Fundamental Belief #2: There is one God: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, a unity of three co-eternal Persons. God is immortal, all-powerful, all-knowing, above all, and ever present. He is infinite and beyond human comprehension, yet known through His self-revelation. He is forever worthy of worship, adoration, and service by the whole creation.
Discussing the Seventh-day Adventist doctrine of the Trinity is a challenging endeavor. Plenty of Adventist laypeople and pastors believe in an orthodox view of the Trinity. The language of the Fundamental Belief allows an orthodox understanding of the Trinity. But this also serves as an excellent introduction into what is necessary to unpack Adventist doctrinal statements. While the doctrinal statement allows for an orthodox view of the Trinity, it is missing key elements that would require that view. It is carefully formulated in a manner that allows for a range of views on the doctrine of the Godhead, some of which could be considered blatantly anti-Trinitarian.
Like we will see in many of the Adventist doctrines, it is just as important to look for what isn’t included in the doctrinal statement and supporting church materials, as it is to look at what is specifically included. Furthermore, it is important to know the Adventist language. Words and phrases used within Adventism may take on unique meanings and connotations that an outsider would never recognize. As a result, it requires someone with experience being an Adventist to catch all of the less obvious aspects of the doctrinal statements. At the same time, Adventist apologists quickly dismiss any doctrinal critiques by those of us who left as being biased by having our feelings hurt by church members.
Are Adventists tritheistic rather than truly Trinitarian? I think the most accurate response is “both”.
Are Adventists tritheistic rather than truly Trinitarian? I think the most accurate response is “both”. Unfortunately, the Adventist church, and her apologists, attempt to gloss this over and group both teachings under the term “Trinity”.
This is misleading. The term Trinity has a very specific meaning within Christianity. The word was created by the Christian Church to describe a specific belief. Trinity comes from the Latin word trinitas and it means “three in one”. The creation of the word “Trinity” is linked to the theological understanding of the Christian Church when forming the word. The orthodox Christian belief, then and now, is that while God exists as three distinct persons, God is still One Being. Seventh-day Adventists do not use this definition of the word.
Dr. Jerry Moon, perhaps the foremost Adventist scholar on this subject, describes the Trinity in this way: “Unlike the multiple gods of polytheism, the three persons of the biblical Godhead are profoundly ’one in purpose, in mind, in character, but not in person.’ Thus, despite their individuality, they are never divided, never in conflict, and thus constitute not three gods, but one God.”1
The quote within this statement is directly from Ellen White—and demonstrates, parenthetically, that she is being used to define doctrine. Moon develops his thesis that the traditional Christian Trinity is not biblical; rather, Ellen White’s “heavenly trio” is the correct doctrine.
Arian roots
Adventists admit that most of their founders were not trinitarian. Dr Moon states, “From about 1846 to 1888, the majority of Adventists rejected the concept of the Trinity”2 In 1855, J. N. Andrews, the namesake for the university that houses the Adventist theological seminary, wrote, “The doctrine of the Trinity… was established in the church by the council of Nice, A. D. 325. This doctrine destroys the personality of God, and his Son Jesus Christ our Lord. The infamous measures by which it was forced upon the church which appear upon the pages of ecclesiastical history might well cause every believer in that doctrine to blush.”3 James White plainly expressed that he did not believe that Jesus was co-eternal with the Father: “…the old unscriptural trinitarian creed, viz., that Jesus is the eternal God.”4 As late as the 1919 Bible Conference L. L. Caviness stated “It (divine glory) was not something he (Jesus) had all through eternity, but the Father had some time given to him the glory of God. He is divine, but he is the divine Son. I cannot explain further than that, but I cannot believe the so called Trinitarian doctrine of the three persons always existing.”5
Ongoing heresy
Today, Jerry Moon endorses at least part of the Adventist founders’ view: “Since the traditional doctrine of the Trinity clearly contained unscriptural elements, they rejected it.”6
Because of these early Arian views and because of Ellen White’s conclusion that the Trinity is a “heavenly trio” (as examined in Moon’s paper), Adventists have concluded that the view that Christ is “co-eternal with the Father” and “equal to the Father” without asserting the three Persons are of the same substance is Trinitarianism.
