Monarchianism

Monarchianism is an early Christian heresy that emerged in the 2nd and 3rd centuries AD and sought to uphold the oneness of God (the “monarchy” of the Father) at the expense of the distinct persons of the Trinity. Monarchianism took two primary forms: Modalistic Monarchianism and Adoptionistic Monarchianism. Both forms were attempts to safeguard monotheism but ultimately distorted the biblical teaching of the relationship between the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.

History of Monarchianism

Monarchianism arose during the early centuries of Christianity when the church was grappling with how to understand and articulate the relationship between the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. The word Monarchianism comes from the Greek monarchia, meaning "one principle" or "one rule," and its adherents sought to preserve the unity of God. However, in doing so, they denied either the distinct personhood of the Son and the Holy Spirit (in Modalism) or the full divinity of the Son (in Adoptionism). The early church eventually rejected both forms of Monarchianism as heretical.

1. Modalistic Monarchianism (also called Modalism or Sabellianism): Modalistic Monarchianism is the belief that God is one person who manifests Himself in different “modes” or forms—first as the Father, then as the Son, and later as the Holy Spirit. This view was defended by Sabellius (hence it is also called Sabellianism) in the 3rd century. Sabellius taught that God takes on different roles at different times, much like an actor changing masks to play different characters in a play. Modalistic Monarchianism denies the distinct persons of the Trinity and instead teaches that God is a single person who expresses Himself in different modes.

2. Adoptionistic Monarchianism (also called Dynamic Monarchianism): Adoptionistic Monarchianism teaches that Jesus was not eternally divine but was a mere man who was adopted by God as His Son, typically at His baptism. This view emphasizes that Jesus was born as an ordinary human being but was filled with divine power or “adopted” as God’s Son during His earthly ministry. One of the most famous proponents of Adoptionism was Theodotus of Byzantium in the late 2nd century. A later version of this heresy, held by Paul of Samosata, added that Jesus was a mere man until God’s “Word” or Logos came to dwell in Him, effectively denying the preexistence and divinity of the Son.

Both forms of Monarchianism arose as reactions to the Arian controversy and other Christological debates that questioned the nature of Christ and His relationship to the Father. Monarchians sought to uphold God’s oneness but in ways that undermined the orthodox doctrine of the Trinity.

Theology of Monarchianism

Monarchianism, in both its forms, is rooted in a desire to maintain the absolute oneness of God (as found in the Jewish tradition and emphasized in Deuteronomy 6:4: “Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God, the LORD is one”). However, in doing so, it compromised essential Christian doctrines about the nature of Christ and the Holy Spirit.

1. Modalistic Monarchianism (Modalism):

   • Denial of the Distinction of Persons: Modalistic Monarchianism teaches that the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit are not distinct persons but simply different manifestations or modes of the same divine person. Thus, God appears as the Father in creation, as the Son in redemption, and as the Holy Spirit in sanctification.
   • Patripassianism: A key problem with Modalism is that it leads to Patripassianism, the idea that the Father suffered on the cross, since Modalism teaches that the Father and the Son are not distinct persons. This was considered heretical because the New Testament clearly distinguishes between the Father and the Son.
   • Christology: In Modalistic thought, the distinction between the Father and the Son is blurred. For example, when Jesus prays to the Father, this is difficult to explain if there is no real distinction between them.

2. Adoptionistic Monarchianism (Dynamic Monarchianism):

   • Denial of the Eternal Sonship: Adoptionism teaches that Jesus was not divine by nature but was a man who was adopted as the Son of God at a certain point in His life, typically at His baptism or resurrection. This view undermines the orthodox teaching that Christ is the eternally begotten Son of the Father (John 1:1-3).
   • Christ as a Merely Human Messiah: In Adoptionism, Christ is not seen as divine in the same sense as the Father. He is viewed as a human who was given divine power or status. This makes Jesus a creature rather than the eternal, divine Word who became incarnate (John 1:14).
   • Rejection of Preexistence: Adoptionism denies the preexistence of Christ, teaching that He only became divine through adoption or empowerment by God, which is contrary to passages like John 1:1, which affirm that Jesus (the Word) existed eternally with God.

