Sabellius
Encyclopedia
Sabellius was a third century priest
and theologian who most likely taught in Rome, but may have been an African from Libya. Basil and others call him a Libyan from Pentapolis, but this seems to rest on the fact that Pentapolis was a place where the teachings of Sabellius thrived, according to Dionysius of Alexandria, c. 260. What is known of Sabellius is drawn mostly from the polemical writings of his opponents.
. Sabellius' opposition to the emerging idea of the Trinity led to his excommunication
as a heretic
by Pope Calixtus I (Callistus) in AD 220. Wace and Bunsen have both suggested that Calixtus' action was motivated more by a desire for unity rather than by conviction.
and Modalistic Monarchianism
. The suggestion of development and change within the Godhead was seen as contradicting the concept of impassibility
. It also stood in contrast to the position of distinct persons existing within a single godhead by representing Father, Son and Spirit as different “modes” (hence the term "modalism"), “aspects” or “faces”, "masks" (persona
in Latin) that God presented successively to the world. More importantly it stood against the Trinitarian teaching that "God was one God in Father" rather than One in the Father's essence only.
It has been noted also that the Greek term "homoousian
", which Athanasius of Alexandria
favored, was actually a term reported to be put forth and favored also by Sabellius, and was a term that many followers of Athanasius were uneasy about. Their objection to the term "homoousian" was that it was considered to be un-Scriptural, suspicious, and "of a Sabellian tendency." This was because Sabellius also considered the Father and the Son to be "one substance." Meaning that, to Sabellius, the Father and Son were "one essential Person."
, Sabellius used the sun’s characteristics as an analogy of God’s nature. Just as the sun has "three powers" (warmth, light, and circular form), so God has three aspects: the warming power answers to the Holy Spirit; the illuminating power, to the Son; and the form or figure, to the Father.
in North Africa and Hippolytus in Rome, who both proposed an hierarchical trinity of subordinate persons. Tertullian gave Sabellius' doctrine the name Patripassianism
, meaning ‘the father suffered’, since Sabellius made no true distinction of persons between the Father and the Son. This is a distortion of Sabellius' teaching according to Clissold, who quotes scholars who have appealed to Epiphanius' writings. Epiphanius (died 403) says that in his time Sabellians were still numerous in Mesopotamia and Rome - a fact confirmed by an inscription discovered at Rome in 1742, evidently erected by Sabellian Christians.
al Modalism as purportedly taught by Sabellius.
However it cannot be certain whether Sabellius taught a dispensational Modalism or taught what is known today as the Oneness Pentecostal Theology since all we have of his teaching comes through the writing of his enemies. All of his original works were burned. For example the outrageous doctrines that were purportedly believed by the Templars have recently been shown to be falsifications. The following excerpts demonstrate some of the known doctrinal characteristics of ancient Sabellians which may compare with the doctrines in the modern Oneness movement.
Sabellianism was doctrine adhered to by a sect of the Montanists
. The Montanists are the same sect that Tertullian
himself later converted. Cyprian wrote of them "How, when God the Father is not known-nay, is even blasphemed-can they who among the heretics are said to be baptized in the name of Christ only, be judged to have obtained the remission of sins?" In 225AD Hippolytus spoke of them saying "Some of them assent to the heresy of the Noetians
, affirming the Father Himself is the Son." Victorinus had this to say of them "Some had doubts about the baptism of those who appeared to recognize the same Father with the Son with us, yet who received the new prophets."
It is reported that Sabellians experienced glossolalia and baptized in the "shorter formula" because of their denial of the Trinity. Sabellians were referred to by the following Church fathers: Dionysius (c.200-265 AD) wrote "Those baptized in the name of three persons...though baptized by heretics..shall not be rebaptized. But those converted from other heresies shall be perfected by the baptism of the Holy Church." "Sabellius...blasphemes in saying that the Son Himself is the Father and vice versa." "Jesus commands them to baptize into the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit-not into a unipersonal God." Yet, when we notice the verse prior to Matthew 28:19, we see that all authority in heaven and on earth is given to Jesus the Messiah.
