The Holy Trinity & Especially on The Divinity of Our Lord Jesus Christ
In this lecture, Pope Shenouda III explains the mystery of the Holy Trinity, emphasizing the difference between pagan tritheism and Christian Trinitarian monotheism.
In paganism, there are three separate gods, but in Christianity, there is One God in three Persons — the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, equal in essence, power, and eternity.
The Son is not created, but eternally begotten of the Father — meaning without beginning — for God was never without His Word (the Son) nor without His Spirit (the Holy Spirit).
Thus, the Son is the Divine Logos — the Reason and Word of God, and the Holy Spirit is the Living Spirit of God. The three are one in essence, just as man is one being with a body, mind, and spirit.
The divine attributes (eternity, omnipresence, omniscience, holiness, justice, mercy, etc.) belong fully to all three Persons.
Jesus Christ is God manifested in the flesh, as affirmed in Scripture:
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“Christ who is over all, God blessed forever” (Romans 9:5)
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“In Him dwells all the fullness of the Godhead bodily” (Colossians 2:9)
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“God was manifested in the flesh” (1 Timothy 3:16)
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“Emmanuel, which means God with us” (Matthew 1:23)
Pope Shenouda explains that the Jehovah’s Witnesses deny Christ’s divinity because they misunderstand the Trinity, claiming that the Son is created.
But this is impossible, for God cannot exist without His own divine Mind.
Christ is also the Creator (John 1:3; Col. 1:16), present everywhere (“I am with you always”), the only Holy One (“For You alone are Holy”), and the First and the Last as declared of God Himself (Isaiah 44:6; Revelation 1:17).
The lecture concludes that the Holy Trinity is the foundation of Christian Orthodox faith:
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The Father is the Divine Being,
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The Son is the Divine Mind and Word,
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The Holy Spirit is the Divine Life,
and the three are one God, equal and eternal.
