Editing Oneness Pentecostalism (section)

===Doctrine of God===
Oneness theology maintains that God is a singular spirit who is absolutely and indivisibly unitary, not three persons, individuals, or minds.<ref>{{cite book |first1=David |last1=Bernard |url=http://ourworld.compuserve.com/homepages/pentecostal/One-Top.htm |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080216034825/http://ourworld.compuserve.com/homepages/pentecostal/One-Top.htm |archive-date=February 16, 2008 |title=The Oneness of God |publisher=Word Aflame Press |year=1993 |isbn=978-0-912315-12-6 |page=10}}</ref><ref>Talmadge French, ''Our God is One'', Voice and Vision Publishers, 1999, {{ISBN|978-1-888251-20-3}}.{{page needed|date=September 2017}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last1=Norris |first1=David |title=I AM: A Oneness Pentecostal Theology |date=4 September 2009 |publisher=Word Aflame Press |isbn=978-1565630000 |page=5 |chapter=Oneness Pentecostalism |quote=On the other hand, Oneness adherents decry any ontological distinction between persons "in the Godhead."}}</ref> They contend that the terms "[[God the Father|Father]]", "[[Son of God|Son]]", and "[[Holy Ghost]]" (or "Holy Spirit") are titles reflecting the different personal manifestations of God in the universe.<ref name=":2">{{Cite web|date=10 June 2009|title=Oneness Pentecostalism: Heresy, Not Hairsplitting|url=https://www.equip.org/article/oneness-pentecostalism-heresy-not-hairsplitting/|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201119015133/https://www.equip.org/article/oneness-pentecostalism-heresy-not-hairsplitting/|archive-date=19 November 2020|access-date=19 November 2020|website=Christian Research Institute}}</ref> To Oneness believers, the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit are three manifestations of one personal God.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Oneness Pentecostalism|url=http://www.religionfacts.com/oneness-pentecostalism|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201119024500/http://www.religionfacts.com/oneness-pentecostalism|archive-date=19 November 2020|access-date=19 November 2020|website=ReligionFacts|language=en}}</ref>

Oneness theologians often quote a phrase used by early pioneers of the movement: "God was manifested as the Father in creation, the Son in redemption, and the Holy Ghost in emanation."<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.upcbaypoint.com/onegodtruth.html |title=The Truth About One God |website=United Pentecostal Church of Bay Point |access-date=21 August 2015 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150817001820/http://www.upcbaypoint.com/onegodtruth.html |archive-date=17 August 2015}}</ref> However, Oneness theologian David Norris points out that this does not mean that Oneness Pentecostals believe that God can only be one of those manifestations at a time, which may be suggested by the quote.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Norris |first1=David |title=I AM: A Oneness Pentecostal Theology |date=4 September 2009 |publisher=Word Aflame Press |isbn=978-1565630000 |page=238 |chapter=Epilogue |quote=Sometimes, in a kind of echo of Haywood's profession, one will encounter a Pentecostal preacher offering a sound byte about God: "He is the Father in creation, Son in redemption, and Holy Spirit in sanctification." But they do not mean (as Haywood did not) that there is some sort of "dilation" where the Father became the Son (without remainder and ceased to be the Father) and then, subsequently the Son became the Spirit (and ceased to be the Son).}}</ref> Oneness theologian [[David K. Bernard]] also teaches that God is not limited to these three manifestations.<ref name=":02">{{cite book |last1=Bernard |first1=David |url=http://ourworld.compuserve.com/homepages/pentecostal/One-Ch6.htm |title=The Oneness of God |publisher=Word Aflame Press |year=1993 |isbn=978-0-912315-12-6 |chapter=Father, Son, and Holy Ghost |quote=The Bible speaks of Father, Son, and Holy Ghost as different manifestations, roles, modes, titles, attributes, relationships to man, or functions of the one God, but it does not refer to Father, Son, and Holy Ghost as three persons, personalities, wills, minds, or Gods. God is the Father of us all and in a unique way the Father of the man Jesus Christ. God manifested himself in flesh in the person of Jesus Christ, called the Son of God. God is also called the Holy Spirit, which emphasizes his activity in the lives and affairs of mankind. God is not limited to these three manifestations; however, in the glorious revelation of the one God, the New Testament does not deviate from the strict monotheism of the Old Testament. Rather, the Bible presents Jesus as the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost. Jesus is not just the manifestation of one of three persons in the Godhead, but he is the incarnation of the Father, the Jehovah of the Old Testament. Truly, in Jesus dwells all the fulness of the Godhead bodily. |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080209202633/http://ourworld.compuserve.com/homepages/pentecostal/One-Ch6.htm |archive-date=February 9, 2008}}</ref>