Sabellianism teaching of Modalism and singular name baptism was also accompanied by glossolalia and prophecy among the above mentioned sect of Montanists, which of course is scriptural.(Acts 2:4,8,10,19) We also see this in the Old Testament when the spirit is moved upon Saul.(1 Sam.10:10,11;1 Sam.19:19-24) In 225 AD Tertullian
speaks of "those who would deserve the excellent gifts of the spirit-and who...by means of the Holy Spirit would obtain the gift of language, wisdom, and knowledge." However, none of these practices were the source of controversy concerning the Sabellians - - it was simply their Christology which proved most offensive. In any case, unlike many others deemed as heretics, the Sabellians were never excommunicated from the Church at large. One hundred years later, the Deacon Arius
would compare Bishop Alexander to Sabellius, in effect accusing Alexander and Athanasius of reviving an old heresy.
Priest
A priest is a person authorized to perform the sacred rites of a religion, especially as a mediatory agent between humans and deities. They also have the authority or power to administer religious rites; in particular, rites of sacrifice to, and propitiation of, a deity or deities...
and theologian who most likely taught in Rome, but may have been an African from Libya. Basil and others call him a Libyan from Pentapolis, but this seems to rest on the fact that Pentapolis was a place where the teachings of Sabellius thrived, according to Dionysius of Alexandria, c. 260. What is known of Sabellius is drawn mostly from the polemical writings of his opponents.
History
The Catholic Encyclopedia "New Advent" writes: It is true that it is easy to suppose Tertullian and Hippolytus to have misrepresented the opinions of their opponents, but it cannot be proved that Cleomenes was not a follower of the heretical Noetus, and that Sabellius did not issue from his school; further, it is not obvious that Tertullian would attack Callistus under a nickname.". Sabellius' opposition to the emerging idea of the Trinity led to his excommunication
Excommunication
Excommunication is a religious censure used to deprive, suspend or limit membership in a religious community. The word means putting [someone] out of communion. In some religions, excommunication includes spiritual condemnation of the member or group...
as a heretic
Heresy
Heresy is a controversial or novel change to a system of beliefs, especially a religion, that conflicts with established dogma. It is distinct from apostasy, which is the formal denunciation of one's religion, principles or cause, and blasphemy, which is irreverence toward religion...
by Pope Calixtus I (Callistus) in AD 220. Wace and Bunsen have both suggested that Calixtus' action was motivated more by a desire for unity rather than by conviction.
Theology
Sabellius taught that God was indivisible, with Father, Son, and Holy Spirit being three modes or manifestations of one divine Person. A Sabellian modalist would say that the One God successively revealed Himself to man throughout time as the Father in Creation; the Son in Redemption; and the Spirit in Sanctification and Regeneration. (Because of this focus on God's revelation of himself to man, Modalism is often confused with Economic Trinitarianism).Modalism
This understanding has been called SabellianismSabellianism
In Christianity, Sabellianism, is the nontrinitarian belief that the Heavenly Father, Resurrected Son and Holy Spirit are different modes or aspects of one God, as perceived by the believer, rather than three distinct persons in God Himself.The term Sabellianism comes from...
and Modalistic Monarchianism
Monarchianism
Monarchianism is a set of beliefs that emphasize God as being one person. The term was given to Christians who upheld the "monarchy" of God against the Logos theology of Justin Martyr and apologists who had spoken of Jesus as a second divine person begotten by God the Father before the creation of...
. The suggestion of development and change within the Godhead was seen as contradicting the concept of impassibility
Impassibility
Impassibility describes the theological doctrine that God does not experience pain or pleasure from the actions of another being. It has often been seen as a consequence of divine aseity, the idea that God is absolutely independent of any other being, i.e., in no way causally dependent...
. It also stood in contrast to the position of distinct persons existing within a single godhead by representing Father, Son and Spirit as different “modes” (hence the term "modalism"), “aspects” or “faces”, "masks" (persona
Persona
A persona, in the word's everyday usage, is a social role or a character played by an actor. The word is derived from Latin, where it originally referred to a theatrical mask. The Latin word probably derived from the Etruscan word "phersu", with the same meaning, and that from the Greek πρόσωπον...
in Latin) that God presented successively to the world. More importantly it stood against the Trinitarian teaching that "God was one God in Father" rather than One in the Father's essence only.
It has been noted also that the Greek term "homoousian
Homoousian
Homoousian is a technical theological term used in discussion of the Christian understanding of God as Trinity. The Nicene Creed describes Jesus as being homooúsios with God the Father — that is, they are of the "same substance" and are equally God...
