ABSTRACT
Christian teachers defines their attitude towards this philosophy; and it is the purpose in this chapter to sketch shortly the manner in which they did so. This task belongs primarily to the historian of Christianity, but the present work would be incomplete without some adumbration of this important field of study. In the second century the doctrines of the double nature of the Christ and of the variety inherent in the Deity becomes incorporated in technical Stoic forms as part of a defined Christian creed. It would seem that here we have touched a fundamental point in the historical development of the moral sentiments. It would lead us too far to attempt here to discuss this profound moral problem, which has deeply influenced the whole history of the Christian church. In the next generation we find the Father, the Word, and the Spirit; and the last term of the triad becomes increasingly identified with the 'holy spirit' of Stoicism.
