Quote:
Chaim
While history seems silent on "real" Trinitarians who lived between 80-380 ACE, there are some writings from even before that period that shows Jews never worshipped anything remotely resembling a Trinity, and were strict, radical monotheists.


1. As said before: the 'Trinity' is a doctrine formulated in the 4th century, as a result of the countermissionary efforts of the first christians against all kinds of heresies. So, of course explicit trinitarians you simply cannot and will not find. What you do find, in Jewish (the Tanach; the Targum; Philo); and christian texts (the NT; early churchfathers), is different ways of wording of the Divine:
God
the Word of God
the Wisdom of God
the Spirit of God
the Son of God

These expressions all are related to acting: an actor is presented. Of course the actor is the One God; to begin with God (1) who created the world, and the spirit (2) of God who "was hovering over the face of the water." And when God 'expressed' (3) Himself , by saying: "light", then there was light. Already in the first verses of the Tanach there 'the mystery of three' can be found.

2. At the link you gave (What Do We Mean by "First-Century Jewish Monotheism"? by L. W. Hurtado) it is said:

..."our policy should be to take people as monotheistic if that is how they describe themselves, in spite of what we might be inclined to regard at first as anomalies in their beliefs. Such "anomalies," I suggest in fact are extremely valuable data in shaping our understanding of monotheism out of the actual beliefs of actual people and traditions who describe themselves in monotheistic language."

If you study the actual beliefs/traditions/practices then Judaism is monotheism, in spite of giving other figures sometimes divine honor. These figures in practice are not worshipped.

Now Christianity defines itself also as monotheism: One God, that is basic. There is no second god called 'Jesus', nor a third god called 'Holy Ghost'. Trinity, as you seem to suggest all the time, does not mean a three-gods-religion, a tripple-god-family the Jews never knew.

The NT never says: Jesus is God, he himself never said it (" I 'm God"), it would be blasphemy; (though the CCC does say: Jesus is God, it is specificly explained as incarnation of the eternal Word of God).

Is there no difference between Judaism and Christianity then? Yes, there is. The Christ made a difference: he is revealed as the eternal Word of God in union with human nature: all of his humanity is expression of his divinity. He made it happen that a next step was made in the revelation of the nature of God. God the Father, the Word/Son and the Spirit are One God, but the three are Personal, three 'persons' (words fall short) in one Being (not three seperate gods). The Son is not created, but born, begotten from God the father "before all times", and the Spirit "came forth" from God the Father and the Son.

With Jesus man (human nature) entered rightfully the Divine Region: he is the first-born of mankind. He is the first of the Great Unification process of God and man: the goal of creation: the union of heaven and earth.

Christians do not worship a man, or a god "the Jews never knew of" but God who assumed mankind.

Aad