Mormonism and the nature of God/Deification of man

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Criticism

Critics claim that the doctrine of human deification is unbiblical, false, and arrogant.

Related claims include:

Mormons believe they will 'supplant God'

Source(s) of the Criticism

Walter Martin, Kingdom of the Cults (Minneapolis: Bethany House Publishers, 1997), 226 and elsewhere.

The first thing we must realize when we study this principle is that “The Father is the one true God. This thing is certain: no one will ever ascend above Him; no one will ever replace Him. Nor will anything ever change the relationship that we, His literal offspring, have with Him. He is Elohim, the Father. He is God. Of Him there is only one. We revere our Father and our God; we worship Him.” (Boyd K. Packer, Ensign Nov. 1984 pg. 69)

Saint Irenaeus (180 A.D.) who may justly be called the first Biblical theologian among the ancient Christians. He was a disciple of the great Polycarp, who was a direct disciple of John the Revelator. (Henry Bettenson, The Early Christian Fathers, London: Oxford University Press, 1956, pp. 16-17.) According to Irenaeus: “While man gradually advances and mounts towards perfection; that is, he approaches the eternal. The eternal is perfect; and this is God. Man has first to come into being, then to progress, and by progressing come to manhood, and having reached manhood to increase, and thus increasing to persevere, and persevering to be glorified, and thus see his Lord.” (Ibid., p. 94.)

And,

“We were not made gods at our beginning, but first we were made men, then, in the end, gods.” (Ibid.)

Also,

“How then will any be a god, if he has not first been made a man? How can any be perfect when he has only lately been made man? How immortal, if he has not in his mortal nature obeyed his maker? For one's duty is first to observe the discipline of man and thereafter to share in the glory of God.” (Ibid., pp. 95-96.)

And again,

“Our Lord Jesus Christ, the Word of God, of his boundless love, became what we are that he might make us what he himself is.” (Ibid., p. 106.)(Irenaeus, Against Heresies, 4.38 cp. 4.11 (2) 180 A.D.)

And also,

“But of what gods [does he speak]? [Of those] to whom He says, "I have said, Ye are gods, and

all sons of the Most High." To those, no doubt, who have received the grace of the "adoption, by
which we cry, Abba Father."” (Ante-Nicene Fathers 1:419, chap. 6, Irenaeus Against Heresies)

And once again,

“For he who holds, without pride and boasting, the true glory (opinion) regarding created things

and the Creator, who is the Almighty God of all, and who has granted existence to all; [such an
one, ] continuing in His love and subjection, and giving of thanks, shall also receive from Him
the greater glory of promotion, looking forward to the time when he shall become like Him
who died for him, for He, too, "was made in the likeness of sinful flesh,"to condemn sin, and to
cast it, as now a condemned thing, away beyond the flesh, but that He might call man forth into
His own likeness, assigning him as [His own] imitator to God, and imposing on him His Father's
law, in order that he may see God, and granting him power to receive the Father; [being] the
Word of God who dwelt in man, and became the Son of man, that He might accustom man to
receive God, and God to dwell in man, according to the good pleasure of the Father.” (Irenaeus,
Against Heresies 6, Ante-Nicene Fathers 1:450)

He continues “there is none other called God by the Scriptures except the Father of all,

and the Son, and those who possess the adoption....Since, therefore, this is sure and stedfast, that
no other God or Lord was announced by the Spirit, except Him who, as God, rules over all,
together with His Word, and those who receive the Spirit of adoption” (Against Heresies, Ante-

Nicene Fathers 1:463) And goes on to say “For the Lord is the good man of the house, who rules the tire house

of His Father; and who delivers a law suited both for slaves and those who are as yet
undisciplined; and gives fitting precepts to those that are free, and have been justified by faith,
as well as throws His own inheritance open to those that are sons.” (Irenaeus Against Heresies
book 4, chap. 9, Ante-Nicene Fathers 1:472)

And again “but man receives advancement and increase towards God. For as God is

always the same, so also man, when found in God, shall always go on towards God.” (Irenaeus,
Against Heresies book 4, chap. 11, Ante-Nicene Fathers 1:474)

He continues on this subject by saying “and to whomsoever He shall say, ‘Come, ye

blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you for eternity,’ (Mat. 25:34) these do
receive the kingdom for ever, and make constant advance in it;” (Irenaeus Against Heresies
4.28.3, Ante-Nicene Fathers 1:501)

Saint Clement (150-215), who was a church leader in Alexandria wrote “yea, I say, the Word of God became a man so that you might learn from a man how to become a god” (Clement of Alexandria, Exhortation to the Greeks, 1.)

