THE ORIGIN AND DEVELOPMENT OF

CHRISTIAN DOGMA


THE
ORIGIN AND DEVELOPMENT
OF
CHRISTIAN DOGMA

AN ESSAY
IN THE SCIENCE OF HISTORY

BY

CHARLES A. H. TUTHILL

LONDON
KEGAN PAUL, TRENCH & CO., 1, PATERNOSTER SQUARE
1888


(The rights of translation and of reproduction are reserved.)


CONTENTS.

CHAPTER PAGE
 Introduction1
I.The Foundation of Monotheism4
II.The Messianic Foundation of Christianity33
III.The Christianity of Christ65
IV.Jewish Christianity93
V.Pagan Christianity112
VI.Catholic and Protestant Christianity142
VII.The Permanence of Dogmatic Religion160

1

THE
ORIGIN AND DEVELOPMENT
OF
CHRISTIAN DOGMA.


INTRODUCTION.

If we compare Christianity with the other dogmaticreligions of the world, we are at once struckby a feature peculiar to it, namely, the complexityof its doctrinal system. A glance at the AthanasianCreed is sufficient to show that this peculiarityresults from the existence of fundamental inconsistenciesin the dogmas of Christianity. Suchinconsistencies are not found in other religions,whether, like Mohammedanism, they have at oncesprung into full maturity at the time of theircreation, or whether, like Judaism, they have passedthrough a long and slow process of development.The inconsistencies of Christian doctrine clearlycannot be ascribed to the necessary tendencies of2the evolution of dogmatic religion; they must bedue to special circumstances connected with thehistory of Christianity.

What these circumstances were there is nodifficulty in ascertaining. The fully developeddogmatic system of Christianity is the product ofthe union of two opposite streams of religioustendency. From the collision of the monotheismof Judaism with the polytheism of Paganism theinconsistencies of its doctrines have sprung. Inthe doctrine of the Trinity, which takes up somuch of the Athanasian Creed, we have the clearestevidence of this. But, in real

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