Justin Martyr (c. 100 - c. 165) in a dialogue with the Jew Trypho says:
And later in the same dialogue with Trypho Justin again relates the words of Wisdom, the pre-existent Son of God,
A saying of Justin Martyr indicates what lack of clarity there was with regard to the development of the doctrine of the Trinity as late as the middle of the second century .... He admits that Christians indeed reject the false pagan gods, but, he goes on to say, they do not deny the true God, who is the Father of justice and chastity and of all other virtues, and who will have nothing to do with that which is evil. He then says, 'Both him {The Father, God alone} and the Son who came forth from Him and taught us these things, and the host of other good angels who follow and are made like to Him, and the prophetic Spirit, we worship and adore, because we honor {them?} in reason and truth.' As if it were not enough that in this enumeration angels are mentioned as beings which are honored and worshiped {but see the WORSHIP study} by Christians, Justin does not hesitate to mention angels before naming the Holy Spirit. The sequence in which the beings that are worshiped are mentioned (God the Father, Christ, the {OTHER} angels, the Spirit) is noteworthy. - pp. 43, 44, A Short History of Christian Doctrine, Lohse (trinitarian), Fortress Press, 1985.
Respected church historian, Robert M. Grant (trinitarian), likewise notes concerning the above:
Notice how worship (or 'obeisance') is given to the Son "and the host of other good angels." Again Justin Martyr calls the Son, the Word, an angel! - See the REAPS study.
Trinitarian scholar Dr. H. R. Boer tells us that the very first Christians to really discuss Jesus' relationship with God in their writings were the Apologists,
"The modern popular doctrine of the Trinity ... derives no support from the language of Justin [Martyr]" - Alvan Lamson, The Church of the First Three Centuries.
Justin Martyr's 'Apology' and 'Dialogue {With Trypho}' "are preserved but in a single ms (Cod. Paris, 450, A.D. 1364)" - Britannica, 14th ed.
Irenaeus
(c. 140-203 A.D.)
The trinitarian New Bible Dictionary teaches us: "Irenaeus and Origen share with Tertullian the responsibility for the formulation [of the trinity doctrine] which is still, in the main, that of the Church ...." - p. 1222, Tyndale House Publ., 1982. Since most trinitarian historians give the blame to these three writers for beginning the development of Christendom's trinity doctrine, let's examine them first.
Trinitarian scholar H. R. Boer writes:
Boer then quotes Irenaeus:
And noted trinitarian scholar Robert M. Grant tells us the following:
Trinitarian Grant admits that Irenaeus agrees with Justin Martyr in his statement showing there is no other God than the Creator and that it is not Jesus! Justin (and Irenaeus) certainly would never say that they would "not have believed" Jesus under any circumstances if they really believed he was equally God with the Father!
Yes, Irenaeus actually teaches the following concerning the Christian doctrine of God and Jesus:
* * * *
"... neither the prophets, nor the apostles, nor the Lord Christ in His own person, did acknowledge any other Lord or God, but the God and Lord supreme .... the Lord Himself handing down to His disciples, that He, the Father, is the only God and Lord, who alone is God and ruler of all; it is incumbent on us to follow ... their testimonies to this effect." (ANF, 1:422, 'Against Heresies')
* * * *
"Such, then, are the first principles of the Gospel: that there is one God, the Maker of this universe; He who was also announced by the prophets ... which proclaim the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, and ignore any other God or Father except Him." (ANF, 1:428, 'Against Heresies')
* * * *
"And that the whole range of the doctrine of the Apostles proclaimed one and the same God ... That He was the Maker of all things, that He was the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, that He was the God of glory, - they who wish may learn from the very words and acts of the Apostles, and may contemplate the fact that God is one, above whom is no other." (ANF, 1:434, 'Against Heresies')
* * * *
"Those, therefore, who delivered up their souls to death for Christ's Gospel .... To the Jews {who already knew the one true God of the Bible, Jehovah, the Father}, indeed, [they proclaimed] that the Jesus who was crucified by them was the Son of God, the Judge of quick and dead, and that He has received from His Father an eternal kingdom in Israel, as I have pointed out; but to the Greeks {who did NOT yet know the one true God of the Bible} they preached one God who made all things, and, Jesus Christ His Son." (ANF, 1:435, 'Against Heresies') Material within special brackets { } supplied by me.
