the Greek.

A number of very important themes have made an impression on me whilst engaged
in these current readings: first, the unique titles Eusebius reserved
exclusively for God the Father—e.g. “the one/only true God”, “the Supreme God”,
“the Almighty God”, “the Most High”, “the God of the Universe”, “the First”,
“the Unbegotten”. Second, the emphasis on the causality of the Son of God from
God the Father as a distinct, separate person. Third, the repeated related
references to the Son of God as being, in a very real sense, “second” to God the
Father—e.g. “second God”, “second Lord”, “second  light”, “the Second”, 
“secondary”. Fourth, two terms used to describe the causality of the Son from
the Father—begotten and created (and their cognates)—are synonyms for Eusebius.
Fifth, the concept that the Father “precedes” the Son.

[The following English excerpts are from Eusebius’ Church History (CH) [PDF],
trans. Arthur Cushman McGiffert’s; The Proof of the Gospel (Proof) [PDF], trans.
W. J. Ferrer; Preparation for the Gospel (Prep) [PDF], trans. Edwin Hamilton
Gifford. [Supplemental Greek texts will be from J. P. Migne’s Patrologiae Cursus
Completus, Series Graeca, Volumes 20, 21, and 22.] Elements from the five above
listed themes will be underlined for easier recognition. Bold emphasis has also
been added to some quotes that particularly stood out to me.]

 

QUOTES FROM EUSEBIUS

No language is sufficient to express the origin and the worth, the being and the
nature of Christ. Wherefore also the divine Spirit says in the prophecies, "Who
shall declare his generation ?" For none knoweth the Father except the Son,
neither can any one know the Son adequately except the Father alone who hath
begotten him. For who beside the Father could clearly understand the Light which
was before the world, the intellectual and essential Wisdom which existed before
the ages, the living Word which was in the beginning with the Father and which
was God, the first and only begotten of God which was before every creature and
creation visible and invisible, the commander-in-chief of the rational and
immortal host of heaven, the messenger of the great counsel, the executor of the
Father's unspoken will, the creator, with the Father, of all things, the second
cause of the universe after the Father, the true and only-begotten Son of God...
(CH, P. 82)

"The Lord created me [κύριος ἔκτισέν με] in the beginning of his ways, for his
works; before the world he established me, in the beginning, before he made the
earth, before he made the depths, before the mountains were settled, before all
hills he begat me [γεννᾷ με]. When he prepared the heavens I was present with
him, and when he established the fountains of the region under heaven I was with
him, disposing. I was the one in whom he delighted; daily I rejoiced before him
at all times when he was rejoicing at having completed the world." That the
divine Word, therefore, pre-existed, and appeared to some, if not to all, has
thus been briefly shown by us. (CH, P. 84)

Then, when the excess of wickedness had overwhelmed nearly all the race, like a
deep fit of drunkenness, beclouding and darkening the minds of men, the
first-born and first-created wisdom of God, the pre-existent Word himself [ἡ
πρωτόγονος καὶ πρωτόκτιστος τοῦ θεοῦ σοφία καὶ αὐτὸς ὁ προὼν λόγος], induced by
his exceeding love for man, appeared to his servants, now in the form of angels,
and again to one and another of those ancients who enjoyed the favor of God, in
his own person as the saving power of God, not otherwise, however, than in the
shape of man, because it was impossible to appear in any other way. (CH, P. 84)

Who would have believed common and uneducated men who told them they must
despise their fathers gods, condemn the folly of all who lived in the ages past,
and put their sole belief in them and the commands of the Crucified—because He
was the only-beloved and only-begotten Son of the One Supreme God? (Proof, p.
159)

And as the Father is One, it follows that there must be one Son and not many
sons, and that there can be only one perfect God begotten of God, and not
several. For in multiplicity will arise otherness and difference and the
introduction of the worse. And so it must be that the One God is the Father of
one perfect and only-begotten Son, and not of more Gods or sons. (Proof, p. 166)

But the Father precedes the Son, and has preceded Him in existence, inasmuch as
He alone is unbegotten. The One, perfect in Himself and first in order as
Father, and the cause of the Son's existence, receives nothing towards the
completeness of His Godhead from the Son: the Other, as a Son begotten of Him
that caused His being, came second to Him. Whose Son He is, receiving from the
Father both His Being, and the character of His Being. And, moreover, the ray
does not shine forth from the light by its deliberate choice, but because of
something which is an inseparable accident of its essence: but the Son is the
image of the Father by intention and deliberate choice. For God willed to beget
a Son, and established a second light, in all things made like unto Himself.
(Proof, pp. 166-167)

Then surely the All-Good, the King of kings, the Supreme, God Almighty, that the
men on earth might not be like brute beasts without rulers and guardians, set
over them the holy angels to be their leaders and governors like herdsmen and
shepherds, and set over all, and made the head of all His Only-begotten and
Firstborn Word. (Proof, 175)

In these words surely he names first the Most High God, the Supreme God of the
Universe, and then as Lord His Word, Whom we call Lord in the second degree
after the God of the Universe. And their import is that all the nations and the
sons of men, here called sons of Adam, were distributed among the invisible
guardians of the nations, that is the angels, by the decision of the Most High
God, and His secret counsel unknown to us. Whereas to One beyond comparison with
them, the Head and King of the Universe, I mean to Christ Himself, as being the
Only-begotten Son, was handed over that part of humanity denominated Jacob and
Israel, that is to say, the whole division which has vision and piety. (Proof,
176)

It is now time to see how the teaching of the Hebrews shews that the true Christ
of God possesses a divine nature higher than humanity. Hear, therefore, David
again, where he says that he knows an Eternal Priest of God, and calls  Him his
own Lord, and confesses that He shares the throne of God Most High in the 109th
Psalm [LXX], in which he says as follows—

"The Lord said unto my Lord, Sit thou on my right hand, till I make thine
enemies the footstool of thy feet. 2. The Lord shall send the rod of power for
thee out of Zion, I and thou shall rule in the midst of thine, enemies. 3. With
thee is dominion in the day of thy power, in the brightness of thy saints. I
begat thee from my womb before the Morning Star, 4. The Lord sware and will not
repent, Thou art a priest for ever, after the order of Melchizedek."

And note that David in this passage, being king of the whole Hebrew race, and in
addition to his kingdom adorned with the Holy Spirit, recognized that the Being
of Whom he speaks Who was revealed to him in the spirit, was so great and
surpassingly glorious, that he called Him his own Lord. For he said "The Lord
said to my Lord." Yea: for he knows Him as eternal High Priest, and Priest of
the Most High God, and throned beside Almighty God, and His Offspring. (Proof,
197)

"Thou, O God, hast loved righteousness and hated injustice; therefore God, even
Thy God, hath anointed thee," and established Thee as Christ above all. The
Hebrew shews it even more clearly, which Aquila most accurately translating has
rendered thus "Thy throne, God, is for ever and still, a sceptre of
righteousness is the sceptre of thy Kingdom. Thou hast loved justice and hated
impiety : wherefore God, thy Ciod, hath anointed thee with the oil of gladness
apart from thy fellows." Instead therefore of " God, thy God" the actual Hebrew
is, "O God, thy God." So that the whole verse runs : "Thou hast, O God, loved
justice and hated impiety": therefore in return, O God, the highest and greater
God, Who is also thy God"— so that the Anointer, being the Supreme God, is far
above the Anointed, He being God in a different sense. (Proof, 202)

But yet as Holy Scripture first says that He is the Firstborn of every creature,
speaking in His Person, "The Lord created me [κύριος ἔκτισέν με] as the
beginning of his ways," and then says that He is the Begotten of the Father in
the words: "Before all the hills he begets me [γεννᾷ με]"; here we, too, may
reasonably follow and confess that He is before all ages the Creative Word of
God, One with the Father, Only-begotten Son of the God of the Universe, and
Minister and Fellow-worker with the Father, in the calling into being and
constitution of the Universe. (Proof, 233)

Whereas the Word of God has Its own essence and existence in Itself and is not
identical with the Father in being Unbegotten, but was begotten of the Father as
His Only-begotten Son before all ages; while the fragrance being a kind of
physical effluence of that from which it comes, and not filling the air around
it by itself apart from its primary cause, is seen to be itself also a physical
thing. We will not, then, conceive thus about the theory of our Saviour's
coming-into-being. For neither was He brought into being from the Unbegotten
Being by way of any event, or by division, nor was He eternally coexistent with
the Father, since the One is Unbegotten and the other Begotten, and one is
Father and the other Son. And all would agree that a father must exist before
and precede his son. (Proof, 234)

The Lord upon thy right hand! The Psalmist here calls "Lord," our Lord and
Saviour, the Word of God, " firstborn of every creature," the Wisdom before the
ages, the Beginning of the Ways of God, the Firstborn and Only-begotten
Offspring of the Father, Him Who is honoured with the Name of Christ, teaching
that He both shares the seat and is the Son of the Almighty God and Universal
Lord, and the Eternal High Priest of the Father. First, then, understand that
here this Second Being, the Offspring of God, is addressed. And since prophecy
is believed by us to be spoken by the Spirit of God, see if it is not the case
that the Holy Spirit in the prophet names as His own Lord a Second Being after
the Lord of the Universe, for he says, "The Lord said to my Lord, Sit thou on my
right hand." The Hebrews named the First Person Lord, as being universally the
Lord of all, by the unspeakable Name expressed in the four letters. They did not
call the Second Person Lord in a like sense, but only used the word as a special
title. (Proof, 238)

According to this, then, the true and only God must be One, and alone owning the
Name in full right. While the Second, by sharing in the being of the True God,
is thought worthy to share His Name, not being God in Himself, nor existing
apart from the Father Who gives Him Divinity, not called God apart from the
Father, but altogether being, living and existing as God, through the presence
of the Father in Him, and one in being with the Father, and constituted God from
Him and through Him, and holding His being as well as His Divinity not from
Himself but from the Father. (Proof, p. 245)

And yet though the Word of God is Himself proclaimed divine by the word "Lord,"
He still calls One Higher and Greater His Father and Lord, using with beautiful
reverence the word Lord twice in speaking of Him, so as to differentiate His
title. For He says here, "The Lord, the Lord has sent me," as if the Almighty
God were in a special sense first and true Lord both of His Only- begotten Word
and of all begotten things after Him, in relation to which the Lord of God has
received dominion and power from the Father, as His true and Only-begotten Son,
and therefore Himself holds the title of Lord in a secondary sense. (Proof, p.
251)

