2B: Trinity Flashcards
(108 cards)
1
Q
Trinity
A
Christian belief in one god in three persons
2
Q
Doctrine
A
an officially approved belief in a religious tradition
3
Q
Co-equal
A
equal to each other - each is equally divine
4
Q
Co-eternal
A
equally eternal - each is of infinite duration
5
Q
Co-existent
A
existing alongside each other, not one after another
6
Q
Monotheism
A
belief in one God only
7
Q
Patriotic Period
A
the first eight centuries of the church
8
Q
Tritheism
A
belief in three gods - a heresy in Christian thought
9
Q
Heresy
A
wrong belief - declared to be so by the authority of the church
10
Q
Adoptionism
A
the heresy of believing that Jesus was an ordinary man who became the son of god only at his baptism
11
Q
Arianism
A
the heresy that Jesus was the highest of all created beings but not of the same substance as god
12
Q
Sabellianisn
A
the heresy that Jesus was divine but not human
13
Q
Modalism
A
heresy of claiming that the three persons of the trinity are distinct modes of god rather than persons (like an actor playing 3 different roles)
14
Q
Creed
A
an official statement of belief put together by a Church council
15
Q
Council of Nicea
A
meeting of the Church in 325CE which produced the first creed, saying Jesus was ‘begotten not made’
16
Q
Council of Constantinople
A
meeting of the Church in 381CE which amended the creed adding belief in holy spirit ‘who proceeds from the father’
17
Q
Council of Toledo
A
meeting of the Church in 589CE which inserted the filioque clause to the creed
18
Q
Eastern Orthodox Church
A
name used by the Church in the Greek speaking East after the break with the Roman church over theological differences and other tensions. the word orthodox means ‘correct belief’
19
Q
Great Schism
A
the break between the Eastern and Western church in 1054
20
Q
Filioque Clause
A
the words ‘and from the son’ added to a sentence in the creed
21
Q
Tertullian
A
3rd century Church father who coined the term trinity
22
Q
Arius
A
Arius said Jesus was not god, he was subordinate to the father and had been created by him. he was declared a heretic for this view
23
Q
Athanasius
A
Athanasius argued against Arius’ view. he said Jesus was ‘begotten, not created’
24
Q
Augustine
A
he understood the trinity in terms of relationships in the godhead and saw the spirit as the bond of love between father and son
25
Doctrine of the trinity summed up in 3 bullet points
- there is only one god
- the father, son and holy spirit are three distinct persons
- each person is fully god: the three are co-existent, co-eternal and co-equal (no hierarchy)
26
What are the three ways in which Christians experience god?
1. god, the father of jesus, who sent him to the world that he created
2. Jesus, the son of god, who came to the world to bring god's kingdom
3. the Holy Spirit who is with Christians now that Jesus has returned to the father
27
How did belief in the trinity arise?
Christian experience
28
What religion were the disciples of Jesus and the earliest Christian Church? and what did this mean in regards to the trinity?
Jewish
- meant they participated in synagogues that proclaimed the unity of god: "Hear o Israel: the Lord is our god, the Lord is one"
29
What did Jesus do in the gospels that proved he was more than a rabbi or prophet?
- taught with authority
- forgave sins
- spoke to god on very familiar terms
- entered Jerusalem in a special way (Matthew 21:1-9)
- declared he was fulfilling the law and the prophets (Matthew 5:17)
- declared 'all foods clean'
- said he would send the spirit of god
30
Why did it become natural for early Christians to pray to god in the name of Jesus?
because belief in the resurrection and the virgin birth confirmed for them that Jesus' relationship with god was different than any other figure they had encountered in their tradition
31
How did early Christians reinterpret the Hebrew scriptures?
- they could see indications that god was a complex reality: Genesis 1:26: 'let US make man in our image' and Genesis 18.1-3: god appears to Abraham in the form of three men
- in other passages gods wisdom/spirit is referred to as a person
- although this isn't definitive proof of a 'trinity' it still led christian's to see and think that one could speak of Jesus, god and the spirit in the same breath
32
Why do Christians believe in both unity and trinity?
