Alister McGrath ( 2007: 250 ) seeks to convey out a greater apprehension of the Trinity by observing how Tertullian speech production of it as he says, it is about substantia ( substance ) and character ( individual ) . The substantia brings out the greater apprehension of the cardinal integrity of the Godhead. They are three yet of one substance. Persona ( a mask ) in an histrion portrays the character of the histrion picturing the functions of the individuals of the Trinity. McGrath ( 2007: 258 ) argues that Augustine insisted on the action of the full Three is to be discerned behind the actions each of its individuals. This character reflects the Three in created worlds.
Bruce Milne ( 1998: 77-78 ) argues that the Trinitarian belief has no analogue in life. He upholds this point by utilizing the discourse about matrimony ( Mt. 19: 5f ) . Christ taught that matrimony is two going one paralleling the Trinitarian apprehension. Yet such a idea stands far from the truth I would reason. To believe of the analogy of matrimony possibly misdirecting as worlds carry the progressive and are bound to transgress. Such a thought Augustine could hold disputed excessively, as his focal point of the Trinity is slightly different merely associating to the analogy of visible radiation and it ‘s beginning every bit good as the watercourse and H2O.
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The being of the Trinity is united even in affairs of flawlessness. Milne ( 1998: 77 ) did good in reasoning that the Trinitarian belief remains a enigma because God has spoken about it himself in Bible. He remarks on Augustine who discussed the term ‘person ‘ in the instance of the Trinity. To believe of the Trinity as we think of individuals in three does non standout. Augustine asks the inquiry of “ three what? ” He adds in stating human linguistic communication labours wholly under poorness of address. This point draws the attending of restrictions to grok the idea concludes Milne.
Milne continues on Augustine ‘s ideas as he points out that the numerical individuality “ three ” with mention to God ‘s being. The decision was that in these two individuals or three are non greater than one of them hence, they stand to be peers. He attempts to reply Augustine ‘s “ three what ” by stating that the ‘three ‘ in the Godhead minus speech production of God ‘s integrity would be impossible if applied mathematically. He add in stating classical expression ‘three individuals ‘ has come under increasing strain, since modern-day use seldom distinguishes ‘person ‘ from ‘personality ‘ with the latter ‘s overtones of peculiarity and independency. He adds further in stating ‘three individuals today comes near to denoting three separate Supreme beings.
Milne ( 1998: 78 ) adds that Augustine ‘s classical expounding on the Trinity was illustrated by mention to the integrity and differentiations of the memory, understanding and will in the single human psyche. He analyzed the point of view based on modern point of view of psychological science. It can non parallel the alone integrity in the Godhead he concluded. It ‘s about whom God is and his relationship with the Son and the Spirit. It is about how Augustine viewed the Son and the Father. The Father in work has ever been united with the Son and the Holy Spirit.
THE SON
Cyril Richardson ( 1958: 71 ) opens his statement by stating an effort to understand the Father and the Son of the Trinity in footings of the Greek absolute or of God ‘s concluding transcendency over against his relatedness. It is interesting that Richardson who subsequently brings in Augustine ‘s understanding seeks to reason the facts of the Trinity in stating it was the Three of the male parent and the Son, and that it related. It relates because the Father and the Son are one.
Richardson ( 1958: 71 ) nevertheless, thinks of the unseeable Father and the seeable Son and that this norm endangers their indispensable equality. He thinks the norm suggests the Son who was inferior. A closer expression at the transition in Philippians 2: 6-11, Paul ‘s divinity here does challenge this sort of thought as he says Jesus did non seek to tout of his equality with the Father ( NIV ) .
Augustine as viewed by Richardson ( 1958: 72 ) argued that the vision of the antediluvian of yearss is non inappropriately believed that God the Father besides was non to look to persons. He adds in stating such visual aspects do non connote that God manifests himself “ as he decently is. ” It is basically right to propose of a Father who himself is self-existence and he is. He adds that the Father ‘s nature in itself is no less than that of the Son ‘s in malice of being seeable.
Richardson ( 1958: 72 ) once and for all seeks to manage this statement of, “ How so are they to be differentiated? ” Why is at that place a Father over the Son? He notes that Augustine and in the ulterior Roman Catholic divinity offer two replies to this. The Father is foremost regarded as the rule of deity, the beginning and cause of everything, for his Son is begotten. The 2nd is the differentiations within the Godhead are a necessity because God is love. This is the manifestation of his love for creative activity hence the Father loves the Son.
This fact portrays two rather different thoughts demoing unrelatedness. He argued that Augustine inherited this tradition. He suggests that this relates to try in understanding the absolute. He could be right for others before Augustine held similar positions or had attempted to understand the Father, the Son and the Spirit ‘s work and relatedness.
