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Binitarianism is aChristian theology of two persons, personas, or aspects in one substance/Divinity (or God). Classically, binitarianism is understood as a form ofmonotheism—that is, that God is absolutely one being—and yet with binitarianism there is a "twoness" in God, which means one God family. The other common forms of monotheism are "unitarianism", a belief in one God with one person, and "trinitarianism", a belief in one God with three persons.
Larry W. Hurtado ofUniversity of Edinburgh uses the word "binitarian" to describe the position ofearly Christian devotion to God, which ascribes to the Son (Jesus) an exaltedness that inJudaism would be reserved for God alone, while still affirming as in Judaism thatGod is one and is alone to be worshiped. He writes:
...there are a fairly consistent linkage and subordination of Jesus to God 'the Father' in these circles, evident even in the Christian texts from the latter decades of the 1st century that are commonly regarded as a very 'high' Christology, such as the Gospel of John and Revelation. This is why I referred to this Jesus-devotion as a 'binitarian' form of monotheism: there are two distinguishable figures (God and Jesus), but they are posited in a relation to each other that seems intended to avoid the ditheism of two gods.[1]
Hurtado does not describe binitarianism as antithetical toNicene Christianity but rather as an indication that Christians before theFirst Council of Nicaea were monotheistic (as evidenced by their singular reference to the Father as God), yet also devoted to Jesus aspre-existent, co-eternal, thecreator, embodying the power of God, by whom the Father is revealed, and in whosename alone the Father is worshiped. He writes, “The central place given to Jesus ... and ... their concern to avoid ditheism by reverencing Jesus rather consistently with reference to 'the Father', combine to shape the proto-orthodox 'binitarian' pattern of devotion. Jesus truly is reverenced as divine.”[1]: 618
Hurtado's view might be interpreted as urging that, at this stage in the development of the Church's understanding, it could be said that God is a person (the Father) andone being; and that Jesus is distinct from the Father, was pre-existent with God, and also originating from God without becoming a being separate from him, so that he is God (the Son). This view of abinitarian pattern of devotion would posit a unity of God's being and a oneness of the object of worship, which is sympathetic to its predecessor view in Judaism; and it also displays a plurality of simultaneous identities, which is sympathetic to its successor in trinitarianism. It is a development in understanding of Christ, in other words, from which arose several subsequent ones in the further course of development that eventually came into conflict with one another.
Before Hurtado's influential work, one classic scholarly theory of binitarianism was that the Holy Spirit was seen as in some sense identical to the Son or uniquely embodied in him. TheShepherd of Hermas, among other sources, is cited to support the theory. Near the end of Parable Five, for example, an angel declares:
The preexistent Holy Spirit, which created the whole creation, God caused to live in the flesh that he wished. This flesh, therefore, in which the Holy Spirit lived served the Spirit well, living in holiness and purity, without defiling the Spirit in any way. ... [I]t had lived honorably and chastely, and had worked with the Spirit and cooperated with it in everything.
The classic theory of Christian binitarian theology (assumed by most dictionary definitions) asserts that some early Christians conceived of the Spirit as going out from God the creator, and is the creator: a person of God's being, which also lived in Jesus (or, from other sources, appears to be thought of as Jesus's pre-existent, divine nature). This view further asserts that the same Spirit is given to men, making them a new creation and sharers in the same hope of resurrection and exaltation. This interpretation of early Christian belief is often cited in contrast to trinitarianism. However, trinitarians cite the same sources as examples of pre-Nicene Christian monotheism, which is not orthodoxy but "proto-orthodox"—that is, one of several versions among Christians which explain monotheism as a plurality (Father, Son, Spirit) in one being, prior to orthodoxy's settlement in Christianity.
By the time of theArian controversy, some bishops defended a kind of “dual” conception of deity, which is sometimes called “Semi-Arian”.Macedonianism (thePneumatomachi) typifies this view, which some prefer to call "binitarian" as at that time the Semi-Arians were the main binitarians. None of the Semi-Arian views were strictly monotheistic (one being). All asserted that the God who speaks and theWord who creates are two beings similar to one another, of similar substance (homoiousia [ὁμοιούσία]), and denied that they are one and the same being, or two persons of the same substance (homoousia [ὁμοούσία]) in which two are distinguished, as Nicaea eventually held.
