You make an excellent point Paul. I wondered just what some so-called Christians worship. As per text variation in the Torah and the New Testament, variation do exist. they are documented and the sources are identified. Much labor, archeology and scholarship has gone into this endeavor. No one is trying to hide anything. The amazing thing to me is how little variation there is. Whether a particular edition of a Bible includes the Apocrypha or commentaries or the Critical Apparatus listing all the known variants, demonstrates the openness and honesty of the scholarship involved. That certain sects emphasize one over another tells us something about the particular SECT, not the Scripture. Newer translations usually include the interpreter's comments on difficult passages along with a discussion as to why a particular decision was made to interpret one way and not another. One of my favorite translations is the Jerusalem Bible which is a French Catholic translation from the original languages. This in turn was translated FROM THE FRENCH into English. J.R.R. Tolkien was one of the translators! It is a very interesting translation and it gives great insight into Catholicism as well as the Scripture. I do read the Greek text and, with a few exceptions, feel that the KJV is one of the best English translations going.

Don () T, sorry if I ticked you off! I was trying to be a little humorous by being so picayune. I'm not ROTFLM*O but I am LOL out loud! Since the question here, in this thread, is one of THEOLOGY and not existential or philosophical debate, I approached it as a theological question. Nor is the question one of "number" though I have no doubt that those of Islamic persuasion would disagree, as would most Jews with the Christians on this point. The idea of "Trinity" and Godhead is difficult to harmonize with pure monotheism. I am told that the superscription over the door way to the Dome of the Rock states "God is one" and "God has no Son".

That these three main monotheistic religions have differences which are significant is demonstrated by the fact that there are three DIFFERENT main monotheistic religions, each claiming to be monotheistic. If that sounds like a tautology, too bad! It is the given, the self evident, "evident" being the key word. It is THE fact in evidence.