Moltmann ( 1989: 14 ) views the topic of the Trinity in the same line as Richardson, as he says divinity traces the statement to Augustine who wanted to understand the ego which is no longer portion of cognition of the universe. This ego is related to cognizing who God is. Other of import theologists who seek to underline Augustine ‘s point of position are Richard Olson and Christopher Hall ( 2002: 51 ) who agued that Augustine ‘s accent was on the integrity of the Trinity. He defined “ individual ” as an single substance of a rational nature, apparently get a greater differentiation between Father, Son and Holy Spirit than Augustine ‘s divinity allowed. This apprehension of the Trinity is about the ‘filioque ‘ ( and the Son ) they argued ( 2002: 52 )
THE SPIRIT
Gunton Colin ( 1993: 190 ) argued that the individual being of God with the Spirit is to be found in the work of honing the creative activity. Colin nevertheless notes that with Augustine, the Spirit is the consolidative nexus between Father and Son. It is even more necessary to add that he is the focal point of the peculiarity of Father and Son of their alone specialness.
He continued to state an of import characteristic of the being of individuals that they have the capacity to being themselves and non a map or ringer of another. This point draws in the apprehension that of the individuality that exists in the Trinity. God in Bible ( OT ) has been seen runing independently. As Jesus was reasoning his mission on Earth he said, “ I will direct you the Spirit ” ( californium. Jn. 14: 16-26 ) . Colin farther argued by citing Richardson of St. Victor who every bit argued that the 3rd individual of the Trinity is indispensable if there is to be true distinctness in the Godhead.
It is interesting to look at what Colin ( 1993: 190 ) says in stating that there must be three if there is to be a true outwardgoingness and diverseness in God. He says the Spirit ‘s map in the Godhead is to specify the epistasiss. Colin ( 1993: 120 ) nevertheless argued farther by stating creative activity is achieved through the instrumentality of the Spirit, ‘two hands ‘ of God. This signifier regulations out the bureau of unrelational individuality of will.
In the other plants, Gunton ( 1991: 48 ) stipulates that Augustine ‘s philosophy of the Spirit had the demand of the 3rd individual matching to the will in the threefold head. He continues to state that the construct of the Spirit as the love, which unites the Father, and Son of which this divinity as Gunton puts it has been contested. How can we grok to believe of the Spirit as a uniting factor of the Triune God in malice of the fact that the Father exists Spiritually? If this Spirit were for one time ‘to be non, ‘ would the Father ne’er be united with the Son? I propose.
What is of import about Augustine ‘s construct of the three is that he appealed to scripture and dogmatic said Gunton ( 1991: 38,49 ) . He adds though that there is now a considerable literature on the insufficiency of the effort by Augustine on the individual of the Holy Spirit. What is interesting is that Gunton ( 1991: 49 ) wrote by stating, “ The Holy Spirit is Charity, ” and that nevertheless so, there is a sense in which Father, Son and Spirit together are love.
THE IMPORTANCE ‘S OF THE DOCTRINE IN THE CHURCH TODAY
The proposition has a batch of importance in the Church today. The Trinitarian philosophy can merely be affluent it ‘s salt if it can interact with other faiths. The Church is non isolate hence demands to portion it ‘s attack of the kernel is critical. Stephen Williams in the book edited by Kelvin Vanhoozer ( 1997: 27 ) quotation marks Panikkar who stipulated that the Trinity is able to supply as with a form for doing base of divergent spiritualties on the historical scene.
It is divergent spiritualty because other religions interact with the World systems today like the Christian religion does. It is besides a historical scene because all religions point to a divinity and over a period has desired to understand the really being of the divinity and how they can associate to the same. It is this really relationship that draws the strength of the proposition of the Three on the Church today.
Visible in its Church ranks is its deep desire still to understand the kernel and importance of the Trinity to dogma as can be attested by Olson and Hall ( 2002: 67 ) who agued that the importance of this philosophy is its part to the Church today theologically. It is apparent they continued to province through the Protestant reformists such as Martin Bucer ( 1491-1551 ) , Martin Luther ( 1483-1546 ) , Ulrich Zwingli ( 1484-1531 ) and John Calvin ( 1509-1564 ) . Servetus nevertheless of the late eighteenth century is regarded of import than Luther and Zwingli stated Olson and Hall ( 2002: 76 ) .
McGrath ( 2007: 258 ) provinces that Augustine understood the Son by associating him to wisdom ( sapientia ) while the Spirit to love. This does to twenty-four hours assist the Church to clearly tap the wisdom of the Son and the love of God as that of the Spirit for even God himself is love.
Decision
We have seen and viewed Augustine ‘s apprehension of the Trinity. He wanted to convey out the apprehension of ego or the ego of God, Son and the Holy Spirit ‘s unity. This ego is true because it relates good to cognizing who God is. Augustine ‘s accent on the integrity of the Trinity seems to beef up the statement of a Triune God. Therefore, in this understanding Augustine ‘s “ individual ” has been defined as an single substance of a rational nature, apparently geting a greater differentiation between Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Colin states that with Augustine, the Spirit is the consolidative nexus between Father and Son. It is uniting because from both the Father and Son the Holy Spirit returns. It has besides been noted that the Holy Spirit is the focal point of the peculiarity of Father and Son of their alone specialness