Many Church of God binitarians (seebelow) believe theirChristology perspective most accurately reflects that of the "original" Jewish Christians. Certain scholars have noted that "earliest Christian worship specifies two figures, God and Jesus, as recipients"[2] and that earlyrabbis considered early Christianity to be binitarian.[3]
After the 325 Council of Nicaea defeatedArianism, theCouncil of Constantinople was called in 381 to attempt to deal with binitarians, who were referred to as “Semi-Arians”. However, as the Trinity was finalized at this time as official Christian doctrine, the offended Semi-Arians walked out. “They rejected the Arian view that Christ was created and had a different nature from God (anomoios [ἀνόμοιος]—dissimilar), but neither did they accept the Nicene Creed which stated that Christ was 'of one substance (homoousios [ὁμοούσιος]) with the Father'. Semi-Arians taught that Christ was similar (homoios [ὅμοιος]) to the Father, or of like substance (homoiousios [ὁμοιούσίος]), but still subordinate.”[4]
In the mid-4th century, orthodox apologistEpiphanius of Salamis noted, “Semi-Arians ... hold the truly orthodox view of the Son, that he was forever with the Father ... but has been begotten without beginning and not in time ... But all of these blaspheme the Holy Spirit, and do not count him in the Godhead with the Father and the Son.”[5]
AfterEllen White gained influence in the American Adventist movement, in 1858 the binitarianChurch of God (Seventh Day) was founded in theUnited States Midwestern states ofMichigan andIowa having split from those Adventists, who in 1863 founded theSeventh-day Adventist Church. Later, in 1897, White herself published a pamphlet declaring the Holy Spirit “the third person of the Godhead”.Andrews University, an Adventist institution for higher learning, suggests that the Seventh-day Adventists were inclined towards binitarianism before this, which Gerhard Pfandl terms “Semi-Arian.”[4]
By the latter half of the 19th century, binitarianism was held by a relatively small group of church denominations. At present, it is a theology essentially held only by some 7th Day Church of God groups. The largest denominations that appear to hold a binitarian view today are:
Thesabbatarian churches of God persist in their worship of Jesus and the Father; insisting that, in their worship of the “plural” God, “Elohim” (Gods), as multiple, separate, and individual God-beings of which only the Father and Son are now very God, they are practicing monotheism in the sense that “Elohim” is one family unit. Adherents of these churches believe they will eventually be born into that family as children of God at aresurrection of the dead at theSecond Coming of Christ. They also believe that others will follow as children of God after Christ rules on Earth and teaches the correct way to live and follow him. These same groups insist certain human beings may eventually be gifted with all the attributes of the Father and Jesus. These humans who may enter the “God family” are currently only those found to be attending the congregations that openly support “pluralism”, but after Jesus's return salvation shall be offered to all during theGreat White Throne Judgment, which is a form ofuniversal reconciliation. God's plural identification inGenesis as “Elohim”, as the Father and the Word orLogos (John 1:1–18) who became the Son of God, the firstborn of many brethren, leaves room for untold numbers to be added to God's family. This binitarian view posits that humanity eventually will have access to become members of God's family in their own right each with the power of the Holy Spirit, however, not equal to Father or Son. As part of the binitarian view it is also believed that, as theBible states, the Fatheris greater than Jesus.[6]
Semi-Arian binitarians do not believe that Jesus “was truly human and truly God”, which is the position held bytrinitarians. They believe that Jesus was God (the Word) prior to HisIncarnation, that He became fully human (finite) yet he was not fully God during the pre-resurrection incarnation as He did not have the powers etc. of God then, and that all authority was restored to Him (as well as his infinite God-status) at or shortly after the resurrection. They make three major claims to support that position:
In other words, Semi-Arian binitarians believe that in the flesh Jesus was not who He was prior to His Incarnation (God the Word), not what He was (i.e. not fully God with all authority) since His resurrection. He was God, then he was not fully God, then he was God again.
Trinitarians teach that the Holy Spirit is another person like the Son, who comes from God without becoming a separate being from him (Matthew 28:19–20;John 16:5–7;Acts 1:8, 2:4). Most binitarians teach that theHoly Spirit is essentially the power, activity, and presence of God (Psalm 51:11, Luke 1:35, Luke 11:20/Matthew 12:28), with no distinct identity within God, and not a separate person as they conceive the Son to be (Matthew 11:27, 1 John 1:3). For example, in its Official Statement of Fundamental Beliefs, the binitarianLiving Church of God states, “The Holy Spirit is the very essence, the mind, life and power of God. It is not a Being. The Spirit is inherent in the Father and the Son, and emanates from Them throughout the entire universe (1 Kings 8:27;Psalm 139:7;Jeremiah 23:24). It was through the Spirit that God created all things (Genesis 1:1–2;Revelation 4:11). It is the power by which Christ maintains the universe (Hebrews 1:2–3). It is given to all who repent of their sins and are baptized (Acts 2:38–39) and is the power (Acts 1:8;2 Timothy 1:6–7) by which all believers may be 'overcomers' (Romans 8:37 (KJV); Revelation 2:26–27) and will be led to eternal life.”
Scripture mentions prayer to the Father, and to the Son, but the Holy Spirit is never prayed to nor worshiped in the Bible; in Revelation, there is praise to the “One who sits upon the throne” (God), “and to theLamb” (Jesus), but the Spirit is not mentioned; modern binitarians conclude that this is because the Holy Spirit is not a distinct person, but the mind, character, power, and active presence of God.
