Trinity

History of the Trinity 1: Until 325

In the earliest period of Christianity, these questions didn't trouble Christians too much. They knew that their experiences of Jesus and the Holy Spirit were experiences of God. But in the 2nd and 3rd centuries, as Christianity expanded in the Roman Empire and elsewhere, many Christians attempted to explain their faith in the categories of Hellenistic philosophy that were familiar to them and the people they wanted to convert. Middle Platonism, the philosophy current at the time, envisioned a hierarchy of beings that began with the ultimate being and led downward, through a chain of mediating spiritual beings, to the physical world. With this philosophy, it was obvious that Jesus and the Spirit were the first and second divine mediators between God and the world. However, there was another school that pursued a very different line of thought. They saw Jesus as the union between the divine and the human--as the presence of God in the world and in the human soul. Jesus, the word made flesh, bridged the gap between human and God, between infinite and finite--and made it possible for all humans to experience theosis or divinization. If Jesus was not fully God as well as fully human, then humans were still separated from God and not saved. These people insisted on saying that Jesus was truly God.

Between 250 and 320 there were a whole variety of formulations that attempted to express all these complexities. As these formulations became increasingly refined, the people who held them became increasingly hostile toward each other, and matters came to a head in 321 when Arius, a popular presbyter from Alexandria who held that Jesus was divine but not God, was excommunicated by a council of bishops from the area. Arius refused to recant, and instead travelled to Syria to continue teaching his ideas.

Shortly after this, Constantine, the Roman Emperor, legalized Christianity and moved to make it a state religion. For him, the vicious internal battle between the Arians and their opponents was a destabilizing force that could not be tolerated. Therefore, he ordered the Christian bishops to meet and work out their differences.

History of the Trinity 2: 325-600

In 325, to resolve the theological battles over the nature of the Trinity that were dividing Christianity--and, as a consequence, the Roman Empire--Emperor Constantine called together the Christian bishops to discuss the matter and come to some sort of agreement. The Council met at Nicaea, a town outside the new capital of Constantinople. On one side, the Arians held that Jesus, while divine, was a created being who was inferior to God. The other group believed that Jesus, though in a human body, was also God.

The anti-Arians came up with the Greek word "homoousios" (translated as "one in being" or "of the same being") to describe the relationship between Jesus and "the Father," the unapproachable God that Jesus talked about. They said that while Jesus and the Father could be distinguished, they shared one being or nature. The Arians pointed out that this position created a lot of complicated questions, and that the word "homoousios" never appeared in the Bible. Despite this, the First Council of Nicaea adopted the anti-Arian position and excommunicated Arius.

This was not the end of the story. The next decades saw a long and complicated struggle between the Arian and anti-Arian communities across the Roman Empire. The religious turmoil was exacerbated by the frequent overthrow of emperors, as each new ruler took a different position on the question. Despite dozens of councils and mutual excommunications, the conflict continued on for decades. It is important to realize that these conflicts were not matters only for theologians and specialists--St. Basil, the patriarch of Constaninople, complained that when he tried to get bread from the bakery, the baker tried to convince him that the Father was greater than the Son. Ordinary people as well as professionals were caught up in the dispute.

Within the Empire, the Arians were finally forced out during the reign of Theodosius, a strong and firmly anti-Arian Emperor. The First Council of Constantinople, held in 381, broadly affirmed the use of "homoousios" and also affirmed that the Holy Spirit, like Jesus, was distinct but of the same being as the Father. Thus, the traditional formula (translated into English as "three persons with one nature") was in place.

This was not completely the end of the story. Arian missionaries preached to barbarian tribes and converted several--notably the Lombards, Vandals, and Visigoths--to Arian Christianity. When these groups conquered Roman provinces they maintained their religion, although all eventually converted to non-Arian Christianity over time. The Visigothic king of Spain, the last major Arian ruler, renounced Arianism in the mid-6th century. Within Rome, the theological debate shifted to debates about Jesus, and the relationship between Jesus as God and Jesus as a human being. This produced two more splits in the church--the Nestorian movement, which date back to 431 after the Council of Ephesus, and the Monophysite churches which split with the others in 451, after the Council of Chalcedon.

The river Trinity is still there. Trinity as a ground breaking new engine died to give pass to the Quake 2 engine. Some of the features that originally had to go with Trinity are now found in Quake Arena 3.

Vishnu's wife is Lakshmi, the Goddess of Fortune and Prosperity, who sits atop a lotus. An Indian company specializing in food products is named after her, spelled Laxmi.

Some devout believe that Shiva also came down in avatar form; the most famous example would be the saint Shankaracharya, who wrote many Hindu scriptures and was largely responsible "winning India back for Hinduism from the Buddhists."

Trinity is also the protagonist of at least three movies, played by Mario Girotti, under the name Terence Hill. The english version of the first Trinity movie was released in 1971 as My Name is Trinity, and then rerleased in 1972 as They Call Me Trinity. Two other trinity movies were released in 1972: Trinity is Still My Name and Boot Hill. Boot Hill has now been rerelased as Boot Hill : Trinity Rides Again. I have seen the first two of them, and they are hilarious.

