What is Arianism?

The Oxford Encyclopaedic English Dictionary: The principal heresy denying the divinity of Christ, named after its author Arius. Arianism maintained that the Son of God was not eternal but was created by the Father from nothing as an instrument for the creation of the world; the Son was therefore not coeternal with the Father, nor of the same substance. The heresy was condemned by the council of Nicaea in AD 325 and again at Constantinople in AD 381, but though driven from the empire it retained a foothold among Teutonic tribes until the conversion of the Franks to Catholicism (AD 496). Catholic Encyclopaedia, “Divisions of Christendom and their causes”: ...From the time of the First Council of Constantinople (381) Arianism received a new lease of life among the northern tribes, the Goths, Lombards, Burgundians, Vandals, etc. This was due to the preaching of Ulfilas, a bishop of Arian views, who was sent from Constantinople in 341 to evangelize the Visigoths. From the Visigoths it spread to the kindred tribes and became their national religion, until 586, with the conversion of Reccared, their king, and of the Spanish Visigoths... A more in-depth description is available from the Catholic Encyclopaedia at... http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/01707c.htm	Banner of the Ancient Teutonic Arian Order, now carried forward by the modern Arian Catholic Church.
Early Arianism: Arianism was a fourth century Christian movement begun, in part, by the teachings of a Libyan Presbyter by the name of Arius (AD 250-336) who campaigned against the growing heresy of trinitarianism.  Having been trained by Lucian the presbyter of Antioch and a non-trinitarian, and following a reconciliation Arius was ordained as a deacon by Bishop Peter I of Alexandria in AD 306. By this time Arius was already known to hold strong views on theology and was a close associate of Lucian and Meletius (an Egyptian schismatic against Peter I). Further disputes led the Bishop to excommunicate Arius, who, however, gained the friendship of Achillas, Peter’s successor. Arius was restored by and then ordained by Achillas as the Presbyter of Alexandria in AD 313, but when Achillas died that same year Arius was denied the Patriarchate of Alexandria (to which he aspired) by Bishop Alexander I of Alexandria.  Central to the Arian theological position was a belief that the Son was not fully God, and that he had been created by, and was subordinate to, the Father. Excommunicated as a heretic by Bishop Alexander of Alexandria in 320, Arius nevertheless was able to win support for his position among many prominent theologians and Church leaders in the eastern part of the Empire, including for example: Auxentius Arian Bishop of Milan, Eusebius Arian Bishop of Nicomedia, and Ulfilas Arian Bishop of Dacia. Indeed, some historians think that, at one point, there were more Arian Christians than so-called Orthodox believers. What was it about this theology that made it so popular? Here is a paper written by the Liberal Christians: Early Arian History giving a well researched examination of Arianism and giving an in-depth account of Arius, principally the founder of Arianism, himself.  Christological Prayer  [The Christological prayer or hymn of Philippians 2:6-9, a favourite Arian proof text. See also the Worship page.] Who, though he was in the form of God, did not regard equality with God as something to be exploited, but emptied himself, taking the form of a slave, being born in human likeness. And being found in human form, he humbled himself and became obedient to the point of death -- even death on a cross. Therefore God also highly exalted him and gave him the name that is above every name.
Arian Church History: Other theologians and Bishops have argued along similar grounds to Arius of Alexandria resulting in the alleged heresies of Apollinarianism, Nestorianism, Monophysitism / Eutychianism, Monothelitism, and most recently in early 18th century Britain (1707 - 1747 A.D.) when there was a strong Arian movement within the Church of England, its leading exponents, William Whiston and Samuel Clarke, were among the prominent scientists of the day and disciples of Sir Isaac Newton in both their scientific and their theological views; accepting scripture as embodying divinely given truth, but interpreting it not so much with the aid of tradition as with that of the reason, characteristic of the emerging scientific age, they found themselves impelled in a broadly Arian direction. Here is another paper on Church History entitled “Arianism Versus the Council of Nicaea” by Brother John Raymond (The Community of The Monks of Adoration) provides a detailed account of the battle between Arius and the council of Nicaea. The paper explains the precise points on which the two sides locked horns and how with St. Athanasius and the Cappadocian Fathers, finding theological grounds for their eventual agreement the way was paved for the triumph of the Council of Nicaea. This incident later coupled with Eastern and Western Emperors who were pro-Nicaea led to the Arian downfall. Many remaining Arians were tracked down and killed by the supporters of the church of Rome. The Roman Church was able to draw immense power having the support of Eastern and Western Emperors and it was keen to eradicate all non-Roman forms of Christianity. This practice made the Roman Catholic church all-powerful and extremely wealthy.
