Adoptionism

Adoptionism, sometimes called dynamic monarchianism, is a nontrinitarian theological teaching that Jesus was adopted as God's Son at either his baptism, his resurrection, or his ascension. According to Epiphanius's account of the Ebionites, the group believed that Jesus was chosen, because of his sinless devotion to the will of God.

Adoptionism was declared heresy at the end of the 2nd century and was rejected by the Synods of Antioch and the First Council of Nicaea, which defined the orthodox doctrine of the Trinity and identified the man Jesus with the eternally begotten Son or Word of God.

History

Early primary writings

In The Orthodox Corruption of Scripture, popular author and text critic Bart D. Ehrman argues that the Adoptionist Theology may date back almost to the time of Jesus.

Due to recorded predictions of the destruction of the temple, the Gospel of Mark is believed by many critical scholars to have been composed around or shortly after the fall of Jerusalem due to prophecies assumed to be ex post facto regarding the destruction of the temple, and critical scholarly consensus maintains that it was the first written gospel, though the earliest traditional consensus puts Matthew's Gospel as the first of the canonical gospels. The phrase "Son of God" is not present in some early manuscripts at Mark 1:1. Ehrman uses this omission to support the notion that the title "Son of God" is not used of Jesus until his baptism, and that Mark reflects an adoptionist view. The words, "Today I have begotten you," are omitted from the canonical Gospel of Mark, however, and it is therefore generally believed to have less adoptionist tendencies than the Gospel of the Hebrews.