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Whether there is trinity in God?
The number of persons in God is signified by the word “Trinity.” This word “Trinity” also signifies the one essence of three persons which was revealed to the whole world by divine teaching and revelation. Although we can only understand the Holy Trinity to a certain extent as mortal creatures, unbelievers and heretics have attempted throughout the ages to confuse others on the matter through misuse of words, false contradictions (misunderstandings, denial of the truth, or ignorance on their part), while often enough attempting to point would be believers or known believers to one extreme or the other. For example, the atheist could say, “If god made all things good, why is there flesh eating bacteria?” in an attempt to challenge the Divine Goodness of the Holy Trinity, or “The Trinity contradicts itself because the human mind cannot understand it,” in a vain attempt to assert that human beings (who are mortal creatures with finite understandings) are the purveyors and authors of truth and efficient causes and therefore if any human being is not capable of understanding something fully in its completeness, then it cannot possibly exist, while the pantheist says “Although my son died at such a young age, we are sure he returned back to the universe in the form of energy, atoms, and particles - so in this way he returns to the circle of life as in everything before him, and in this way he lives!” in another attempt to attribute the goodness of creation to mere chance and accidental occurrence. In another example, the heretic might say, “God is a woman. This is what she said,” so as to spread confusion, and “The father is the son and the son is the holy spirit,” as in the heresy of modalism which falsely asserts the different modes of God which deny the Three Distinct Persons of God within One Essence (The Godhead). Now, if men could fully understand all of the known mysteries of the Trinity, then God would be a human invention, because what is infinite (God which is the Holy Trinity) cannot be contained within what is finite (the human mind). It’s like trying to empty and dump a lake into a dish bowl! This is why the Church proclaims to the world the Sacred Mysteries which mentions the Incarnation, the Sacraments, and the Holy Trinity not as something that should be received or proven through conventional means as if one was trying to find someone guilty in a court of law through evidence (although there is much evidence which proves God’s existence), but the mystery of all creation and being meant to be received through faith which offers the fullness of worship and truth by way of the gospel message of salvation for all mankind both near and far. Whether the Son is other than the Father? Words to describe the Three Persons in the One Essence of God (Holy Trinity) can be used correctly or misused incorrectly. To avoid heresy and the spreading of confusion, words should be used carefully to avoid error when attempting to describe God. This should be done as if we were walking a tightrope while avoiding falling off either to the right or the left: -Diversity: Word that is linked to the error of Arius who was the author of the arian heresy (believed Christ was made as a creature and not begotten). The word “DISTINCTION” is used instead in order not to take away from the unity of the essence in the Godhead. -Difference: Linked to the error of Arius. The word “DISTINCTION” is used instead in order not to take away from the unity of essence in the Godhead. -Separation: Should be avoided so as not to take away from the simplicity and singleness of the Divine Essence. -Division: Should be avoided so as not to take away from the simplicity and singleness of the Divine Essence. -Disparity: Should be avoided because it removes the quality of what is being described. Implies discrimination and injustice in the Moderni Age and not proper when describing the Holy Trinity. -Alien: Should be avoided because it removes the quality of what is being described. Furthermore, there is a thought pattern in the Moderni Age (brought on by pop culture and faithlessness in general) which believes the Persons of the Holy Trinity are extraterrestrial beings from other planets who colonized earth who maintain continuous contact with parts of the human race. False beliefs such as this negate the divine quality of The Godhead and reduce it down to that of a created being which is simply located in a different part of the universe, thus reducing the quality of what is being described as stated earlier. -Discrepant: Should be avoided because it removes the quality of what is being described. Implies contradiction, but in God, there is no contradiction found because in Him there lies truth to the highest degree. -Singularity: We avoid this word to describe God because of the error of Sabellius who authored the heresy of modalism which believes there is only one person in God who reveals Himself in three different modes (Father, Son, and Holy