The most recent Adventist Hymnal, published in 1985, includes hymns that have been re-written to remove references to the Trinity.7 The Bible paraphrase published by the Adventist church publishing house rewords a number of passages related to the Trinity.8 Respected Adventist theologians continue to proclaim the orthodox doctrine of the Trinity as unbiblical.9
This Adventist trinity is not the Christian doctrine of the Trinity. Instead, it redefines “Trinity” to fit the legacy of its founders and Ellen White’s pronouncement.
The Adventist church cannot honestly refer to itself as Trinitarian.
Why this matters
One could be tempted to conclude that this is merely an academic debate unnecessarily parsing details of the language that have no real impact. I will contend that there are at least two key impacts that we must consider from this Fundamental Belief.
First, our understanding of the nature of God influences a host of other doctrines. It certainly impacts Adventist understanding of Christ’s incarnate nature, His time in the grave, and even His miracles. It influences Adventist doctrine on the fall of Satan and their understanding of eschatology (because of their belief that Jesus is the archangel Michael). It allows Adventists to claim that Muslims are worshipping the same God, since the Trinity can be separated such that one is only worshipping the Father (and concluding that the Father and Allah are the same). It isn’t unreasonable to conclude that those who reject or redefine the Triune God are, in reality, worshipping a different god from those who accept the Triune God.
But, one of the key criteria that the Christian community uses in defining cults, as opposed to merely a church with serious errors in the teaching, is whether the group believes in the Trinity.
I’m even more interested in the second key impact. This one can only be evaluated by making some assumptions regarding why the Adventist church would attempt to present their view under the term “Trinity”. The could easily use the term Ellen White used (Heavenly Trio) or even the biblical term “Godhead”, and it is unlikely that members would object. But, one of the key criteria that the Christian community uses in defining cults, as opposed to merely a church with serious errors in the teaching, is whether the group believes in the Trinity. Jehovah Witnesses and Mormons are clear that they don’t believe the Trinity doctrine and both are consistently classified as cults. Being considered a cult means that churches are far more likely to warn people examining or considering joining those groups. If a Methodist is looking at becoming a Baptist, the level of concern by their loved ones is relatively low. But if they are leaving to become a Mormon, that concern is likely much higher. The Adventist church considers it their duty and calling to bring people out of other churches and into their own. If they can limit barriers to this conversion, it makes their mission easier to accomplish.
The Adventist church has a long history of being willing to engage in small deceptions in order to achieve their larger goals. This is most evident in the typical evangelistic seminars they hold. They are generally held in public locations rather than Adventist churches. No reference to the sponsoring church is provided. If asked, the question will be artfully redirected into something like “we are a Bible-believing group of Christian”, avoiding direct mention of the church affiliation. Part way through each series, there is an “unexpected” problem with the public venue and the local Adventist church will graciously volunteer their space. Overall, there is a mindset that the end result of converting people to the truth justifies the misdirection (outright lies). I believe that this Fundamental Belief is carefully crafted in a manner that helps Adventism avoid the cult label, while also allowing those Adventists teaching a different view on the nature of God to fall within the bounds of the belief statement.
Endnotes
- www.atsjats.org/publication_file.php?pub_id=241&journal=1&type=pdf
- Moon, Jerry, “The Quest for a Biblical Trinity: Ellen White’s “Heavenly Trio” Compared to the Traditional Doctrine” www.atsjats.org/publication_file.php?pub_id=241&journal=1&type=pdf
- March 6, 1855, Review & Herald, vol. 6, no. 24, page 185.
- The Day-Star, January 24, 1846, 25.
- 1919 Bible Conference and Teachers Council Minutes, www.swordofelijah.org/english/1919BibleConference.pdf
- Moon, ibid.
- Tinker, Colleen and Richard; Pitcher, Stephen, “Tell Me The Old, Old Story”, Proclamation! Jan/Feb., 2005, p. 8. www.lifeassuranceministries.org
- Pitcher, Stephen, “Is This Word Clear?”, Proclamation! Jan/Feb., 2009, p. 6. www.lifeassuranceministries.org
- www.cultorchristian.com/Adventistadmissions.html
- Our Journey Out of Adventism - July 27, 2023
- 30. Adventism’s New Earth - July 27, 2023
- 29. The Adventist Millennium - July 20, 2023