In The Brothers Karamazov, nineteenth century Russian novelist Fyodor Dostoyevsky parallels the problem of evil with the discovery of non-Euclidean geometry.  Despite the naturalness with which evil and mathematics go together, Dostoyevsky’s discussion of mathematics is still surprising.  His point isn’t that mathematics causes human suffering, as true as that might be.  He’s showing us, rather, one of the reasons the problem of evil is the most powerful objection to the existence of God; namely, it forces us to lay aside our preconceived notions of what’s reasonable, something we’re loath to do.  But the problem of evil isn’t an intellectual problem – or at least not primarily intellectual.  Rather, it’s in part a problem stemming from mistaken loyalties.  So too, the problem of geometry.

Frequently the early church is the butt of criticism from the Reformed world. Of course the Trinity and the Incarnation are important, even very important, but where is the doctrine of justification through faith by grace alone? And as the intramural conversation grows among evangelicals over the recent Manhattan Declaration, the point is sometimes raised that while we may agree with Roman Catholics on the ecumenical creeds, this is not sufficient grounds for co-belligerence given their silence on the Five Solas.

But without dismissing the evangelical concerns entirely, I would suggest that this is to miss a great deal of the significance of the early creeds. To check these doctrines off like so many classes needed for a specific major is to get the Trinity wrong and (speaking of Christmas) get the Incarnation wrong.