Systematic Theology (Trinity)

Trinity

I love reading about Bible hero’s that I didn’t know existed, and I think this section of reading introduced me to a hero of the faith that not many Christians know about-Athanasius.  I was reading the section on Subordinationism and began to learn about him. Apparently he was the most influential leader in the formulation of the correct doctrine of the Trinity and he was only 29 yrs old. In fact, he wasn’t even a leader he was a secretary to Alexander, the Bishop of Alexandria. Yet, even though he was only a secretary the book says, “his keen mind and writing ability allowed him to have impt influence on the outcome of the Council, and he later became Bishop of Alexandria.” He also became the focus of attack by the Arians who for the rest of the 4^th century began to persecute him. He went through 5 exiles over 14 years during which time he was in hiding.  Grudem make a pretty astounding quote, “through his untiring efforts  almost single-handedly Athanasius saved the Church from pagan intellectualism.”  Then in the section on the importance on the doctrine of the Trinity it closes out the section stating that in the heart on the doctrine of the Trinity the Christian faith is at stake. Herman Bavinck says that “Athanasius understood better than any of his contemporaries that Christianity stands or falls with the confession of the deity of Christ and of the Trinity. In the confession of the Trinity throbs the heart of the Christian religion: every error results from, or upon deeper reflection may be traced to, a wrong view of this doctrine.” That’s a pretty incredible statement, and underlines the importance of the Trinity doctrine. Thank you, Athanasius.