- NT statements about the oneness of god.
examples; 'god is one' (Romans 3:30) and statements linking together 'the father, the son, the holy spirit' (Matthew 28:19), 'i and the father are one' (John 10:30) and 'our god and saviour Jesus Christ' (2 Peter 1:1)
33
Why is the doctrine of trinity necessary?
it defines the relationship between the three persons of the trinity: father/creator, son/redeemer, and spirit/sustainer
34
Who coined the term 'trinity' and when?
Tertualluan, 3rd century (also the first person to talk about the trinity as composed of three 'persons')
35
Where was the doctrine of the trinity formalised?
Nicene Creed (325CE), which state that the son was 'of one substance' with the father
36
According to Tertullian, what three contemporary heresies was the doctrine designed to combat?
1. Adoptionism: belief that Jesus was an ordinary man who become the son of god only at his baptism
2. Sabellianism: the belief that Jesus was divine but not human
3. Arianism: the belief that Jesus was the highest of all created beings but not of the same substance as god
37
Why was the doctrine of the trinity formulated?
- early Christians (who were Jewish and accepted Jewish scriptures) needed to try and make sense of their experience of Jesus in the light of their existing beliefs. monotheism was the central feature of those beliefs
- to establish a clear christology
- to challenge heresies
- to establish a shared Christian orthodoxy
38
What were the biblical foundations of the doctrine of the trinity in the Old Testament?
- the word 'trinity' does not appear in the Bible, but some Christians argue the concept it represents (god as three co-existent, co-eternal persons), does
- in the OT, god the father is often referred to plurally: first Hebrew word used for god in the bible (Genesis 1:1) is elohim, a plural noun. in Genesis 1:26-27, god refers to himself in the plural; 'let us make humankind in our image
39
What were the biblical foundations of the doctrine of the trinity in the New Testament?
- in the NT, Jesus is often referred to as god
- John 1: Jesus was the word and that word was god, 'through him all things were made'
- John 20:28: 'my lord and my god'
- the Holy Spirit is often referred to as god: John 14:23: the indwelling of the HS is linked to the indwelling of Jesus and his father, the great commission in Matthew 28 he sends the disciples to baptise all nations 'in the name of the father and of the son and of the holy spirit', and Paul in Roman 8:11, tells his readers that if the spirit of god dwells in them, god will give them life
40
Two quotes in the Bible that show the unity of god
- Deuteronomy 6:4-4: "the lord our god, the lord is one"
- Mark 12:29: "the lord our god, the lord is one"
41
John 10v30
"I and the father are one"
42
Colossians 1v15
"the son is the image of the invisible god, the firstborn over all creation"
43
John 8v58
"very truly I tell you" Jesus answered, "before Abraham was born, I am!"
44
What is christology?
the study of the person and works of Jesus
45
What did the title 'son of man' mean for the Old testament Psalmist?
it mean for every man; a generally good and holy one.
46
What happened at Pentecost?
friends and disciples of Jesus experience the coming of the holy spirit and an intense understanding
47
What did Peter say about Jesus?
- he is both the Lord and Messiah
- the 'Jewish Messiah' prophets had promised
- 'a man who made miracles'
48
What were the three synoptic gospels?
Matthew, Mark, Luke
49
What was the biggest stumbling block for Jews in trying to believe that Jesus was god?
after the resurrection, people grappled with the language in an attempt to try and explain what they meant. they were found to reshape their vision of what was possible and who this man had been
50
Summarise the early beliefs expressed in St Paul’s hymn
'rather he made himself nothing, by taking the very nature of a servant being made in human likeness and being found in appearance as a man'. the Jesus they experienced was close to how they perceived god
51
How does the author of St John’s gospel depict Jesus?
the man as the Christ and the law. (the incarnation that god became a man). "the word became flesh and dwelt among us; full of grace and truth"
52
Summarise the principle concerns of Arius
what exactly does being the son of god mean? god was eternal and uncreated so was Jesus the same? or did he proceed from god? could there be a time when Jesus had not been?
- he argued Jesus was begotten of, but not equal
53
What became Orthodox Christian belief at the Council of Nicea?
Jesus' complete divinity became orthodox Christian belief.
