Chapter Two Nicea: History versus Imagination

As against Biblical Christianity, all other religions seek to impose an idea on history and to realize it, or to make it real. Humanism holds to a faith in man, in brotherhood and equality. The real world and history give no evidence of anything trustworthy in man, nor any evidence of brotherhood and equality. It is the purpose of humanism to achieve these goals and to convert history to them. The essence of Islam is a political order, and the purpose of Moslems is properly the achievement of this “rule of God” in and through a political order. The role of Mohammed was religious precisely because it was political to the core, and non-Christian religions are primarily political and are derived from the concept of a divine political order, an order which is itself the source of morality and religion.

The essence of religion in non-Biblical faiths

In all non-Biblical faiths, the essence of religion is the attempt of man’s imagination to impose a pattern or ideal upon history. There is, as a result, a marked hostility towards history. History as it comes from the hand of God has a pre-ordained meaning and direction, and it moves to a purpose neither decreed by man nor conducive to man’s sin. As a result, man is in revolt against history. Man pits against history the imagination of his fallen heart.

Gnosticism

A major example of this war against history is Gnosticism. Gnosticism attempted to destroy the enemy, Biblical Christianity, from within. It offered a place to Christ in its systems, but only to negate Christ. The Gnostics taught three Gods: the Absolute, who revealed himself by means of Christ, the Demiurge, the maker of the world, and the world itself. The significance of this “trinity” is readily apparent: the Absolute and the Demiurge are opposites which negate one another, so that the world, or, more properly man, stands forth as the one true god. No exclusive divinity was allowed to Jesus; instead, His deity was made a deity common to all men ideally.

Arianism

Another example of opposition to Biblical Christianity comes from Arianism, which denied the full deity of Christ and sought to interpret Christianity in philosophical terms. It sought to eliminate the exclusivity of Jesus as the only way to salvation and promoted the idea that someone else more like God might appear, making Christianity only one of many possible religions. Arianism was a popular faith with rulers, as it made possible the continuation of the pagan exaltation of the state as the divine-human order and politics as the way of salvation.

The Council of Nicea

The Council of Nicea, held in A. D. 325, was an important event that LED to the triumph of orthodoxy over Arianism. The Creed formulated at Nicea affirmed the full deity of Christ and eliminated lingering elements of subordinationism. It declared the Trinity as one God, three persons, with no subordination of one person to another in substance or being, but only in terms of economy or operation. The council’s victory had tremendous importance and was a bloodless intellectual victory over a dangerous error.

Conclusion

In conclusion, the battle between Biblical Christianity and opposing religions and heresies has been ongoing throughout history. The triumph of orthodoxy at the Council of Nicea was a significant victory for the Christian faith, reaffirming the full deity of Christ and the unity of the Trinity. It is important to understand the historical context and theological significance of these events in order to appreciate the impact they had on the development of Christian doctrine.

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