Tuesday, December 26, 2006

The Relevance of the Holy Trinity.

Contrary to some perceptions, the Trinity is not some irrelevance or a concoction of doddery old bishops in the third century. I maintain that the Trinity is at the very heart of the Christian faith. The Trinity comprises the inner essence of God, and forms the basis for all His works, and gives rise to the beauty in creation; down to the level of all goodness, wherever it may be found.

Before there was even a little bang, before even an atom of matter, or a ray of light, there was the sublime, absolutely perfect, God-head - of grace, truth, love and tranquility. Equal in power and majesty, yet perfect in humility, unity and diversity – at once giving and fully able to receive. This is the greatest love of all time. Not that love is God, but God most definitely is love. When we are being loving, we are most like God.

Would that we could emulate the glorious magnanimity and harmony that is so intrinsic to the God-in-three. God as Trinity, gives love, sends the Son, empowers by the Spirit, is the Father of consolation and good shepherd to us all.

Some might ask, “how can this be? How can God be three, and yet one?” Yet such is the testimony of the Bible, implicit in creation, though hidden from overt comprehension; and it is the testimony of the Eastern and Western Church down the ages, treasured from earliest times. Even the name of God is plural in Hebrew. God is one, and God is three. We cannot understand this mystery. We can only stand in awe. Better, yet – kneel in adoration. But we do neither very easily.

Have you ever noticed the thrice-repeated phrase in the Bible – “Holy, Holy, Holy”? I do not think that it is without significance that we find instances of three “Holy’s” – i.e., Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Here, we have unity, selflessness, diversity and love personified to a superlative degree, and moreover, worshipped as the One true God.

Glory be to the Father and the Son, and to the Holy Spirit; as it was in the beginning, is now and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.