The early Church tried to use reason to fill gaps in their knowledge. Spirituality and eternity are difficult to grasp, and even Jesus didn't spell it all out for us. The concept of God's Son is interesting to think about. God is omnicient, and a Son would be half of that. But omnicience can't be divided, so God's Son would be as all-knowing as the Father. God's essence cannot be diluted; any offspring would be an equal copy, a co-God rather than a subordinate.

Okay, but then I struggle trying to grasp the seperate personalities of God and Jesus. If God has thoughts Jesus doesn't know, can Jesus have thoughts God cannot read? If they are equals, then yes- but this defies the concept of omnicience.

In the end, we're left not knowing exactly how this stuff works.

Partly down the ages it has been because Europeans are dumbass pagans. Sorry, but that part is true, and it polluted the Church to this very day with ridiculous nonsense like prayers to saints and third degree relics (where something is magical because it touched something that had touched another thing that a saint touched one time). That being stated I think that it was a much more difficult concept for people to grasp what essentially was meant by an avatar of God.

I think that it is honestly much easier for you to become a Christian and stay a Christian if you spend a lot of time reading and learning about other philosophical and religious beliefs, for like a lamp in the darkness if such a belief were a lie, then it only highlights the brilliance of The Truth even stronger. I think many fell away simply because they weren't well equipped to believe or understand the central apparent contradictions, mysteries, or allegories of the faith and were typically surrounded by foolish people who understood little better themselves. I think that when you go out and learn as much as possible from other religions it is easier to strengthen faith in your own, and people afraid of this are just afraid their own poor understanding and interpretation is fallible enough people can dispute it enough to lose faith. It's much easier to believe if you've read the Bhagavad Gita, and understand certain things atheists like attacking such as dual natures.

>>50738
It's actually the greatest mystery of christianity and the biggest debate of the church of the early days. What is the relation between the Father and the Son but also the holy spirit. All the geat disagreements (and not political disagreement like in the protestant reformation) are about this.
For some ther was only God and jesus and thus refuted the existence of the holy spirit. Some said jesus was a direct incarnatation of god thus refuting his humane nature. I like the mainstream catholic take on the holy nature of God, expaining that ther is only one god but incarnated by three diffferent entities who were not sames but all being god at the same time. God has created man in his own image. Jesus was man and God. The paradox is a proof of allmightyness and the source of the adoration.

t.atheist

It mostly was constructed over time as theologists dealed with what to make of Father, Son, Holy Spirit and their relation to God.
I'm not aware if there was any practical or somewhat logical need for this development. To me it seems more likely that the trinity became the dominant view in a more profane way, such as followers of theologist teaching it simply gaining power within the church.

>In 321, Arius was denounced by a synod at Alexandria for teaching a heterodox view of the relationship of Jesus to God the Father. Because Arius and his followers had great influence in the schools of Alexandria—counterparts to modern universities or seminaries—their theological views spread, especially in the eastern Mediterranean. By 325, the controversy had become significant enough that the Emperor Constantine called an assembly of bishops, the First Council of Nicaea, which condemned Arius's doctrine and formulated the original Nicene Creed of 325.

Also, learned something new:

>According to legendary accounts, debate became so heated that at one point, Arius was struck in the face by Nicholas of Myra, who would later be canonized.

Lol, Santa Claus was pretty rowdy.

Alright time for some explaining on my end. Jesus is God the son, God is God the father and then the final one is God the holy spirit. Now to identify these three we simply have to use scripture to understand. I will be approaching this from the trinitarian perspective because I think it both aligns significantly with the bible and it makes my position stronger. The truth of the matter is that Jesus is God in the flesh
1 John 4:2
"Hereby know ye the Spirit of God: Every spirit that confesseth that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is of God:"
Moreover denying this means that you are considered an antichrist in the Eyes of God
1 John 4:3
"And every spirit that confesseth not that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is not of God: and this is that spirit of antichrist, whereof ye have heard that it should come; and even now already is it in the world."
So clearly Jesus is Godly in some form or fashion, Now this is where it becomes interesting, God the father is a spirit. That means that he is incorporeal and never changing. The gospels back this up.
John 4:24
"God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth."
This explains why God the father has more authority and power than Jesus because the spirit is stronger and thus more able than the flesh is, Hence why Jesus is considered the Son of God. Now it's time to go back... All the way to Genesis 1 where God makes man within his image.
Genesis 1:26
"And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth."
Now this is much more important than it initially seems. Because we know the three main components that makes man.
1)The material
2)The mental
3)The astral
Or in other words The physical, The conscious and the sub conscious. With the power of deduction since Jesus is the physical form of God and the conscious is most likely God the father then the holy spirit is probably the sub conscious of God. And since man is made in God's image then it is reasonable to conclude that God has a similar structure to man. In other words all 3 are 1 yet distinct.

>>50733
In retrospect I realize I misinterpreted Matt 19:17. Jesus doesn't deny that he's God, rather he's even hinting to it...