Binitarians believe that statements from early Christian leaders such asMelito of Sardis andPolycarp of Smyrna were binitarian, though most mainstream scholars do not accept this assertion. Binitarians point out, for example, while both call the Father and Son “God” not only do neither refer to the Holy Spirit as God, Melito'sOration on Our Lord’s Passion suggests that the Holy Spirit is simply the power of God in action.[8] Binitarians have noted that Paul honors the Father and the Son towards the beginning of every book he wrote, but never does so for the Holy Spirit. Trinitarians seeRomans 1:4 “And declared to be the Son of God with power, according to the spirit of holiness, by the resurrection from the dead:”,Ephesians 1:13 "In whom ye also trusted, after that ye heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation: in whom also after that ye believed, ye were sealed with that Holy Spirit of promise”,1 Thessalonians 1:5–6 “For our gospel came not unto you in word only, but also in power, and in the Holy Ghost (cor. gk.pneuma, air, breath, breeze, Spirit), and in much assurance; as ye know what manner of men we were among you for your sake. And ye became followers of us, and of the Lord, having received the word in much affliction, with joy of the Holy Ghost (cor. Spirit):” and1 Timothy 1:14 "And the grace of our Lord was exceeding abundant with faith and love which is in Christ Jesus.” as exceptions.
By not considering that the Holy Spirit is a person of God, or God's mind, some binitarians were also called thePneumatomachi, as a subset of Semi-Arians.
Binitarians from groups originating in theEarly Church believe that the teaching fromRomans 8:29 about Jesus being “the firstborn among many brethren” demonstrates thatChristians will be in the Family called “God”. The view that God is a Family that Christians can expect to be born into is not widely held within groups that professChristianity. By contrast, Trinitarians believe that by being united with Christ, Christians become participants in the Son's communion with the Father; they become sons by adoption and brothers to Christ, and “sharers in the divine nature” (although Eastern Orthodox Christians qualify this participation as being in God's communicable energies, not his transcendent essence). This contrasting, majority view has been thoroughly developed in the Catholic, Trinitarian tradition inherited by most Protestants.
For example, the TrinitarianEastern Orthodox Church teaches that Christians will by grace become so entirely conformed to the will, purpose, and character ofGod, that they will be gods by the grace of God, but not on the same level of the Uncreated God.Timothy Ware, an Eastern Orthodox theologian, wrote: “St. Athanasius summed up the purpose of the Incarnation by saying, 'God became human that we might be made God'...we are God's 'offspring' (or generation) (Acts xvii, 28), His kin ... we will become 'like' God, we will acquire divine likeness; In the words ofJohn Damascene ... To acquire the likeness is to be deified, it is to become a 'second god', a god by grace'. 'I said, ye are gods, and all of ye children of the Most High' (Psalm lxxxi, 6; cf John x, 34–35) ... Such, according to the teaching of the Orthodox Church, is the final goal at which every Christian must attain: to become like God, to obtaintheosis, 'deification' or 'divinization'. For Orthodoxy, human salvation and redemption mean something close to, but not the same as, deification...deification is not something reserved for a select few initiates, but is something intended for all alike, but only in the sense of attainment of heavenly attributes. The Orthodox Church believes this is the normal goal of every Christian without exception. Certainly we shall only be deified on theLast Day; but for each of us the process of divinization must begin here and now in this present life."[9]Western Christians generally avoid the terminology of deification, divinization, or theosis, while not necessarily rejecting analogous concepts of sanctification or glorification, which are often expressed with different theological emphases.
Modern binitarians strongly agree with these Eastern Orthodox statements concerning deification, as they understand them. However, in Eastern Orthodoxy, theosis is profoundly linked to a Trinitarian understanding of God, laying special emphasis on the Holy Spirit as containing and communicating the fullness of God. In Eastern Orthodox theology, to deny that the Holy Spiriteternally proceeds from the Father alone and to instead assert procession from both the Father and the Son, as thefilioque states, is seen as compromising the Monarchy of the Father and risking a subordination of the Holy Spirit. TheRoman Church accepted and urged adoption of thefilioque, which formed a key theological rationale for theGreat Schism with the Eastern Orthodox in 1054. The Orthodox urge thatfilioque statements must be rejected because the theological understanding of the Spirit is directly attached to consequent notions of what the unity of God is and what salvation means. In addition, the Orthodox view of theosis only allows humans to be united with God in his "energies" (his communicable, uncreated operations), but never with God's "essence" (his unknowable, transcendent being).
Some binitarians look forward to their hope of being deified and deny that the trinitarian orChalcedonian doctrines uniquely assert anything necessary to a godly faith. Nevertheless, as they do not see the strict monotheism or the trinitarianism of Eastern Orthodoxy as contributing anything essential, these binitarians see themselves as closer to the Eastern Orthodox view than to the concepts of sanctification or divinization found in Western (Augustinian) Christianity, or the Mormon views of deification, as they understand these doctrines.
TheOriental Orthodox position is the same as the Eastern Orthodox position; however, they do not accept the wording of the Chalcedonian Creed.
