About the Trinity

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JoshuaJ said:
It is commonly said the trinity is a mystery, but Romans 1:20 says “For the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even his eternal power and Godhead; so that they are without excuse.”

We are the things that are made. The Word says the Godhead is clearly understood by the things that are made(us). The trinity is not understood because it is man-made.
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So, you believe that it is within the power of man to fully understand the Godhead?

Is God infinite?
Are we?
Can finity encompass infinity?
 
JimG said:
So, you believe that it is within the power of man to fully understand the Godhead?

Is God infinite?
Are we?
Can finity encompass infinity?
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I believe what Romans 1:20 says. I believe 2Tim. 2:7
I believe 1Cor. 13:2.
 
And do you believe John 1:1-2 and the rest of the prologue?
John 10:30?
Colossians 2:9?
 
JimG said:
And do you believe John 1:1-2 and the rest of the prologue?
John 10:30?
Colossians 2:9?
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Of course I believe those. Do you believe Isaiah 9:6 in which Jesus, the son is called The everlasting Father?
 
Loginus said:
(Wow deja vu!)

Yea, I had a Q about the trinity. My question is basically what is it? 😛

How can it be 3 separate entities and the same one? I never been able to understand this…😦
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3 leaves one stem, 3 Divine Persons, One God.

We probably won’t be able wrap our minds around it this side of the great divide, we were told as children that it was a mystery.

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pro_universal said:
If personhood is just an expression, then how can there be any distinction between the persons? What is an “expression” such that it results in a distinct person, who is clearly not the other persons sharing the same substance?

This line of reasoning conflates the persons. It turns “distinct” into something that means “all exactly the same except for the way we describe the apparition”, in which case you don’t have a trinity at all, but rather One God whom you want to give three different names for different apparitions. And given the number of apparitions, three is certainly arbitrary…if it’s just a new expression that makes a person, why not make a holy quartet using the burning bush?
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Wrong word choice! Apparition is not the correct word to define the Trinity! 😉 I would prefer existence! GOD exists at the same time as three distinct persons because His Word and Spirit are uncreated and eternal. If God is the one that is not created, unlike all other things, the Word is God too because the Word has no beginning! Neither does the Spirit. The Word and Spirit are not separate from God because They are not created and They are God’s Word and Spirit. They are distinct “persons” since the Word and Spirit are also distinct from the One whose Word and Spirit They are. It is so simple I guess 😉
 
Loginus said:
(Wow deja vu!)

Yea, I had a Q about the trinity. My question is basically what is it? 😛

How can it be 3 seperate entities and the same one? I never been able to understand this…😦
Click to expand...
The Trinity is God.

God the Father, from eternity, gazes lovingly upon His Son, giving Him everything that He is. God the Son, returns that loving gaze from His Father and gives back everything that He is. That exchange of love between the two is, essentially, what each one of them are and thats what we call the Holy Spirit.

This is why the Creed says, the Son proceeds, eternally, from the Father. And the Spirit proceeds, eternally, from the Father and the Son.

that is how St. Maximilian Mary Kolbe, roughly, describes the Trinity.
 
The Lord God is one. The Lord is Father. Isaiah 63:16. God is Father. 1Cor. 8:6. There is no distinction. There is but a change in form to fulfill His purpose. God manifests in various forms. Mark 16 tells of Jesus manifesting in another form.
 
There is but a change in form to fulfill His purpose. God manifests in various forms. Mark 16 tells of Jesus manifesting in another form.
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God exists as Father, Son and Holy Spirit simultaneously. If the verse you were referring to is Mk 16:12 as quoted below, this is a shorter version as recounted in Luke. In Luke the text specifically says that their eyes were prevented from knowing it was Jesus, not that Jesus had morphed into something else.

Mark 16:12
12 And after that, He appeared in a different form to two of them, while they were walking along on their way to the country.

Luke 24:15-16
15 And it came about that while they were conversing and discussing, Jesus Himself approached, and began traveling with them. 16 But their eyes were prevented from recognizing Him.
 
inJESUS said:
what does Joshua believe in?
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There is but one God, the Father. God manifest in flesh. He now dwells in the believer as Spirit. Just as Jesus said in John 3:13 as he physically was present speaking to Nicodemus but at the same time He said the Son of man at that same time IN heaven.
 
JoshuaJ said:
There is but one God, the Father. God manifest in flesh. He now dwells in the believer as Spirit. Just as Jesus said in John 3:13 as he physically was present speaking to Nicodemus but at the same time He said the Son of man at that same time IN heaven.
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sorry am still confused…who is Jesus according to your religion and what is your religion? i read “Christian” but i need a different name to figure out.
 
like Jesus is the Father?
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Or that The Father is all three wrapped in one. It’s a form of modalism where the ‘person’ who shows up depends on the mode.

The trinity would say that there is one God expressed in three persons…loosely. Whereas a oneness theology would say there is one god and only one personality but, that one personality may take on three forms. I’m not a scholar on oneness theology so if anyone has a better explaination go for it…
 
inJESUS said:
sorry am still confused…who is Jesus according to your religion and what is your religion? i read “Christian” but i need a different name to figure out.
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Jesus is God manifest in flesh. There is but one God, the Father.
 
Best summed up as: GOD is three persons with one nature, all three share the same nature and possess it fully. (The Father is no more fully God than the Son is). The persons have different roles but all are one God ( their nature). It is not an easy concept but it is rich and rewarding once investigated. An excellent source that blew my mind and has a section which simply and coherently explains (as best it can be that is) the Trinity is F. Sheed’s Theology and Sanity. It is a truly wonderful book which has answered many questions about God, Life, and Christianity I have held since the early 1980’s. Wish I had found it sooner. Also there is a good book on Amazon, by Karl Rahner called simply The Trinity, you should probably check it out as well. Good Luck and have fun, it is a truly mind blowing concept. Next investigate the dual nature of Jesus, fully God, yet fully Man, that is even more mind blowing to me. Hope this helps
 
JoshuaJ said:
Of course I believe those. Do you believe Isaiah 9:6 in which Jesus, the son is called The everlasting Father?
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Not in my Isaiah 🙂 As for the tinity being a man made concept, so what? How does that change anything. Keeping in mind that I’m a Jew and have absolutely no vested interest in defending the concept of trinity…

If God is infinite and beyond our comprehension, then any definition or concept we attach to Him (including calling him a “Him”) is going to be faulty. We just have to come up with the best ways of, not so much understanding exactly what God is (an impossible task for finite beings) but rather search for the best means of becoming aware of the ineffable mystery of God. Catholics believe that God provided them with the concept of the trinity in order to do this.

Any catholic please let me know if I am completely off base here
 
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