He also said “if one knows himself, he will know God, and knowing God will become like

God.....His is beauty, true beauty, for it is God, and that man becomes god, since God wills it.” (Clement of Alexandria, The Instructor, 3.1 see also Clement, Stromateis, 23...202 ad) Clement also says “now they become pure in heart, and because of their close intimacy with the Lord there awaits them a restoration to eternal contemplation; and they have received the title of ‘gods’, since they are destined to be enthroned with other ‘gods’ who are ranked below the Savior”. (The Early Christian Fathers, pg. 243-244)

 	 Saint Justin the Martyr said in 150 A.D. that “but to prove to you that the Holy Ghost
reproaches men because they were made like God, free from suffering and death, provided that
they kept His commandments, and were deemed deserving of the name of His sons... in the
beginning men were made like God, free from suffering and death, and that they are thus
deemed worthy of becoming gods and of having power to become sons of the highest” (Justin
Martyr, Dialogue with Trypho, 124)
	  Again, this doctrine is talked about in the year 347 by St. Athanasius, who was the

Bishop of Alexandria and took part in the council of Nicea. He said “the Word was made flesh in order that we might be enabled to be made gods....just as the Lord, putting on the body, became a man, so also we men are both defied through His flesh, and henceforth inherit everlasting life” he goes on to say that we are “sons and gods by reason of the word in us.” (Athanasius, Against the Arians, 1.39, 3.39) He also states "He became man that we might be made divine."(Athanasius, On the Incarnation, 54.) Saint Augustine (354-430), considered to be the greatest of the Christian fathers said, “but He himself that justifies also defies, for by justifying He makes sons of God. For He has given them power to become the sons of God, (John 1:12). If then we have been made sons of God, we have also been made gods.”(Augustine, on the Psalms, 50:2) “I said “ you are gods, all of you sons of the most high.’ let Eunomius hear this, let Arius, who say that the son of God is son in the same way we are. That we are gods is not so by nature, but by grace. “but to as many as receive Him he gave power to becoming sons of God” I made man for that purpose, that from men they may become gods. We are called gods and sons!...(Christ said) "all of you sons of the Most High," it is not possible to be the son of the Most High, unless He Himself is the Most High. I said that all of you would be exalted as I am exalted. (Jerome (340 A.D.-420 A.D.) the homilies of Saint Jerome pg. 106-107) Jerome goes on to say “give thanks to the God of gods. The prophet is referring to those gods of whom it is written: I said ‘you are gods’ and again ‘god arises in the divine assembly’ they who cease to be mere men, abandon the ways of vice an are become perfect , are gods and the sons of the most high” (ibid pg.353) Irenaeus (125-202 A.D.), the Bishop of Lyons, says “our Lord Jesus Christ, the Word of God, of His boundless love, became what we are that He might make us what He Himself is” (The Early Christian Fathers, pg. 106) Clement stated “But they who with confidence endured [these things] are now heirs of glory and

honour, and have been exalted and made illustrious by God in their memorial forever and ever.
Amen.” (Ante-Nicene Fathers, First Epistle of Clement 1:17)

Origin (185-254) wrote “everything which, without being, ‘God in Himself’ is deified by participation in his Godhead, should strictly be called ‘God’, not ‘The God’. The firstborn of all creation, since He by being with God first gathered Godhood to Himself, is therefore in every way more honored than others besides himself, who are ‘gods’ of whom God is the god, as it is said, ‘God the Lord of gods spoke and called the world’. For it was through His ministry that they became gods, since He drew divinity from God for them to be deified, and of His kindness generously shared it with them. God, then, is the true God, and those who through Him are fashioned into gods are copies of the prototype.” (The Early Christian Fathers, pg. 324)