Therefore He that said before, I am the Lord God of Abraham thy Father, and the
God of Isaac, to whom godly Jacob raises the pillar, was indeed God and Lord :
for we must believe that which He Himself says. Not of course the Almighty, but
the Second to Him, Who ministers for His Father among men, and brings His Lord.
Wherefore Jacob here calls Him an Angel: "The Angel of God said to me, speaking
in my sleep, 'I am the God who was seen by thee in this place.'" So the same
Being is clearly called the Angel of the Lord, and God and Lord in this place.
(Proof, pp. 254-255)

It was said to Moses, No one shall see My face and live. But here Jacob saw God
not indefinitely but face to face, And being preserved, not only in body but in
soul, he was thought worthy of the name of Israel, which is a name borne by
souls, if the name Israel is rightly interpreted "Seeing God." Yet he did not
see the Almighty God. For He is invisible, and unalterable, and the Highest of
all Being could not possibly change into man. But he saw Another, Whose name it
was not yet the time to reveal to curious Jacob. (Proof, p. 255)

I have already shewn Who it was that appeared to the fathers, when I shewed that
the angel of God was called God and Lord. It will naturally be asked how He that
is beyond the universe, Himself the only Almighty God, appeared to the fathers.
And the answer will be found if we realize the accuracy of Holy Scripture. For
the Septuagint rendering, "I was seen of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, being their
God." Aquila says, "And I was seen by Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob as a sufficient
God," clearly shewing that the Almighty God Himself, Who is One, was not seen in
His own Person ; and that He did not give answers to the fathers, as He did to
Moses by an angel, or a fire, or a bush, but "as a sufficient God" so that the
Father was seen by the fathers through the Son, according to His saying in the
Gospels, "He that hath seen me, hath seen the Father." For the knowledge of the
Father was revealed in Him and by Him. But in cases when He appeared to save
men, He was seen in the human form of the Son... (Proof, p. 258)

And I have already shewn that this was not the Almighty God, but another Being
Whom we name, as the Word of God, the Christ Who was seen for the sake of the
multitude of Moses and the people in a pillar of cloud, because it was not
possible for them to see Him like their fathers in human shape. (Proof, p. 259)

Notice the way in which the Lord Himself addressing the Father in these words as
"long-suffering and of tender mercy," calls Him also "true," agreeing with the
words: "That they may know thee the only true God," spoken in the Gospels by the
same Being, our Saviour. Yea, with exceeding reverence He calls the Father the
only true God, given meet honour to the Unbegotten Nature, of which Holy
Scripture teaches us He is Himself the Image and the Offspring. (Proof, p. 261)

The lord prays to another Lord, clearly His Father and the God of the Universe,
and says in the opening of His prayer, "O Lord, thou art my strength," and that
which follows. (Proof, p. 270)

But now that we have, by thirty prophetic quotations in all, learned that our
Lord and Saviour the Word of God, a Second God [δεύτερον θεὸν]after the Most
High and Supreme... (Proof, p. 271)

Next to the Being of the God of the universe, which is without beginning and
uncreate, incapable of mixture and beyond all conception, they introduce a
second Being and divine power, which subsisted as the first beginning of all
originated things and was originated from the first cause, calling it Word, and
'Wisdom, and Power of God.'

And the first to teach us this is Job, saying: 'But whence was wisdom found? And
what is the place of understanding? Man knoweth not the way thereof, nor yet was
it found among men, ... but we have heard the fame thereof. The Lord established
the way thereof, and He knoweth the place thereof.'

And David also somewhere in the Psalms, addressing Wisdom by another name, says:
'By the word of the LORD were the heavens established': for in this manner he
celebrated the Word of God the Organizer of all things. Moreover, his son
Solomon also speaks as follows in the person of Wisdom herself, saying: 'I
Wisdom made counsel my dwelling, and knowledge and understanding I called unto
me. By me kings reign, and rulers decree justice.'  And again:

'The LORD created me as the beginning of His ways unto His works [Κύριος ἔκτισέ
με ἀρχὴν ὁδῶν αὐτοῦ εἰς ἔργα αὐτοῦ], from everlasting He founded me, in the
beginning or ever He made the earth, and before the depths were made, . . .
before the mountains were settled, and before all hills He begat me [γεννᾷ με]; 
. . . when He was preparing the heaven I was beside Him; . . . and as He was
making safe the fountains beneath the heaven, . . . I was with Him arranging. I
it was in whom He daily delighted, and I was rejoicing before Him in every
season when He was rejoicing in having completed the habitable world.' (Prep,
pp. 320, 321.)

IN regard then to the First Cause of all things let this be our admitted form of
agreement. But now consider what is said concerning the Second Cause, whom the
Hebrew oracles teach to be the Word of God, and God of God, even as we
Christians also have ourselves been taught to speak of the Deity.

First then Moses expressly speaks of two divine Lords in the passage where he
says, 'Then the LORD rained from the LORD fire and brimstone upon the city of
the ungodly ': where he applied to both the like combination of Hebrew letters
in the usual way; and this combination is the mention of God expressed in the
four letters, which is with them unutterable.

In accordance with him David also, another Prophet as well as king of the
Hebrews, says, 'The LORD said unto my Lord, sit Thou on My right hand,' 
indicating the Most High God by the first LORD, and the second to Him by the
second title. For to what other is it right to suppose that the right hand of
the Unbegotten God is conceded, than to Him alone of whom we are speaking?

This is He whom the same prophet in other places more clearly distinguishes as
the Word of the Father, supposing Him whose deity we are considering to be the
Creator of the universe, in the passage where he says, 'By the Word of the LORD
were the heavens made firm.'

He introduces the same Person also as a Saviour of those who need His care,
saying, 'He sent His Word and healed them.'

And Solomon, David's son and successor, presenting the same thought by a
different name, instead of the 'Word' called Him Wisdom, making the following
statement as in her person:

'I Wisdom made prudence my dwelling, and called to my aid knowledge and
understanding.'  Then afterwards he adds, 'The LORD formed [i.e. created] me as
the beginning of His ways with a view to His works [Κύριος ἔκτισέ με ἀρχὴν ὁδῶν
αὐτοῦ εἰς ἔργα αὐτοῦ]: from everlasting He established me, in the beginning
before He made the earth, . . . before the mountains were settled, and before
all hills He begat me [γεννᾷ με]…When He was preparing the heaven, I was beside
Him."(Prep, pp. 531, 532.)

END OF EUSEBIUS QUOTES




Before ending, I would like to provide one more excerpt from Eusebius, which is
actually a quote from Clement of Alexandria who Eusebius quotes:

Now they were misled by what is said in Wisdom: "Yea, she pervadeth and
penetrateth all things by virtue of her purity": since they did not understand
that this is said of that wisdom which was the first-created of God.
(Preparation for the Gospel, trans. Gifford, 1903, pp. 722-23 – bold emphasis
mine)

The following is William Wilson’s English translation from Ante-Nicene Fathers,
Vol. 2, edited by Alexander Roberts, James Donaldson, and A. Cleveland Coxe:

They were misled by what is said in the book of Wisdom : "He pervades and passes
through all by reason of His purity;" since they did not understand that this
was said of Wisdom, which was the first of the creation of God. (The Stromata,
5.14; ANF 2.465 – bold emphasis mine)

The phrase “the first-created of God” (Gifford)/ “the creation of God” (Wilson)
is their respective translations of the following Greek: τῆς πρωτοκτίστου τῷ
θεῷ.

Interestingly enough, just a few pages earlier, Wilson translates prōtoktistos
(πρωτοκτίστος) as “First-born”:

The golden lamp conveys another enigma as a symbol of Christ, not in respect of
form alone, but in his casting light, "at sundry times and divers manners," on
those who believe on Him and hope, and who see by means of the ministry of the
First-born [τῶν πρωτοκτίστων]. (The Stromata, ANF 2.452)

It seems that Wilson is cognizant of the fact that the terms beget/begotten and
create/creation (and their cognates) in the pre-Nicene writers are in many
instances used as synonyms.

Shall end here for now, hoping to hear what others have to say about Eusebius’
reflections on the doctrine of God and Christology.




Grace and peace,

David


Posted by David Waltz at 3:05 PM 0 comments
Labels: Clement of Alexandria, Eusebius of Caesarea, Monarchy of God the Father,
Proverbs 8:22, Subordinationism



WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 6, 2023


THE TETRAGRAMMATON IN THE NEW TESTAMENT



Earlier today, I discovered that Volume 6 of the Anchor Bible Dictionary (1992)
is now online for reading at the Internet Archive [LINK].

There is an entry in this volume that I have wanted to read for a good number of
years now—Tetragrammation in the New Testament by George Howard. I have
encountered quotes from the entry over the years in a number of articles, but
until today, did not access to the full entry. I have reproduced the entire
entry below for those folk who may have interest in this topic.

====

TETRAGRAMMATON IN THE NEW TESTAMENT. There is some evidence that the
Tetragrammaton, the Divine Name, Yahweh, appeared in some or all of the OT
quotations in the NT when the NT documents were first penned. See also NAMES OF
GOD IN THE OT; YAHWEH (DEITY). The evidence for this is twofold.

A. Jewish Scribal Evidence

The extant pre-Christian copies of the Greek OT that include passages which in
Hebrew incorporate the Divine Name also preserve the Hebrew Divine Name in the
Greek text. These copies are (1) P. Faud 266 (=Rahifs 848), 50 B.C.E.,
containing the Tetragrammaton in Aramaic letters; (2) a fragmentary scroll of
the Twelve Prophets in Greek from Wâd Khabra (=W.Khabra XII Kaige), 50 B.C.E.–50
C.E., containing the Tetragrammaton in Paleo-Hebrew letters; and (3) 4QLXXLevb
(=Rahifs 802), 1st century B.C.E., containing the Tetragrammaton written in
Greek letters in the form of IAO. The well-known Jewish- Greek versions of the
OT that emerged in the 2d century C.E., i.e., those of Aquila, Theodotion, and
Symmachus, continued the Jewish practice of writing the Hebrew Tetragrammaton
into the Greek text. The evidence, therefore, suggests that the practice of
writing the Hebrew Divine Name into the text of the Greek OT continued
throughout the NT period. From this it may be concluded (1) that the NT writers
had access to copies of the Greek OT that contained the Hebrew Divine Name, and
(2) that the NT writers who quoted from the Greek OT had reason to preserve the
Tetragrammaton in their quotations.