Spirit). -Only: When we say “God’s only Son,” we are correct, because there is no plurality of sons that are from God the Father. However, we do not use the word “only” as an adjective to describe God (without clarifying further) because the persons in God are several. -Confused: What is one and whole is not confused, for there is no unity in confusion. Now, there is unity in God to the highest degree. -Solitary: Should be avoided because what is solitary or alone implies isolation, just as solitary confinement in a prison would mean one person sits in the cell, as the human mind would understand it. Since there are Three Persons of the Holy Trinity, it would be improper to infer that One of Them are isolated from another. Now, the word “Other” identifies the distinction of another person and hypostasis (individual substance of a rational nature or PERSON) when we rightfully proclaim that “the Son is other than the Father.” Whether the exclusive word “alone” should be added to the essential term in God? The word “alone” could be used in both the absolute or relative sense. If this word “alone” were to be used in the absolute sense in reference to God, then it could be mistaken by others that we mean that God as a Person is alone, void of the Person of the Son and the Person of the Holy Spirit. This should be avoided when referring to God. However, if we were to use it in the relative sense like most people do when referring to God in ordinary circumstances (Christians who believe in the Holy Trinity), by other words around the term “God alone,” we would come to the understanding of what an author meant because of its context and purpose. This would be acceptable because it does not deny the Three Persons of the Holy Trinity to which God (Who Is One Essence) revealed to all mankind. Examples: Absolute Sense: “There is no one other than God the Father, for all we need for salvation is God alone.” “God alone is all that is needed.” (no more context to clarify, including no other texts clarifying the author’s positions on the matter) “There is the Father, who is God alone.” “God is not interested in human affairs, for He is up there in the Heavens alone and nobody is with Him.” (something a pagan author might say) “Faith alone, God alone.” (an author who says this who does not believe in the Holy Trinity, such as Jews, Muslims, Mormons, and Jehovah’s Witnesses) Relative Sense: “We need to put our trust in God alone.” “Worship God alone.” “Only God alone can save us now!” “God alone is the truth.” “My faith is in God alone.” (notice, we do not say “My faith is in God, who is alone,” which would not be proper) We could also say that “God, who is seated on His throne in the Heavenly Kingdom, is not alone because He is with the Angels and Saints.” Although this statement is true, as it pertains to the Holy Trinity, it wouldn’t be clear enough to others if the statement was referring to the unity of essence, the denial of the Three Persons within The One Essence, or if it were just a literal statement which was not meant to address the concept of the Holy Trinity. More context would be needed. Whether an exclusive diction can be joined to the personal term? As it pertains to the Holy Trinity, the Son and the Holy Spirit are other Persons of the Father, but not another thing. However, in the way we speak as people in our own languages, the word “alone” can be taken to exclude other people and things. Now, because of this, it is important to understand the context of what is being said in reference to the Holy Trinity along with its valid senses (absolute or relative). It should not always be taken literally because most people do not always speak strictly in the literal sense. Furthermore, knowing the position of the author beforehand also helps with the context of what is being said. For example, if a Catholic Bishop is speaking to a crowd about “God alone,” it can be logically inferred that he is not speaking out against the Holy Trinity as if he were denying both the Son and the Holy Spirit, but that in “God alone,” he is conveying a message pertaining to the faith (because Catholics believe in the Holy Trinity). Finally, when we refer to God as being the only true God, we are referring to the Holy Trinity who is ONE ESSENCE but in THREE PERSONS, even though we may not always mention the Divine Persons or the Divine Essence exclusively.
I am blessed to be a Third Order Lay Dominican. However, the ideas expressed in this post are my own and do not represent the endorsement of or position of the Order of Preachers as a whole.
Commentary regarding Saint Thomas Aquinas’ Summa Theologiae derived from: ST part (I), Q. 27-49 from newadvent.org with permission. Scripture texts in this work are taken from the New American Bible, revised edition © 2010, 1991, 1986, 1970 Confraternity of Christian Doctrine, Washington, D.C. and are used by permission of the copyright owner. All Rights Reserved. No part of the New American Bible may be reproduced in any form without permission in writing from the copyright owner.
