Bible Conference 2015 Gil Valentine Pioneers and AntiTrinitarian Beginnings Connectionist Roots Trinity was unscriptural Believed in one living and true God who is unoriginated independent and eternal Christ was not ID: 467099
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Slide1
The Doctrine of the Trinity in the Seventh-day Adventist Church
Bible Conference, 2015Gil Valentine
.Slide2
Pioneers and Anti-Trinitarian BeginningsSlide3
Connectionist Roots
Trinity was “unscriptural”Believed in “one living and true God, . . . who is un-originated, independent, and eternal”. Christ was not.Holy Spirit - “the power and energy of God . . . holy influence”
Joshua V. Himes,
Encyclopedia of Religious Knowledge (1835) 363
Slide4
Sabbatarian Anti-Trinitarians
James WhiteJoseph BatesJ.N. AndrewsM.E. Cornell
J.H. Waggoner
J.N.
Loughborough
Uriah Smith
A.C.
Bourdeau
D.T. Bourdeau R.F. Cottrell A.T. Jones W.W. Prescott
“Did all the Fathers sin?”
(
A. W. Spalding to L. E.
Froom
, 1947)Slide5
Sabbatarian Pioneers - I
James White“old unscriptural trinitarian creed” (1846)
“the old
trinitarian
absurdity that Jesus Christ is the very and Eternal God” (1852)
“inexplicable trinity” (1877)
16
th
C reformers should have continued to reform and included Trinity in cleanup (1856)Slide6
Sabbatarian Pioneers - 2
John N Andrews“the Son of God . . . At some point in the eternity of the past” had a “beginning of days.” (1869) Christ’s immortality was “derived” (1874)
M E Cornell
“a fruit of the great apostasy”Slide7
Sabbatarian Pioneers - 3
Uriah Smith – semi-Arian“first created being . . .before any other created being” (1865)“God alone” is “without beginning”. (1898)
Christ appeared due to “some divine impulse or process.” (1898)Slide8
Fundamental Beliefs (1980)
2. The Trinity There is one God: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, a unity of three co-eternal persons.4. The Son
God the Eternal Son . . . Forever truly God . . .
5. The Holy Spirit
God the Eternal Spirit . . . He . . .Slide9
Students of the Development
Erwin Gane (1963)Russell Holt (1969)LeRoy Froom (1971)Merlin Burt (1996)Woodrow Whidden (1998)
Jerry Moon (2003)Slide10
Ellen White
An Episcopalian Methodist Articles of Religion 1: Of
Faith in the Holy Trinity.
“There is but one living and true God . . . And in unity of this God-head, there are three persons of one substance, power, and eternity;—the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost.”
The Doctrines and Discipline of the Methodist Episcopal Church in America ~ (1798) (Thomas Coke and Francis Asbury) Slide11
Ellen White’s Difficulty
“There is but one living and true God, everlasting, without body or parts, . . . And in unity of this God-head, there are three persons of one substance, power, and eternity;— Father, Son, and Holy Ghost.”
(Articles of Religion 1: Of Faith in the Holy Trinity).Slide12
Reasons for Rejecting Trinity
Spiritualized God too much – made God “unreal”How could “immortal” God die on Cross and still be immortal?Slide13
More Reasons . . .
Thought the Trinity made the Father and the Son identical.Misconception that “Trinity” means the existence of three Gods.“Son” of God means more recent origin for ‘Son.”Slide14
The Ambiguous Ellen White
Troubled by “without body or parts.” Anti-creedal.No explicit anti- or semi-trinitarian
statements.Slide15
The Ambiguous Ellen White
No traditional trinitarian expressions.No “trinity.”No “unity of the God-head.”
Statements can be read either way.Slide16
EGW Godhead Terminology
The three great powers of heaven.Three living persons of the heavenly trio.Three holy dignitaries of heaven.(Evangelism 616)Slide17
Our Question
Why and How did things change?In stages.Slide18
Gil’s View of the Stages
Dominant Anti-T: 1846-1888
A paradigm shift at the core: 1888 -1898
Widening Realignments: 1898-1913/14
Slow Decline of Anti-T 1913-46
Dominance of
Trinitarianism
1946-80Slide19
1888 - A Watershed
“A Paradigm Shift” Jesus at the Center of Adventist TheologyNot law!Slide20
The “Paradigm Shift”
How? Who?
When?Slide21
How ?
Ellen White?
or ?Slide22
A Story of How and Why
18881893
Adventist Preaching meets JesusSlide23
The Letters . . .
L. E. Froom & A. W. Spalding ask
H. Camden Lacey
(1945 & 1947)
Corroborated by W. W. Prescott, A. G.
Daniells
& W. C. White
(1893 – 1897)Slide24
1895 Developments
Prescott travels to Australia. Assignment: A year-long SS lesson series – to begin 3rd Qtr 1996.
Studies Gospel of John.Slide25
1895 Developments
Prescott reads NeanderPreaches gospel-centered sermons in MelbourneSlide26
Apologetics and Christology
Semi-
arianism
offends.
