Eric Michener

[Clint Teeples @TeeplesCY]

"You aren't a Christian if you don't accept the Trinity."

The history of that statement is quite shocking, and almost nobody who says it knows that acceptance of the doctrine of the Trinity was once enforced by exile, fire, and death.

Here is what happened.

For the first 300 years after Jesus, Christians did not agree on how He related to God the Father. They argued about it constantly. There was no official rule. That was just normal.

Then a priest named Arius said the Son came from the Father and was beneath Him. Not equal. Not eternal. A lot of Christians agreed with him. A lot. This was not some fringe group. For stretches of the next century, his side was winning.

Other Christians said the opposite. The Son was fully God, equal to the Father, no beginning. Two camps, same Bible, opposite conclusions.

The fighting got bad. Riots. Mobs in the streets. Christians brawling over the nature of God.

So the Roman emperor stepped in. Constantine. He had just won a civil war and he wanted his empire to stop fighting. He was not even baptized. He did not care about the theology. He cared about order.

In the year 325 he called the bishops to a town called Nicaea. He paid for it. He ran the meeting himself. And they voted. They ruled that the Son was equal to the Father, fully God, one substance with Him. That ruling is the core of the Trinity. It got settled in that room, by that vote, on one word that is not even in the Bible.

They wrote the ruling into an official statement of belief. A creed. Every bishop was expected to sign it.

That is the part people think is the story. It isn't. The shocking part is how they made everyone accept it.

Constantine made the bishops sign the creed. The few who refused, he banished.

Then he ordered every book Arius ever wrote to be burned.

Then he made a law. If you were caught hiding one of those books, you were put to death.

Even after all of that, the Trinity did not win for good.

A few years later Constantine changed his mind. He brought Arius back. And he exiled Athanasius, the bishop who had won the argument at Nicaea. That man got banished five separate times in his life for believing the thing the church now says you have to believe.

For the next fifty years it flipped back and forth. One emperor said Trinity. The next said no. Whoever sat on the throne decided what was true. The official belief about God changed every time power changed hands.

It finally got locked in by another emperor named Theodosius. He made the Trinity the law of the empire. Disagree, and you were a heretic. Not in some spiritual sense. By law. Backed by soldiers.

A few years after that, the empire executed a bishop for his beliefs. The first time the state put a Christian to death over doctrine. It would not be the last.

Then came the document that says it out loud. A creed written around the year 500. Almost five centuries after Jesus. They named it after Athanasius, that same bishop. He did not even write it. They put his name on it for the authority.

It opens by declaring that anyone who does not hold the Trinity, whole and complete, will perish forever. Believe it or be damned. Put in writing, and made the test of who gets saved.

So that is where the line comes from. Not from Jesus. Not from the apostles. From emperors and councils who needed a divided empire to fall in line.

The Trinity did not become the rule because the argument was settled. It became the rule because the side that held it had the throne, the law, and the sword.

The next time someone says you aren't a Christian unless you accept the Trinity, remember what it took to make that rule stick. Exile. Fire. And death.

[Peacemaking Saint @PeacemakingSt]

Elder Jeffrey R. Holland delivered the best explanation of how The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints deviates from traditional Christianity and returns to the doctrine taught by Jesus Christ himself.

“If one says we are not Christians because we do not hold a fourth- or fifth-century view of the Godhead, then what of those first Christian Saints, many of whom were eyewitnesses of the living Christ, who did not hold such a view either?”

This is a must-watch today:

[Jesse Fox @jesse_k_fox]

An invitation:

If it’s been weeks, months, or even years since you’ve been to church, say a quiet prayer today and go tomorrow.

Slip in after the meeting begins. Sit in the back. Sit in the foyer if that’s more comfortable. After the sacrament, quietly leave. Few people will even notice you. Loving Heavenly Parents will notice.

Jesus taught that the laborers who came at the eleventh hour received the same wage as those who came early. It’s never too late to come back to church.