	He also wrote “The Father, then, is proclaimed as the one true God; but besides the true

God are many who become gods by participating in God.” (ibid) Origin commented on that by saying “"Every one who participates in anything, is

unquestionably of one essence and nature with him who is partaker of the same thing” (Origin,
De Principiis, 4:1:36, Ante-Nicene Fathers 4:381)

Lactantius (about 325 A.D.) ,an ancient Christian scholar and apologist, affirms that the chaste man will become ‘identical in all respects with God’ (The Mystery Religions and Christianity, S. Angus, pg. 106-107) Tertullian (160-230 A.D.) ,who was a Christian Apologist, and Theologian, wrote: “If, indeed, you follow those who did not at the time endure the Lord when showing Himself to be the Son of God, because they would not believe Him to be the Lord, then call to mind along with them the passage where it is written, "I have said, Ye are gods, and ye are children of the Most High;" and again, "God standeth in the congregation of gods;" in order that, if the Scripture has not been afraid to designate as gods human beings, who have become sons of God by faith, you may be sure that the same Scripture has with greater propriety conferred the name of the Lord.

on the true and one-only Son of God.” (The Ante-Nicene Fathers, vol. 3, p. 608.)

He also said "The first-born of all creation, who is the first to be with God . . . is a being

of more exalted rank than the other gods beside Him, of whom God is the God, as it is written,
"The God of gods, the Lord, hath spoken and called the earth.' It was by the offices of the first-

born that they became gods, for He drew in generous measure that they should be made gods,

and He communicated it to them according to His own bounty. . . . Now it is possible that some
may dislike what we have said representing the Father as the One true God, but admitting other
beings besides the true God, who have become gods by having a share of God. They may fear
that the glory of Him who surpasses all creation may be lowered.”

Clement of Alexandria wrote, "To him who has shall be added;" knowledge to faith, love

to knowledge, and love to inheritance. And this happens when a man depends on the Lord
through faith, through knowledge, and through love, and ascends with him to the place where
God is, the God and guardian of our faith and love, from whom knowledge is delivered to those
who are fit for this privilege and who are selected because of their desire for fuller preparation
and training; who are prepared to listen to what is told them, to discipline their lives, to make
progress by careful observance of the law of righteousness. This knowledge leads them to the
end, the endless final end; teaching of the life that is to be ours, a life of conformity to God, with
gods, when we have been freed from all punishment, which we undergo as a result of our
wrong-doings for our saving discipline. After thus being set free, those who have been perfected
are given their reward and their honours. They have done with their purification, they have done
with the rest of their service, though it be a holy service, with the holy; now they become pure in
heart, and because of their close intimacy with the Lord there awaits them a restoration to
eternal contemplation; and they have received the title of "gods," since they are destined to be
enthroned with other "gods" who are ranked next below the Saviour.” (Henry Bettenson, The
Early Christian Fathers, London: Oxford University Press, 1956, pp. 243-244.)

St. Cyril of Jerusalem “When thou shalt have heard what is written concerning the mysteries, then wilt thou understand things which thou knewest not. And think not that thou receivest a small thing: though a miserable man, thou receivest one of God's titles. Hear St. Paul saying, God is faithful. Hear another Scripture saying, God is faithful and just. Foreseeing this, the Psalmist, because men are to receive a title of God, spoke thus in the person of God: I said, Ye are Gods, and are all sons of the Most High. But beware lest thou have the title of "faithful," but the will of the faithless. Thou hast entered into a contest, toil on through the race: another such opportunity thou canst not have. Were it thy wedding-day before thee, wouldest thou not have disregarded all else, and set about the preparation for the feast? And on the eve of consecrating thy soul to the heavenly Bridegroom, wilt thou not cease from carnal things, that thou mayest win spiritual?” (St. Cyril of Jerusalem, Prologue to the Catechetical Lectures) Hippolytus said "The Deity (by condescension) does not diminish anything of the dignity

of His divine perfection having made you even God unto his glory." (Hippolytus, The Refutation
of All Heresies X, 30)

