Person
A fourth-century priest of Alexandria who taught that the Son was created, and was condemned at Nicaea.
What it means
Arius (c. 256–336) taught that the Son was the first of God’s creatures and “there was a time when he was not”. The Council of Nicaea (325) condemned him and affirmed that the Son is “of one substance” with the Father.
Often misunderstood as
That Islam’s view of Jesus is simply Arianism.
What the sources say
Some writers, Muslim and others, have compared the Quran’s view of Jesus with Arian and Ebionite Christianity. The Quran’s own statements differ from Arianism in important ways: it calls Jesus a messenger, a servant, “a Word from God and a spirit from Him” (4:171), and has no pre-existing divine Son. Muslims hold that Jesus’ teaching was one of strict monotheism and do not derive it from any later Church party.