", which Athanasius of Alexandria
Athanasius of Alexandria
Athanasius of Alexandria [b. ca. – d. 2 May 373] is also given the titles St. Athanasius the Great, St. Athanasius I of Alexandria, St Athanasius the Confessor and St Athanasius the Apostolic. He was the 20th bishop of Alexandria. His long episcopate lasted 45 years Athanasius of Alexandria [b....
favored, was actually a term reported to be put forth and favored also by Sabellius, and was a term that many followers of Athanasius were uneasy about. Their objection to the term "homoousian" was that it was considered to be un-Scriptural, suspicious, and "of a Sabellian tendency." This was because Sabellius also considered the Father and the Son to be "one substance." Meaning that, to Sabellius, the Father and Son were "one essential Person."
Persona
According to Epiphanius of SalamisEpiphanius of Salamis
Epiphanius of Salamis was bishop of Salamis at the end of the 4th century. He is considered a saint and a Church Father by both the Eastern Orthodox and Catholic Churches. He gained a reputation as a strong defender of orthodoxy...
, Sabellius used the sun’s characteristics as an analogy of God’s nature. Just as the sun has "three powers" (warmth, light, and circular form), so God has three aspects: the warming power answers to the Holy Spirit; the illuminating power, to the Son; and the form or figure, to the Father.
God in essence
Von Mosheim thus described Sabellius' views: But while Sabellius maintained that there was but one divine person, he still believed the distinction of Father, Son and Holy Spirit, described in the Scriptures, to be a real distinction, and not a mere appellative or nominal one. That is, he believed the one divine person whom he recognized, to have three distinct forms, which are really different, and which should not be confounded.Non-Trinitarian
The Teachings of Sabellius were most vigorously opposed by TertullianTertullian
Quintus Septimius Florens Tertullianus, anglicised as Tertullian , was a prolific early Christian author from Carthage in the Roman province of Africa. He is the first Christian author to produce an extensive corpus of Latin Christian literature. He also was a notable early Christian apologist and...
in North Africa and Hippolytus in Rome, who both proposed an hierarchical trinity of subordinate persons. Tertullian gave Sabellius' doctrine the name Patripassianism
Patripassianism
In Christian theology, patripassianism is the view that God the Father suffers . Its adherents believe that God the Father was incarnate and suffered on the cross and that whatever happened to the Son happened to the Father and so the Father co-suffered with the human Jesus on the cross...
, meaning ‘the father suffered’, since Sabellius made no true distinction of persons between the Father and the Son. This is a distortion of Sabellius' teaching according to Clissold, who quotes scholars who have appealed to Epiphanius' writings. Epiphanius (died 403) says that in his time Sabellians were still numerous in Mesopotamia and Rome - a fact confirmed by an inscription discovered at Rome in 1742, evidently erected by Sabellian Christians.
Modern Movements
Although there are some doctrinal characteristics shared by a modern group called Oneness Pentecostals with those of Sabellius, the former do not teach the doctrine of DispensationDispensation (period)
In certain religions, a dispensation is a distinctive arrangement or period in history that forms the framework through which God relates to mankind.-Protestant dispensations:...
al Modalism as purportedly taught by Sabellius.
However it cannot be certain whether Sabellius taught a dispensational Modalism or taught what is known today as the Oneness Pentecostal Theology since all we have of his teaching comes through the writing of his enemies. All of his original works were burned. For example the outrageous doctrines that were purportedly believed by the Templars have recently been shown to be falsifications. The following excerpts demonstrate some of the known doctrinal characteristics of ancient Sabellians which may compare with the doctrines in the modern Oneness movement.
Sabellianism was doctrine adhered to by a sect of the Montanists
Montanism
Montanism was an early Christian movement of the late 2nd century, later referred to by the name of its founder, Montanus, but originally known by its adherents as the New Prophecy...