He also said “Now in all these acts He offered up, as the first-fruits, His own manhood,

in order that thou, when thou art in tribulation, mayest not be disheartened, but, confessing thyself
to be a man (of like nature with the Redeemer,) mayest dwell in expectation of also receiving
what the Father has granted unto this Son. (Hippolytus, Refutation of All Heresies 10:29, in
Ante-Nicene Fathers 5:152)

According to Christian scholar G.L. Prestige, the ancient Christians “taught that the destiny of man was to become like God, and even to become deified.” (God in Patristic

Thought, London Press 1956, pg. 73)

In an early Jewish document (mid. Alpha Beta dir. Akiba, bhm 3.32) the concept of deification can be found. “the Holy One... Will in the future call all of the pious by their names, and give them a cup of elixir of life in their hands so that they should live and endure forever. ..and He will also reveal to all the pious in the world to come the ineffable name with which new heavens and a new earth can be created, so that all of them should be able to create new

worlds.” (The Messiah Texts, pg. 251)

The catechism of the Catholic Church, part 1 Profession of Faith reads “The Word became flesh

to make us "partakers of the divine nature": (2 Peter 1:4) "For this is why the Word became man,
and the Son of God became the Son of man: so that man, by entering into communion with the
Word and thus receiving divine sonship, might become a son of God." (St. Irenaeus, Adv.
haeres. 3, 19, 1: PG 7/1, 939)"For the Son of God became man so that we might become God."
(St. Athanasius, De inc. 54, 3: PG 25, 192B) "The only-begotten Son of God, wanting to make
us sharers in his divinity, assumed our nature, so that he, made man, might make men gods." (St.
Thomas Aquinas, Opusc. 57, 1-4)

The well-known William R. Inge, Archbishop of Canterbury, wrote: “God became man, that we might become God” was a commonplace of doctrinal theology at least until the time of Augustine, and that “deification holds a very large place in the writings of the fathers ... We find it in Irenaeus as well as in Clement, in Athanasius as well in Gregory of Nysee. St. Augustine was no more afraid of deificari in Latin than Origen of apotheosis in Greek.” But he admitted that “To modern ears the word deification sounds not only strange but arrogant and shocking.” (William Ralph Inge, Christian Mysticism, London, Metheun & Co., 1899, 1948, 13, 356.) In The Westminister Dictionary of Christian Theology, a non LDS publication, under Deification it reads “Deification (Greek Theosis) is for orthodoxy the goal of every Christian. Man, according to the Bible, is ‘made in the image and likeness of God’...it is possible for man to become like God, to become deified, to become God by grace. This doctrine is based on many passages of both O.T. and N.T. (Psalms 82 (81) .6; 2 Peter 1:4), and it is essentially the teaching both of St. Paul, though he tends to use the language of filial adoption (Rom. 8:9-17, Gal. 4:5-7) and the fourth gospel (17:21-23).” The language of 2 Peter is taken up by St. Irenaeus, in his famous phrase, ‘if the Word bas been made man, it is so that men may be made gods; (adv. Haer v, pref.), And becomes the standard in Greek theology. In the fourth century St. Athanasius repeats Irenaeus almost word

for word, and in the fifth century St. Cyril of Alexandria says that we shall become sons ‘by

participation’ (Greek methexis). Deification is the central idea in the spirituality of St. Maximus the confessor, for whom the doctrine is corollary of the incarnation: ‘deification, briefly, is the encompassing and fulfillment of all times and ages’,...and St. Symeon the new theologian at the end of the tenth century writes, ‘he who is God by nature converses with those whom he has made gods by grace, as a friend converses with his friends, face to face...’ “Finally, it should be noted that deification does not mean absorption into God, since the deified creature remains itself and distinct. It is the whole human being, body and soul, who is transfigured in the spirit into the likeness of the divine nature, and deification is the goal of every Christian.” (J. Fitzmyer, Pauline Theology: a brief sketch, 1967, pg. 42)

