Skip to content
Ordinary Time

Movements & -isms

Modalism

MOH-duh-liz-umnoun

The error that Father, Son, and Spirit are not three distinct persons but one person in three successive “modes” or masks.

Also called: Sabellianism, modalistic monarchianism

Not To Be Confused With

Modalism collapses the three persons into one; Arianism keeps them distinct but demotes the Son. The “water/ice/steam” and “one man as father/son/worker” analogies actually teach modalism.

Modalism saves the oneness of God by sacrificing the distinction of persons — so it cannot explain the Son praying to the Father or the Spirit sent by both. The Cappadocian grammar (one ousia, three hypostases) guards against it.

Related Terms

Seen In These Debates

Related Word Studies

Modalism — Definition | Theologos Media