The Trinity

Christians supposedly believe in "the Trinity", a popular but confusing doctrine that gives the impression that Christians believe in three gods. It is my conviction that Christians in the United States place far too much emphasis on minor doctrinal differences and are far too willing to forget their main mission (and love) in order to "take a stand" on confusing topics.  (See, for example, this blogpost that raises concerns about "complementarians" and the Trinity and this Wikipedia article for a history of some of the past viewpoints and disagreements!)

The theological concept of the "Trinity" of God dates to the second century and is an attempt to understand the way God is represented in creation, in Jesus and in the Holy Spirit. The concept is not explicit in the Scriptures, but various pieces of it are implied in certain passages.

That there is only one God, not three, is clear throughout Scripture. The Old Testament "Shema Israel" passage, in Deuteronomy 6:4, makes that a basic principle of the faith of Israel.

In John 1: 1-4, we are introduced to the Word (Logos) of God, the creative mind of God, with God from the beginning of creation, finally made flesh (John 1:14) in the appearance of Jesus.

In Hebrews 1: 1-3, Jesus is similarly described as the one through whom the universe was made. Furthermore, he is the "exact representation" of God. I cannot read those passages without reading the claim that Jesus is God, in some human representation of him.

In John 14: 16-17, Jesus promises to send "a Comforter" who will live within his followers and we see this Comforter appear at Pentecost in Acts 2.  The early church seemed to view the Holy Spirit as the presence of God (or Jesus) internally guiding the believer and Paul seems to explicitly identify the Holy Spirit with Jesus (eg. II Corinthians 3:17.)

There is a popular explanation of the Trinity in a diagram (see below.) The diagram makes no sense to me, as it violates our understanding of "is" or "equal."  As a mathematician, if God=Son and God=Father then Father=Son by the transitive property of equality!  Apparently the word "is" here means something different than the way I typically use it.  I am uncomfortable with an argument that relies (to quote an American president) "on what the meaning of the word 'is' is."

That people consider this important is clear.  But it is not important that a Christian sort this out. If the Bible only provides a sketch of the complexity of God, I see no obligation to take that sketch and create an intricate (and flawed) systematic theology. Nor am I obligated to endorse someone else's detailed (and flawed) theology.

The website GotQuestions.org attempts to lay out the Biblical theology for the Trinity.  There is some good material these, including a number of related Old Testament passages.  But I appreciate most that the site wisely ends with this paragraph:

"The doctrine of the Trinity has been a divisive issue throughout the entire history of the Christian church. While the core aspects of the Trinity are clearly presented in God’s Word, some of the side issues are not as explicitly clear. The Father is God, the Son is God, and the Holy Spirit is God—but there is only one God. That is the biblical doctrine of the Trinity. Beyond that, the issues are, to a certain extent, debatable and non-essential. Rather than attempting to fully define the Trinity with our finite human minds, we would be better served by focusing on the fact of God's greatness and His infinitely higher nature. “Oh, the depth of the riches of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable his judgments, and his paths beyond tracing out! Who has known the mind of the Lord? Or who has been his counselor?” (Romans 11:33-34)."