Understanding the Doctrine of Trinity

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UNDERSTANDING THE DOCTRINE OF THE TRINITY Prepared by: Rev. Anbazhagan INTRODUCTION One of the basic and fundamental doctrines of the Christian faith is the belief in the Trinity. Many people wonder, “Do the Christians believe in One God? Or do they believe in three gods?” And if they believe in one God then what is the meaning of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit? Because of their misunderstanding, they do so by thinking that the term “Trinity” means three gods. THE DEFINITION OF TRINITY Within the nature of the One True God, there simultaneously exists three eternal Persons, namely, God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit. All three Persons are co-equals in all the attributes of the Divine Nature. Trinity: The term designating one God in three person. Although not itself a biblical term,”the Trinity” has been found a convenient designation for the one God self-revealed in Scripture as the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. It signifies that within the one essence of the Godhead we have to distinguish three “persons” who are neither three gods on the one side, nor three parts or modes of God on the other, but coequally and coeternally God. (Evangelical Dictionary of Theology, Walter Elvell – Editor, p.1112) THE ORIGIN OF THE WORD “TRINITY” Although the word “Trinity” is not mentioned directly in the Bible, we can be seen the concept of Trinity in the whole of Bible from the book of Genesis to Revelation. The English word Trinity is derived from Latin Trinitas, meaning “the number three, a triad.” This abstract noun is formed from the adjective trinus (threefold, triple), as the word unitas is the abstract noun formed from unus (one). The corresponding word in Greek is Τριάς, meaning “a set of three” or “the number three.” Tertullian (c.155 – c.220), one of our early church Apologetic Fathers and a Latin theologian who wrote in the
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