Why Monarchianism is Heretical

Monarchianism, in both its forms, was declared heretical by the early church because it distorted the biblical teaching on the nature of God and Christ's divinity. Key reasons for its heretical status include:

1. Denial of the Trinity: Both Modalistic and Adoptionistic Monarchianism deny the orthodox doctrine of the Trinity, which teaches that God is one in essence but exists in three distinct persons: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. The Nicene Creed (325 AD) and the Council of Constantinople (381 AD) affirmed that the Son is of the same essence (homoousios) as the Father and that the Holy Spirit is also divine and co-eternal with the Father and the Son. Monarchianism, by denying either the personhood of the Son and the Holy Spirit (Modalism) or the full divinity of Christ (Adoptionism), departs from this core teaching.

2. Misinterpretation of Scripture: Monarchianism, especially in its Modalistic form, struggles to account for passages in Scripture where the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit are clearly distinct and interact with one another. For example:

   • At Jesus’ baptism (Matthew 3:16-17), the Father speaks, the Son is baptized, and the Holy Spirit descends like a dove, showing a clear distinction between the three persons.
   • John 1:1 teaches that “the Word was with God, and the Word was God,” indicating both distinction and unity between the Son (the Word) and the Father.
   • John 14:16-17 teaches that Jesus asks the Father to send the Holy Spirit, again showing that the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit are distinct persons.

3. Undermining the Incarnation: In Adoptionism, Christ is not truly divine, but merely a man who was empowered by God. This denies the doctrine of the incarnation, which teaches that the eternal Word became flesh (John 1:14). Adoptionism thus rejects the full divinity of Christ and His eternal Sonship, which are essential to the gospel message of redemption.

4. Rejection by Church Fathers and Councils: Early church fathers like Tertullian, Hippolytus, and Athanasius vigorously opposed Monarchianism. Tertullian’s work Against Praxeas was directed against Modalistic Monarchianism, and Hippolytus opposed Sabellius for the same reason. Adoptionism was condemned by the Synod of Antioch (268 AD), which rejected the teachings of Paul of Samosata.

Historic Christian Orthodox View

The historic Christian orthodox view of God, as affirmed in the ecumenical councils and creeds, is the doctrine of the Trinity. This doctrine states that there is one God in three distinct persons: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. The three persons are co-equal and co-eternal, sharing the same divine essence but existing in personal distinctions. Key elements of this orthodox view include:

1. One Essence, Three Persons: The doctrine of the Trinity holds that the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit are distinct persons but share the same divine essence (John 1:1-3; Matthew 28:19). This avoids both the tritheism of dividing God into three separate gods and the Modalism of reducing God to a single person who manifests in different modes.

2. The Eternal Sonship of Christ: Historic orthodoxy teaches that Jesus Christ is the eternally begotten Son of the Father (John 1:14; Hebrews 1:2). He is not a created being or a mere human who was adopted into divinity, as in Adoptionism, but the preexistent and divine Son who took on human flesh for the salvation of the world.

3. The Holy Spirit as Fully Divine: The Holy Spirit is affirmed as fully divine and co-equal with the Father and the Son, proceeding from the Father and the Son (as affirmed in the Nicene-Constantinopolitan Creed). The Holy Spirit is not a mere mode of God’s manifestation but a distinct person who works in the world to apply the redemptive work of Christ (John 14:26).

4. Salvation as the Work of the Triune God: Orthodox Christianity teaches that the Father sent the Son to redeem humanity, and the Holy Spirit applies that redemption in the lives of believers. This understanding of salvation requires the real distinction of persons within the Godhead, as each person of the Trinity plays a unique role in the economy of salvation.

Conclusion

Monarchianism represents an early heretical attempt to uphold the oneness of God by either denying the distinct personhood of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit (Modalistic Monarchianism) or by denying the full divinity of the Son (Adoptionistic Monarchianism). Both forms of Monarchianism were rejected by the early church because they distorted the biblical teaching of the Trinity and the incarnation of Christ. The historic Christian orthodox view affirms that God is one in essence but exists as three distinct, co-equal, and co-eternal persons: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. This doctrine has been foundational to Christian theology since the early ecumenical councils and remains a central tenet of the faith today.