Seminar on the Holy Trinity at the Monastery of St. Bishoy – Wadi El Natrun
His Holiness Pope Shenouda III explains the doctrine of the Holy Trinity as a central Orthodox Christian belief, showing that it was not invented at the Council of Nicaea but existed since the Old Testament and was revealed clearly in the New Testament, especially in the baptism of Christ where the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit appear together.
1. Biblical Roots of the Trinity:
His Holiness explains that references to the Trinity exist from Genesis: “The Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters,” showing that God created the world through His Word (the Son) and by His Spirit — expressing the cooperation of the three Persons.
In the New Testament, the three Persons appear clearly in the baptism of Christ — the Father’s voice, the Son in the water, and the Holy Spirit as a dove.
2. Theological Explanation of “Son” and “Word”:
The “Son” is explained as the rational Word or the speaking mind of God, not a physical birth. The Logos (Word) means divine reason — the intelligent utterance through which all things were made. God created the world by His speaking mind (the Son) and gave it life by His Spirit.
3. Unity within the Trinity:
Christianity does not believe in three gods but in one God in three Persons. The divine essence is one, yet the Persons are distinct in relation, never divided in work. The Father sends the Son, the Son sends the Spirit, all equal in divinity, power, and eternity.
4. Difference from Pagan Trinities:
The Pope clarifies that the Christian Trinity excludes any idea of a bodily generation or a female deity. God the Father did not physically beget the Son but begot Him eternally in a spiritual, timeless manner.
5. Equality of the Persons:
The divine Persons are equal in eternity, existence, power, and essence. They are inseparable: God exists by His being, is rational by His Word, and lives by His Spirit — perfect unity in diversity.
6. Illustrative Analogies:
The Pope compares the Trinity to fire — having substance, heat, and light — and to man, who has being, mind, and spirit. Divine generation is like the birth of thought from the mind: proceeding without separation.
7. Refuting Heresies and Misunderstandings:
The Pope refutes Arianism and Jehovah’s Witnesses who deny Christ’s divinity or call Him a “lesser god.” Since the Son is the divine Mind, He cannot be created — for that would mean God once existed without reason, which is impossible.
8. Spiritual and Practical Meaning:
Faith in the Trinity is not philosophy but a living experience of God. Through Christ we reach the Father, and through the Holy Spirit we live and are sanctified. The Trinity calls believers to true worship and divine love.
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