B. Christian Scribal Evidence

By the time of the earliest extant Christian copies of the LXX (2d or early 3d
century C.E.), a clear break with the Jewish practice outlined above is to be
observed. The Christian copies of the Greek OT employ the words Kyrios (“Lord”)
and Theos (“God”) as substitutes or surrogates for the Hebrew Tetragrammaton.
The evidence suggests that this had become the practice of Christian scribes
perhaps as early as the beginning of the 2d century. Curiously, the surrogates
for the Tetragrammaton have been abbreviated by the writing of their first and
last letters only and are marked as abbreviations by a horizontal stroke above
the word. Thus, for example, the word for “Lord” is written KS* and for God
THS*. These two so-called nomina sacra, later to be joined by thirteen other
sacred words, appear also in the earliest copies of the NT, including its
quotations from the Greek OT. The practice, therefore, in very early times was
consistently followed throughout the Greek Bible.

A conjecture is that the forms KS and THS were first created by non-Jewish
Christian scribes who in their copying the LXX text found no traditional reason
to preserve the Tetragrammaton. In all probability it was problematic for
gentile scribes to write the Tetragrammaton since they did not know Hebrew. If
this is correct, the contracted surrogates KS and THS were perhaps considered
analogous to the vowelless Hebrew Divine Name, and were certainly much easier to
write.

Once the practice of writing the Tetragrammaton into copies of the Greek OT was
abandoned and replaced by the practice of writing KS and THS, a similar
development no doubt took place in regard to the quotations of the Greek OT
found in the NT. There too the Tetragrammaton was replaced by the surrogates
KS and THS. In the passing of time, the original significance of the surrogates
was lost to the gentile Church. Other contracted words which had no connection
with the Tetragrammaton were added to the list of nomina sacra, and eventually
even KS and THS came to be used in passages where the Tetragrammaton had never
stood.

It is possible that some confusion ensued from the abandonment of the
Tetragrammaton in the NT, although the significance of this confusion can only
be conjectured. In all probability it became difficult to know whether
KS referred to the Lord God or the Lord Jesus Christ. That this issue played a
role in the later Trinitarian debates, however, is unknown.

Bibliography

Barthélemy, D. 1953. Redécouverte d‘un chaînon manquant de l‘histoire de la
Septante. RB 60: 18–29.

———. 1963. Les devanciers d’Aquila: Première publication intégral du texte des
fragments du Dodécaprophéton. Leiden.

Dunand, F. 1966. Papyrus grec bibliques (Papyrus F. Inv. 266) Volumina de la
Genèse et du Deutéronome. Cairo.

Howard, G. 1971. The Oldest Greek Text of Deuteronomy. HUCA 42: 125–31.

———. 1977. The Tetragram and the New Testament. JBL 96: 63–83.

———. 1978. The Name of God in the New Testament. BAR 4: 12–14, 56.

———. 1987. The Gospel of Matthew according to a Primitive Hebrew Text. Macon,
GA.

Paap, A. H. R. E. 1959. Nomina Sacra in the Greek Papyri of the First Five
Centuries A.D. Leiden.

Pietersma, A. 1984. Kyrios or Tetragram: A Renewed Quest for the Original
Septuagint. Pp. 85–101 in De Septuaginta, ed. A.

Pietersma and C. Cox. Toronto.

Skehan, P. W. 1957. The Qumran Manuscripts and Textual Criticism. Pp. 148–60 in
Volume du Congrès, Strasbourg 1956.

Leiden.

———. 1980. The Divine Name at Qumran, in the Masada Scroll, and in the
Septuagint. BIOSCS 13: 14–44.

Traube, L. 1907. Nomina Sacra: Vesuch einer Geschichte der christlichen Kürzung.
Munich.

Waddell, W. G. 1944. The Tetragrammaton in the LXX. JTS 45: 158–61.

GEORGE HOWARD

[The Anchor Bible Dictionary: Volume 6, Si - Z, 1992, pp. 392, 393.]

====

George Howard’s related, and more detailed JBL article, “The Tetragram and the
New Testament”, is also available online [LINK].




Grace and peace,



David

*NOTE: In the original contribution, KS and THS (which replaced KURIOS and
THEOS, had an overline instead of an underline).


Posted by David Waltz at 7:12 PM 0 comments
Labels: Tetragrammaton



TUESDAY, AUGUST 15, 2023


IRENAEUS, BISHOP OF LUGDUNUM (LYON) – AN ENIGMATIC PASSAGE FROM HIS PROOF OF THE
APOSTOLIC PREACHING



Over this last weekend, I spent a number of hours comparing the four English
translations I have of Irenaeus’ Demonstration/Proof of the Apostolic Preaching.
One particular passage made an impression on me, that no previous reading had
done. The following are the four English translations of that passage [the bold
emphasis concerns the portion of passage that caught my eye]:



11. Now, by His hand He created man taking the purest and finest particles from
the earth, mixing a determined portion of His power with the dust. Moreover He
gave His image to the creature that even what is visible might have the divine
form, because the created man was placed upon the earth as one having the divine
image and that he might be living, he breathed in his face the breath of life
that, both by this breathing and by this creation, man might be like God.
(Bishop Karapet and S. G. Wilson, Patrologia Orientalis, vol. 12, 1907, p. 667 -
link to pdf)



11. But man He formed with His own hands, taking from the earth that which was,
purest and finest, and mingling in measure His own power with the earth. For He
traced His own form on the formation, that that which should be seen should be
of divine form : for (as) the image of God was man formed and set on the earth.
And that he might become living, He breathed on his face the breath of life ;
that both for the breath and for the formation man should be like unto God. (J.
Armitage Robinson, St. Irenaeus -  The Demonstration of the Apostolic Preaching,
1920, p. 80 - link to pdf)



11. But man He fashioned with His own hands, taking of the purest and finest of
earth, in measured wise mingling with the earth His own power; for He gave his
frame the outline of His own form, that the visible appearance too should be
godlike — for it was as an image of God that man was fashioned and set on earth
— and that he might come to life, He breathed into his face the breath of life,
so that the man became like God in inspiration as well as in frame. (Joseph P.
Smith, S.J., St. Irenaeus - Proof of the Apostolic Preaching, 1952, p. 54 - link
to pdf)



11. But He fashioned (πλάσσω) man with His own Hands, taking the purest, the
finest <and the most delicate> [elements] of the earth, mixing (συγκράννυμι)
with the earth, in due measure, His own power (δύναμις); and because He
<sketched upon> the handiwork (πλάσμα) His own form—in order that what would be
seen should be godlike (θεοειδής), for man was placed on the earth fashioned
<in> the image (εἰκών) of God—and that he might be alive, "He breathed into His
face a breath of life": so that both according to the inspiration and according
to the formation, man was like (ὃμοιος) God. (Fr. John Behr, St. Irenaeus - On
the Apostolic Preaching, 1997 pp. 46, 47 - link to Google Books preview)



A question that immediately came to mind is, what did Irenaeus mean by “His
[God] own form”?



An interesting answer to my question has been provided by Joseph P. Smith in his
note on the passage:



"He gave his frame the outline of His own form, that the visible appearance too
should be godlike": stelcuacin ziwrsn paragreac jews, zi ew or tesanic'inn
Astuacajew ice, more literally "for the formation He outlined His own form, that
also what would be seen should be deiform"; there can be no doubt that Irenaeus
is here teaching man's bodily resemblance to God. (pp. 148, 149)

Man’s bodily resemblance to God? I would like to hear from folk who take the
time to read is post—is Smith correct, or are there better interpretations?




Grace and peace,

David


Posted by David Waltz at 1:07 PM 5 comments
Labels: Corporeality and God, Deification, Irenaeus, Patristics



MONDAY, AUGUST 14, 2023


THE PARLIAMENT OF THE WORLD’S RELIGIONS (2023)



Today is the first day of the five-day event known as The Parliament of the
World Religions [link]. The following is from their ‘Our History’ page [link]:

The organization was founded on a mission to cultivate harmony among the world’s
religious and spiritual communities and to foster their engagement with the
world and its guiding institutions to address the critical issues of our time.
The Parliament was incorporated in 1988 to carry out a tradition and legacy that
dates back to the 1893 World’s Columbian Exposition in Chicago, where the
historic first convening of the World’s Parliament of Religions created a global
platform for engagement of religions of the east and west.

Since the historic 1893 World’s Parliament of Religions in Chicago, modern
Parliament Convenings have attracted participants from more than 200 diverse
religious, indigenous, and secular beliefs and more than 80 nations to its
international gatherings in Chicago (1993), Cape Town (1999), Barcelona (2004),
Melbourne (2009), Salt Lake City (2015), Toronto (2018) and virtually (2021).
These Parliament Convenings are the world’s oldest, largest, and most inclusive
gatherings of the global interfaith movement. Nearly 60,000 people across the
world have convened in an enduring commitment to justice, peace, and
sustainability through the lens of interfaith dialogue and cooperation.

Global leaders such as His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama, His All Holiness
Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew, UN Messenger of Peace Jane Goodall, Nobel
Peace Laureates Desmond Tutu and Shirin Ebadi, and President Jimmy Carter have
addressed the Parliament Convenings throughout their history.

I would now like to point out that two of the religious traditions I have been
studying and writing on for over three decades now had representatives attending
the first PWR event, and will also be participating the one convening this week.

The Catholic Church was represented by Cardinal Gibbons in 1893, and he opened
the event [link]; Cardinal Blase Joseph Cupich will be attending in 2023 [link].

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints sent B, H. Roberts and the
Mormon Tabernacle Choir in 1893 [link]; in 2023, they are one of the events
sponsors  [link], and one of the exhibitors [link].

Interestingly enough, representatives of the Watchtower Bible & Tract Society
(i.e. Jehovah’s Witnesses) have never attended any of the PWR events. I suspect
that their stance reflects the position that members of the church Jesus Christ
and His apostles founded actually practiced.




