Christians are polytheists. . . . . .They just don't like to admit it. They constantly refer to how Jesus is in Heaven with his father(or sitting at the right hand side of his father). Even when Jesus was alive he constantly referred to the father as a distinct and separate entity, not as himself or another "version" of himself as can be read from the bible. . . . Christians continually refer to the father, son, and holy spirit as three distinct entities and then when pressed to explain the belief, state that they "really are one God" but cant explain how with any convincing logic at all.

Just so we get the definitions straight:

Monotheism:
Belief in one God.

Polytheism:
Belief in many Gods.

A belief that 3=1 is not monotheism, as monotheism is 1=1. Its that simple. There is nothing complicated or convoluted about it. Islam is monotheistic, as is Judaism. . . . Zoroastrianism is too. Christianity is anything but a monotheistic religion. . . .Your thought's pls. . . .

that was a similar problem faced by the Council of Nicaea, in deciding the relationship between Jesus Christ and the Almighty God. the Arians' view was that Jesus was just like every other creation of God, this conflicted with the sanctity of Jesus' sacrifice. the conclusion, however was that Jesus was a god and not a creation of God. thus before the adoption of the Trinity, Jesus was considered a god.
Unlike Zoroaster, Mohammed and Moses, Jesus had portrayed himself as a Son of God, rather than a mere messenger. thus elevating himself to a status of a god.

Kay 17:

that was a similar problem faced by the Council of Nicaea, in deciding the relationship between Jesus Christ and the Almighty God. the Arians' view was that Jesus was just like every other creation of God, this conflicted with the sanctity of Jesus' sacrifice. the conclusion, however was that Jesus was a god and not a creation of God. thus before the adoption of the Trinity, Jesus was considered a god.
Unlike Zoroaster, Mohammed and Moses, Jesus had portrayed himself as a Son of God, rather than a mere messenger. thus elevating himself to a status of a god.

That's interesting considering the fact that there are many deities in christianity. . . .

Major Deities
Father
Son
Holy Ghost

Minor Deities
Mary
10,000+ of saints
Unknown number of Angels. . . .

I disagree.

The Trinity is defined as being three persons in one god.

The persons aren't worshipped, the god is.

Look at it this way:

Say we worship H2O.
Ice, water vapor and liquid water are all H2O. The 3 are all distinct but they all the same chemical formula.
They're not worshipped in the sense that all are different substances. They're all worshipped because they are the same thing - H2O.

Personally, I don't dispute the fact that the Trinity was copied from other, older religions and philosophies but it in no way indicates polytheism today. As Kay17 says, it was adopted only after much debate. The people who adopted it did so on the understanding that it was a monotheistic creed.
Also, an important point: if a Christian believes that he worships only one god, it is impossible to tell him otherwise. If I pray and I decide that I am praying to just one god, nobody can tell me otherwise. You may say "Ah, but the Trinity is 3 seperate people" but if the Christian sees it as the "One", then any other statement about polytheism is irrelevant.

I have to say that it's an argument that annoys me when atheists use it because it has no basis in modern day Christianity. Sure, we can look back to the origins of Christianity and infer polytheism but it's relevance is nothing to the individual believer unless he actually chooses willingly and knowingly to follow a polytheistic belief now.

there is a flaw there. there is the father, the son and the holy spirit. the son and holy spirit do not make up the father right?

Bastage:

I disagree.

The Trinity is defined as being three persons in one god.

The persons aren't worshipped, the god is.

Look at it this way:

Say we worship H2O.
Ice, water vapor and liquid water are all H2O. The 3 are all distinct but they all the same chemical formula.
They're not worshipped in the sense that all are different substances. They're all worshipped because they are the same thing - H2O.

Personally, I don't dispute the fact that the Trinity was copied from other, older religions and philosophies but it in no way indicates polytheism today. As Kay17 says, it was adopted only after much debate. The people who adopted it did so on the understanding that it was a monotheistic creed.
Also, an important point: if a Christian believes that he worships only one god, it is impossible to tell him otherwise. If I pray and I decide that I am praying to just one god, nobody can tell me otherwise. You may say "Ah, but the Trinity is 3 seperate people" but if the Christian sees it as the "One", then any other statement about polytheism is irrelevant.

I have to say that it's an argument that annoys me when atheists use it because it has no basis in modern day Christianity. Sure, we can look back to the origins of Christianity and infer polytheism but it's relevance is nothing to the individual believer unless he actually chooses willingly and knowingly to follow a polytheistic belief now.

How come each different sect of Christianity understands the Trinity in a different manner? I've seen different denominations debate how they believed or accept the trinity to be in ways different from each other.

Mazaje dear, the rate at which you open so many christian threads . . . just become one already.

JeSoul:

Mazaje dear, the rate at which you open so many christian threads . . . just become one already.

OK. . .Am now one. . .

Bastage:

I disagree.

The Trinity is defined as being three persons in one god.

The persons aren't worshipped, the god is.

Look at it this way:

Say we worship H2O.
Ice, water vapor and liquid water are all H2O. The 3 are all distinct but they all the same chemical formula.
They're not worshipped in the sense that all are different substances. They're all worshipped because they are the same thing - H2O.

Personally, I don't dispute the fact that the Trinity was copied from other, older religions and philosophies but it in no way indicates polytheism today. As Kay17 says, it was adopted only after much debate. The people who adopted it did so on the understanding that it was a monotheistic creed.
Also, an important point: if a Christian believes that he worships only one god, it is impossible to tell him otherwise. If I pray and I decide that I am praying to just one god, nobody can tell me otherwise. You may say "Ah, but the Trinity is 3 seperate people" but if the Christian sees it as the "One", then any other statement about polytheism is irrelevant.

I have to say that it's an argument that annoys me when atheists use it because it has no basis in modern day Christianity. Sure, we can look back to the origins of Christianity and infer polytheism but it's relevance is nothing to the individual believer unless he actually chooses willingly and knowingly to follow a polytheistic belief now.

This is patently flawed for one reason - THE BIBLE ITSELF which is the grund norm of the Christian Faith DOES NOT describe the supposed three persons as being one or the same.

The bible is very clear that they posess different attributes and are not merely different manifestations of the same entity. This is clear as between Jesus and the Father.

As regards the Holy Spirit, this is not a personage at all - or even a manifestation of a personage. In my understanding it is simply the active will of God. Like God's energy.

Given the presentation of the relationship between Jesus and the Father within the Bible it is apparent that the argument that they are the same entity cannot be sustained.

Given this fact, in no wise can the Christian Faith be deemed a monotheistic one.

we forget the goddess of heaven in all but in name, the Holy Mary, the Archangels, the normal angels and the saints with specialized areas of operation. the principalities and the status of the devil is in question. i think its polytheistic.