Trinity is reputed to be one of the two fastest guns in the west, tho other being his brother, Bambino. In They Call Me Trinity, Bambino hides from the law by crippling a marshall and impersonating him. There's trouble in town between a crook with a pack of unbranded horses and a religious group called the farmers that is a cross between the mormons and the quakers. Trinity happens on the scene and decides to stay when he meets two blonde farmers who tell him that their clan practices polygyny. They end up driving the crook and his gang out while waiting for some members of Bambino's gang to catch up with them, while almost killing each other in the process. Bambino heads off with his gang while Trinity goes to marry the beautiful blondes. When Trinity realizes that the farmers are going to expect him to work, he leaves the blondes at the altar and tries to join his brother's gang.

A very brief Biblical exposition and exegesis for the doctrine of the Trinity and the Deity and Incarnation of Christ.

Firstly a definition for of "Trinity" is due. I will supply one*: 1. There is One God. 2. There are three Persons, All of Whom possess Deity. 3. There is One only and true God, but in the unity of the Godhead there exists three eternal and co-equal Persons, the same in substance, but distinct in subsistence. These three Persons of course are known as the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Admittedly, this idea is impossible to understand completely.

Here are just a couple examples from the Old Testament that support the doctrine of the Trinity. Way back in the creation account of Genesis, the first name given for God (Genesis 1:1) is Elohim in the orininal Hebrew, a plural noun that is singular in meaning. Also in Genesis, 1:26, God says, "Let us make man in our image (emphasis mine)..."

In the New Testament there are several examples of the Trinity. Primarily, in three of the four Gospels (Matthew, Mark, and Luke) all three Persons of the Trinity can be seen simultaneously in one place- at Jesus' baptism. Matthew 3:16-17, "And Jesus (the Son), when he was baptized, went up straightway out of the water; and, lo, the heavens were opened unto him, and he saw the Spirit of God (the Holy Spirit) descending like a dove, and lighting upon him. And, lo, a voice from heaven (the Father), saying, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased." (See also Mark 1:9-11; and Luke 3:21-22)

Lastly, let's look at the Gospel of John 1:1-3, "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. (2)The same was in the beginning with God. (3)All things were made by him; and without him was not anything made that was made." Here we see that the "Word" is at least in a way separate from God ("the Word was with God"), and yet at the same time, somehow "the Word was God." Also notice that the Word did all the creating, and the Word was not Himself created (verse 3). Now "the Word" is Jesus Christ. How do I know that? Look at John 1:14, "And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father), full of grace and truth."

Let's look again at John 1:1 "the Word was God." Because in the original Greek manuscript, "God" here lacks a definite artical, some groups (particularly the Jehova's Witnesses) have translated this to say "the Word was a god." This would be acceptible if it were not for the fact that the particular construction (θεός ήν ό λογός) is an anarthrous preverbal predicate nominative (the predicate nominative occurs before the verb and lacks a definite article). According to Colwell's Rule, such constructions have the quality of the subject in mind, rather than the subject's identity. Basically, this means that the Word possesses the same quality/characteristic of God, but is not necessarily to be identified as the same Person as God. Because of this I believe the doctrine of the Trinity is indeed Scriptural. The grammar succintly refutes Sabellianism ("the Word was the God") and Arianism ("the Word was a god"). "Jesus Christ is God and has all the attributes that the Father has. But he is not the first person of the Trinity. All this is concisely affirmed in καί θεός ήν ό λογός."**

Although it varies slightly from region to region; most chefs will use garlic just as prevalently. The name should probably reflect four ingredients but would lose its marketability. Some of the more Spanish influenced areas would substitute the celery for tomatoes and call this the Holy Trinity.

Cajun and Creole cooking both make use of the Holy Trinity for the basis of most dishes. There is a matter of opinion on exactly what the Holy Trinity is comprised of and each cook will swear that theirs is right. Even the definition of Cajun and Creole is subjective. Creole was originally the wealthier class and looked down on Cajun cooking. What we know today as Cajun or Creole is actually a subtle marriage of the two (and probably other styles) all a big ball of delicious food that is Louisiana cooking. Never question a Louisiana mom on her choices for the Holy Trinity or you will get yourself slapped - and you would deserve it.

The Holy Trinity is added early to the dish and seasoned very specifically according to the chef. Many will only use salt and red or black peppers for taste. Historically it's derived from Mirepoix, a vegetable mixture used in French stocks. It's comprised of one part celery, one part carrot and two parts onion. Combined with Bouquet Garni (another trinity of bay, parsley and peppercorns) it's the basis for all good French soups.

Trin"i*ty (?), n. [OE. trinitee, F. trinit'e, L. trinitas, fr. trini three each. See Trinal.]

1. Christian Theol.

The union of three persons (the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost) in one Godhead, so that all the three are one God as to substance, but three persons as to individuality.

2.

Any union of three in one; three units treated as one; a triad, as the Hindoo trinity, or Trimurti.

3.

Any symbol of the Trinity employed in Christian art, especially the triangle.

Trinity House, an institution in London for promoting commerce and navigation, by licensing pilots, ordering and erecting beacons, and the like. -- Trinity Sunday, the Sunday next after Whitsunday; -- so called from the feast held on that day in honor of the Holy Trinity. -- Trinity term. Law See the Note under Term, n., 5.

© Webster 1913.