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Whether there are several persons in God?
There is only One God (One Essence) who is Three Persons (by relation). We know this because God revealed Himself to all mankind through His Patriarchs, Kings, Prophets, His Only Begotten Son, His Apostles, through His Saints, and those whom He chose to reveal Himself to, even little children! Now, He revealed Himself as The Father, The Son, and The Holy Spirit. We recognize these persons by their real relations; by Paternity (Fatherhood), Filiation (Sonship), Spiration (Proceeding from the Source of Paternity and Filiation), and Procession (The Word (Jesus Christ), Holy Spirit (movement of the will through Love)). Furthermore, these relations are signified through the realities within the subsistence of the divine nature, not human nature (us). Now, the heretics and the blasphemers use language arguments to confuse and mislead, so as to trick others into professing a plurality of essences or different persons. Some go so far as to say the person of the Son is a creature and not divine (Muslims and Mormons etc.). Neo-Pagans of the Moderni Age view the Holy Trinity as one God among many along with their own backgrounds, history, and abilities. Theistic and non-theistic satanists go so far as to proclaim the chief fallen angel satan as the good god who received an ill portion from an unloving Father. But in truth, there is only One Living God who revealed Himself to the world and we know Him as The Father, The Son, and the Holy Spirit; The Name to which all the Christian faithful are baptized into! Whether there are more than three persons in God? It may seem since there are four relations in God - Paternity (Father), Filiation (Son), Procession (There are only two possessions - The Word Made Flesh (Son) and Love (The Holy Spirit)), and Spiration (Impulse of the Will and Spirit of Truth which comes forth from both the Father and the Son), it may also seem good for someone to believe that there are four persons in God. However, this is false because SPIRATION cannot be separated from the person of the Father or the Son, but belongs to both. Furthermore, although SPIRATION is a real relation in God, it so happens not to be a personal relation in God which belongs solely to one or the other (Father or Son); rather, IT BELONGS TO BOTH. Thus, those who receive the Holy Spirit must acknowledge both the Father and the Son because The Spirit of Truth belongs to both of them. Think of it this way; can someone win the gift (in this sense, ACCIDENT) of the lottery without filling out the required numbers on the ticket? Absolutely not, for the chances and probability of one winning the lottery without filling out all of the assigned spaces to enter numbers is zero, for this lotto ticket would not be valid. It is important to understand that I am referring to ordinary circumstances in individuals; those who choose to remain in mortal sin (UNBELIEF is the highest mortal sin one can commit) and defile the temples of their bodies which create an unsuitable place for the Holy Spirit to dwell; just as antibodies reject organ donation and attack it, so does a defiled temple of the body and unconfessed mortal sin reject the Holy Spirit and attack it as well. So, some may say, “Well I don’t have to be baptized, I already have the Holy Spirit,” or “Us Jews just need the Father, for we do not need to acknowledge His Son because we are chosen,” and “Us Muslims believe Christ was just a prophet,” the failure to fully acknowledge who God truly is and how He revealed Himself to the world through His Church (the one with authority), places the soul in a type of spiritual poverty which deprives itself of the truth and ultimately salvation and the gift of the Spirit of the Living God to which all mankind is capable of receiving. To conclude, SPIRATION (the relation pertaining to God the Holy Spirit) is not a person as the Holy Spirit (Procession) is. It is simply a relation as in a property belonging to two other persons (as if both names were on the title of a vehicle, thus proving ownership). To clarify further; the three