I’ve previously written about this topic here. But a theologian friend said that my take was expressing modalism, and that’s heresy. After deep thought, I wanted to re-address the analogy, with an attempt to express how I can rationalize it, without being heretical… and that attempt starts here:
Modalism: (heretical view)
The doctrine that the persons of the Trinity represent only three modes or aspects of the divine revelation, not distinct and coexisting persons in the divine nature.
Trinitarian Trinity:
The doctrine of the Christian Trinity, which holds that God is one in essence (or being) but three in coequal, coeternal Persons: the Father, the Son (Jesus Christ), and the Holy Spirit
A defense of the previous argument:
While I previously stated (abbreviatedly) that God, Jesus, and the Holy Spirit are both one and distinct, unique expressions from one another… using the example of me as a husband, me as a father, and me as a coworker… and all as “me” as my argument. I want first to be clear that I do not see them as one with different facets (modalism…) I see them (or mean to express them) as unique entitities, but anchored and connected as part of the one; or sharing the same nature. But, I can see how that analogy (and most analogies, for that matter) can fall apart if not looked at properly… so, I’m crafting a new one in real-time here.
Argument 1 of 2:
A new (but similar) analogy:
When I was a child, I was curious. And I always wanted to know how things were made. How is the car made? How is the engine made? How do the pistons work? What are the pistons made of? Why don’t they fall apart? Why, why, why… until there’s nothing left.
No surprise to find that is still the case. When I learned about atoms I asked… what are atoms made of? Protons, neutrons and electrons. What’s smaller than that? Quark. What’s smaller than that? Nothing… nothing? How can there be a final, smallest matter particle? That seems as silly as saying “everything is made out of fire.” (Sorry, Heraclitus)
As suspected, as time goes on… it seems all things are made of strings of energy. (string theory) Which means, in super short laymans terms… all things, both material and immaterial are just energy. The basic building block of all things; light, wind, movement, gravity, matter, all states of matter, life, consciousness itself is all the same… energy.
Cool story, bro…. but how is that related to an understanding trinity?
The energy represents the Godhead as a whole, singular essence. Made for one purpose, but able to manifest in unique and separate forms. But then, to understand the three unique persons of God, Jesus and the Holy Spirit, is to consider:
- The Earth
- An untouched forest
- Gravity
These are distinct manifestations of the one singular basis. They exist in relation to one another, but can not (and would not) be confused for one another. And like our original three… the Earth represents the creator, the created, and the sustaining, which is God. The forest represents Jesus, and is the product of what can happen and what is possible when the physical world is entirely aligned with the natural plans as God intends. Gravity is the Holy Spirit without which all of the rest would fall apart; It is truth itself, it is integral to the structure, it is present whether you sense it or not… and when you do sense it, its presence and force is undeniable. You may even try to rebel against it if you like, but you will never find its equal.
But this being said, I bring you a more profound argument…
Argument 2 of 2:
Why do we speak of three at all?
If God is infinite, why did he express himself to humans as three in one? Maybe that was his choice? But maybe (considering the Bible was given TO man, FOR man) there is something else there? I think there is.
Much like my first argument… it starts with us as the center. (that’s soooo human of me, I know.)
Humans themselves are 1… in 3 parts, indivisible, yet unique. And, when you lay them on top of one another, the biblical explanation of the Trinity itself is consistent with the biblical explanations of what God asks of us in each. And before I go farther I feel compelled to note that: We were made in God’s image.
We were made as Mind. Body. Soul (spirit). But I find it easiest to explain out of order…
The Body. The body is Jesus.
- Jesus was entirely subservient to the Father, to the point that he sacrificed himself so that the spirit of all might live.
- WE are asked to make the body entirely subservient to the Father, to the point that we are asked to sacrifice our body so that our spirit might live (and that it might be blessed to help others do the same.)
The Soul. The soul is the Holy Spirit.
- The Holy Spirit was said to be the spirit of God inside each of us, the guide, the divine ability to discern. The knowledge of God when the knowledge of the mind fails. The helper.
- Because of our sinful nature, our souls are split. But despite the fact that we are pulled in dark or egoistic ways, the soul is aware. We are asked to tap into that awareness of the God inside of us. To nurture it. To feed it (see the white wolf/black wolf Native American story). We are asked to dwell in it (rather than the world.)
Our Mind. Our Mind is God.
- God is the creator of all. God is the facilitator of all things. He is the will of the world. He is “I am that I am” and “I am that which will be.”
- Our minds are the connective tissue between our body and our spirit… our mind is what chooses when confronted with input from both those other two parts. Do we choose sacrifice or instant gratification? Do we choose to put more goodness into the world, or to take away from what’s there? Do we follow God, or do we follow the world? Whatever choice we make, however, WILL shape reality. We will create “what will be” by way of our decisions.
So… we are one creature, with multiple parts. One singular person who could not last without ALL of the other unique features. Each of the unique features which could not exist in isolation.
I think God wanted us to know that. To be clear, I don’t think God wants us to believe WE are Gods… but we do need to know that our choices have consequences. That we DO create some level of our reality, because we are the active facilitators of HIS creation of reality. We are made in his image, but we are not him. However, we can understand him better by understanding ourselves better. And that part gives me great motivation.
All that being said…
Anytime I spend significant time trying to understand the depth and complexity of the universe God created, I find myself at a loss for words, and severely lacking in capacity to understand.
FYI: None of this is written to “convince” anyone that I’m right (or they’re wrong). This is me trying to capture my own fleeting thoughts, and/or for anyone who’s had a thought and didn’t have the words… hoping that maybe this can offer a piece to a larger puzzle they may have been seeking.
Happy Theologizing. 🙂