Oneness vs Trinity

Both Trinitarian and Oneness adherents believe in one God. Some Trinitarians believe the term God means a nature and not an individual being. The God nature (spirit) is divided between the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit as three separate persons (beings). Oneness believe the term God means a single Divine Being. Trinitarians believe one of the eternal God persons was manifested in the flesh and this was Jesus the Son of God. The other two God persons remained in heaven. Oneness believe the one God, the Father, came to earth in human form as Jesus. The traditional doctrine of the Trinity teaches that God is, and eternally has been, existent in three Divine persons or members in the Godhead (specifically "God the Father, "God the Son" and "God the Holy Spirit"), who together form the single nature called God. These three are taught to be co-eternal, co-equal, and co-powerful. Ancient as well as modern art displayed in many Catholic churches show the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit as three separate beings standing or sitting next to each other. Yet it is affirmed that these three separate Divine persons are somehow still one being in essence. There is much information available about traditional trinitarianism as well as neo-trinitarianism in relationship to the Holy Trinity.

Oneness theology maintains that the biblical terms "God the Father" and "Holy Spirit" [As well as all other similar biblical terms, including "God", "Father", "Spirit", and "Spirit of Christ", etc.] both refer to the same one eternal, incorporeal, ever-transcendent Deity, that is indivisibly one in number (with "Father" describing God in "relationship" and "Spirit" describing God in "action or emanation", see ), the one in whom dwells "bodily" (see and "the image of the invisible God" ). They cite this and other verses as proof of Jesus' humanity both in mind, will, emotion, intellect, and consciousness. They hold that clearly there is the Divine mind, will, consciousness, as well as the human. To them, these two (Divine and human, Father and Son) are united in the Incarnation, and both essential to the Incarnation.

Trinitarians use the same passage (

A Oneness reply is:), the three titles do not appear. Instead, "repentance and remission of sins should be preached in his [Christ's] name [i.e., the name of Jesus] among all nations, beginning at Jerusalem." Acts 2:38 directly links this mention of "repentance and remission of sins" with repentance and "water baptism" in the name of Jesus Christ, for the remission of sins. Oneness believers hold that God’s/Christ’s redemptive name for New Covenant believers is Jesus, and that the command of our Lord in Matthew 28:19-20 refers to baptism in His own name of Jesus. They see support for this view in that His words were carried out by the Apostles, who baptized/commanded baptism in Jesus name in the Book of Acts (see , , also showed that "name" was an ancient synonym for "person". Payment was always made in the name of some person, referring to ownership. Therefore, one being baptized in Jesus name became His personal property (note , and note that at the time of the promise to the thief, the "Testator" (Jesus) had not yet died and therefore the New Testament salvation was not yet in effect when Christ was alive on the cross. They believe the thief's confession was a unique circumstance and salvation was accordingly granted because he confessed his sin to the "Lamb of God that taketh away the sins of the World".] Some other groups stress the importance of water baptism while considering as trivial the mode (i.e., immersion vs. sprinkling) and formula (i.e., Jesus name vs. three titles). (Oneness people believe the mode should be immersion.) Other soteriological differences are debated as well.For example, the baptism of the Holy Spirit is presumed by Oneness Pentecostal Christians to be accompanied by evidence, including the initial, physical evidence of speaking in tongues as the Spirit gives the sound, and the long-term evidences of the gifts of the Spirit and the fruit of the Spirit. The same event is presumed by non-pentecostal Christians to be innocuous at the time it happens, indiscernible by outward sign or evidence. Also, some reject that the gifts of the Spirit still operate today, although the fruit of the Spirit seems more broadly accepted. Oneness believers understand and teach the saving virtue of Spirit baptism is not in tongues, but rather in the Spirit which gives the utterance to speak. In addition many, but not all, Oneness Pentecostals adhere to strict holiness standards.] An official website of the United Pentecostal Church (a Oneness Pentecostal church organization) has [http://www.upci.org/doctrine/baptism.asp this to say] regarding the importance of, mode of, and formula for water baptism.

In summary, after the inception, implementation, and acceptance of the Trinity doctrine, the most commonly-used baptismal formula in most churches has been the Trinitarian formula drawn from ("in the name of the Father, Son and Holy Ghost"). However, Oneness Pentecostals object to the removal of Jesus' name from baptism, and instead baptize "in the name of Jesus Christ" or a similar phraseology such as "in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ" or "in the name of Jesus", while citing the primitive church baptizing in the name of Jesus.

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