SDAs perceived as “cult.”Slide27
1895 Developments
Workers Meetings - MelbourneStudy of Holy SpiritSlide28
1896 Developments
Two strands of development converge.Melbourne to CooranbongAn “Institute” – March/April 1896Slide29
1896 Developments
Literary ProjectDifficulties with “The Life of Christ”Prescott to read “critically”Slide30
Change Agents
Cooranbong
1896Slide31
Clearer Views of Jesus
“It was Christ who from the bush on Mount Horeb spoke to Moses saying, "I AM THAT I AM. . . . Thus
shalt
thou say unto the children of Israel, I AM hath sent me unto you." Ex. 3:14. This was the pledge of Israel's deliverance.
So when He came "in the likeness of men," He declared Himself the I AM
. . . .Slide32
Clearer Views of Jesus
And to us He says: "I AM the Good Shepherd." "I AM the living Bread." "I AM the Way, the Truth, and the Life." "All power is given unto Me in heaven and in earth." John 10:11; 6:51; 14:6; Matt. 28:18. I AM the assurance of every promise. I AM; be not afraid. "God with us" is the surety of our deliverance from sin, the assurance of our power to obey the law of heaven.” (DA 24.3)Slide33
Clearer Views of Jesus “Jesus declared, "I am the resurrection, and the life."
In Christ is life, original, unborrowed, underived. "He that hath the Son hath life." 1 John 5:12. The divinity of Christ is the believer's assurance of eternal life.”
(DA 530)Slide34
John Cumming
Sabbath Evening Readings on the New Testament: St John
(1854).
Cumming was minister of a Church of Scotland congregation in Convent Garden, London.
Published approximately 180 books during his lifetime. One of the most virulent anti-catholic preachers of his day.Slide35
Clearer Views of Jesus
1898Slide36
Andrew Murray
The Spirit of Christ (1888)Slide37
Andrew Murray
“It is generally admitted in the Church that the Holy Spirit has not the recognition which becomes Him as being the equal of the Father and the Son, the Divine Person through whom alone the Father and the Son can be truly possessed and known . . .”
The Spirit of Christ
p 20Slide38
The Spirit as “Person”Institute Bible Studies
(March/April 1896)“Holy Spirit in our Schools.”EGW first time in print uses “He”(May 10, 1896)Slide39
Clearer Views of the Spirit
“The prince of the power of evil can only be held in check by the power of God in the third person of the Godhead, the Holy Spirit.”Special Testimonies for Ministers and Workers
, 25, 37(1897). Slide40
Clearer Views of the Spirit
“The mighty agency of the Third Person of the Godhead, who would come with no modified energy, but in the fullness of divine power.”
Desire of Ages
. 671 (1898)Slide41
Clearer Views of the Spirit
“We need to realize that the Holy Spirit who is as much a person as God is a person, is walking through these grounds.” [Avondale]
(MS 66 1899.) Slide42
Implementing a New Consensus
New Summary of BeliefsF. M. Wilcox – 1913 - InclusiveRevising the books – 1914-15Bible Readings
Thoughts on Daniel/RevelationSlide43
Implementing a New Consensus
Theology and Adventist Hymnody1941 Hymnbook: No 73: “Holy Holy Holy” but no “Trinity”
No 45 “The Sun is on the Land and Sea”
last stanza “All Glory to the Trinity”Slide44
Implementing a New Consensus
Theology and Adventist Hymnody1985 Hymnbook: No 73: “H, H, H,” with “Blessed Trinity”
Six others on
theme
of Triune GodSlide45
The Processes of Change
Encounters with God – love and graceClearer views of JesusApologeticsStudy of ScriptureInadequacy of previous explanations
Change AgentsSlide46
Clearer Views of Jesus
Enriched our understanding of GodEnlarged our horizons of missionAre still the need of the churchSlide47
EndSlide48
Sources
Jerry Moon. “The Adventist Trinity Debate, Part 1: Historical Overview” (AUSS [41:1] Spring 2003, 113-129); and “The Adventist Trinity Debate, Part 2: The Role of Ellen G. White” (AUSS [41:2] Autumn 2003, 275-292).
W. Whidden, J. Moon, J.W. Reeve.
The Trinity: Understanding God’s love, His plan of salvation, and Christian relationships
(RHPA 2002), 190-231.
Gilbert Valentine. “A slice of history: How clearer views of Jesus developed in the Adventist Church”
Ministry
, May 2005, 14-19
Gilbert Valentine
W. W. Prescott (RHPA, 2005) 119-124; 277-284.Merlin Burt, “Demise of Semi-Arianism and Anti-Trinitarianism in Adventist Theology, 1888-1957.” Unpublished Paper, Andrews University Research Center (1996)Correspondence: H Camden Lacey to L. E. Froom, 1945, H Camden Lacey to A. W. Spalding, 1947. General Conference Archives.George Knight, Search for Identity, (RHPA, 2000) 17-32, 110-117, 152-154, 196Slide49
2nd Gen Adventists
E. J. WaggonerChrist in position of equality with Father but there was a time when he “proceeded forth” from the father. (1890)Slide50
Stages in Development
Dominant Anti-T: 1846-1888Dissatisfaction with Anti-T: 1888 -1898
Paradigm shift: 1898-1915
Decline of Anti-T: 1913-46
Dominance of
Trinitarianism
1946-80
Jerry Moon