Grace and peace,

David


Posted by David Waltz at 2:49 PM 0 comments
Labels: Catholicism, Jehovah's Witnesses, Miscellaneous, Mormonism, The Church
of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints



MONDAY, MAY 22, 2023


A 13TH CENTURY (B.C.) HEBREW INSCRIPTION ON A LEAD TABLET DISCOVERED AT MT. EBAL



On May 19th, I received an email from the Biblical Archaeology Society that
contained a link to a Bible History Daily post with the title, An Early
Israelite Curse Inscription from Mt. Ebal? [LINK TO POST]



From the post we read:



In early 2022, a research team led by scholars from the Associates for Biblical
Research (ABR) announced the discovery of a lead tablet from Mt. Ebal that they
claim contains the oldest extant Hebrew inscription. Now, after more than a
year, a peer-reviewed article presenting one part of the inscription has been
published in the journal Heritage Science [LINK].



According to the team, the inscription, which they date to the Late Bronze Age
II period (c. 1400–1200 BCE), is a legal text and curse that invokes the
Israelite deity Yahweh. The team believes the tablet is one of the most
important inscriptions ever found in Israel, predating the previously earliest
known Hebrew inscription by several hundred years, and one that could
drastically alter our reconstruction of ancient Israel’s earliest history…



As translated by the team, the tablet reads:



You are cursed by the god yhw, cursed.



You will die, cursed—cursed, you will surely die.



Cursed you are by yhw—cursed.



The team claims the inscription is written in an archaic script, similar in
style to other early alphabetic inscriptions known from the southern Levant,
which they term proto-Hebrew alphabetic. Furthermore, they suggest that the use
of the name Yhw, a shortened version of the divine name Yahweh (YHWH), is clear
evidence that the text is an early Hebrew inscription. If true, this would make
the tablet hundreds of years older than previously known early Hebrew
inscriptions.



According to the team, the Mt. Ebal tablet is a type of legal text, which
threatens curses upon individuals who transgress a covenant. They connect it
directly to the covenant renewal ceremony on Mt. Ebal, described in Deuteronomy
27 and Joshua 8. Moreover, the team claims the tablet is evidence that certain
books of the Hebrew Bible could have been written down hundreds of years earlier
than most biblical scholars previously thought. As stated by the ABR’s Director
of Excavations, Scott Stripling, during the initial press conference, “One can
no longer argue with a straight face that the biblical text was not written
until the Persian period or the Hellenistic period, as many higher critics have
done, when we clearly do have the ability to write the entire text [of the
Bible] at a much, much earlier date.” One of the project’s epigraphers, Gershon
Galil of the University of Haifa reiterated the point, saying, “The scribe that
wrote this ancient text, believe me, he could write every chapter in the Bible.”



Skeptics and liberal Biblical scholars who have embraced the theories of higher
criticism have wasted no time in attacking the paper, for the evidence and
conclusions presented have raised some serious questions concerning a number of
the theories promoted by higher critics of the Bible.



Now, the paper itself was published in the Heritage Science journal on May 12,
2023 under the title, “You are Cursed by the God YHW:” an early Hebrew
inscription from Mt. Ebal. Six scholars contributed to this peer reviewed paper
of 26 pages. The post published by the Biblical Archaeology Society provides an
adequate summation of the paper, but the paper itself is a must read for all
folk who have an interest in Biblical studies.



Once again, here is THE LINK.






Grace and peace,



David


Posted by David Waltz at 5:32 PM 0 comments
Labels: Bible, Tetragrammaton

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ATHANASIUS: ON GOD, HIS SON/WORD AND THE GODHEAD - PART 2

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CATHOLIC, ORTHODOX AND ANGLICAN LINKS

 * AD ORIENTEM - Eastern Orthodox
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 * Ancient Christian Defense - Eastern Orthodox
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 * Apostolic Apologetics
 * Apostolic Apologetics - Downloads
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 * AQUINAS - Compendium of Theology
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   Anti-Vatican II
 * biblicalia - Eastern Orthodox
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 * CROSSROADS INITIATIVE
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 * De unione ecclesiarum - Peter Gilbert
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 * DENZINGER - Sources of Catholic Dogma (bibliaclerusonline/en)
 * DENZINGER - Sources of Dogma (English trans. - patristica.net)
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 * Dr. David Anders - A Protestant Historian Discovers the Catholic Faith
 * Eclectic Orthodoxy - Father Kimel
 * EDWARD FESER
 * Energetic Procession - Eastern Orthodox
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 * Extra Thoughts - Lydia McGrew
 * Facing Islam Blog - An Orthodox Christian Confronts the Religion of Muhammad
 * Faith & Reason at Franciscan University
 * FIRST THINGS
 * FIRST THINGS - Evangel blog
 * FIRST THINGS - First Thoughts blog
 * Franciscan Studies
 * FROM CONFLICT TO COMMUNION
 * FROM CONFLICT TO COMMUNION - Link to PDF version
 * FULL OF GRACE AND TRUTH
 * Grand Orient Freemasonry Unmasked - Monsignor George F. Dillon
 * Haydock's Catholic Bible Commentary
 * Haydock's Catholic Bible Commentary, 1859 edition
 * Hyperekperissou - Phil Snider
 * In essentials... - A COMMON QUOTATION
 * Isidore.co - CalibreLibrary
 * Ite ad Thomam - A Blog for the Restoration of Traditional Catholic Thought
 * Ite ad Thomam_Go to Thomas
 * Jewish Roots of Eastern Christian Mysticism
 * JimmyAkin.org
 * John Rao - For the Whole Christ
 * John Rao - The Roman Forum
 * JOSHUA CHARLES
 * la nouvelle theologie
 * Last Eden - Eve Keneinan's Blog
 * LIBER CHRISTO
 * LifeSite
 * Lydia McGrew
 * Marie-Julie Jahenny - Prophecies For Our Times
 * Martin Luther - Witness to Jesus Christ
 * Matt's Catholic Apologetics Page
 * Miracles of the Church
 * Monachos.net - Eastern Orthodox
 * Morning Offering
 * MYSTAGOGY - John Sanidopulos
 * Mystics of the Church
 * NEW ADVENT
 * New Christendom - David Meyer
 * NEWMAN READER
 * NEWS.VA
 * NICK'S CATHOLIC BLOG
 * Non Sermoni Res_William G. Witt - Anglican
 * Notes on Arab Orthodoxy
 * NTWRIGHTPAGE.COM
 * of towers and tongues - Neal Judisch
 * Orthocath - Eastern Orthodox
 * Orthodox Answers
 * Orthodox Apologetics - Eastern Orthodox
 * Orthodox Christian Theology
 * ORTHODOX OUTLET for DOGMATIC INQUIRIES
 * ORTHODOX RESEARCH INSTITUTE - Eastern Orthodox
 * ORTHODOX WIKI
 * Orthodox-Reformed Bridge
 * PAPAL ENCYCLICALS (and Councils) ONLINE
 * Patrick Madrid
 * Patrick Madrid - Blog
 * Patrologiae cursus completus - Series graeca, Volume 31
 * PETER LOMBARD
 * Phat Catholic Apologetics
 * PHILORTHODOX - Anglican
 * Philosophia Perennis
 * Pontifications - Justification (Fr. Alvin Kimel)
 * Pope History - The Complete List Of Every Single Pope
 * Principium Unititis - Bryan Cross
 * Purify Your Bride
 * Qui Locutus
 * READING THE SUMMA
 * Reason in the Light of Faith
 * regula fidei blog - R. E. Aguirre
 * Return To Rome - Francis Beckwith (Patheos)
 * Return to Rome - Francis J. Beckwith
 * Sacramentum Vitae - Dr. Michael Liccione
 * SAINT PATRICK'S BASILICA - Ebooks
 * Salt of the Earth - Eastern Orthodox
 * Sant'Agostino - Latin texts of Augustinus Hipponensis
 * SCRIPTURE CATHOLIC
 * Shameless Popery
 * Society of Ignatians
 * Spes Mea Christus - Paul Hoffer
 * St. Joseph's Vanguard - Devin Rose
 * Steve Clifford
 * Steve Clifford - Transporter Info Services
 * Steve Clifford - Who Holds the Keys ? (debate with Barry Bickmore)
 * Strange Notions
 * Syriaca.org
 * The Aquinas Translation Project
 * THE CATHOLIC CORNER
 * THE CATHOLIC CORNER - The True Doctrine of Papal Infallibility
 * The Catholic World Report
 * The Center for Thomas More Studies - Home
 * THE CHRISTIAN FREETHINKER
 * The Great Apostasy
 * The Journey: Almost Not Catholic - Brent Stubbs
 * The One True Catholic Faith
 * The One True Catholic Faith - Sources of Catholic Dogma_Denzinger
 * The Pope Benedict XVI Fan Club
 * THE RATZINGER ARCHIVES
 * The Real Presence - Fathers of the Church on the Eucharist
 * The Real Presence - The Eucharist Index
 * The Remnant Online
 * The Remnant Online - On Archbishop DiNoia, Vatican II, and the SSPXOn
   Archbishop DiNoia, Vatican II, and the SSPX
 * The Sacred Page
 * The Society for Orthodox Apologetics
 * The Supplement - St. Thomas Aquinas, Pray for Us
 * The Trinitarian Theology of John Henry Newman's "Parochial and Plain Sermons"
   - Vinh Bao Luu-Quang_Doctoral Dissertion
 * The Way of the Fathers - Mike Aquilina
 * THOMAS AQUINAS' WORKS
 * THOMISTICA - A site for the academic study of St, Thomas Aquinas
 * Traditional Catholic - Free Books_1
 * Traditional Catholic - Free Books_2
 * Traditional Catholic - Home page
 * Unam Sanctam Catholicam - "So that man might become God"
 * Unam Sanctam Catholicam - St. Athanasius' doctrine of Divinization
 * United States Conference of Bishops
 * UNIVERSALIS
 * UNIVERSALIS - Calendar
 * Unveiling the Apocalypse - Prophecy in Catholic Tradition
 * Vatican Information Service
 * Vatican Official Website
 * Vatican Official Website - Benedict XVI's Regensburg address
 * Vatican Official Website - Catechism of the Catholic Church
 * Vatican Official Website - Validity of Baptism Conferred in The Church of
   Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints
 * Vatican Offiical Website - Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity
 * VULGATE.ORG - The Latin Vulgate Bible
 * Weird Catholic
 * What’s Wrong with the World
 * Why Mary Matters
 * WORD ON FIRE - Father Barron
 * ZENIT - The World Seen From Rome




