Triune God

• Triune God


  One God who is made known in three persons
• Trinity


  One God in three persons
• The Catechism says the Trinity is one, we do not confess three gods but one God in three persons
• Shield of the Trinity


  • Common image to help remember the doctrine of the Trinity
• Trinity and triune God

  • Triune God focuses on the oneness of God, Trinity focuses on the three persons
• The doctrine of the Trinity is considered an essential part of Christian belief
• The terms 'triune God' and 'Trinity' are not mentioned in the Bible, they were developed later by the early church
• There is evidence to support the doctrine of the Trinity within the biblical text
• Christianity started off as a small religious sect within Judaism, which is a monotheistic religion
• The first Christians also came to see that God had revealed himself by taking on human form in the person of Jesus
• Baptism narratives


  God revealed as the Father, the Son (Jesus), and the Spirit
• The use of the threefold distinction (Father/Son/Spirit) in reference to God was commonplace in the early church
• Evidence for the Trinity in the Old Testament


  • First creation narrative in Genesis
  • God the Father as creator
  • God the Spirit hovering over the waters
  • God the Son as the Word of God
• The use of the plural 'us' and 'our' in Genesis 1:26-27 is interpreted by Christians as evidence of the Trinity