Hi guys and gals!I’m curious if anyone could recommend a theological work on Oneness Pentecostalism. I understand the teaching to be heretical, but I am curious to learn more about the alleged scriptural foundation, either in a Oneness work or a work against Oneness teaching. I have family associated with a Oneness Pentecostal church, and while I do not want to equip myself to lecture them, I would like to be better equipped for any conversation that might arise and give an opportunity to lovingly speak truth. I have been working through systematic works on the Trinity, and I consider study of the truth to be the foremost guard against error. Nevertheless, I am interested in becoming better informed about particular Oneness arguments. I also don’t want this thread to turn into a debate, so I would ask (as a poster, not an admin) that that be avoided if possible. I know we have at least one Oneness poster here and I consider him a brother.
Dr. Gregory Boyd, himself a former Oneness believer, has written a good response to them from his now ‘charismatic Baptist’ point of view. In my own fairly extensive (and generally friendly) experience with Oneness Pentecostals, I would have to say that it largely depends on the Oneness person you happen to be dealing with. Some are quite dogmatic and condemnatory of all trinitarians as ‘tritheists’ while others are accepting of the trinitarian view as a legitimate Christian position to hold.
John 17.Slam dunk________________Charles A. HutchinsSenior Pastor SPWCCongregational Church of Godwww.spwc.church
Read this for a theological perspective from a leading Oneness thinker:www.amazon.com/Oneness-God-Pentecostal-Theology-Vol/dp/0912315121/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1501897119&sr=1-1Read this for an historical account of the movement:www.amazon.com/Jesus-Name-History-Beliefs-Penecostals/dp/1905679017/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1501897224&sr=1-1
you have a way with words
Thanks. It’s (as in, it is
Why not read some of their writing instead of the interpretations of their critics, and then form your own opinions? I have found that both Oneness and Trinitarian apologists usually misrepresent each other. I’m not sure what makes the Oneness doctrine heretical in the minds of Trinitarians. Many Oneness adherents would not like me saying this but the Oneness doctrine really fits under the umbrella of Trinitarianism, at least the Trinitarian views that do not resemble the tritheism of Dake. Both views attempt to explain how this one being , a He, exists uniquely in a pluralistic way. The Oneness of God by David K. Bernard is a decent place to start________________
Ouch! In John 17Jesus refers to the Father as the one true God (verse 3). There is no good Trinitarian answer for this verse________________
Is because it denies the Trinity. Duh.
I know I said I didn’t want to start a debate. Forgive me!
I know I said I didn’t want to start a debate. Forgive me!But… this is only a problem verse if you are also going to deny the deity of Christ, and/or deny that He is of one nature with the Father. If the Father (or the only God, in this context) to whom Jesus is praying is the Only True God in a way that would make this verse problematic for Trinitarian believers, then the Jesus that God sent in the second part of verse 3 cannot be of one nature with the One who sent Him. Not if one understands that Jesus is the expressed image of the one true God. God is fully revealed and incarnate in his Son________________
Oh my. What you’ve said here underscores my previous statement that both Oneness and Trinity adherents often misrepresent each other. What you described above is not Oneness theology________________
You are being disingenuous if you say otherwise. I am not misrepresenting anything. This heresy was dividing the AG in 1915 (And it was the reason we established our 16 Tenents of Faith in 1918 to refute most of this modalism nonsense) And it has morphed into mumbo jumbo twisting of anti trinitarianism from the simple rebaptism in Jesus Name it started out as.If anyone is actually interested to know what Oneness doctrine (especially UPC) teaches read this scholarly treatise here: scriptoriumdaily.com/oneness-pentecostalism-an-analysis/
I have been in the Oneness ranks since 1993. You have not. I think I know better than you what is taught. If you say that we teach that Jesus was praying to himself, then you are either mislead or lying. You have made a charge without substantiating it. The charge you make can just as easily be made against Trinitarians. Trinitarians believe in one God. They don’t believe that the Father, Son and Spirit are three different Gods. Therefore, in the garden God was praying to himself, by your own standard.You cite a Oneness critic instead of doing any of your own research. Sad________________
I want to thank everyone for offering some excellent suggestions before this thread realized its ultimate and unavoidable destiny and became flamingly derailed.
God bless you, Dave. I think you will find as I did that the Oneness doctrine is really a form of Trinitarianism more than Modalism. I don’t think God is as nearly concerned with this as we are________________
. Methinks hijacking this thought was too easy. Since I live by what I was taught and feel, I still enjoyed the read. We do have some wise folk attached here. I cannot express my true feelings in words, but I am Glad the Lord knows my heart. I guess I will always be a Trinity type of guy! ________________Some facts but mostly just my [email protected]/