Deity of Christ
- F02.1 The Son is true God, of one substance with the Father: consensus from Era I (Ignatius) to Nicaea (high)
- F02.2 The Son is eternal, begotten not made, with no beginning: consensus from Era I (high)
- F02.3 Christ receives the worship due to God in the NT and in Era I (Ignatius; Martyrdom of Polycarp) (high)
Two separate measures, shown side by side; neither is combined with the other (confidence-weighted, out of 4; counts show how many of this doctrine's 3 questions each rests on; ⚠ marks coverage more than 10 points below the median, a less certain rank). This doctrine is first-order (tier weight 3). How scoring works · Scripture and tradition · Glossary · Every score with its citation
Closeness to Scripture
Closeness to the fathers
Charts: closeness to the fathers by question, and timeline
- c. 110 Ignatius F02.1, F02.3
- c. 110 Ignatius F02.2
- c. 156 Martyrdom of Polycarp F02.3
- c. 180 Irenaeus F02.1
- c. 325 Nicaea I F02.1
- c. 325 Nicaea I F02.2
- 1646 Westminster Confession Presbyterian
- 1646 Westminster Confession Reformed Baptist
- 1672 Confession of Dositheus Orthodox
F2 · Deity of Christ
The Son is true God, of one substance with the Father (Nicaea).
Tier: First-order (scoring weight 3). How the tiers were set: theological triage. Method: conventions. Traditions’ sources: confessional sources.
In short
The New Testament calls Jesus God and gives him the worship due to God. The earliest fathers did the same — the Smyrnaean church adored him as Son of God while loving the martyrs — and the Council of Nicaea (325) confessed him ’true God from true God, of one substance with the Father’. All nine traditions hold this.
Plan
Question: F02.1: is the Son true God, of one substance with the Father? Scripture: John 1:1, 18; 20:28; Rom 9:5; Phil 2:6; Col 2:9; Titus 2:13; Heb 1:8. Fathers: Ignatius, Ephesians 18; Irenaeus, Against Heresies III.19.2; Nicaea (325). Related: F01 Trinity, F04 One person. F02.2: is the Son eternal (John 1:1; 8:58; 17:5; Ignatius, Magnesians 6; the Nicene anathema)? F02.3: did the apostles and earliest fathers worship Christ as God (John 20:28; Heb 1:6; Martyrdom of Polycarp 17)?
Questions
- F02.1 Is the Son true God, of one substance with the Father?
- F02.2 Is the Son eternal, with no beginning?
- F02.3 Did the apostles and earliest fathers worship Christ as God?
Verdicts and trace
Weighed under the source-proximity principle: Scripture first, then the father eras I–IV.
F02.1 · Is the Son true God, of one substance with the Father?
| Question | Verdict | Confidence | Reasoning | Key sources | Scripture (benchmark) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| F02.1 | The Son is true God, of one substance with the Father: consensus from Era I (Ignatius) to Nicaea | High | F02.1.1 · F02.1.3 weighing | ignatius-f02-s1 · irenaeus-f02-s1 · nicaea-i-f02-s1 | F02.1.4: high |
F02.2 · Is the Son eternal, with no beginning?
| Question | Verdict | Confidence | Reasoning | Key sources | Scripture (benchmark) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| F02.2 | The Son is eternal, begotten not made, with no beginning: consensus from Era I | High | F02.2.1 · F02.2.3 weighing | ignatius-f02-s2 · nicaea-i-f02-s2 | F02.2.4: high |
F02.3 · Did the apostles and earliest fathers worship Christ as God?
| Question | Verdict | Confidence | Reasoning | Key sources | Scripture (benchmark) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| F02.3 | Christ receives the worship due to God in the NT and in Era I (Ignatius; Martyrdom of Polycarp) | High | F02.3.1 · F02.3.3 weighing | martyrdom-of-polycarp-f02-s1 · ignatius-f02-s1 | F02.3.4: high |
Post-750 development
Which of this doctrine’s questions each tradition stays closest to, or departs from. Each row links to the tradition’s notes; exact scores and bases are in the reasoning.
| Tradition | Closest to the fathers on | Departs or sharpens on |
|---|---|---|
| Catholic | F02.1, F02.2, F02.3 | — |
| Orthodox | F02.1, F02.2, F02.3 | — |
| Oriental Orthodox | F02.1, F02.2, F02.3 | — |
| Lutheran | F02.1, F02.2, F02.3 | — |
| Anglican | F02.1, F02.2, F02.3 | — |
| Presbyterian | F02.1, F02.2, F02.3 | — |
| Reformed Baptist | F02.1, F02.2, F02.3 | — |
| General Baptist | F02.1, F02.2, F02.3 | — |
| Anabaptist | F02.1, F02.2, F02.3 | — |
Overall verdict
All nine traditions confess the full deity of the Son, matching Scripture and the fathers from Era I. All nine also confess the Son’s eternity (F02.2) and give him the worship due to God (F02.3).
Verification status
Dositheus 1, WCF VIII.2, 1689 8.2 and Orthodox Creed 38 verified against online texts; the Orthodox Creed’s art. 38 also verified for the Athanasian Christology (’not made, nor created, but begotten’; EEBO 1679 OCR, archive.org).