- Arius argued that Jesus said "the father is greater than i", but Athanasius countered that "Jesus was co-eternal, of one being with the father of whom all this are made"
54
References to Jesus in the Nicene Creed
- god was "made man"
- "Jesus Christ, the only son of god"
55
References to the Holy Spirit in the Nicene Creed
- "by the power of the Holy Spirit", god came down from heaven and became incarnate
56
References to Jesus in the Chalcedon confession
"truly man, consisting also of a reasonable soul and body"
57
How are beliefs in the nature of Jesus' natures shown in the Nicene Creed? (325CE)
- idea of incarnation
- views of Arius are defeated as the church declares that Jesus is 'eternally begotten of the father'
- acknowledges the virgin birth and Jesus' role in salvation
58
How are beliefs in the nature of Jesus' natures shown in the Chalcedon confession? (451CE)
- there is a clearer statement of the hypostatic union than the Nicene creed
- distinction of the father and son within the unity
59
How are beliefs in the nature of Jesus' natures shown in the Athanasian creed? (5th-6th century)
- christological aspects of the trinity are clearly set out to affirm his divinity, emphasise his distinctive role (salvation) and recognising co-equality and co-eternity between the godhead
60
How are beliefs in the trinity shown in the Nicene creed? (325CE)
there is only a brief mention of the Holy Spirit with no explanation of it as having the divine nature
61
How are beliefs in the trinity shown in the Chalcedon confession? (451CE)
there is no mention of the holy spirit at all, but we can see at the Council of Constantinople (381CE), the creed from Nicea was extended to say "we believe in the Holy Spirit, the lord and the giver of life who proceeds from the father, who with the father and son together is worshipped and glorified"
62
How are beliefs in the trinity shown in the Athanasian creed? (5th-6th century)
- the word 'trinity' is used
- a clear statement of all three persons of the trinity as divine, refers to co-equality and co-eternity
- beliefs about the holy spirit seem to have been less of a concern for the church early on
- the urgent issue was to work through the christological issues raised by the Arian controversy
- matters concerning the holy spirit were highly pertinent in the filioque controversy
63
What is meant by the '3 orthodoxies'? and who created this?
1. there is only one god
2. the father, son and holy spirit is each god
3. the father, son and holy spirit are not the same
created by theologian Stephen Bullivant
64
What is tri-theism?
- the denial that there is only one god
- asserts that the father, son and holy spirit are three gods
- not a heresy that arose in the Christian church, but there are many outside of the church who have accused Christians of believing in 3 gods
65
Which Christian conviction does tri-theism deny?
three persons, one nature
- Christian councils said that the father, son and holy spirit refer to three persons in one nature (Greek: personae-substantia. Latin: hypostasis-ousia)
- the gold analogy:
66
What is arianism?
a denial of the 2nd belief; that the father, son and holy spirit is each god.
- Arius believed that the son could not really be god, that the son was subordinate to the father since he was in some sense created, and that the father has a different substance (ousia) than the son
- Bullivants analogy: in Arius' view, god is like Gepetto and Jesus is like pinocchio
67
Which Christian conviction does Arianism deny?
Council of Nicea (325CE)
- the council rejected the view of Arius, making it clear that Jesus was 'begotten from the father'
- anything less than Jesus being the 'same substance' of god would mean that god did not fully participate in human life and therefore could not fully save humanity
68
What is modalism?
a denial of the 3rd belief that the father, son and holy spirit are not the same
- modalists believe that the trinity are just 'modes' of being, or like masks an actor might wear. it is still the same actor underneath the mask
- tries to maintain monotheism. it does so by denying the reality of the persons of the trinity; the three persons are really just masks over the one god
69
What is the problem with modalism?
it denies the differences between the father, son and holy spirit
- example: it seems ridiculous to suggest that it was the father that was crucified or the son that descends on the disciples at pentecost
70
What is the gold analogy for tri-theism?
Gregory of Nazianzus expressed one nature/three persons in terms of gold.
"when we speak of gold, even if it is changed into many different things, still it is, and is mentioned as one"
- adapted by Bullivant: think of a gold ring, gold coin and a gold crucifix. we do not say there are 'many golds'. it is one gold in three expressions.