Maybe you’ll feel renewed. Maybe you’ll feel nothing. Maybe you’ll remember something you haven’t felt in a long time.

You don’t have to commit to next week. Just come tomorrow and see what happens.

[Super 70s Sports @Super70sSports]

Perhaps the greatest Olympic champion ever produced by the United States. How did he do it? Donuts.

[The Babylon Bee @TheBabylonBee]

"Today isn't the future yet. Get to work."

[Heidi Duckworth @Here_s_Hoping]

She nailed it.

[ArtButMakeItSports @ArtButSports]

Samson and Delilah, by Lucas Cranach the Elder, 1528–30 (flipped), 📸 by Jason Miller

[Natalie F Danelishen @Chesschick01]

I always think of this quote on memorial weekend.

[Jesse Fox @jesse_k_fox]

Listen to Elder Bednar’s counsel:

Can we please, please, please have more people who sin, and want to improve, come to church and partake of the sacrament?

Even if you feel stuck and you think you’ll never fully overcome it. If there is even a desire to turn toward Christ, the sacrament is for you.

And just so we’re clear… this includes every single person reading this post.

The sacrament isn’t a reward for perfect people, it’s an ordinance to remind us that we all need Christ.

[The Babylon Bee @TheBabylonBee]

Man Helpfully Points Out To Wife That She Looks Tired https://t.co/FrRzhST9xS

[Eric Church @ericchurch]

Eric took the stage at UNC Chapel Hill to deliver a commencement speech to the next generation of Tar Heels, sharing a message for the graduates as they step into what comes next.

Watch the speech in its entirety here: https://t.co/DbqOdqiymt

[The Babylon Bee @TheBabylonBee]

Three Republicans Thrown Into Fiery Furnace For Not Bowing Down To Trump Statue https://t.co/dYRI7vwSmZ

[In Defense of Family | Megan @defense_of_fam]

“No love in mortality comes closer to approximating the pure love of Jesus Christ than the selfless love a devoted mother has for her child.” - Jeffrey R. Holland

[Wolf of X @WolfofX]

Never have I read anything more perfect than this

[Kemi Badenoch @KemiBadenoch]

You may not agree with me, but you will always know where you stand with me.

Today in Billericay, a heckler tried to shout me down as I spoke about the normalisation of hatred towards Jews. I did not back down, because it needs to be said. British Jews are being targeted and too many people are pretending this is the same experience of other minorities. This lady implied Muslims are being similarly targeted. This is simply not true.

Let's be honest about what is happening. Certain groups (in particular but not solely Islamic Extremists) are creating a climate of fear and intimidation that is normalising Jew hatred. I will never stand for that. Governments have spent too long hand-wringing, making excuses and hoping it would go away. It is time to call this what it is: a national emergency in our attitude, our urgency and our response.

I will always engage with people who disagree with me. That is politics. But there is a difference between argument and intimidation. Shouting does not make a bad case good. It's done to silence others. And it certainly does not change the truth.

The truth is that British Jews have been made to feel less safe in their own country. Our country. They are being singled out, threatened and harassed in ways that should shame everyone in public life. If we do not stand up now and stop this rise in antisemitism, then why bother saying "Never Again" at Holocaust Memorial Day? Because this is how it starts.

I am not prepared to play along with the pretence that this is normal, or manageable, or just another example of tension between groups. It really is not. It is targeted hatred and it is getting worse.

So my message is simple. Not here. Not in Britain. And not on our watch. We need to stop the hand-wringing and start doing the right thing. That means standing with British Jews openly, unapologetically and without fear.

[Mike Lee @BasedMikeLee]

Marco Rubio running Spirit Airlines:

Best Rubio video ever

[Rivals @Rivals]

Retweet if your team has a 5-star basketball commit⭐️

https://t.co/bOXiZ4Ge18

[Modern Dad @ModernxDad]

He just met women for the first time🤯