CHRISTIAN RECONSTRUCTIONISM AND THEONOMY LINKS

 * American Vision - Gary DeMar
 * Biblical Blueprints
 * Biblical Horizons - James Jordan
 * Chalcedon
 * Chalcedon - Online Books
 * Christian Reconstructionist
 * Gary North - Free Books
 * Gary North - Specific Answers
 * Postmillennialism Today - Kenneth Gentry Jr.
 * Pre-Trib Research Center
 * Presuppostionalism 101
 * Reformed Theonomy
 * The Center for Cultural Leadership
 * Theodore P. Letis - Resources
 * Theonomy Resources
 * Theopolis Institute




DISPENSATIONALISM LINKS

 * Bible Truth Library - John Nelson Darby Collections
 * Bible Truth Library - Main Page
 * Dr. Reluctant - musings of a reluctant dispensationalist
 * Earnestly Contending for the Faith - Bible Prophecy Main Page
 * Grace Life Bible Church - Church History
 * Margaret Macdonald's Original Pretribulation Vision
 * Online Library of Brethren Writers
 * Plymouth Brethren Christian Church
 * Pre-Trib Research Center - Thomas Ice
 * Present Truth Publishers - Free PDFs
 * Present Truth Publishers - Home
 * Rapture Ready




BAPTIST, EVANGELICAL AND GENERAL CHRISTIAN LINKS

 * 1 John 5:7 - Defense against Muslim criticisms
 * 1 John 5:7 and the Record in Heaven
 * AFTERLIFE
 * Ancient Baptist Press
 * Another King James Bible Believer
 * Another King James Bible Believer - 1 John 5:7 "And These Three Are One"
 * Another King James Bible Believer - JEHOVAH
 * Another King James Bible Believer - John 1:18
 * Another King James Bible Believer - KJB Articles
 * Another King James Bible Believer - Revelation 22:19 "book of life" or "tree
   of life"?
 * APOLOGETICS 315
 * Arminian Magazine - Index
 * ARTICLES ON THE DEFENSE OF THE BIBLICAL DOCTRINE OF VERBAL PLENARY
   PRESERVATION OF THE BIBLE
 * Authorized Version Blog
 * AV1611
 * AV1611 - 1 John 5:7 (Johannine Comma)
 * AV1611 - 1 John 5:7 Scams
 * AV1611 - In Defense of the Authenticity of 1 John 5:7
 * AV1611 - Textual Criticism: Fact and Fiction
 * AV1611 - Who is Yahweh?
 * Baptist History Homepage - Books
 * Baptist History Homepage - Index
 * Baptist Press News
 * Baruch Blogus
 * Ben Witherington
 * BIBLE RESEARCH
 * BIBLE RESEARCH - The Only Begotten Son
 * Bible.org
 * Biblical Foundations
 * BioLogos Forum
 * Bock's Blog - Darrell Bock
 * Bowman on Target: Rob Bowman's Blog
 * BOYCE DIGITAL LIBRARY - Dissertations, Theses, and Projects
 * ByzantineText.com
 * CARM - Christian Apologetics and Research Ministry
 * Center for the Study of New Testament Manuscripts - Home Page
 * Centre for the Study of Christian Origins
 * CHRISTIAN HEADLINES.COM
 * Christian Publishing House Blog
 * Cognitive Resonance - Ben Nasmith
 * Cold Case Christianity - J. Warner Wallace
 * COMPLETE LIST OF NEW TESTAMENT MANUSCRIPTS THAT VERIFY 1 JOHN 5:7
 * CrossExamined.org - Blog
 * CrossExamined.org - Frank Turek
 * CROSSWALK.COM - NEWS
 * Dean Burgon Society - Blog
 * Debating Misquoting Jesus - Joel McDurmon
 * Department of Christian Defense
 * DESIRING GOD - John Piper
 * DESIRING GOD - Online books
 * Earnestly Contending for the Faith - The King James Bible
 * EHRMAN PROJECT
 * Evangelical Textual Criticism
 * Exploring Our Matrix - Dr. James F. McGrath
 * FAITH SAVES.net - Bibliology
 * FAITH SAVES.net - Thomas Ross
 * FAITH SAVES.net - Trinitarianism
 * Greek New Testament - laparola.net
 * Hell, Hades and the Afterlife
 * HOLY BIBLE INSTITUTE
 * IDEA - Intelligent Design and Evolution Awareness Center
 * Institute of Biblical Defense
 * Internet Monk - Michael Spencer
 * iustificare - The Meaning of Dikaioo_Part 1
 * iustificare - The Meaning of Dikaioo_Part 2
 * J. Frank Norris.org
 * JACKHAMMER - Kent Brandenburg
 * JESSE BOYD - Full Proof Gospel Ministries-KJV Defense
 * Jesus Outside the New Testament
 * Journal of Biblical and Theological Studies
 * Journey With Jesus - A Prayerful Admonition
 * Journey With Jesus - Daniel B. Clendenin
 * KenBoa.org
 * KING JAMES BIBLE ONLINE
 * King James Bible Research Council
 * KJB Textual Technology
 * KJB Textual Technology - 1 Jn.5:7,8 Establishing the Authenticity of the
   Johannine Comma
 * KJV Only Debate Blog
 * KJV TODAY
 * KJV TODAY - Johannine Comma (1 John 5.7)
 * Larry Hurtado's Blog
 * Liberty University - Digital Commons_A Scholarly Communication Project
 * Licona, Michael Ren - Doctoral Thesis_The historicity of the resurrection of
   Jesus - historiographical considerations in the light of recent debates
 * Lydia McGrew - Extra Thoughts
 * Lydia McGrew - Home Page
 * Lydia McGrew - What's Wrong With the World
 * MICHAEL HEISER - michaelheiser.com
 * MICHAEL HEISER - The Divine Council
 * MICHAEL HEISER -The Naked Bible
 * NET BIBLE LIBRARY - English Hexapla 1841
 * Norman Geisler
 * NT - Complete List of Greek NT Papyri
 * NT - EVANGELICAL TEXTUAL CRITICISM
 * NT - New Testament Manuscripts_Papyri
 * NT - New Testament Papyri and Codices 2nd-10th Centuries
 * NT - Recently Published NT Papyri From Oxyrhynchus
 * NT - THE CENTER FOR THE STUDY OF NEW TESTAMENT MANUSCRIPTS
 * NT - THE ENCYCLOPEDIA OF NEW TESTAMENT TEXTUAL CRITICISM
 * NTWRIGHTPAGE.COM
 * OPEN AIR OUTREACH - Biblical Truth Resources
 * OPEN AIR OUTREACH - Jesse Morrell
 * OPEN AIR OUTREACH - Newsletters
 * OPEN AIR OUTREACH - YouTube videos
 * Our Baptist Heritage
 * Our Baptist Heritage - Books_Bible Study
 * Our Baptist Heritage - Books_Historical
 * Parchment and Pen - C. Michael Patton
 * PAUL COPAN - Christian Philosophy and Apologetics
 * Pilgrims' Daughter
 * Pillar & Ground - Bethel Baptist Church
 * PRE-TRIB RESEARCH CENTER
 * Pure Bible Forum
 * Real Bible Believers - Home
 * Real Bible Believers - KJV
 * REASONABLE FAITH - William Lane Craig
 * RETHINKING HELL
 * RIGHTLY DIVIDING THE WORD OF TRUTH - Nick Norelli
 * Robin's Readings and Reflections
 * Robin's Readings and Reflections - Questions about Sola Fide
 * Roger E. Olson
 * Roger E. Olson - Arminian Theology is evangelical theology
 * SBC Today
 * SBC Today - Michael Cox
 * SBCtomorrow_peterlumpkins.com - PETER LUMPKINS
 * Sinaiticus.net
 * SOCIETY OF EVANGELICAL ARMINIANS
 * Sovereign Word
 * Sovereign Word - Defense of the Traditional Texts and the KJB
 * Sovereign Word - Dr. Thomas Hollands' Manuscript Evidence Class
 * Standard Sacred Text
 * STEM Publishing - JOHN NELSON DARBY
 * Sword of the Lord - Shelton Smith
 * TEKTON
 * Tekton Ticker (TEKTON blog)
 * Text and Translation
 * Textus Receptus Bibles
 * Thank God for King James Bible
 * The 1611 King James Bible Defended
 * The Bible and Culture - Ben Witherington
 * The Bible For Today
 * THE CHRISTIAN POST.COM
 * THE COMPLETE WORKS OF JOHN WESLEY
 * The Dean Burgon Society
 * The Divine Council.com - Michael S. Heiser, PhD
 * THE GOSPEL TRUTH
 * The Greek Manuscripts of the Comma Johanneum (1 John 5:7–8)
 * The Historical Jesus: Lives of Jesus and Jesus outside the Bible
 * The Interactive Bible - www.bible.ca
 * The King James Bible Page
 * THE PAUL PAGE
 * THE REFORMED READER
 * The Risen Jesus - Mike Licona
 * THE VOICE - CRI/Voice Institute
 * THE VOICE - CRI/Voice Institute - Revised Common Lectionary
 * The Way of Life Literature - David Cloud
 * The Wesley Center Online - John Wesley
 * TheoloGUI - Guillaume Bignon
 * Thought Life - The contemplative home of Skylar D. McManus
 * TRUTH ACCORDING TO SCRIPTURE
 * TRUTH ACCORDING TO SCRIPTURE - Hell Home
 * Web Theology - Westcliff Press
 * Wesley Center for Applied Theology
 * Wesleyan Theological Journal
 * What does the Bible say about A-Z
 * WHAT IS TRUTH - First Impressions of the Ehrman-White Debate
 * WHAT IS TRUTH - Kent Brandenburg
 * WHAT IS TRUTH - kentbrandenburg.com
 * WHAT IS TRUTH - Liar, Liar....James White and AOM
 * Witness Seeking Orthodoxy
 * Word of Truth Conference
 * WORTHY CHRISTIAN NEWS.COM




