The doctrine of the Trinity

• many christians believe that god is 'three in one'
• for some christians, trinitarian belief is implied in the Old Testament
• the Hebrew word often used in the Old Testament for god (elohim) is plural
• in genesis 1, god as the 'father' of the universe created through his word and his spirit broods over the watery chaos
• there are clearer hints in the New Testament, e.g. in the baptism of Jesus- Mark 1:11
• Mark 1:11

  'You are my son, whom I love; with you I am well pleased'
• in the early centuries of the church's existence, church leaders considered the implications of:

  • biblical texts
  • their conviction that Jesus was uniquely the son of god
  • their experience of the power of the Holy Spirit guiding the lives of individual christians and the life of the church as a whole
• a number of heresies drove them to set out formally the doctrine of the Trinity that is held by most christian denominations:

  • there is one god in three persons: father, son and holy spirit
  • each person possesses fully all the attributes of the godhead: eternity, omnipotence, omniscience etc.
  • the relationship between the three persons is one of mutual indwelling
• heresies

  beliefs stated to be false by the leaders of the christian church, e.g. adoptionism
• Person

  in relation to the Trinity is a translation of the word 'persona' which was used of a mask worn by greek actors
• 'God is not solitude but perfect communion'- Pope Benedict XVI