What is Arian Catholicism? The Arian Catholic Church Arian Catholicism is the Modern form of the early Christian Holy Catholic and Apostolic Church. Arian Catholicism (the Holy Catholic and Apostolic Church) is a Church Tradition in its own right, the church follows the teachings and doctrine of Jesus Christ and his apostles and is applied with logic, reason and the guidance of St Arius, Presbyter of Alexandria; it is therefore based on early Catholicism and follows the teachings of Arius which were both in-line with and defending the early church. Arian Catholicism is based on the early Catholic Church (Holy Catholic and Apostolic Church) and the teachings of Arius of Alexandria, who stipulated, among other things, that Christ was not of the same substance, i.e. not co-substantial, with God and therefore was not God, and there was a time when he did not exist, therefore was not co-eternal with God. Arius concluded that Jesus Christ was not divine. Arian Catholicism applies logic, reason, and modern understanding of both the Universe and the Scriptures to bring the early Catholic Church into the 21st century thus omitting the heresy and apostasy of the so-called mainstream churches.
Arian Catholicism brings the true Orthodox Christian Church into the 21st Century and applies the logic and reason brought to the attention of the church by the Venerable Arius of Alexandria. “Arianism” is the name attached to the Christian ideology that was defended by Arius about 319 A.D. although it upholds the true teachings of Christ in the face of Trinitarianism. “Catholic” means “Universal”, and is equivalent to “Orthodox” in Ecclesiastical terms. This does not compare with Unitarian Universalism as we adhere to the rules of the early church as taught by Christ and is applied according to established fact, logic and reason. The Holy Catholic and Apostolic Church is the early true Christian Church without the apostasy of the Council of Nicaea (325 A.D.), and without the subsequent heresies of the Churches of Rome, Constantinople and England. Christ was not divine but his title was honorific of a man who was worthy of being called “Son of God” and whose Spirit was chosen and sent by God (See Who was Jesus?). Arian Catholicism is based on the original (Pre-Roman Catholic and thus Pre-Nicaean) Universal (Catholic) Apostolic Christian Church and follows the doctrine and teachings of Arius who stipulated, among other things, that Christ was not of the same substance, i.e. not co-substantial, with God and therefore was not God, and did not exist before he was born on earth and therefore was not co-eternal with God. Arius concluded that Jesus Christ was not divine. This also meant that the recently introduced concept of the Holy Trinity was wrong! This caused considerable controversy, not least because Arianism had quickly become more popular than the Roman Catholic religion but also because it challenged the power of the church in Rome which was catering to the wishes of the first Christian Emperor of Rome, Constantine, to the point of breaking its own laws by deifying saints, introducing graven images and a polytheistic style to the church; This was more compatible with the traditions of Rome. There then ensued a 15 year long battle between Arius and the Council of Nicaea, however Arianism remained popular in Central, Northern and Eastern Europe for over 250 years after Arius’s suspicious death! In fact Arianism has repeatedly returned throughout Europe and Britain throughout the centuries to the present day. The term Arian is currently used to distinguish Arian Catholicism from Roman Catholicism. The concept of the Trinity was first written about by Tertullian of Carthage ((140-230 A.D.) a Roman Montanist heretic and the son of a Roman Centurion) at the end of the second century, his ideas being taken from Greek and Hindu ideologies, but was not formally adopted into Christianity until the first Council of Nicaea in 325 A.D. which was overseen by Emperor Constantine I. The concept of the Trinity was unheard of by the early church. Arius began his campaign against the Romanisation of Christianity about 319 A.D. (the concept of the Trinity being only a part of that process, e.g. include the burning of at least 300 Gospels, the corruption of the surviving Gospels, the changing of the Sabbath, the corruption of the Commandments, the introduction of idolatrous worship, the deification and worship of the Saints (as well as Jesus and the Holy Spirit), the adoption of Roman Symbolism etc.) and his teaching was labelled as Arianism which was used in a derogatory sense by the Roman Catholics/Trinitarians who stood to gain immense wealth and power by having a Roman Emperor as a convert (even though Constantine I wasn't actually Baptized as a Christian until he was on his deathbed!), the price being to make Christianity more palatable to the incurably superstitious Romans by integrating their Pagan practices. NB At its height, under Emperor Constantius II (and after Arius’ death), the early Arian movement vastly outnumbered the Trinitarian movement! Arianism (including early Arian Catholicism) remained a force in Europe for about 267 years (319 - 586 A.D.) until it was violently driven underground by the Roman Catholics.   