LUTHER AND LUTHERAN LINKS

 * Book of Concord - The Confessions of the Lutheran Church
 * Concordia Publishing Hosue - Luther's Works
 * Declaration on the Doctrine of Justification
 * FROM CONFLICT TO COMMUNION
 * FROM CONFLICT TO COMMUNION - Link to PDF version
 * Internet Archive - Martin Luther (English, German and Latin)
 * IS R. C. SPROUL WRONG ABOUT MARTIN LUTHER?
 * Luther and Hitler: A Linear Connection between Martin Luther and Adolf
   Hitler’s Anti-Semitism - Daphne M. Olsen
 * Luther and the unity of the churches: an interview with Joseph Cardinal
   Ratzinger
 * Luther's Works Complete Tables of Contents and Cross Listing
 * LUTHERAN - CATHOLIC COMMISSION ON UNITY
 * MARTIN LUTHER - Latin and German online works (Weimar and Walch)
 * Martin Luther - Translations of Two Prefaces on Islam
 * Martin Luther - Witness to Jesus Christ
 * Martin Luther's Writings - English
 * MARTIN LUTHER'S WRITINGS: Sermons, Commentary & other Works
 * Official Common Statement
 * Resources about Martin Luther - Wikipedia
 * The Darker Side of Martin Luther - Emily Paras
 * The Jews and Their Lies - Martin Luther (Internet Archive)
 * The Jews and Their Lies - Martin Luther (pdf book)




REFORMED LINKS

 * A Repository of Religous Knowledge - Justin
 * Ad Fontes - Tim Enloe
 * After Existentialism, Light
 * American Vision - Gary DeMar
 * ANALOGICAL THOUGHTS - James N. Anderson
 * Apologetics and Agape - Ken Temple
 * apologeticsandagape - Ken Temple
 * B. B. Warfield - Calvin's Doctrine of the Trinity
 * B. B. Warfield - Reading Warfield . . . Where to Begin?
 * B. B. Warfield -The Life and Works of Benjamin Breckinridge Warfield
   (1851–1921)
 * Beggars All - James Swan
 * BERITH.ORG - Covenant Worldview Institute_Ralph Allan Smith
 * BetterThanSacrifice.org
 * CALVIN AND CALVINISM - Calvinism online
 * Canon Fodder - Michael J. Kruger
 * CANONPRESS
 * CANONPRESS - Credenda
 * CHALCEDON
 * CHARLES HODGE - Is the Church of Rome a Part of the Visible Church?
 * Confessing Baptist
 * CREDO - The Magazine
 * Creed Code Cult - Rev. Jason J. Stellman
 * Daniel's Place - (Reformata et semper reformanda)
 * De Regnis Duobus - Jason L. Stellman
 * DE REGNO CHRISTI
 * Exiled Preacher - Guy Davies
 * Far Eastern Bible College
 * Far Eastern Bible College - ARTICLES ON THE DEFENSE OF THE BIBLICAL DOCTRINE
   OF VERBAL PLENARY PRESERVATION OF THE BIBLE
 * fides quaerens intellectum - Frank Ramirez
 * Francis Schaeffer Studies.org
 * God's Hammer - The Clark-Van Til Controversy
 * Gospel Crumbs - Annoyed Pinoy
 * gospelbbq
 * Green Baggins - Determing the Doctrine of the Church
 * Green Baggins - Lane Keister
 * Green Baggins - Muslims and Christians worship the same God
 * IS R. C. SPROUL WRONG ABOUT MARTIN LUTHER?
 * JOANNIS CALVINI OPERA - Universite De Geneve
 * Johannes Weslianus - Wes White
 * John Gill's Exposition of the Bible
 * Junius Institute
 * L'Abri Ideas Library
 * L'Abri Ideas Library - Dr. Francis Schaeffer Collection
 * Lane's Blog - Lane Chaplin
 * Ligonier Ministries Blog - R.C. Sproul
 * Mark Horne
 * NiceneCouncil.com - Jerry Johnson
 * OLD LIFE - Reformed Faith and Practice
 * Out of His Mouth - Timothy F. Kauffman
 * Polemic Theology: How to Deal with Those Who Differ from Us_BA
 * Polemic Theology: How to Deal with Those Who Differ from Us_FM
 * POST-REFORMATION DIGITAL LIBRARY
 * PRESUPPOSITIONALISM 101
 * PRESUPPOSITIONALISM 101 - Van Til PDFs
 * Princeton Theological Seminary Digital Library
 * Proginosko - James N. Anderson
 * Purely Presbyterian
 * PURITAN LIBRARY
 * PyroManiacs
 * RealApologetics.org
 * Reformation 500 - John Bugay
 * Reformation Online
 * Reformation Online - Evangelical Arminians_Option or Oxymoron
 * REFORMED BOOKS ONLINE
 * Reformed Christian Theology - Craig Truglia
 * Renouncing Rome - A Defense of orthodox Christianity according to the
   Reformed Faith
 * Societas Christiana - Tim Enloe
 * Sovereign Word
 * SPURGEON - Faith and Regeneration
 * SPURGEON - The Spurgeon Archive
 * The Andrew Fuller Center for Baptist Studies - Dr. Michael A.G. Haykin
 * The Aquila Report
 * THE ARISTOPHRENIUM
 * THE AVENUE
 * The Digital Puritan
 * The Domain for Truth
 * The Essential Owen - quotes from the writings of John Owen
 * The Evangelical Calvinist - Bobby Grow
 * The Geneva Study Bible
 * The Gospel Coalition
 * The Heidelblog - R. Scott Clark
 * The Kinght Blog - Albert L. Shepard
 * The Knight Blog - The Santification of Tradition
 * THE KUYPER FOUNDATION - Christianity and Society
 * THE KUYPER FOUNDATON
 * The Porter's Lodge
 * The Presbyterian Guardian - archive
 * The Princeton Theological Review - VII (1909)
 * The Puritans Woodshop
 * The Puritans Woodshop - The Debate Over 1 John 5:7
 * THE REFORMED READER
 * The Thoughts of Francis Turretin - TurretinFan (expect fanatical editing
   and/or deletion of critical comments)
 * The Whitefield Fellowship
 * THEMELIOS - Archvies (The Gospel Coalition)
 * Theodore P. Letis Resources
 * THEONOMY RESOURCES
 * THEOPEDIA
 * THEOPEDIA - The Trinity
 * THEOPOLIS INSTITUTE
 * THIS DAY IN PRESBYTERIAN HISTORY
 * Triablogue - The Black Hole of Christian Blogs (enter at your own risk)
 * Trinity Notes - Annoyed Pinoy
 * UNAPOLOGETICA - Ryan
 * Van Til E-Books
 * VAN TIL INFO
 * weecalvin1509 - Colin Maxwell
 * whitehorseblog.com - Timothy F. Kauffman