relations; which are Paternity, Filiation, and Procession signifies the persons of the Holy Trinity which are identified as the personal properties that declare personhood. As Christ Jesus, the Apostles, the Church Fathers, the Saints, and the visible Church (Roman Catholicism) that was left on earth which is the foundation and pillar of the truth who has proclaimed the gospel and message of salvation to the entire world since the 1st century since it was created by the Divine Will says; The Lord is One who we know as Three Persons, God The Father (Paternity), God The Son (Filiation), and God The Holy Spirit (Procession which is the person of the Holy Spirit Proceeding). Whether the numeral terms denote anything real in God? The term “One” consists of what is indivisible and multitude. “One” is the idea and principle of a thing that is numbered or realized. It is also being, for there is only one of you and not many. Furthermore, one of you as a species is many and therefore are multitude, as there are many humans among the earth’s surface and in this way that too is also “One.” Multitude is the measure of what things are measured by which consists of incremental units. For example, when we refer to the term “One,” and we say The Lord Is One, we mean there is ONE GOD, BUT THREE PERSONS. Secondly, when we refer to the term “Multitude,” we say THE HOLY TRINITY, God The Father, God The Son, and God the Holy Spirit who are Three Persons within the multitude of The Holy Trinity under The Godhead WHO IS ONE. Now, when referring to multitude, this cannot be applied to God such as species and quantity as if we were referring to types of reptiles or primates within a genus and species because the terms ONE and MULTITUDE when referring to God transcends our understanding of substance and relation, so all we have left to ponder are examples within the material principle (matter, the universe, earth, and creatures) which fall short in explaining The Godhead fully because what is finite (the human mind) cannot ponder what is infinite (the Divine Mind) fully and with complete accuracy. Nonetheless, we try to understand God so as to draw closer to Him in closer union. As for numeral terms when referring to God, they are not real relations in God but just relations in as much as we as humans can understand and describe them (as when we refer to the Three Person of God in One Essence). Everything which follows from that is simply negation and only has negative meanings (so as to take away from what God isn’t so you can identify him better for Who He Is, for example - you wish to find a seashell underneath a pile of stones, so you remove the stones until the seashell becomes visible). Numeral terms denote something real in creatures such as identifying classes, species and taxonomy, but this does not apply to God. Whether this term “person” can be common to the three persons? What a “person” is, is common to them. So, if we can call a human creature a PERSON, an angelic being a PERSON, all the more it is proper and right to refer to the PERSONS (The Holy Trinity) who created them both as PERSON. So, when somebody asks in reference to God, “Three what?” The Church says, “Three Persons.” This word person signifies the name of a reality that the name of “person” is common to the idea of the Three Divine Persons which subsist distinctively from one another in the divine nature.
I am blessed to be a Third Order Lay Dominican. However, the ideas expressed in this post are my own and do not represent the endorsement of or position of the Order of Preachers as a whole.
Commentary regarding Saint Thomas Aquinas’ Summa Theologiae derived from: ST part (I), Q. 27-49 from newadvent.org with permission. Scripture texts in this work are taken from the New American Bible, revised edition © 2010, 1991, 1986, 1970 Confraternity of Christian Doctrine, Washington, D.C. and are used by permission of the copyright owner. All Rights Reserved. No part of the New American Bible may be reproduced in any form without permission in writing from the copyright owner.
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The definition of “person?”