Who was Jesus?   “Jesus Christ”, or Yeshua the Messiah, (Christ = Messiah = the anointed / chosen one) was not literally the physical “Son of God”, but, during Jesus’ time, this title was honorific of someone considered worthy of the rank of one who served God as his Son. Physically, Jesus was a human man, a tzaddik Orthodox Jew, born of Mary and Joseph; but spiritually he was the son of God, His first born, as his Spirit was like an Archangel (Angel of Great Counsel) created and sent by God and greater than the other Angels. Christ was a man to be followed not worshipped. A quote from the Homilies on the Gospels by Gregory I, RC Bishop of Rome (590 -604):  “The word ‘Angel’ is indicative of function, not of nature. The heavenly spirits are always spirits, but they cannot always be called angels: they are angels only when they carry a message. Those entrusted with less important messages are called simply angels; those with more important messages are archangels. Thus it was not an angel but an archangel, Gabriel, who was sent to the Virgin Mary. It was fitting that this embassy be given to one of the highest angels, since it was the greatest of messages”.  The example referred to is given in the first chapter of the Book of Luke. A quote from the Gospel of Luke 1:26-38:  “1:26 In the sixth month of Elizabeth’s pregnancy, the angel Gabriel was sent by God to a town of Galilee called Nazareth, 1:27 to a virgin engaged to a man whose name was Joseph, a descendant of David, and the virgin’s name was Mary. 1:28 The angel came to her and said, “Greetings, favoured one, the Lord is with you!” 1:29 But she was greatly troubled by his words and began to wonder about the meaning of this greeting. 1:30 So the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favour with God. 1:31 Listen: you will become pregnant and give birth to a son, and you will name him Jesus. 1:32 He will be great, and will be called the Son of the Most High, and the Lord God will give him the throne of his father David. 1:33 He will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and his kingdom will never end.” 1:34 Mary said to the angel, “How will this be, since I have not had sexual relations with a man?” 1:35 The angel replied, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. Therefore the child to be born will be holy; he will be called the Son of God. 1:36 “And look, your relative Elizabeth has also become pregnant with a son in her old age—although she was called barren, she is now in her sixth month! 1:37 For nothing will be impossible with God.” 1:38 So Mary said, “Yes, I am a servant of the Lord; let this happen to me according to your word.” Then the angel departed from her.” However notice how even Luke becomes ambiguous when describing how Mary will become pregnant. This explains how the Spirit of Jesus entered her unborn child rather than how Jesus was conceived. Jesus Christ, the same man who was crucified on the cross under Pontius Pilate was not the same entity that created the Universe, the earth and mankind! Jesus Christ, the Holy Spirit and God are not part of the same triune but are separate entities. God is the focus of all prayers and Jesus Christ himself taught us not to worship him but to worship God. See The Trinity and the Divinity of Jesus Christ. The modern Arian Catholic Church maintains the original traditions while looking at and applying Christianity with logic and reason. The Arian Catholic Church supports the right to Self Defence (in Jesus’ time to “Turn the other cheek” was a way of demanding equality with one who was attempting to assert dominance!) and advocates the true Biblical Commandments, its style is similar to that of the Eastern Orthodox, Catholic and high-Anglican churches, it follows the Apostolic succession of clergy, however it doesn’t worship graven images or saints and it challenges some of the beliefs of traditional Christian Churches, especially where the bible has been mis-interpreted or taken too literally beyond reason, or where the Christian religion has been “Romanised” to suit the polytheist Romans of the 4th and 5th Centuries to acquire wealth and power. Modern Arian Catholic Christianity asserts that Christ was Anomoios (dissimilar; i.e. as a created being Christ was unlike the Father in substance) and isMonotheist (belief in one God) in its belief and is applied with logic and reason. We try to find that form of Christianity that Jesus Christ himself taught. Our starting point is the early Orthodox church, then we look at what has been added, misinterpreted or misunderstood by incorporating 21st century knowledge. We recognise that the Bible was written in a manner that reflected Christians’ view of the world at the time and uses many exaggerations, myths and protracted terms. Also there are many more books from the scriptures than were not included in the bible yet some scriptures were written decades or centuries after the events that they are referring to, which demands caution when trying to use them to dictate Church doctrine. Simply justifying