God

Jesus said to his disciples, “I still have many things to say to you but you cannot bear them now” (John 16:12).

            Some time ago, I was chatting with someone who thought the Christian Teaching about the Trinity was an example of why God was an unnecessary idea. “With the information they can gather from their five senses and Reason, humans can or will someday, explain everything which occurs in our world”, he said. “Evil can be explained by Psychological and Social factors while death is a natural process. Christians say they believe in one God in three persons. However, that is impossible. A person is a separate being. You either believe in one God or three.” I answered by asking him why he thought God was something the human mind could understand by itself. Was it not possible, there were things which exceeded the limits of the five senses and Reason which could only be known in other ways: like faith? Perhaps the Doctrine of the Trinity was a reminder any attempt to reduce God to a human concept was impossible. During a time when the ability to explain things by using information gathered from our senses and Reason has increased dramatically, it is hard for many people to accept the need for any other source of knowledge.

            In this passage from John, Jesus teaches his Disciples there are many things they are not able to understand. By doing so, he prepares them for dealing with the Mysteries of the Faith like the Trinity.

            Within the Hebrew Scriptures/Old Testament, the Mystery of God was a common theme. In Genesis, God created the Heavens and Earth by Divine command. There was no explanation of how or why this event happened. On Mount Sinai, when Moses asked what was God’s name he was told “I am who am”, which provided no insight into the Divine nature. When confronted by Job about the Wisdom of Divine thinking, God’s response stressed its vast superiority over its human counterpart. Jesus expanded upon God’s Mysterious nature in his Teachings. Christ stated he and the Father were one. In the past, no Prophet made such a claim. Judaism clung resolutely to its belief in one God. Roman and Greek Mythology had numerous tales of beings who resulted from a union between a god and human. Was this what Jesus meant? Furthermore, the existence of infinite Divinity within a finite Human Person seemed impossible. Now with the suggestion of a union between Father, Son and Holy Spirit, no Human category existed which explained such a being. It took centuries of reflection before even a partial explanation of these issues evolved. In his Teaching, Jesus certainly foretold the arrival of the Holy Spirit which helped the Disciples in their understanding of the Faith and the completion of their Mission. However, he also hinted at the mysterious nature of God which eluded all attempts at a complete understanding by humans.

            Our Modern world has a problem with mysteries. They are seen as problems to be solved. With enough intelligence and determination, everything can be made to fit into a Human concept which can be understood by all. Many see Religion as serving a Social purpose like maintaining order within the Community or a Psychological one such as meeting certain Human needs. Since no proof for the existence of God has been discovered through Reason, there is no divine being they conclude. Doctrines like the Trinity result from Religious and Political elites exerting their power by distracting people from more important concerns; like Economic inequality. However, for Catholics and other people of faith, mysteries are part of life. While Religion has been used by those in power for Social purposes; it survives the collapse of civilizations. It is true there are individuals who use Faith as a means to satisfy certain needs like belonging to a group but most continue to believe even when their desires go unfulfilled. Since information gathered from the senses can be wrong and Human Reason is fallible there are numerous things in life which can’t be proven: such as whether someone loves you. The Doctrine of the Trinity, like other Mysteries found within the Christian Tradition, can never be fully understood by Reason. It was revealed by God to the faithful for this reason. The words used at the Council of Nicaea (325) “one God in three persons” took concepts from Greek Philosophy which reflected how individuals thought at that time. These days many people find this definition too abstract to be meaningful. Although it is the Teaching of the Church and expresses Divinely Revealed truth, it is possible a better way of explaining it will be found in the future. The Doctrine of the Trinity reminds Catholics while the limits of Human Reason can keep them from reaching a full understanding of certain truths, God will provide them with other ways of knowing them.

            As my conversation with that young man illustrated, belief in God requires a willingness to accept the existence of Mysteries like the Trinity and the limits of knowing things by what we experience with our senses and discover by Reason. Not everyone is prepared to do so. But, for those who do, knowledge of God leads to a fuller view of the world.

June 12, 2022