JEHOVAH'S WITNESSES, THE CHURCH OF JESUS CHRIST OF LATTER-DAY SAINTS AND OTHER
LINKS

 * LDS General Conference Corpus
 * A History of Mormon Catechisms
 * ADVENTIST BOOKS
 * An LDS Soul - Contemplating the Gospel of Jesus Christ
 * Are Mormons Trinitarian? - Modern Reformation
 * Arian Catholic Church - The Holy Catholic and Apostolic Church of Arian
   Catholicism
 * Barry's Early Christianity and Mormonism Page
 * Benchmark Books - LDS Books_New, Used and Out-of-Print
 * Bias in scholarship - Greek grammar edition
 * Bible Student Archives
 * Bible Student movement
 * Bible Students Online
 * BibleStudents.com
 * Blake Ostler - Complete Works
 * Blake Ostler - Internet Archive Wayback
 * Book of Mormon - Archaeological and Historical Evidence
 * Book of Mormon Central - Main Page
 * Book of Mormon Central Archive
 * Book of Mormon Onomasticon
 * Book of Mormon Research
 * Bruce R. McConkie - BYU Speeches
 * Bruce R. McConkie - General Conference talks
 * Bruce R. McConkie - Selected Talks, Speeches, and Articles
 * By Common Consent
 * BYU - 19th-Century Publications about the Book of Mormon (1829–1844)
 * BYU - Hugh Nibley Collection
 * BYU - Religious Studies Center
 * BYU - ScholarsArchive_Home
 * BYU - ScholarsArchive_Maxwell Institute Publications
 * BYU - ScholarsArchive_Theses on Mormonism
 * Chicago Bible Students
 * Church of Jesus Chirst of Latter-day Saints - lds.org
 * Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints - Church Publicatons_PDF format
 * Contra Modalism
 * CORPUS OF LDS GENERAL CONFERENCE TALKS
 * Defend Jehovah's Witnesses
 * Dialogue - A Journal of Mormon Thought (Archive)
 * Divine Names in the Dead Sea Scrolls
 * Doctrine and Covenants Central
 * Drake Shelton - Southern Israelite
 * Drake Shelton - Southern Israelite_The Seven Ecumenical Councils Refuted
 * Ellen G. White - Writings
 * Encyclopedia of Mormonism
 * Encyclopedia of Mormonism - BYU Library
 * Examining The Trinity
 * FAIR - Latterdaysaints.org
 * FairMormon
 * Faith Leaks - Jehovah's Witnesses
 * Faith Promoting Rumor
 * Feast Upon The Word - Commentary on the LDS Quad
 * FOSTER'S THEOLOGICAL REFLECTIONS
 * FROM DANIEL TO REVELATION - ANDRIES VAN NIEKERK
 * FROM THE DESK - Learning by Study and Faith
 * FROOM - The Conditionalist Faith of Our Fathers_v1
 * FROOM - The Conditionalist Faith of Our Fathers_v2
 * FROOM - The Prophetic Faith of Our Fathers_v1
 * FROOM - The Prophetic Faith of Our Fathers_v2
 * FROOM - The Prophetic Faith of Our Fathers_v3
 * FROOM - The Prophetic Faith of Our Fathers_v4
 * FULLER CONSIDERATION - Raw Information about the Church of Jesus Christ of
   Latter-day Saints
 * Greg Stafford - Blog
 * Greg Stafford - Elihubooks
 * Greg Stafford - In Defense of Biblical Thelogy
 * Heart Issues for LDS
 * Historical Sources Relating to the Book of Mormon
 * In Defense of the New World Translation
 * International Bible Students
 * Interpreter: A Journal of Mormon Scripture
 * Is The New World Translation Biased and Unscholarly
 * Ivan's Blog - Ivan Monroy
 * Jeff Lindsay - LDS Pages and Links
 * Jehovah's Witnesses - JW Broadcasting
 * Jehovah's Witnesses - Official website
 * Jehovah's Witnesses - Online Library
 * Jehovah's Witnesses United
 * Jerusalem 607 B.C.E.
 * Jesus Christ - The Wisdom and Word/Logos of God (John 1.1)
 * JIMSPACE
 * Joseph Smith and the Trinity - David Paulsen and Brett MacDonald
 * Joseph Smith Foundation
 * Joseph Smith, the Prophet and Seer - Religious Studies Center
 * JOSEPH SMITH'S POLYGAMY
 * Journal of Discourses - 1851 - 1886
 * Journal of Discourses - BYU
 * Journal of Mormon History
 * JWS - Online Library - 1880-2022
 * Kazland - Sean (Alethinon61)_Blogger
 * Kazland - Sean (Alethinon61)_Wordpress
 * Latter Day Light
 * LATTER DAY TRUTH.org
 * Latter-day Conservative
 * Latter-day Saints Q & A
 * LDS (Mormon) Series by Rich Kelsey
 * LDS Answers
 * LDS Answers - Was Joseph Smith involved in witchcraft, magic and the occult
 * LDS Basics - Jeff Lindsay
 * LDS Church History Library - Internet Archive
 * LDS Scripture Citation Index
 * LDS Scripture Teachings
 * LDS Scriptures
 * LDS Studies - A personal study of Mormon scripture, doctrine, history and
   culture
 * LDS.ORG - Church History-Revelations In Context
 * LDS.ORG - Gospel Topics Essays
 * LDS.ORG - Oliver Cowdery's Gift
 * Lehi's Library
 * Life After - Leading Mormons to the REAL Jesus
 * Life On Gold Plates
 * LIGHT PLANET
 * Lost Mormonism
 * Margaret Barker
 * matt13weedhacker
 * Meridian Magazine
 * MERIDIAN MAGAZINE
 * Mormanity - Jeff Lindsay's blog
 * Mormon Beliefs.org
 * Mormon Dialogue & Discussion Board
 * Mormon PDF Web Site - H. Michael Marquardt
 * Mormon Polygamy Documents - Bound Documents
 * Mormon Polygamy Documents - Home
 * Mormon Polygamy Documents - Unbound Documents
 * Mormon Scholars Testify
 * Mormon Scripture Explorations
 * Mormon Texts Project
 * Mormon Texts Project
 * Mormonism Researched - Kerry Shirts
 * MormonMysticism.com
 * MORMONR
 * MORMONR - Book of Mormon Translation Methods
 * MORMONR - Hard Questions
 * Mormons and Catholics - Dave Keller
 * MormonThink
 * MormonWiki
 * My Theologocial Ponderings - Ivan Monroy
 * Neal A. Maxwell Institute (formerly F.A.R.M.S,)
 * New Cool Thang Blog
 * New Cool Thang Blog - How many gods are there
 * Pastor Russell Blogspot
 * PATHEOS.COM - Balanced views of Religion and Spirituality
 * PATHEOS.COM - Mormon channel
 * Patristic Arcana - Errol Amey
 * Pearl of Great Price Central - Main Page
 * Prounouncing The Divine Name of God
 * Re-vision-ing the Mormon Concept of Deity - Blake Ostler
 * Religion News Service (religionnews.com)
 * Religious Educator: Perspectives on the Restored Gospel
 * Religious Studies Center - Books
 * Restoration Fellowship - A Journal from the Radical Reformation
 * Restoration Light Bible Study Services
 * Review of Books on the Book of Mormon 1989–2011
 * Richkelsey.org
 * ScottWoodward.org
 * Scriptural Mormonism
 * Scripture Central - LDS
 * Sean Killackey
 * Sean Killackey - The Harmony of the Bible Blog
 * Search for Bible Truths - Scripture Index
 * SHIELDS
 * Sic et Non - Daniel Peterson
 * Signature Books Library - Books
 * Signature Books Library - Main Page
 * SolomonSpalding.com - Dale Broadhurst (Anti)
 * Strictly Genteel - Theocratic Resources (Books and Magazines)
 * STRONG REASONS - Addressing the 'strong reasons' given by critics of The
   Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
 * SUMMA THEOLOGICA - Interreligious Dialogue and Discussion with Latter-day
   Saints, Evangelicals and Catholics
 * The Backyard Professor - Kerry Shirts
 * The Book of Mormon Online
 * The CES Letter - A Closer Look
 * THE EARLIEST POST-BIBLICAL WRITERS OF CHRISTIANITY DID NOT TEACH A TRI{3}NITY
 * THE JOSEPH SMITH PAPERS
 * THE JOSEPH SMITH PAPERS - Primary Accounts of Joseph Smith’s First Vision of
   Deity
 * The King's Parlor - Drake Shelton
 * The Macmillian ENCYCLOPEDIA OF MORMONISM
 * The Mormon Connection - Did Ellen White copy from Joeseph Smith
 * The Mormon Organon
 * The Seer Stone
 * The Society for Mormon Philosophy and Theology
 * THE TETRAGRAM AND THE NEW TESTAMENT - George Howard
 * The Unitarians
 * The Unitarians - Document Library
 * There Are Save Two Churches Only (LDS)
 * To Understand a Member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
 * Trinities - theories about the father, son and holy spirit
 * Trinity Exposed
 * Truth Will Prevail
 * Uncreated Light - Drake Shelton
 * Unitarian Christianity
 * Utah Lighthouse Ministry
 * VASILEIADIS - ASPECTS OF RENDERING THE SACRED TETRAGRAMMATON IN GREEK
 * VASILEIADIS - Pavlos D. Vasileiadis - Academia.edu
 * VASILEIADIS - The Pronunciation of the Sacred Tetragrammaton
 * Watch Tower History
 * Watchtower Archive (Books, Magazines, etc.)
 * Watchtower Books
 * Watchtower Documents
 * What Does the Bible Really Teach
 * Who Holds the Keys? - A Catholic vs. Mormon Debate
 * Witness Seeking Orthodoxy
 * Works of Joseph [Smith Jr.]
 * Worlds Without End




BAHA'I FAITH LINKS

 * Baha'i Academic Library
 * Baha'i Education - Ocean
 * Baha'i Reference Library
 * Bahá’í World News Service
 * Bahá’ís of the United States
 * Bahaipedia
 * Global Perspective - Dr. Hushidar Motlagh
 * The Baha'i Faith -Official website




ISLAM LINKS

 * A COMMON WORD
 * Acts 17 - David Wood
 * al-Islam.org - Shia
 * al-Shia.org
 * ALIM
 * Answering Islam
 * Answering Muslims
 * ARTHUR JEFFERY - Materials for the History of the Text ofthe Quran
 * at-Tahawi - Muslim Bibliophilia
 * Blogging Theology - Paul Williams
 * Blogging Theology 2 - Paul Williams
 * BRIDGING THE DIVIDE
 * Call To Monotheism
 * Commonly Misquoted Verses - Surah 9:29
 * e'Muslim
 * Evidence For God's Unchanging Word
 * Evidence For God's Unchanging Word - Did Jesus Die On the Cross
 * FINDING MUHAMMAD IN THE NEW TESTAMENT - A Master's Thesis by Ali J. Ataie
 * FIRST THINGS - The Islamic Case For Religious Liberty
 * Forty Hadith Qudsi
 * Forty Hadith Qudsi - IIU
 * Forty Hadith Qudsi - USC
 * God's Unchanging Word
 * Hadith - Living Islam
 * Hadith - USC Sunna and Hadith collections
 * Hadith Collection
 * Imam Reza - Shia
 * Is “Yahweh” Referred to in the Quran?
 * Is The Qur'an The Word of God?
 * Islam - Kattor (kat)
 * Islam and Christianity A Common Word
 * Islam Awakened
 * Islam for Muslims
 * Islam for Muslims - Messengers (Rasul) and Prophets (Nabi)
 * Islam Web Blog - Articles, Audio & Video, Books (free downloads)
 * Islamic Awareness
 * Islamic Awareness - Older site format
 * Islamic Blessings - Books, Audio, Video
 * ISLAMIC ENCYCLOPEDIA
 * Islamic Library - Shia Islamic PDFs
 * Islamic Philosophy Online
 * Jihad - The Holy War of Islam and Its Legitimacy in the Quran
 * Lampost Publications - Preserving the Freedom for Faith (Apostasy)
 * LIVING ISLAM
 * M. Amir Ali - Article Collection
 * Mas'ud Ahmed Khan - Home page
 * Muhammadanism
 * Muhammadanism - Books
 * Muslim Access
 * Muslim Debate Initiative
 * Muslim Hope
 * Muslim Responses
 * Oxford Islamic Studies Online
 * Philosophia Islamica - Islamic Philosophy Online
 * QUR'AN - 17 English translations and Roman transliteration
 * QUR'AN - Arabic and English Transliteration
 * QUR'AN - English_Arabic_Transliteration
 * QUR'AN - QURANIC ARABIC CORPUS
 * QUR'AN - Qurany.net
 * QUR'AN - Search Truth - Qur'an and Hadith search engine
 * QUR'AN - The Noble Qur'an - Arabic
 * QUR'AN - The Qur'an Explorer
 * QUR'AN - USC Translations of the Qur'an
 * QUR'AN - USC transliteration
 * Qur'an and Injil - Reflections on Qur'anic Text and Commentary
 * QUR'AN TRANSLITERATION
 * Rumi and the Sufi Tradition
 * SCIENCE ISLAM
 * Seeker's Guidance - Jihad, Abrogation in the Quran & the “Verse of the Sword”
 * Shia Multimedia
 * Shia Multimedia - English Books
 * Shiitic Studies
 * Shiitic Studies - Safety in Numbers: The Principle of Shuhra and its Use (A
   Response)
 * SUNNAH.COM - The Hadith of the Prophet Muhammad
 * Surah 9:29 Discussed
 * Teach Islam
 * The American Muslim
 * THE AMMAN MESSAGE
 * THE DAILY RUMI
 * The Facts About Islam
 * THE HADITH LIBRARY
 * THE HOLY QUR'AN
 * The Institute of Ismaili Studies
 * The Islamic Bulletin - Free E-Books
 * The Legacy of Henry Corbin
 * The Legacy of Henry Corbin - Henry Corbin Texts Online
 * The Names of Allah
 * THE PSALMS OF ISLAM
 * The Royal Aal al-Bayt Institute For Islamic Thought
 * The Royal Islamic Strategic Studies Centre
 * Unveiling Christianity - Ibn Anwar
 * Violence in Islam
 * Yahweh in Islam - YouTube video
 * Yahweh in Qur'an