* * * *
Notice that Ireneaus, above, teaches us that the very first Christians did not teach a new understanding of God to the Jews. Why? Because they already knew the God of the Bible was the Father. But to the Greeks, who did not know the God of the Bible, they also had to teach that the one God is the Father!
* * * *
"If, for instance, anyone asks, 'what was God doing before He made the world?' we reply that the answer to such a question .... remains with God, and it is not proper for us to aim at bringing forward foolish, rash, and blasphemous suppositions [in reply to it] .... For consider all ye who invent such opinions, since the Father Himself is alone called God ... since, moreover, the Scriptures acknowledge Him alone as God" - (ANF, 1:400, 'Against Heresies')
* * * *
"... no one is termed God by the Apostles when speaking for themselves, except Him who truly is God, the Father of our Lord." - (ANF, 1:553, 'Against Heresies')
* * * *
"In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth," and all other things in succession; .... Now, that this God is the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, Paul the apostle also has declared, [saying] "There is one God, the Father, who is above all {Eph. 4:6; cf. 1 Cor. 8:6}, ..." - (ANF, 1:362)
* * * *
"It is easy to prove from the very words of the Lord [Jesus], that he acknowledges one Father and Creator of the world, and Fashioner of man ... and that this One is God over all" - (ANF, 1:370)
Like most, if not all, Ante-Nicene Fathers Irenaeus taught that "Wisdom" speaking at Prov. 8:22-30 is the pre-incarnate Jesus Christ, the Word. In fact, the very trinitarian writers of ANF admit also:
Here, then, is what Irenaeus taught about the Son of God, Wisdom, the Word, speaking at Prov. 8:22-25:
Only fragments of manuscripts containing the original Greek remain. Irenaeus' "Against Heresies" exists today in full only in a single Latin translation from the original Greek language. It is thus not surprising that trinitarian-supporting "evidence" may be found in the single trinitarian-recopied, trinitarian-translated, trinitarian-redefined manuscript available today. But certainly this respected early Christian writer whom today's trinitarian scholars "credit" with the very "formulation" of the trinity doctrine would not have made the many clear non-trinitarian statements recorded above if he had really believed in or taught a trinity (or "Binity")! Obviously the many trinitarians who handled (and mishandled) Irenaeus¡¯ writing down through the centuries could (and did) change some non-trinitarian thoughts into trinitarian thoughts.
* But they would certainly never change trinitarian thoughts into non-trinitarian thoughts. Therefore, those many non-trinitarian concepts still remaining must be Irenaeus' original teaching (as a study of the very first Creeds of this time also proves)!
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*
The very trinitarian translators of ANF wrote in their Introductory Note to Irenaeus' Against Heresies: "The text [of Against Heresies] ... is often most uncertain. .... After the text has been settled according to the best judgment [trinitarian, of course] which can be formed, the work of translation remains; and that is, in this case, a matter of no small difficulty. Irenaeus, even in the original Greek, is often a very obscure writer. .... And the Latin version adds to these difficulties of the original, by being itself of the most barbarous character. In fact, it is often necessary to make a conjectural retranslation [trinitarian, of course] into Greek, in order to have some inkling of what the author wrote. .... We have endeavoured to give as close and accurate a translation of the work as possible, but there are not a few passages in which a guess [trinitarian, of course] can only be made as to the probable meaning." - ANF 1:311-312. Obviously, if a trinitarian, even a scrupulously honest trinitarian, makes a "conjectural retranslation" or a "guess ... as to the probable meaning," it will be a trinitarian guess or "conjectural retranslation"!