According to Oneness theology, the Father and the Holy Spirit are the same personal God. It teaches that the term "Holy Spirit" is a descriptive title for God manifesting himself through the broader Christian Church.<ref name=":12">{{cite book|last1=Bernard|first1=David|url=http://ourworld.compuserve.com/homepages/pentecostal/One-Ch6.htm|title=The Oneness of God|publisher=Word Aflame Press|year=1993|isbn=978-0-912315-12-6|chapter=The Father is the Holy Ghost|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080209202633/http://ourworld.compuserve.com/homepages/pentecostal/One-Ch6.htm|archive-date=February 9, 2008}}</ref><ref name=":16">{{cite book|first1=David| last1=Bernard| title=A Handbook of Basic Doctrines|publisher=Word Aflame Press|date= 1 September 1988|isbn=978-0932581372}}{{page needed|date=September 2017}}</ref> These two titles—as well as others—do not reflect divisible persons within the Godhead, but rather two different ways in which the one God reveals himself to his creatures. Thus, when the [[Old Testament]] ([[Hebrew Bible]]) speaks of "the Lord God and his Spirit" in [[Isaiah 48]]:16, it does not indicate two distinct persons, according to Oneness theology. Instead, "the Lord" means God in all his glory and transcendence, while "his Spirit" refers to his Holy Spirit that moved upon and spoke to the Hebrew prophets. Bernard states that this passage does not imply two persons any more than the numerous scriptural references to a man and his spirit or soul (such as in [[Luke 12]]:19) imply two "persons" existing within one body.<ref>{{cite book |first1=David |last1=Bernard |chapter=The Lord God and His Spirit |chapter-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080212180425/http://ourworld.compuserve.com:80/homepages/pentecostal/One-Ch7.htm |url=http://ourworld.compuserve.com/homepages/pentecostal/One-Top.htm |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080216034825/http://ourworld.compuserve.com/homepages/pentecostal/One-Top.htm |archive-date=16 February 2008 |title=The Oneness of God |publisher=Word Aflame Press |year=1993 |isbn=978-0-912315-12-6 }}{{page needed|date=September 2017}}</ref> Bernard asserts that it is unbiblical to describe God as a plurality of persons in any sense of the word, "regardless of what persons meant in ancient church history."<ref>{{cite book |first1=David |last1=Bernard |chapter=Trinitarianism: An Evaluation |chapter-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080212180425/http://ourworld.compuserve.com:80/homepages/pentecostal/One-Ch7.htm |url=http://ourworld.compuserve.com/homepages/pentecostal/One-Top.htm |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080216034825/http://ourworld.compuserve.com/homepages/pentecostal/One-Top.htm |archive-date=16 February 2008 |title=The Oneness of God |publisher=Word Aflame Press |year=1993 |isbn=978-0-912315-12-6 |page=287 |quote=Speaking of God as a plurality of persons further violates the biblical concept of God. Regardless of what persons meant in ancient church history, today the word definitely connotes a plurality of individuals, personalities, minds, wills and bodies. Even in ancient church history, we have shown that the vast majority of believers saw it as a departure from biblical monotheism.}}</ref>

