The Christian Trinity Explained

The concept of the Christian Trinity is easy to explain, but it is hard for people to fully understand or accept. The straightforward explanation is that God exists as one divine being in the form of three, equally divine, persons, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. These three persons are consubstantial (of the same substance or essence), yet each is a separate person with an individual consciousness and persona. Each of these three distinct persons is fully God, not just a part of God. They are also not three separate beings or three separate Gods. The Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit are one being, God. Said another way: The Father is God but is not the Son or the Holy Spirit. The Son is God but is not the Father or the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit is God but is not the Father or the Son.

If you would like to read a more authoritative, but perhaps less succinct, explanation, read the Athanasian Creed, which Catholics, Eastern Orthodox, and the vast majority of protestants use to explain the Trinity. The Catholic church also explains the Trinity in the Catechism (CCC 253-256). The Orthodox explanation is included on the Orthodox Church of America website: https://www.oca.org/questions/teaching/the-trinity.

Diagrams similar to this “Shield of the Trinity” diagram have been used by many to depict the Trinity:

Many analogies are used to explain the Trinity, but they are all flawed in one way or another. This is because God is unique. There is no example that we can point to that is entirely analogous. However, using analogies and explaining where the analogy is flawed can help people better understand a concept. Here are some commonly used analogies:

Some people propose that we explain the Trinity by saying that the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit are three manifestations of God. While this explanation is close, the word “manifestation” does not convey that they are three persons, each with their own consciousness, existing simultaneously, that are one being.

Another common analogy is that the chemical H2O can exist as liquid water, gaseous steam, or solid ice. Water is H2O, but it is not steam or ice. Steam is H2O, but it is not water or ice. Ice is H2O, but it is not water or steam. This analogy shows that H2O exists in three different forms but is imperfect since a given amount of H2O cannot exist simultaneously as water, steam, and ice. Also, one form changes into the other with the application or removal of heat. God is simultaneously the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. He does not change from one form to another.

Another analogy that St. Patrick of Ireland supposedly used in the 5th century was to compare the Trinity to a shamrock, with the three leaves representing the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit springing from the same stalk. While this analogy shows the triune nature of a single being, it might lead people to believe that the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit are a part of God and not each fully God.

Although it is difficult for humans to understand a being who can simultaneously be three separate persons, that is nevertheless the accepted understanding of almost all Christians. Is it hard to believe that an all-powerful being who created everything can exist simultaneously as three persons?

This concept is based on many scripture passages, and it was articulated by the early church in the Niceno-Constantinopolitan Creed of 381 AD (called the Nicene Creed today) and in more detail in the Athanasian Creed from the fifth century AD. The “Shield of the Trinity” diagram, shown above, is based on the Athanasian Creed.

Biblical Basis

People often ask about the biblical basis of this belief. We know all three exist from many passages in the bible that refer to one or another of them, but the following passage makes it clear that all three exist when Jesus says to the disciples:

“All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.” Matt 28:18-20 (ESV)

This passage also clearly states that Jesus is God: “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me.” Yet it clearly lists the three “persons”: the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.

While the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit are all one “being” God, we know they are simultaneously three separate “persons” who exist simultaneously. We see this clearly when Jesus is baptized by John the Baptist:

And when Jesus was baptized, immediately he went up from the water, and behold, the heavens were opened to him, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and coming to rest on him; and behold, a voice from heaven said, “This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased.” Matt 3:16-17 (ESV)

In this passage, Jesus, the Father, evidenced by the voice from heaven, and the Holy Spirit, evidenced by the Spirit of God descending like a dove, are all present simultaneously.

There are several times when Jesus prays to the Father, making it clear that he and the Father are separate “persons.” For example, in Gethsemane, before he is arrested:

“My Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me; nevertheless, not as I will, but as you will.” Matt 26:39 (ESV)

“My Father, if this cannot pass unless I drink it, your will be done.” Matt 26:42 (ESV)

The Holy Spirit is mentioned in many places in the Old and the New Testaments. In this passage, Jesus describes the Holy Spirit as a Helper who dwells with us and in us:

And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Helper, to be with you forever, even the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees him nor knows him. You know him, for he dwells with you and will be in you. John 14:16-17 (ESV)

Lest you begin to think of the Father and the Son as separate “beings,” this teaching of Jesus makes it clear that He and the Father, while separate “persons,” are the same “being”:

Philip said to him, “Lord, show us the Father, and it is enough for us.” Jesus said to him, “Have I been with you so long, and you still do not know me, Philip? Whoever has seen me has seen the Father. How can you say, ‘Show us the Father’? Do you not believe that I am in the Father and the Father is in me? The words that I say to you I do not speak on my own authority, but the Father who dwells in me does his works. Believe me that I am in the Father and the Father is in me, or else believe on account of the works themselves. John 14:8-11 (ESV)

Douglas A. Leas, October 2024

Sources:

The Holy Bible, English Standard Version (ESV), 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.

Catechism of the Catholic Church, Second Edition (CCC 253-255). Published 11/2019, United States Conference of Catholic Bishops

The Trinity, Orthodox Church in America, retrieved 25 Oct. 2024, from https://www.oca.org/questions/teaching/the-trinity.

Athanasian Creed, Christian Classics Ethereal Library, retrieved 25 Oct. 2024, from https://www.ccel.org/creeds/athanasian.creed.html.

Shield of the Trinity. Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Retrieved 25 Oct. 2024, from https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Shield_of_the_Trinity&oldid=1248947057

Van Sloun, Michael Fr. (2011) Saint Patrick, The Shamrock, and The Trinity retrieved 25 Oct. 2024, from https://www.thecatholicspirit.com/commentary/hotdish/saint-patrick-the-shamrock-and-the-trinity/.