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This essay was published on Monday as a guest post on David Henson’s Unorthodoxology, one of my favorite blogs. Go to the original to read the full article or post comments.
I believe that the Christian conception of the Trinity demonstrates the universal accessibility of God, who is revealed to be both transcendent, in the person of the “Father”, and immanent, in the person of the Holy Spirit. (I also believe that God is incarnate in the person of Jesus Christ, the Son). Only in the trinitarian structure can the seemingly contradictory qualities of transcendence, immanance, and incarnation be brought together in one divine being.
My take on the trinity may imply some form of panentheism. As Wikipedia defines it, panentheism is distinct from pantheism and “is a belief system which posits that God exists and interpenetrates every part of nature, and timelessly extends beyond as well”. Panentheism is also frequently described as the worldview in which the universe is seen as part of God but not all of God.
Is this roughly equivalent to the idea that “God is both immanent and transcendent”? …
View full essay or post comments here.
I honestly don’t know whether or not this is purely original, and if anyone can find something like it please let me know. But I far as I know, I came up with this more or less on my own.
The idea of the Trinity has always been one of the most fascinating theological concepts to me, along with the Incarnation. I love the the philosophical and metaphysical intricacies of such abstractions as hypostasis, mutual indwelling, etc — ie, the study of the “ontological Trinity”. But just as important as the technical discussion of “internal life” of the Trinity is the discussion of how the nature of God as Trinity affects his interactions with the world — the “economic Trinity”. This post deals with the latter topic.
I believe that the doctrine of the Trinity recognizes God as being uniquely relatable to a variety of different perceptions of his nature. Some people find that they would most easily be able to relate to God if he were incarnated as a human being (or human-like being), like anyone they would meet on the street; some prefer to meet God as an omnipresent spirit, immanent in and permeating the universe; others prefer to approach a transcendent God who is beyond the world and surveys the whole of the universe in wisdom. Different world religions feature various versions of these three ways of viewing God — Hinduism with its incarnations of Vishnu for the first category and its overall pantheism for the second, Islam with its strictly monotheistic creator-God for the last category, etc.
In the Christian conception of the Trinity, all three of these ideas are presented as equal understandings of the nature of the divine. Furthermore, in Christianity, the problem of these ideas being perhaps mutually exlusive is solved by the structure of the Trinitarian Godhead: three persons distinct in attributes but ontologically identical — of “one substance”. Thus, the Trinity contains all the attributes of transcendence, incarnation, and immanence in a single being:
1. The Father: The first person of the Trinity, biblically and traditionally referred to as the “Father” (though, in my opinion, able to be called with equal theological validity the “Mother”), is God transcendent, beyond the world. To refer to the Nicene Creed: “The Father Almighty, maker of all things visible and invisible.”
2. The Son: Jesus Christ, the second person of the Trinity, is God incarnate in the world, a historical person. As the Gospel of John says, “And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory..”
3. The Holy Spirit: The third person, the Holy Spirit, the Paraclete, is God immanent, throughout the world. Acts 2 gives a hint of this: “And suddenly there came from heaven a rushing wind, and it filled the entire house where they were sitting. And divided tongues as of fire appeared to them and rested on each one of them. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit…” [ESV]
Only in the trinitarian structure can these multiple aspects of divinity co-exist logically (assuming of course that you accept, as I do, that the Trinity itself is logically valid). This is the great strength of the Christian conception of God. Because of the triune nature of deity, people are free to seek out God in whatever way we are most comfortable, whether because of our personal preferences, cultural norms, or religious background. We can seek out the almost pantheistically immanent Spirit of God, or we can engage the historical Jesus of Nazareth, or we can offer praise and prayer to a majestic figure beyond the universe. Or we can do all these things.
The Trinity renders God universally accessible.
As a side note: It strikes me that the above interpretation of the doctrine of the Trinity may imply something very close to panentheism, the belief (distinct from pantheism) that the universe is a part of God but is not identical with God. This seems similar to the combination of immanence and transcendence described above. Of course, I don’t believe that the universe is a part of God strictly speaking, in the sense that “we’re all God” in a New Ageish feelgood way; but I do believe that God is immanent in the universe and that the universe is an emerging phenomenon of God’s creativity that is allowed to distinguish itself from the source through free will. In a way, it might thus make more sense for me to speak of God maintaining the existence of the universe, rather than just creating it. And after all, humanity is made in God’s image, and the heavens declare God’s glory. There is certainly something of the divine in the universe. If that makes me a panentheist, even if not in the strictest sense, so be it. I feel another post coming on….