Oneness Pentecostals maintain that early Christianity taught a form of strict [[monotheism]] consistent with their view, contrasting their views not only with Trinitarianism but equally with the theology espoused by [[The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints|Latter-day Saints]] (who believe that Jesus is a separate god from the Father and the Spirit), and by [[Jehovah's Witnesses]] and [[Unitarianism|Unitarians]] (who deny the full deity of Jesus and view him as a created being distinct from and subordinate to the Father).<ref>{{cite web |last1=Bowman, Jr. |first1=Robert M. |title=Oneness Pentecostalism |url=https://www.apostolic.edu/oneness-pentecostalism-2/ |website=Apostolic Information Service |publisher=[[Indiana Bible College]] |access-date=9 December 2025 |date=23 August 2007}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Evangelism 2,10 – Personal Evangelism, Continued |url=https://www.apostolic.edu/evangelism-210-personal-evangelism-continued/ |website=Apostolic Information Service |publisher=[[Indiana Bible College]] |access-date=9 December 2025 |date=10 December 2014}}</ref> The Oneness position as [[Nontrinitarianism|nontrinitarian]] places them at odds with most mainstream Nicene [[List of Christian denominations|Christian denominations]],<ref>{{Cite web |title=Trinity |url=https://religionfacts.com/trinity |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220109041633/https://religionfacts.com/trinity |archive-date=2022-01-09 |access-date=2025-07-26 |website=religionfacts.com |language=en |quote=Christianity is a monotheistic religion, meaning that it teaches the existence of one God (specifically, the God of the Jews). It shares this belief with two other major world religions, Judaism and Islam. However, Christian monotheism is a unique kind of monotheism. It holds that God is One, but that three distinct "persons" constitute the one God: the Father, the Son (Christ), and the Holy Spirit. This unique threefold God of Christian belief is referred to as the Trinity (tri + unity). The doctrine of the Trinity is accepted by all "mainstream" branches of Christianity (Catholic, Eastern Orthodox, Protestant and Anglican) and in fact is one of the major defining factors for what is considered mainstream. But the doctrine of the Trinity is rejected by a number of other faiths that consider themselves Christian, including Mormonism, Jehovah's Witnesses, and Unitarian Universalism.}}</ref> and some [[apologetics]] ministries and writers have categorized Oneness groups as [[cult]]s.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Lang |first=J. Stephen |date=1 April 2002 |title='Jesus Only' Isn't Enough |url=https://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/2002/april1/22.60.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201119024127/https://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/2002/april1/22.60.html |archive-date=19 November 2020 |access-date=19 November 2020 |website=Christianity Today |language=en}}</ref><ref name="auto">{{Cite journal|title=The Other Pentecostals|last1=Grady|first1=J.|journal=Charisma Magazine|date=June 1997}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|last1=S|first1=Fred|last2=On|first2=Ers|date=3 May 2014|title=Oneness Pentecostalism: An Analysis|url=https://scriptoriumdaily.com/oneness-pentecostalism-an-analysis/|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220109042320/https://scriptoriumdaily.com/oneness-pentecostalism-an-analysis/|archive-date=9 January 2022|access-date=9 January 2022|website=The Scriptorium Daily|language=en-US}}</ref><ref>Burgos Jr., Michael R., ''Against Oneness Pentecostalism: An Exegetical-Theological Critique'', 2nd Ed., (Winchester, CT: Church Militant Pub., 2016), {{ISBN|978-0692644065}}, 181-191; Hindson, Ed, Caner, Ergun eds., ''The Popular Encyclopedia of Apologetics'', (Eugene, OR: Harvest House Pub., 2008), 371-376, {{ISBN|978-0736920841}};  Nichols, Larry A., Mather, George A., Schmidt, Alvin J., ''Encyclopedic Dictionary of Cults, Sects, and World Religions'', Rev. and Updated Ed., (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2006), 221-225, {{ISBN|978-0310239543}}.</ref> However, David A. Reed, a Trinitarian scholar at [[Wycliffe College, Toronto|Wycliffe College]] and a leading academic authority on Oneness Pentecostalism,<ref name="UPCIDKB" /> disagrees.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Reed |first1=David |title=Oneness Pentecostalism: Problems and Possibilities for Pentecostal Theology |journal=Journal of Pentecostal Theology |date=1 January 1997 |volume=5 |issue=11 |pages=73–93 |doi=10.1177/096673699700501104 |url=https://brill.com/view/journals/pent/5/11/article-p73_4.xml |access-date=7 May 2025 |language=en |issn=0966-7369|url-access=subscription }}</ref> He contends in his book ''"In Jesus' Name": The History and Beliefs of Oneness Pentecostals'' that the movement should be considered theologically [[Heterodoxy|heterodox]], rather than [[Heresy|heretical]] or cultish.<ref name="ReedInJesusName" /><ref>{{cite journal |last1=French |first1=Talmadge |title="In Jesus' Name": A Key Resource on the Worldwide Pentecostal Phenomenon & the Oneness, Apostolic, or Jesus' Name Movement |journal=[[Pneuma: The Journal of the Society for Pentecostal Studies]] |date=2009 |volume=31 |issue=2 |pages=267–274 |doi=10.1163/027209609X12470371387921}}</ref>

==== Accusations of Modalism and Arianism ====
Oneness believers are frequently identified with [[Modalism]].<ref name="Bernard The Council of Nicea">{{cite book |first1=David |last1=Bernard |chapter=The Council of Nicea |chapter-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071130181956/http://ourworld.compuserve.com:80/homepages/pentecostal/One-Ch11.htm |url=http://ourworld.compuserve.com/homepages/pentecostal/One-Top.htm |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080216034825/http://ourworld.compuserve.com/homepages/pentecostal/One-Top.htm |archive-date=16 February 2008 |title=The Oneness of God |publisher=Word Aflame Press |year=1993 |isbn=978-0-912315-12-6}}</ref> Additionally, some critics{{em-dash}}usually individuals rather than denominational bodies{{em-dash}}have also alleged that Oneness theology bears resemblance to [[Arianism]] or [[Semi-Arianism]].<ref>{{cite web |title=Exchanged Life Outreach |url=http://www.exchangedlife.com/Sermons/topical/trinity.shtml |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110710211315/http://www.exchangedlife.com/Sermons/topical/trinity.shtml |archive-date=10 July 2011 |access-date=20 May 2009}}</ref> While Bernard acknowledges similarities between Oneness theology, [[Modalistic Monarchianism]], and the teachings of [[Sabellius]], he rejects associations with [[Patripassianism]], [[Arianism]] or [[Subordinationism]] that have historically been linked to some modalistic views. Bernard argues that Oneness theology represents a distinct, biblical form of modalism that differs from some traditional formulations and interpretations historically deemed heretical.<ref name=":7"/><ref name="Bernard The Council of Nicea"/>