Books on Jason's Mind

Why is the Trinity in any way a "practical" dogma.

2008-07-27T16:27:00.000-07:00

Just as a breif note: sorry about the length of time between posts. It's been a little crazy. Anyway, here's my offering.

As I was reading this section, I realized that I'm running into a problem.

Some authors are smarter than I am.

Take for instance my last post where I asked the question, "How can we know or even experience God as a Trinity? And if we can why does it matter?" Well Molty address this in this section. He writes that the second set of objections that is frequently raised is the one that had been dwelling in my mind- what are the practical applications of such a doctrine?

Within modern thought, we tend to focus on results. That is how we determine what is worthwhile and what is not. So what is the result or outcome of theology from a modern standpoint? Well according to Kant (a German enlightenment philosopher) the practical result of theology should be morality (what one believes is right or wrong) and politics (how one implements what is right or wrong). Which in all honesty is often how I tend to evaluate things. I believe strongly that my faith must be something that I can enact and live out. But how do I live out a doctrine of God as three-in-one? It doesn't make much sense, so this doctrine probably isn't that important.

Except, says good old Molty, that this practical side of me is only half of what I, the believer, have to give. He does not dispute the importance of this side, but it is only half. He states that Christian love is not just a motivation to do action and accomplish God's work. "Faith lives in meditation and prayer as well as practice." (7) Without faith, we become captive to a type of pragmatism that is only open to what we think can happen, rather than being open to what God imagines the world to be. Without the practice of prayer, contemplation and meditation we cut ourselves off from the ground that gives us the strength to watch it.

In addition to this, knowledge, writes Molty, in our modern context is about control. Most of us have heard and believe, "Knowledge is power". However Molty states that in the ancient world, knowledge is more about intimacy that invokes wonder and awe. (A prime example "Adam knew Eve and she concieved and bore a son Seth.") Thus, knowledge about God and the nature of God is not about practical application in the modern sense, but about inspiring in us wonder and awe about God.

I appreciate Molty's warning about viewing things only in light of their utility. How many of us would say that something like Michelangelo's Pieta is useful? But is it valuable and leads us toward a greater understanding of the humanity and tragedy of the crucifixion and thus increase our wonder of God in our lives? Absolutely. (At least it does for me.) So perhaps the doctrine of the Trinity should be considered more as a piece of doctrinal artwork rather than something that must be adhered to and defined so strictly that there is no wonder or awe left.

Chapter 1 Trinitarian Theology Today: Can we experience a Trinitarian God?

2008-07-22T11:42:00.000-07:00

You may be wondering why I chose "The Trinity and the Kingdom" to begin with. Quite frankly, the Trinity is a topic that I think most people don't think about, even though it is probably one of the most fundamental doctrines in the Christian faith. To most people, it seems weird, unhelpful, confusing and completely irrelevant to their daily lives- which is why so many avoid thinking/reflecting on it. Perversely, I think this is why I'm interested in it.

Classically understood, the Trinity is a Christian doctrine, stating that God exists as three persons, or in the Greek "Hypostasis", but is one being. The persons are understood to exist as God the Father, God the Son (incarnate as Jesus Christ), and God the Holy Spirit. Trinitarianism, belief in the Trinity, is accepted as truth by the vast majority of churches throughout the world that claim Christianity as their heritage.

But the question remains, so what? Doesn't most of that sentence up above just sound like a bunch of gobbledy-gook? What is the big deal? Why is this important? Does it have any relevance to our theology let alone our lives today? How can we know or even experience God as a Trinity? And if we can why does it matter. This is the point where Moltmann (from this point on I'll refer to him as Molty) begins.

The first question he wrestles with is how do we experience the Trinity/God? Within modern thought, this question is very individualistic. How do I experience reality? This is inherently self-centered and limiting. The problem with this limited understanding is that all experience is shared. Just as I or others might have an experience of God, God also has an experience of us. Molty's contention is that God's experience in the world is one of suffering. God's most profound revelations (that is, God's interaction with the creation) come through suffering and pain- the cry of the captives of Israel or the death cry of Jesus on the cross. He states this in a Trinitarian formula "God Suffers with us- God suffers from us- God suffers for us." (pg. 4) He critique's our tendency to make everything about us. If we really believe that God is present and active in our lives and in our culture today, then it is important to take into our thoughts the idea that God is present in the history of events in the world today. Our experience as individuals must be brought into the larger context of God's experience of the world. In so doing we are freed from self-destructive and self-deceptive worship of the self.

I don't particularly disagree with of this but I've got a few questions about it. I'm not sure that suffering is the only way, or even maybe the primary way that God reveals God's self. There is the act of creation in Genesis, there is the birth of Christ in Bethlehem. These acts of creation and joy don't quite fit into the neat categories that Molty has set up. However, the critique of individualism and our own self-preoccupation is helpful. The hard truth of the matter is that often times our preoccupation with ourselves causes us to over-look suffering that we cause. Only by expanding our horizons of where God is beyond ourselves are we able to fully engage with the creation that God has made.

I don't know that the doctrine of the Trinity is the best way to engage this set of questions. Is suffering really the only way to think about God's action in our lives? And does this really reveal the importance of the Trinitarian nature of God? I'm not so sure.

Anyway, Peace
Jason

I'm going to try this blogging thing again . . .

2008-07-22T09:00:00.000-07:00

Needless to say, I've never been very good at keeping a diary or other such things. They have always seemed somewhat trivial, dealing with my own thoughts and reflections. However, I thought of an idea to help me blog, and yet not be just about me. I'm going to be keeping a blog of my thoughts on books that I'm reading- not my sci-fi stash that just goes on and on, but on the theology and church related books that I'm reading. The basic format is that I'll summarize what I think the book I'm reading says, then offer my own thoughts on it. This will not always interest everyone, but I'm hopeful that this will be interesting enough to me that I'll keep the blog and my continuing theological reading current and interesting. I invite any and all to comment or question what I'm reading and my thoughts. Feel free to express yourself.

All that being said, I'm going to start with a book that I've started before and never finished. It's called "The Trinity and the Kingdom" and it's by Jurgen Moltmann. Generally I've always appreciated how Moltmann addresses issues. A friend of my (go Amanda!) once summed it up something like this: good ol' Molty will explain the historical situation of where an idea came from and then trace how it is developed through time up until the present. Only once he has done that will he say what he thinks about a given topic. This attention to tradition and context that he gives I find facinating and helpful in trying to understand if these concepts are still applicable today.

In any case, I hope this is helpful (or at least somewhat intersting).