this by claiming that the writer’s hand was guided by God may not be justification enough. Detailed analyses of the Bible show how the word and grammar usage of different writers is different and changes according to the writers mood and health, it’s even possible to estimate the time of day different sentences were written. This proves that human frailties are present in the scriptures and that error and exaggeration are possible! We therefore need to read the bible with caution and not interpret everything literally but try to understand what was being told and where possible try to cross-reference this with other sources. This also means that we must take into account ALL of the Apocryphal scriptures as we must be presented with the whole truth and not omit scripture, we can then apply our knowledge and logic in their reading. The early Arian Christians interpreted the scriptures with logic and reason, which was extremely popular until the church Council of Nicaea with the help of Eastern and Western Emperors destroyed it. The true Universal Christian Church is Anglican. A simple fact is that although it is believed Jesus Christ travelled to different countries, there is powerful evidence that he spent most of his life in England (see Christ in Britain). After Jesus’ death, his uncle, St Joseph of Arimathea, returned to Glastonbury with St Simon and erected the first Christian church there (see First Christian Church in Britain). In fact there is no logical reason why the Universal Church should be run from Rome other than Rome being the centre of power and wealth during the time of the Roman Empire. Logic would suggest that there are two original Holy centres for Christianity in the world: Jerusalem in Palestine/Israel and Glastonbury in England; arguably Rome is a third centre due to centuries of prayer and worship that have been concentrated there. The Arian Catholic Church is the evolved form of the early Church and is the true Anglican, Global and true Universal (Catholic) Christian church, that is not tethered to Rome.   A further examination of some of the key principles of the modern Arian Tradition can be viewed by clicking on: Arian Liturgical Lore and Philosophy ... The Eleven Arian Confessions The following are references to the Eleven Arian Confessions. To view these Arian Confessions please click on a link. Please also note that copies of the eighth and eleventh Arian Confessions are not publicly available. For the full text of the available Arian Confessions click here. See also “A Chronology of the Arian Controversy” by Anthony F. Beavers with additions by Robert Rivers. In 341 A.D. two Arian Councils were held in Antioch, Palestine; ninety-seven Bishops attended and during the first Arian Council the first, second (The Creed of the Dedication) and third Arian Confessions were written. This laid down the foundations of an Arian doctrine of faith that opposed the Nicaean Creed.  The fourth Arian Confession was written at the second Arian Council in 341 A.D. The Bishops of the east denied being Arians on account of Arius being a Priest (Presbyter) not a Bishop, issuing the famous statement: “How, being Bishops, should we follow a Priest?” The next Arian council was held in Antioch in 344 A.D. Here, the council wrote the fifth Arian Confession (or Macrostich). It forms the basis of the Eastern Creed of Sardica with an additional eight paragraphs addressed to the western Bishops. The sixth Arian (or First Sirmium) Confession was written at a second Council of Sirmium in 351 A.D under the supervision of Basil of Ancyra. It appears to be an expanded revision of the fourth Arian Confession. During the summer in 357 A.D. the third Council of Sirmium was convened, and the seventh Arian (or Second Sirmium) Confession was written. The Western bishops moved as close as they were prepared to go to finding a compromise with the Arians. Both homoousios (of one essence) and homoiousios (alike in essence) are avoided as unbiblical, and it is agreed that the Father is greater than his subordinate son. The fourth council of Sirmium is convened on 22nd May 359 A.D. The eighth Arian (or Fourth Sirmium) Confession (or the Dated Creed?) is written. It proposes a compromise formula, which is not technical, and is designed to please everybody (though it is too watered-down to do any good).  During October (or December?) in 359 A.D. the Synod of Seleucia is held in the East and is attended by about 160 bishops. Here, the ninth Arian Confession is written, which affirms that Christ is “like the Father” while, at the same time, anathematising the Anomoeans. A Council was convened in Greece during January 360 A.D. to review the conclusions of Ariminum and Seleucia from the year before. The tenth Arian Confession was written. A council was held in Antioch during the installation of Euzonius as bishop of Antioch in 361 A.D. (Euzonius was excommunicated with Arius in 318 and 325 and restored with him in 335.) During this council, the eleventh Arian Confession was written. This creed is strongly Anomoean, leading Athanasius to remark that the Arians have reverted back to the first doctrines framed by Arius.