1. there is one gold (a single ousia)
2. the key, ring and crucifix is each gold (they fully share the same ousia)
3. the key, ring and crucifix are not the same (they constitute three distinct personae/persons of the same golden ousia)
71
What does ousia mean?
nature of something.
eg the ousia of god is his divine nature
72
What does hypostases mean?
persons
73
What is the filioque controversy?
controversy in the church questioning if the holy spirit proceeded from the father OR from the father and the son
74
What does filioque mean?
“and from the son”
75
What did the Council of Nicea write the creed to state?
that Christians believe in the 'holy spirit' with no elaboration
76
How did the Council of Constantinople amend the nicene creed?
they stated "we believe in the godly spirit, the lord, the giver of life, who proceeds from the father".
all present churches agreed to the new wording
77
How did the Council of Toledo change it again?
"we believe in the holy spirit, the lord, the giver of life, who proceeds from the father AND THE SON"
the three words "and the son" in latin are just "filioque"
- this word was added without the agreement of the five patriarchs of the church
78
What did Pope Leo III decide to do in 1014?
he agreed to use the word 'filioque' for the first time in a mass in Rome. this was a trigger that led to the split between Eastern and Western churches
79
What did Rome accuse the Eastern church of in 1054?
heresy for not accepting the filioque. this added to pre existing tensions within the church and led to the Great Schism of 1054 which divided the Eastern and Western churches to this day
80
What was the recent joint statement of the Orthodox-Catholic churches in 2009?
no one knows for sure the inner life of god
- neither side called the other heretical (they both agreed they don't know much about god)
- recognition that the RCC does not deny that the spirit proceeds originally from the father, and does not claim that it has its source in the son
- the Catholic Church revokes the decree of the Council of Lyon’s, which had condemned the orthodox as heretical because they did not accept the filioque clause
- this issue is no longer a source of conflict and division between the two churches
81
What do those who oppose the filioque clause object?
because they believe the holy spirit proceeding from the father AND the son makes the holy spirit "subservient" to the father and son
82
What do those who uphold the filioque clause believe?
the holy spirit proceeding from the father AND the son does not impact the spirit being equally god with the father and son
83
Who were Western (Catholic) thinkers influenced by?
Augustine
84
What did Western thinkers believe?
the son communicates the spirit together with the father. the spirit is sent by the father AND the son
- emphasises the divinity of the son and the unity of the trinity by having the holy spirit proceed from both the father and son
85
What did Eastern (Orthodox) thinkers believe?
they understood the three persons of the trinity to have a unique quality: 'fatherhood' is unique to the father, 'begottenness' is unique to the son, 'procession' is unique to the holy spirit
- emphasises the "monarchy of the father" and teaches that this results in unity between the three persons of the trinity
- since the son and the holy spirit come from the father, there is one 'source' for all three persons, and the unity of the three can also be represented by just one of the three (the father)
86
What is the second disagreement between the Eastern and Western churches?
the immanent and economic trinity
87
What is the immanent trinity?
focuses on what god IS (three persons, one god). his nature.
- Augustine believed that humans can know this from their own experience because there are traces of the trinity in the human soul (accepted by the western church)
- the Eastern church accepts the structure of god as three equal persons, but does not accept that anything has been revealed to us of the inner being of god except that: 1. the father alone is the source of divinity 2. the son alone is begotten of the father 3. the spirit proceeds from the father alone
88
What is the economic trinity?
focuses on what god DOES (father creates, son redeems and spirit sanctifies)
- 3 distinct activities revealed to humans over time
- each exist eternally but have revealed themselves at different points in history
- for the Eastern christians, since creation is unique to the father, then both the son and the spirit must emanate from the father (the son is begotten, the spirit proceeds)
89
Augustine argued that people can experience the trinity in what way?
their own experiences, because there are traces of the trinity in the human soul
90
Why did Augustine not differentiate between the immanent and economic trinity?
because he believed the Holy spirit acts within the trinity as a bond of love between the father and son, so it must proceed from both. since the holy spirit acts within human beings to unite them in this bond of love, it follows that human beings can derive the nature of god from this experience
(accepted by the Western church)
91
Why did the Eastern church not accept Augustine’s argument of the immanent and economic trinity?
because we cannot base the trinity on our own experience. we cannot know the inner workings of god. they argued that it confused the incomprehensible structure of the trinity (immanent) with its actions (economic). it also makes the nature of god dependent upon created beings. therefore, the immanent trinity is not the same as the economic trinity
92
How did Karl Barth develop the doctrine of the trinity?