. The Montanists are the same sect that Tertullian
Tertullian
Quintus Septimius Florens Tertullianus, anglicised as Tertullian , was a prolific early Christian author from Carthage in the Roman province of Africa. He is the first Christian author to produce an extensive corpus of Latin Christian literature. He also was a notable early Christian apologist and...
himself later converted. Cyprian wrote of them "How, when God the Father is not known-nay, is even blasphemed-can they who among the heretics are said to be baptized in the name of Christ only, be judged to have obtained the remission of sins?" In 225AD Hippolytus spoke of them saying "Some of them assent to the heresy of the Noetians
Noetus
Noetus, a presbyter of the church of Asia Minor about AD 230, was a native of Smyrna, where he became a prominent representative of the particular type of Christology now called modalistic monarchianism or patripassianism....
, affirming the Father Himself is the Son." Victorinus had this to say of them "Some had doubts about the baptism of those who appeared to recognize the same Father with the Son with us, yet who received the new prophets."
It is reported that Sabellians experienced glossolalia and baptized in the "shorter formula" because of their denial of the Trinity. Sabellians were referred to by the following Church fathers: Dionysius (c.200-265 AD) wrote "Those baptized in the name of three persons...though baptized by heretics..shall not be rebaptized. But those converted from other heresies shall be perfected by the baptism of the Holy Church." "Sabellius...blasphemes in saying that the Son Himself is the Father and vice versa." "Jesus commands them to baptize into the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit-not into a unipersonal God." Yet, when we notice the verse prior to Matthew 28:19, we see that all authority in heaven and on earth is given to Jesus the Messiah.
Sabellianism teaching of Modalism and singular name baptism was also accompanied by glossolalia and prophecy among the above mentioned sect of Montanists, which of course is scriptural.(Acts 2:4,8,10,19) We also see this in the Old Testament when the spirit is moved upon Saul.(1 Sam.10:10,11;1 Sam.19:19-24) In 225 AD Tertullian
Tertullian
Quintus Septimius Florens Tertullianus, anglicised as Tertullian , was a prolific early Christian author from Carthage in the Roman province of Africa. He is the first Christian author to produce an extensive corpus of Latin Christian literature. He also was a notable early Christian apologist and...
speaks of "those who would deserve the excellent gifts of the spirit-and who...by means of the Holy Spirit would obtain the gift of language, wisdom, and knowledge." However, none of these practices were the source of controversy concerning the Sabellians - - it was simply their Christology which proved most offensive. In any case, unlike many others deemed as heretics, the Sabellians were never excommunicated from the Church at large. One hundred years later, the Deacon Arius
Arius
Arius was a Christian presbyter in Alexandria, Egypt of Libyan origins. His teachings about the nature of the Godhead, which emphasized the Father's divinity over the Son , and his opposition to the Athanasian or Trinitarian Christology, made him a controversial figure in the First Council of...
would compare Bishop Alexander to Sabellius, in effect accusing Alexander and Athanasius of reviving an old heresy.
See also
- For the Patriarch of AlexandriaPatriarch of AlexandriaThe Patriarch of Alexandria is the Archbishop of Alexandria and Cairo, Egypt. Historically, this office has included the designation of Pope , and did so earlier than that of the Bishop of Rome...
, see Avilius of AlexandriaAvilius of AlexandriaPope Avilius of Alexandria , also known as Sabellius, Milius or Melyos served as the third Patriarch of Alexandria between 83 and 95.He was enthroned during the reign of the Roman Emperor Titus Flavius Domitianus.In the Church Historyof Eusebius...
. - SabellianismSabellianismIn Christianity, Sabellianism, is the nontrinitarian belief that the Heavenly Father, Resurrected Son and Holy Spirit are different modes or aspects of one God, as perceived by the believer, rather than three distinct persons in God Himself.The term Sabellianism comes from...
- Oneness PentecostalOneness PentecostalOneness Pentecostalism refers to a grouping of denominations and believers within Pentecostal Christianity, all of whom subscribe to the nontrinitarian theological doctrine of Oneness...
- Subordinationist
External links
- The Theories of Sabellius and Paul of Samosata, Compendium of the History of Doctrines, pp262-265
- Barnett, D., History of the Doctrine Concerning the Nature of God in the Early Centuries of Christianity: Sabellius (part 8)
- Bernard, D. K., Oneness Believers in Church History, The Oneness of God (chapter 10)
- Tillich, P., The History of Christian Thought (Lecture 12): Monarchianism. Sabellius. The Arian Controversy. Nicaea.
- Tertullian, Against Praxeas c.213 AD
- Views of Sabellius, The Biblical Repository and Classical Review, American Biblical Repository