Human beings can master things. For example, the mechanic can master the diesel engine, in that through a lifetime of study and experience, he can understand all of the parts which go to the diesel engine as he would know where they belong, how to replace them, and how to get them working together in unison. The mechanic masters the diesel engine because it is a human invention; a man-made construct, for the diesel engine contains a finite quantity of parts in the material principle to which humans are subjected to. Not so for the Holy Trinity, for the Holy Trinity is not a creature or an invention of man, nor is the Holy Trinity subjected to the material principle alone (like material creatures are such as birds, insects, and fish). Furthermore, The Holy Trinity is not of the same genus as human, nor is the Holy Trinity of the same substance as the creature or of the same order as human beings. For if the human could master the Holy Trinity and know all of its mysteries, which is infinite, eternal, and immeasurable, then the Holy Trinity would be a human invention and not Divine. However, this is not the case, and is why no human person can understand the Holy Trinity in its fullness; for if any creature could understand the Holy Trinity in its fullness, then the Holy Trinity would not be God, but a human invention like a diesel engine! However, this is not the case, for the Holy Trinity definitely is God which consists of One (essence) in Three Persons (Father, Son, Holy Spirit) and Three Persons in One (divine), for God is truly One, as the Lord proclaimed to every living creature through His Word (Son). Now, to understand the Holy Trinity in a more accurate way (according to our likeness as creature), and in a way we can understand it through parts (quantity), specific distinctions should be made with their definitions in an effort to define what “person” is, in the language of Saint Thomas Aquinas’ discourse: -Essence: What something is. Found in a particular. -Form: The boundary and shape around the essence of something Also found in a particular. -Universal: Through the whole, consisting of many particulars. -Particular: Things that exist in relation to one another, such as “a bush,” and “a cat.” -Singular: Consists of the universal and particular. -Order: The arrangement or disposition of things in relation to one another. -Genus: A group or class of something consisting of many categories. -Species: Within a genus and a more specific category of many kinds, such as human or bird. -Individual: Same kind, autonomous in number. Many of the same things. Like a pile of stones. -Individualized: Distinctive or more apparent. -Substance: Where the individual is found individualized distinctively. Also found in a genus. -Rational Substance: Substances that act on themselves with dominion over their own actions. -Individual Substance: A thing that is distinct, but not rational. For example; “this rock.” -Hypostases: Known as first substances. Individuals of the genus substance. Like a human who has a body that receives a soul fashioned to it, thus one person, not two. -Subject: The formal perspective of what something is through use of the intellect. Also, a being situated in relation to other things that exist outside itself (everything exists within God because of God), so the term subject pertains to things not of God. -Accident: Potentiality, such as the decisions of the freewill which is not attributed to God. -Nature: The essence of something in matter completed by its form. -Rational Nature: What is proper to a rational substance by its natural inclination. -Person: Individual substance with an added rational nature (rational substance) signified by the singular. For example, “this is Karen,” or “meet my friend Joe,” and “Archangel Michael, defend us in battle!” It is important to note that the Holy Trinity which is divine and God does not consist of subject or accident, for there are no accidents in God, because He is actual being. For humans (and angels), we are being in potentiality, in that we are non-existence that partakes in the giving life and agency of God who is actual existence, and it so happens that He has given humans and angels a freewill as a gift because of election and dominion, so what follows from this is that the decisions of the freewill by their subjects is what becomes an accident and in this way the evil that creatures do (falling short or not adding up to what they were made for) is not attributed to God who made all things good and where nothing is an accident through him, but only in creatures by their freewill who are beings in potentiality as stated earlier. Now, it is also important to remember that God is simple and not consisting of any parts, but for humans, we consist of many parts of the body that wrap around an intellect (a soul or spirit), and this is what we call a composite being in potentiality (in that we have our existence through His actual existence). Finally, the soul of a person belong to its species, and although it may be separate from the body as a part not linked to an organ (quantity), it cannot be classified as a separate individual substance because it belongs to the first substance of the body (hypostases) until the first death (referring to the body which is inevitable), as the second death pertains to the spirit (which is optional), just as a foot cannot be designated as a person because it does not meet the full definition of what is being described. Whether “person” is the same as hypostasis, subsistence, and essence? Depending how these words are being used, language arguments can come into play which draw confusion on the matter. Even more so, those within beliefs other than Christian along with heretical sects have used such words for their own purposes to spread confusion and heresy for their inward causes. For example, the Mormons who believe they can become God and divine do