THE PROBLEM OF THE TRINITY
Author: Ray Shelton
The problem of the Trinity arose in the second and third century A.D. as
Christianity spread through the Roman Empire. It encountered the monotheism
of the Greek philosophers.
This created the problem of the Trinity:
How can God be one being and at the same time Father, Son, and Holy
Spirit?
In the early centuries of Christianity, the problem of the Trinity
went through three phases.
- As Christianity spread through the Roman Empire
in the second and third century A.D.,
it encountered the monotheism of the Greek philosophers.
This created the
first phase
of the problem of the Trinity:
How can God be one being and at the same time Father, Son, and Holy
Spirit?
Let us examine this phase of the
problem
and the attempts to solve it in the
theology of the trinity
of the early church. The Trinitarianism of
Origen
at the end of the third century marked the close
of the first great phase of trinitarian doctrinal development.
- The
second phase
of the problem of Trinity begins with the flaring up of
Arianism
and culminates in the formulation of the orthodox doctrine of the Trinity at
The Council of Nicaea.
This phase of the problem of the Trinity deals with the relationship
of the Father to the
Son
and led to its
solution
at Nicaea.
Athanasius
was the champion of Nicaean orthodoxy against
Arianism.
- This Nicaean solution led to the
third phase
of the problem of Trinity and its solution:
the problem of the relationship of the Father and the Son to the
Holy Spirit.
The solution to this problem of the Trinity is
summarized
in the
"Nicene" Creed.
In writing this paper, I have relied very heavily upon J. N. D. Kelly's book,
Early Christian Doctrine, 2nd edition
[New York, Evanston, and London: Harper & Row, Publishers, 1958, 1960]
so that maybe I should put quotation marks around the whole paper.
Thank you, Dr. Kelly.