A Brief Sketch of the Life of Athanasius
Athanasius, in his life, was one of the men God used most effectively to combat a heresy now known as Arianism. In its day, Arianism was actually considered the “orthodox” view of the Trinity. Arius, who lived in the early fourth century, taught that Jesus was the Son of God who was begotten by the Father but not co-eternal with God the Father. In other words, Arius rejected the Trinity as we know it today. God used Athanasius as a chief Christian scholar to refute the false claims of Arianism. This view incorrectly made Christ subordinate to the Father. This is a view similarly held by cults such as Mormonism and Jehovah’s Witnesses today.
For Athanasius, this was not just a theological argument of words. Rather, he believed that salvation was at stake, for only one who was truly divine could have the power to save us. Athanasius famously said,
“Those who maintain ‘There was a time when the Son was not’ rob God of his Word, like plunderers.”
The theological division between Arius and Athanasius caused such argument between Christians of the day that the Emperor Constantine himself convened a counsel to settle the issue, the Council of Nicea. At that council by God’s grace, Arius was soundly defeated, and a proper understanding of the Trinity was laid down in the Nicene Creed. Arius was sent into exile and Athanasius was seen for a brief moment as something of a hero. But this sweet moment would not last.
A few years later, Arius was released from exile and Constantine ordered Athanasius to restore Arius into fellowship with the church. Athanasius refused. The enemies of Athanasius used this opportunity to spread false charges against him. They labeled him the “Black Dwarf,” a racist slur mocking his dark Egyptian skin his smaller stature. They accused him of murder, illegal taxation, sorcery, and treason. For this last false charge of treason, Constantine himself exiled Athanasius. Over the remaining days of his life, Athanasius would be exiled five separate times by various emperors, for his resolute conviction to stand upon the Word of God.
There is much to learn and draw strength from in the life of Athanasius. He was a young man who was willing to make many enemies by holding fast to the truth. He went against the spirit of the age by arguing for the divinity of Christ, and because his argument was true, it won the day and saved Christendom from centuries of false belief. He was mocked and ridiculed, but he persisted. He was persecuted, but he never gave up. What a champion of the Christian faith! What a remarkable man to draw strength from!
The Athanasian Creed
The Athanasian Creed, while uncertain as to whether Athanasius himself penned the words, is a creed that lays out in great detail the doctrine of the Trinity. It is a worthy creed for Christians today to return to over and over again to remind ourselves of the doctrine of our Savior.
Whoever desires to be saved should above all hold to the catholic faith.
Anyone who does not keep it whole and unbroken will doubtless perish eternally.
Now this is the catholic faith:
That we worship one God in trinity and the trinity in unity,
neither blending their persons
nor dividing their essence.
For the person of the Father is a distinct person,
the person of the Son is another,
and that of the Holy Spirit still another.
But the divinity of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit is one,
their glory equal, their majesty coeternal.
What quality the Father has, the Son has, and the Holy Spirit has.
The Father is uncreated,
the Son is uncreated,
the Holy Spirit is uncreated.
The Father is immeasurable,
the Son is immeasurable,
the Holy Spirit is immeasurable.
The Father is eternal,
the Son is eternal,
the Holy Spirit is eternal.
And yet there are not three eternal beings;
there is but one eternal being.
So too there are not three uncreated or immeasurable beings;
there is but one uncreated and immeasurable being.
Similarly, the Father is almighty,
the Son is almighty,
the Holy Spirit is almighty.
Yet there are not three almighty beings;
there is but one almighty being.
Thus the Father is God,
the Son is God,
the Holy Spirit is God.
Yet there are not three gods;
there is but one God.
Thus the Father is Lord,
the Son is Lord,
the Holy Spirit is Lord.
Yet there are not three lords;
there is but one Lord.
Just as Christian truth compels us
to confess each person individually
as both God and Lord,
so catholic religion forbids us
to say that there are three gods or lords.
The Father was neither made nor created nor begotten from anyone.
The Son was neither made nor created;
he was begotten from the Father alone.
The Holy Spirit was neither made nor created nor begotten;
he proceeds from the Father and the Son.
Accordingly there is one Father, not three fathers;
there is one Son, not three sons;
there is one Holy Spirit, not three holy spirits.
Nothing in this trinity is before or after,
nothing is greater or smaller;
in their entirety the three persons
are coeternal and coequal with each other.
So in everything, as was said earlier,
we must worship their trinity in their unity
and their unity in their trinity.
Anyone then who desires to be saved
should think thus about the trinity.
But it is necessary for eternal salvation
that one also believe in the incarnation
of our Lord Jesus Christ faithfully.
Now this is the true faith:
That we believe and confess
that our Lord Jesus Christ, God’s Son,
is both God and human, equally.
He is God from the essence of the Father,
begotten before time;
and he is human from the essence of his mother,
born in time;
completely God, completely human,
with a rational soul and human flesh;
equal to the Father as regards divinity,
less than the Father as regards humanity.
Although he is God and human,
yet Christ is not two, but one.
He is one, however,
not by his divinity being turned into flesh,
but by God’s taking humanity to himself.
He is one,
certainly not by the blending of his essence,
but by the unity of his person.
For just as one human is both rational soul and flesh,
so too the one Christ is both God and human.
He suffered for our salvation;
he descended to hell;
he arose from the dead;
he ascended to heaven;
he is seated at the Father’s right hand;
from there he will come to judge the living and the dead.
At his coming all people will arise bodily
and give an accounting of their own deeds.
Those who have done good will enter eternal life,
and those who have done evil will enter eternal fire.
This is the catholic faith:
one cannot be saved without believing it firmly and faithfully.