- he wrote that "the doctrine of the trinity is what basically distinguishes the christian doctrine of god as christian"
- written at the start of his 14 volume "Church Dogmatics" in response to Schleiermacher's criticism of the doctrine
93
What did Barth believe the basis of the trinity was?
god has revealed himself to humans in two movements
1. in the son: this is an objective unveiling of what god is
2. in the spirit: this is a subjective reception; god working for us
94
What is Barth’s example of witnessing the crucifixion?
- two men are watching the crucifixion
- first man says "there is a common criminal being executed": he has not recognised the unveiling of god in Jesus
- second man says "there is the son of god dying for me" : for this man, the Holy Spirit has imparted the recognition of god in Jesus
95
What does Barth’s example demonstrate?
that human beings are incapable of responding to the objective revelation of god in Jesus, unless a recognition of that revelation is imparted to them by the Holy Spirit. this imparting proceeds from both the hidden father and the revealed son. barth therefore endorses the use of the word filioque. the imparting of this revelation is part of gods grace, which is part of his being. therefore, for barth the immanent trinity is reflected in the economic trinity
96
What are the problems with the modern developments and what are the answers to them?
1. the merging of the immanent trinity and the economic trinity in Barth’s model, and the endorsement of the use of filioque make it heretical according to the Eastern church. ANSWER: the Western church has accepted the merging of the two, and the use of filioque for centuries
2. Moltmann (along with other Western theologians), have criticised the use of the word 'seinsweise' instead of the word 'person' to refer to the members of the trinity. they liken it to the heresy of modalism. ANSWER: although Motlmann uses the term 'seinsweise', he does so to avoid confusing the word 'person' with 'personality'. to say that god has three personalities is tritheism. Barth says there are three modes but one personality. eg the incarnation is the work of the whole trinity, but only the mode of the son became flesh
3. it doesn't distinguish between the father, son and holy spirit. ANSWER: Barth distinguishes the father from the son using the term logos asarkos (the word without flesh). he makes the distinction between the son of god and the son of man. the son of god is the title for the eternal word, whilst the son of man is the title for Jesus incarnated. Barth says the second mode, the Son, has a distinct place as Jesus of Nazareth. the holy spirit bears witness to the work of the son.
97
Who was Karl Barth?
a 20th century German theologian
98
What did Barth believe about the trinity?
any action of god is always the act of the entire trinity, but some actions ad extra, as more properly seen as done in one of the modes of god eg the son (saving death) or spirit (leading us to god)
99
What is eternal repetition?
belief that the trinity is a timeless succession of the three modes to each other: revealer, revelation, and revealedness (works together to make god known to humankind)
100
What did Barth believe about the economic trinity?
it enables us to receive an objective revelation of god (the word made flesh as Jesus) subjectively to recognise this (by the spirit)
101
Is the trinity biblical?
yes, because although the word 'trinity' does not explicitly appear in the bible, the concept is based on passages and teachings in the Christian scriptures, as seen in John 10:30 which states "I and the father are one"
102
Does the trinity help make sense of god, or cause more confusion?
causes more confusion, because the concept can be hard to fully grasp and some people might struggle to conform to the idea of three persons in one god
103
Does trinity conflict with monotheism?
no because although it describes the trinity as three persons in one god, it maintains belief in the oneness of god. the father, son and holy spirit are distinct persons but share the same divine essence and are different aspects of one god
104
Do you think the trinity is monotheistic?
yes because it is ONE god in three parts
105
Do you think Jesus was just human?
no. hypostatic union - Jesus was fully human and fully divine
106
Do you think modalism is right - that there is just one god but he takes on different roles?
no because it denies the differences between the father, son and the holy spirit
107
Is trinity an unnecessary philosophical complication?
no, I think it helps us to understand the relationship between the father, son and the Holy Spirit and helps us to comprehend gods nature
108
Does trinity offer a more beautiful way of understanding god and gods love?
yes - the father, son and holy spirit present a bond of love between them, like a family. they are all equal and distinct but united, which acts as a beneficial model for human relationships