JUDAISM LINKS

 * The Sefaria Library
 * Halakhah.com by Tzvee Zahavy
 * Jewish Encyclopedia
 * Jewish Language Research Website
 * Jewish Publication Society
 * Jewish Publication Society - Tanakh 1917 pdf
 * Jewish Roots of Eastern Christian Mysticism
 * Jewish Virtual Library
 * Jews for Judaism
 * Judaic Digital Library
 * JUDAISM and ROME - Re-thinking Judaism’s Encounter with the Roman Empire
 * Messiah Truth Project
 * Outreach Judaism - Rabbi Singer
 * PaleoJudaica
 * SANHEDRIN
 * Texts of Judaism - Internet Sacred Text Archive
 * The Jewish Quarterly Review
 * The Legends of the Jews - Ginsberg




RESOURCE LINKS

 * A Hebrew-English Bible
 * A Library of Fathers of the Holy Catholic Church
 * A Select Library of Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers of the Christian Church -
   Internet Archive PDFs
 * Academic-bible.com - Home
 * Academic-bible.com - Septuaginta (LXX)
 * Ante-Nicene Fathers - Internet Archive PDFs
 * Atonement_Atonement of Christ -Theopedia
 * Atonement_Theories of the Atonement - Leon Morris
 * Atonement_Various Christian theories of the Atonement
 * AUGUSTINIUS HIPPONENSIS - Latin Texts
 * Beau Branson's Research
 * Bible Apps - bibleapps.com
 * BIBLE HUB
 * BIBLE HUB - Bible Library
 * BIBLE RESEARCH - Michael D. Marlowe
 * Bible Study Tools
 * Bible Study Tools - Commentaries
 * Bible Study Tools - Dictionaries
 * BIBLE WORKS FONTS
 * BibleGateway.com
 * BIBLIA CLERUS
 * Biblia Hebraica Stuttgartensia
 * Biblical Criticism & History Forum
 * Biblical Studies and Technological Tools
 * BiblicalStudies.org
 * BIBLOS - Bible Study Tools
 * BIBLOS - Online Parallel Bible
 * BLUE LETTER BIBLE
 * BLUE LETTER BIBLE
 * BOHN'S CLASSICAL LIBRARY
 * Christian Classics Ethereal Library (CCEL)
 * Christian Classics Ethereal Library (CCEL) - Early Church Fathers
 * Christian Classics Ethereal Library (CCEL) - The Trinity
 * CHURCH COUNCILS
 * CLASSIC BIBLE COMMENTARIES
 * Codex Sinaiticus
 * Cornell University - arXiv.org
 * CREEDS OF CHRISTENDOM - www.creeds.net
 * CSEL_Corpus Scriptorum Ecclesiasticorum Latinorum - Online
 * Die Griechischen Christlichen Schriftsteller (GCS) PDF’s
 * DOCUMENTA CATHOLICA OMNIA
 * DOCUMENTA CATHOLICA OMNIA - Conspectus Omnium Rerum Alphabeticus Littera
 * DOCUMENTA CATHOLICA OMNIA - Conspectus Omnium Rerum Ratione Temporum
   Distributus_0000-0099
 * DOCUMENTA CATHOLICA OMNIA - Index of /02g
 * DOCUMENTA CATHOLICA OMNIA - Migne - MPL
 * DOCUMENTA CATHOLICA OMNIA - Migne - Patrologia Graeca et Cetera Graeca
   Scripta
 * DOCUMENTA CATHOLICA OMNIA - Migne Patrologia Latina - 1
 * DOCUMENTA CATHOLICA OMNIA - Migne Patrologia Latina - 2
 * DOCUMENTA CATHOLICA OMNIA - Migne Patrologia Latina - 3
 * Early Christian Writings - e-Catena: Compiled Allusions to the NT in the
   Ante-Nicene Fathers
 * Early Christian Writings.com
 * EARLY CHURCH FATHERS - Internet Sacred Text Archive
 * Early Church History - Blog
 * EARLY CHURCH HISTORY - CH101
 * EARLY CHURCH TEXTS
 * EARLY CHURCH TEXTS
 * EARLY ENGLISH BOOKS
 * EarlyChurch.org
 * EarlyChurch.org
 * ECT - EVANGELICALS AND CATHOLICS TOGETHER
 * ECT - THE GIFT OF SALVATION
 * English Translation of the Greek Septuagint Bible
 * FOURTH-CENTURY CHRISTIANITY
 * GREEK AND HEBREW LEXICONS
 * GREEK BIBLE
 * Greek Interlinear Bible
 * Greek New Testament - La Parola
 * Greek OT (Septuagint/LXX) UTF8
 * Greek Septuagint - Ellopos
 * HEBREW BIBLE
 * Hebrew Bible - Mechon Mamre
 * Hebrew Interlinear Bible
 * HEBREW OT - CCEL
 * HolyBooks.com
 * Hypertext - Bible
 * Hypertext - Qur'an
 * International Critical Commentary - Internet Archive
 * International Standard Bible Encyclopedia
 * Internet Medieval Sourcebook
 * Iustificare - The Meaning of Dikaioo
 * JD - ANNEX TO THE OFFICIAL COMMON STATEMENT
 * JD - JOINT DECLARATION ON JUSTIFICATION
 * JEWISH PUBLICATION SOCIETY BIBLE
 * JSTOR - Harvard Theological Review
 * Khazarzar - Books
 * LATIN RESOURCES
 * Loeb Classical Library - Loebolus
 * Logos Virtual Library
 * McClintock and Strong Biblical Cyclopedia
 * MedievalChurch.org
 * MIGNE - Jacques Paul Migne_Patrologiae Cursus Completus_Series Graeca
 * MIGNE - Jacques Paul Migne_Patrologiae Cursus Completus_Series Latina.
 * MIGNE - Patrologia Graeca (PG) PDF’s
 * MIGNE - PATROLOGIA GRAECA_khazarzar site
 * MIGNE - Patrologia Latina (PL) PDF’s
 * MIGNE PATROLOGIA - Internet Archive
 * MIGNE PATROLOGIA GRAECA - TF
 * MIGNE PATROLOGIA LATINA - TF
 * NEW TESTAMENT GREEK - laparola.net
 * NUMEN - The Latin Lexicon
 * ORIGEN - Links to Works of Origen in English, Greek, and Latin
 * Patristic Bible Commentary
 * Philo of Alexandria - Resource page 3.1
 * POST-REFORMATION DIGITAL LIBRARY
 * Preceptaustin.org
 * PROJECT CANTERBURY
 * Regensburg and the Spirituali
 * ROGER PEARSE
 * ROGER PEARSE - Blog
 * SACRED TEXTS ARCHIVE
 * SacredBible.org - Downloads
 * SacredBible.org - Home page
 * Scripture Studies - Classic Christian Library
 * Scripture4All - Greek Interlinear Bible
 * Scripture4All - Hebrew Interlinear Bible
 * SEARCH GOD'S WORD
 * Septuagint.org - LXX
 * Septuaginta (LXX) - academic-bible.com
 * Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy
 * Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy - Trinity
 * STUDIES IN COMPARATIVE RELIGION
 * StudyLight.org
 * T & T Clark’s, The International Critical Commentary-A Critical and
   Exegetical Commentary – Internet Archive
 * TERTULLIAN.ORG
 * TERTULLIAN.ORG - Early Church Fathers
 * The Ecole Initiative - Early Church Documents
 * The Ecole Intiative - Early Church Documents
 * THE MANHATTAN DECLARATION
 * The Measure of A Bishop
 * THE NICENE CREED - NPNF_XIV
 * The Nicene Creed - Spurgeon.org
 * The Online Books Page - Book Listings
 * The Online Books Page - Saint Athanasius
 * The Online Books Page - Saint Augustine
 * The Sahidic Coptic New Testament
 * THE UNBOUND BIBLE (BIOLA)
 * THEOLOGICAL STUDIES - past articles
 * TheologicalStudies.org
 * VULGATE.ORG - The Latin Vulgate Bible




CONTRIBUTORS

 * David Waltz
 * David Waltz




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GETTING HISTORY RIGHT

The Reformers unequivocally rejected the teaching authority of the Roman
Catholic Church. This left open the question of who should interpret Scripture.
The Reformation was not a struggle for the right of private judgement. The
Reformers feared private judgement almost as much as did the Catholics and were
not slow to attack it in its Anabaptist manifestation. The Reformation principle
was not private judgement but the perspicuity of the Scriptures. Scripture was
‘sui ipsius interpres’ and the simple principle of interpreting individual
passages by the whole was to lead to unanimity in understanding. This came close
to creating anew the infallible church…It was this belief in the clarity of
Scripture that made the early disputes between Protestants so fierce. This
theory seemed plausible while the majority of Protestants held to Lutheran or
Calvinist orthodoxy but the seventeenth century saw the beginning of the erosion
of these monopolies. But even in 1530 Casper Schwenckfeld could cynically note
that ‘the Papists damn the Lutherans; the Lutherans damn the Zwinglians; the
Zwinglians damn the Anabaptists and the Anabaptists damn all others.’ By the end
of the seventeenth century many others saw that it was not possible on the basis
of Scripture alone to build up a detailed orthodoxy commanding general assent.
(A.N.S. Lane, “Scripture, Tradition and Church: An Historical Survey”, Vox
Evangelica, Volume IX – 1975, pp. 44, 45 – bold emphasis mine.)
[http://www.biblicalstudies.org.uk/pdf/vox/vol09/scripture_lane.pdf]




 
And this one thing at least is certain; whatever history teaches, whatever it
omits, whatever it exaggerates or extenuates, whatever it says and unsays, at
least the Christianity of history is not Protestantism. If ever there were a
safe truth, it is this…To be deep in history is to cease to be a Protestant. –
John Henry Newman


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