The Trinity and the soul

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It doesn’t sound like you’ve done any research yourself. Yes, Augustine’s text is a basic one for the Christian Catholic understanding on how the soul is part of the Trinity.
 
JohnDom said:
Doesn’t answer the question. I thought the title of this forum was Catholic Answers?
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The Catholic dogma of faith is from Fourth Lateran and Vatican I, which is against emanationism and materialism. Emanationism teaches that God created things from his own substance, but the Catholic teaching is that God created ex nihilo, not from his own substance.

Humans have a created human nature not a divine nature. The human person is composite of a immaterial immortal soul and a material mortal body.
 
By this I take it you mean the human soul of Jesus Christ. Jesus Christ was one person who was God the Son and who also had a human body, soul, and mind. The human nature of Jesus, that is his body and soul, were finite, the same way your human nature is and my human nature is. Jesus’ human nature has been glorified and now lives forever, but it is a created nature, the same as yours and mine are, and our natures, God willing, will someday also be glorified as his is (though not as exalted).

Created things, and this includes the human body and soul of Jesus Christ, do in a way all exist in God, but not physically, and not as if we were formed out of parts of God. An analogy, and all analogies with God have their difficulties, but one analogy is to consider the way a house exists in the mind of the architect prior to it being built. The form of that house exists in the mind of the architect, and is later instantiated in the house that was built. Likewise, the form of all things that were, are, will be, and could be exist in the mind of God. If created, they exist separately, created ex nihilo (from nothing, not out of God’s own substance), but God has full knowledge of them.
 
Can’t worship a finite trinity. But it remains one God in Three Divine Persons - not an infinite number of persons.

Is this a trick question?
 
Since when was the soul a part of the Trinity? I was a Catholic for 35 years. I came away with more questions than answers. Same with Augustine’s Confessions. Doesn’t answer how the soul can be excluded from what’s infinite. Please give me your best explanation. I want to see what you have to say about it.
 
God is infinite meaning he has no limits. Are you saying he is separate from creation? How can that be if he is infinite? Is God infinite or not? If he is infinite then he must be outside of creation, inside of creation and in between. If that is true then the soul has to be included in the Trinity as well because the Trinity is God and God is infinite and nothing can be outside of or separate from what is infinite.
 
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OP states he was Catholic for 35 years. Obviously he never paid attention to the creed with begins, “I believe” not “I know” This question has no answer because somehow equating the immortal soul of humans with the eternal existence of the trinity is not possible. The soul is not created by God from God, but from God’s will. It is immaterial and spiritual and has a beginning (at conception) but no end according to Catholic teaching.
This is a dog chasing its tail discussion.
 
(1) The number of integers is infinite. Even so, the number 1.5 is not part of them.

(2) That’s not even the correct way to view God. Perhaps you need to reevaluate what it means to say that God is infinite.

God is not infinite material. He is infinite in power insofar as all things that are and can be proceed from him. That he is not bounded to particular matter. That he is not limited in power. That he self-subsists and relies on nothing else for his existence.

It is not meant to in any way say he has infinite parts or infinite material. God cannot be said to be infinite in all ways, because that would imply he is infinite in material, infinite in parts, which is not true. There are ways to refer to him as infinite, and we should not project our own meaning onto the term that goes beyond what was meant.
 
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It’s one of two things:
  1. God is not infinite.
Or
  1. God is infinite and since the Trinity is God, then the Trinity must also be infinite. If the Trinity is infinite, then it cannot exclude the soul because nothing can be separate or apart from what’s infinite.
What’s your pick?
 
My post. The soul is not infinite. It is willed by God at conception, hence it cannot be “part” of an infinite Trinity.
 
Number two isn’t entirely true. And you’re not really engaging any points made.
 
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What do you mean “the Trinity can’t exclude the soul”? Be specific. Any human soul? Jesus’ human soul? Your posts are obtuse and vague.
 
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So in your view the Trinity is not infinite. Therefore the God you believe is also not infinite. Or perhaps you’re avoiding answering the question because you don’t want to see the error in your beliefs. Pride is a killer.
 
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What’s not true about it? Are we not attempting to answer the question of how the soul can be excluded from the Trinity if the Trinity is God and God is infinite?
 
No they’re not. It’s interestzing to see how the simplicity of God confounds the wisdom of men.
 
JohnDom said:
So in your view the Trinity is not infinite. Therefore the God you believe is also not infinite. Or perhaps you’re avoiding answering the question because you don’t want to see the error in your beliefs. Pride is a killer.
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The trinity is infinite, the human immortal soul isn’t. I think I’ve said that 3 times and others a lot more. Don’t know if you are capable of understanding that. If I give you a cookie will you just go away. Your questions are ( I don’t want to be insulting) strange is the kindest thing I can say.
 
We’ve provided what we believe are resolutions. You haven’t addressed most of them.
 
So if the Trinity is in fact infinite then how can the soul NOT be included in the Trinity? Is there some sort of unconscious reason we are trying so hard to keep ourselves separate and apart from what’s infinite? What’s the problem here? Is there a reason we have created an entire religion based on the need to perpetuate the belief that we are separate and apart from God? Is there something so bad about that which is infinite that we have keep ourselves blind to the fact that we are in fact so desperately reinforcing this sense of separation? Why are we doing this?
 
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