not acknowledge (by faith) the essence of the Holy Trinity, for they believe The Only Begotten Son (Filiation and Christ Jesus) of God the Father (Paternity and Unbegotten) is a mere creature (the Arian heresy) and not divine. In this way, they profess a different essence, thus falling short in accepting the truth of the divine essence which is One in Three Persons (Father, Son, and Holy Spirit). For those who cling to these errors - how can they worship and be at peace in the spirit in Heaven with God forever, if they themselves believe they are to be on the same level as Him? For God does not have competitors, nor are those who subscribe to the non-Christian belief of Mormonism could ever stand in the presence of a High King if they too believed they would be such a thing so as to compete with Him! It is as if a stranger on the street walked into the White House and expected to be listened to, revered, and honored as the President who already reigns in the office! Now, the twofold and threefold senses of hypostasis, subsistence, and essence within their own context adds to the confusion (brought forth by heretics) and are used for the purposes of the self-condemned to lead many souls to perdition. Finally, it should be said that hypostasis, subsistence, and essence are the essential principles of what makes up a person in creatures and in God, but they must be used in a correct manner in the proper sense and context. For more clarity upon this matter, I would suggest reading the text in Saint Thomas Aquinas’ own words while in a state of grace with a humble and faithful disposition. See: Summa Theologiae I, Q. 29, A. 2 https://www.newadvent.org/summa/1029.htm Whether the word “person” should be said of God? The dignity of man and angelic beings are held in high regard because of the rational nature of their substances (personhood). Now, the Lord Who is God of man and angel along with everything in being has the dignity of the divine nature which excels all dignities of creatures, matter, and form which is also most perfect than all other natures; so in this way, the word “person” ultimately and pre-eminently belongs to God to the highest degree - He Who Is the Source of Everything. Heretics and neo-pagans (enemies of God) in the Moderni Age have used confusing language to deny the one essence of God with its Three Persons while often tricking those who are misinformed about God into professing several essences, or even seeking to promote creatures as divine, as we see with those who worship the demons as false gods (to their own destruction). Now, because of this, It is most perfect, right, and accurate to use the word of “person” when pertaining to God, for He is the First Intellect, the Highest Intelligence, and the sum of everything that is good and righteous, for there is no knowledge, happening, or becoming that He is not aware of while at the same time there is nothing which can subject Him to anything because everything is subjected to Him (literally, not metaphorically). So, if the creature (human and angel) is afforded the dignity of personhood by those who mention them, all the more for The First Person who created all of them into existence who is deserving of the highest dignity and honor by all creation which is subjected to Him! Whether this word “person” signifies relation? The distinction of the Three Persons in the Godhead (Holy Trinity) is made by the relation of origin. In so far as we are speaking of a person and what we know of a person, a relation is identified to another person as it pertains to the one person being mentioned. For example, one could say “the police officer arrested him?” Arrested who? The criminal. In another way, it can be said, “The doctor prescribed the medication to her before she was discharged.” Who was discharged? The patient. Now, we know the Son is the Son of the Father because He comes forth by way of Filiation, for He is truly begotten of the Father, and is the Word Made Flesh, as the Word of God boldly proclaims. We also recognize the distinction of the Father from the Son by way of Paternity, for the Father is truly unbegotten, as He alone is the First Principle. Furthermore, we know the Holy Spirit by way of its Spiration from the Father and the Son, for whoever denies the Father and the Son cannot receive the Holy Spirit, which is the Spirit of Truth and is also a movement of Love which proceeds unto creatures who receive this gift, for the Three in One and One in Three are One Essence and not merely just modes of God. The divine essence subsists within itself and its personhood signifies their relations to one another by their real relations. Another way to understand this; it could be said that we know what is cold because of what hot feels like, thus our minds can identify that hot and cold are not the same, but two different things (because of their relations to one another which are real relations). In the same way, we can say that we know there is a daughter to a mother because of the real relationship that exists between the two, for this distinction distinguishes the two as separate persons (plurality) and not as a single person (singular).
I am blessed to be a Third Order Lay Dominican. However, the ideas expressed in this post are my own and do not represent the endorsement of or position of the Order of Preachers as a whole.
Commentary regarding Saint Thomas Aquinas’ Summa Theologiae derived from: ST part (I), Q. 27-49 from newadvent.org with permission. Scripture texts in this work are taken from the New American Bible, revised edition © 2010, 1991, 1986, 1970 Confraternity of Christian Doctrine, Washington, D.C. and are used by permission of the copyright owner. All Rights Reserved. No part of the New American Bible may be reproduced in any form without permission in writing from the copyright owner. |
mr. scott lowry, op
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