The noted Christian author, C.S. Lewis, also expressed his views on the deification of man. “It is a serious thing to live in a society of possible gods and goddesses, to remember that the dullest and most uninteresting person you can talk to may one day be a creature which, if you saw it now, you would be strongly tempted to worship.” (In Cross and Livingstone, Oxford Dictionary of the Christian Church, pg. 1319) Again he states “It is so very difficult to believe that the travail of all creation which God Himself descended to share, at its most intense, may be necessary in the process of turning finite creatures (with free wills) into--well, Gods.” (C.S. Lewis’ letter to Mrs. Edward A. Allen, 1 Nov. 1954, in Letters of C.S. Lewis, pg. 440) He also writes “the command be ye perfect is not idealistic gas. Nor is it a command to do the impossible. He is going to make us into creatures that can obey that command. He said (in the bible) that we were ‘gods’ and He is going to make good his words. If we let Him-for we can prevent Him, if we choose-He will make the feeblest and filthiest of us into a god or goddess, dazzling, radiant, immortal creature, pulsating all through with such energy and joy and wisdom and love as we cannot now imagine, a bright stainless mirror which reflects back to God perfectly (though, of course, on a smaller scale) His own boundless power and delight and goodness. The process will be long and in parts very painful; but that is what we are in for. Nothing less. He meant what he said” (Trinitarian Controversy, pg. 6, Mere Christianity, p.174) "For now the critical moment has arrived. Century by century God has guided nature up to the point of producing creatures which can (if they will) be taken right out of nature, turned into gods." (ibid. p.187) He says in his book The Grand Miracle that “The people who keep on asking if they can’t lead a good life without Christ, don’t know what life is about; if they did they would know that ‘a decent life’ is mere machinery compared with the thing we men are really made for. Morality is indispensable: but the Diving Life, which gives itself to us and which calls us to be gods, intends for us something in which morality will be swallowed up. We are to be remade. All the rabbit in us will be swallowed up-the worried, conscientious, ethical rabbit as well as the cowardly and sensual rabbit. We shall bleed and squeal as the handfuls of fur come out; and then surprisingly, we shall find underneath it all a thing we have never yet imagined: a real man, an ageless god, a son of God, strong, radiant, wise, beautiful, and drenched in joy.” (The Grand Miracle, by C.S. Lewis pg. 85) He goes on to say “Christ has risen, and so we shall rise. St. Peter for a few seconds walked on the water, and the day will come when there will be a remade universe, infinitely obedient to the will of glorified and obedient men, when we can do all things, when we shall be those gods that we are described as being in Scripture.” (The Grand Miracle, C.S. Lewis, pg.

65)

"Sometimes, Lord, one is tempted to say that if you wanted us to behave like the lilies of the field you might have given us an organization more like theirs. But that, I suppose, is just your...grand enterprise. To make an organism which is also spirit; to make that terrible oxymoron, a 'spiritual animal.' To take a poor primate, a beast with nerve-endings all over it, a creature with a stomach that wants to be filled, a breeding animal that wants to mate, and say, 'Now get on with it, become a god.' (A Grief Observed, p.84-5)

Even Martin Luther spoke of the "deification of human nature," although in what sense it

is not clear. (Jack R. Pressau, I'm Saved, You're Saved…Maybe (Atlanta: John Knox, 1977), p.
57; A. Nygren, Agape and Eros, trans. Philip S. Watson (Chicago: Univ. of Chicago Press,
1982), p. 734.)