But notice what Irenaeus himself wrote about such contrivances:
And, as already noted:
Origen
(c. 185-254 A. D.)
Again, as we saw above, the trinitarian New Bible Dictionary teaches:
Not only do most trinitarian scholars credit Origen as being one of the co-founders of Christendom's trinity doctrine, but most historians also credit him for his great scholarship, intellect, and Christian integrity.
Origen, the greatest and most influential Christian thinker of his age, whose work won him the grudging respect even of such a radically anti-Christian philosopher as the Neoplatonist Porphyry. - p. 89, A History of the Christian Church, Williston Walker, Scribners, 1985.
Origen was the greatest scholar of his age, and the most learned and genial of all the ante-Nicene fathers ['the greatest divine and one of the noblest characters of his age' - The Creeds of Christendom, Vol. II, p. 21]." - Prof. Philip Schaff, History of the Christian Church, I, p. 54.
Origen was probably the most accomplished Biblical scholar produced by the early Church - p. 6346, Vol. 17, Universal Standard Encyclopedia (Funk and Wagnalls), 1956.
The character of Origen is singularly pure and noble; for his moral qualities are as remarkable as his intellectual gifts. - The Ante-Nicene Fathers, p. 229, Vol. IV, Eerdmans.
Origen was a great scholar as well as a great theologian. .... His work on the words of Scripture has a value quite independently of his theological views. Some of the most important qualifications of the worthy interpreter of Scripture he possesses in a supreme degree. His knowledge of Scripture is extraordinary both for its range and its minute accuracy. He had no concordance to help him; but he was himself a concordance. Whatever word occurs he is able to bring from every part of Scripture the passages in which it is used. .... a knowledge of all parts of the Bible as is probably without parallel. It has to be added that he is strong in grammar, and has a true eye for the real meaning of his text; the discussions in which he does this often leave nothing to be desired. - p. 293, Vol. 10, The Ante-Nicene Fathers, Eerdmans, 1990 printing.
Yes, even respected trinitarian scholars admit not only the stellar scholarship and knowledge of Origen, but also his outstanding moral qualities and pure character. This man simply would not lie nor distort.
Origen actually taught:
Origen believed that
Ardent trinitarian Murray J. Harris likewise admits:
The trinitarian The Encyclopedia of Religion says:
a god."! - ANF, 10:323. (The earliest existing Manuscript for Origen's Commentary on John appears to be from the 13th century.)
Remember, this man is not only the best expert on NT Greek, but his great honesty and Christian character were not questioned even by his severest opponents!
Trinitarian Latourette also says that "Origen held that God is one, and is the Father" - p. 49, Christianity Through the Ages, Harper ChapelBook, 1965.
Trinitarian Bernhard Lohse also concedes that Origen taught
For example, Origen writes:
Yes, Origen calls the Son of God a created angel, the highest of the angels, the Angel of God. He calls Jesus, the Word:
These creatures were also called gods (in a proper, scriptural sense but clearly subordinate to God himself - see the BOWGOD or 'God and gods' study papers)! - ANF, 10:323.
Like Irenaeus (and most, if not all, Ante-Nicene Fathers), Origen considered "Wisdom" speaking at Prov. 8:22-30 to be Christ, the Son of God. He wrote:
'The Lord {"Jehovah" in the ancient Hebrew Old Testament manuscripts} created me {Wisdom, 'the only-begotten Son of God'} - the beginning {see Rev. 3:14} of His ways, and among His works, before He made any other thing; He founded me before the ages. In the beginning, before He formed the earth, before He brought forth the fountains of waters, before the mountains were made strong, before all the hills, He brought me forth.' {Prov. 8:22-25}
He is also styled First-born, as the apostle has declared: 'who is the first-born of every creature.' {Col. 1:15} - ANF 4:246, 'De Principiis'.
So once again we find clear non-trinitarian statements in Origen's writings.
It's obviously not unexpected that the trinitarian re-copyists, translators, and re-definers would have caused original non-trinitarian statements to now read as trinitarian statements,
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