What were Major debates of Christianity?

Answer 1

One of the major areas of debate among early Christians concerned the nature of Jesus and his relationship with God. It was eventually resolved by adoption of the notion of the Holy Trinity, whereby God the Father, Jesus and the Holy Spirit are three persons in one God.

Answer 2

Answer

In earliest Christian times, there were quite important differences among the many competing Christian sects. These differences were not so much debated, but those who held divergent beliefs were likely to be shunned. Gradually, some of the different sects merged and a dominant 'proto-Catholic-Orthodox' sect emerged. Differences continued over such important issues as whether there were one or two Gods, the demiurge, and whether salvation was by works or faith alone.

Emperor Constantine saw the Christian Church as a unifying influence in the empire, but first he had to unify the Church itself. Gnostic Christianity was considered outside the Edict of Milan, which decreed tolerance for Christianity, but many other issues needed to be debated within the dominant Church. One of these concerned the concept of whther there was a Holy Trinity, a debate that was decided in the affirmative.

The early Christian Church does not seem to have been good at debate. Having agreed on the Holy Trinity, it then began to discuss the substance of the Holy Trinity and whether Jesus was equally divine with God the Father. The Western branch of the Church proposed the filioque clause ("and the Son") be added to the Nicene Creed, but the Eastern Churches refused, leading eventually to the Great Schism of 1054.