The seventeenth-century Anglican thinker Ralph Cudworth remarked, “The gospel is nothing but God descending into the world in our form and conversing with us in our likeness that He might allure and draw us up to God and make us partakers of His divine form, Theos gegonen anthropos (as Athanasius speaks) hina hemas en eauto Theopoiese; ‘God was

therefore incarnated and made man that He might deify us’’ that is (as St. Peter expresseth it)
makes us partakers of the divine nature” (cited in Allchin, Participation in God, pg. 14)

Another non-LDS clergyman named Father Jordan Vajda agrees with this doctrine when he stated “Members of the LDS Church will discover that there fundamental belief about human salvation and potential is not unique of a Mormon invention. Latin Catholics and Protestants will learn of a doctrine that, while relatively foreign to their ears, is nevertheless part of the heritage of the undivided Catholic Church of the first millenium. Members of Eastern Orthodox and Eastern Catholic Churches will discover on the American continent an amazing parallel to their own belief that salvation in Christ involves our becoming ‘partakers of the divine nature’” (as quoted in FARMS Review of Books, vol. 13, pg. 14) Then referring to the anti-Mormon video the godmakers, Father Vajda said: “The Mormons are truly ‘godmakers’: as the LDS doctrine of exaltation explains, the fullness of human salvation means ‘becoming a god’. Yet what was meant to be a term of ridicule has

turned out to be a term of approbation, for the witness of the Greek Fathers of the Church...is
that they also believed that salvation meant ‘becoming a god’. It seems that if one’s soteriology
cannot accommodate a doctrine of human divination, then it has at least implicitly, if not
explicitly, rejected the heritage of the early Christian Church and departed from the faith of first
millenium Christianity.”(ibid pg.94-95)

Jaroslav Pelikan notes, "The chief idea of St. Maximus, as of all Eastern theology, [was]

the idea of deification." (The Spirit of Eastern Christendom, p. 10.)

John Calvin said “From this follows the other point: since Christ exercises the office of

Teacher under the Head [the Father], he ascribes to the Father the name of God, not to abolish
his own deity, but to raise us up to it by degrees” (Institutes I.XIII.24)

Around 1300 A.D., the Dominican Meister Eckhart preached the doctrine that “the seed of God is in us. Given an intelligent farmer and a diligent farmhand, it will thrive and grow up to God whose seed it is, and accordingly, its fruit will be God-nature. Pear seeds grow into pear trees; nut seeds grow into nut trees, and God-seed into God” (Plancher, A History of Christian Theology, pg. 169) In regard to the Mormon doctrine, Ernst W. Benz has observed, “One can think what one

wants of this doctrine of progressive deification, but one thing is certain: with this anthropology
Joseph Smith is closer to the view of man held by the ancient Church than the precursors of the
Augustinian doctrine of original sin.” (Ernst W. Benz, “Imago Dei: Man in the Image of God,”
in Truman G. Madsen, Reflections on Mormonism (Provo: Religious Studies Center, Brigham
Young University, 1978), 215-16.

The previous quotes show that Theosis was something that was taught, and has been taught, by many Christians through the centuries. They pulled these beliefs from the Bible itself. Matthew Brown compared a few descriptions between God and man in the following: Jesus Christ Saints

Crown Rev. 14:14 James 1:12, Rev. 2:10, 4:4, 10

White robe Mat. 17:2, Mark 9:3, Luke 9:29 Rev. 6:11, 7:9-14

Scepter Heb. 1:8 Rev. 2:26-27

Throne Rev. 3:21 Rev. 3:21

Heir of God Rom. 8:17 Rom. 8:14-21, Gal. 4:1-7

Son title Heb. 1:5, 5:5 John 3:1 Rom. 8:14, 16, John 1:12, Phil. 2:15, 2 Peter 1:4 1 John 3:1-2, Gal. 3:26

King and priest John 1:49, Heb. 3:1 Rev. 1:6, 5:10

Perfect Mat. 5:48 Mat. 5:48

One with God John 4:11, 17:20-21, 10:30 John 17:21-23

Theosis can be found in the following scriptures: Rom. 8:16-17, Luke 6:40+Heb. 12:23, Gal. 4:7, Mat. 5:48, Psalm 82:6, Psalm 8:5, Rev. 3:21, Rev. 21:7, 2 Peter 1:4, 2 Cor. 3:18, Acts 17:29, 1 Peter 3:7, and Daniel 12:3.

Conclusion

A summary of the argument against the criticism.

Mormonism and the nature of God/Deification of man

Contents

Criticism

Source(s) of the Criticism

Conclusion

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