The Tripersonal God

Examines the Old Testament roots of trinitarian thought, the historical developments that gave rise to the doctrine of the trinity and contemporary thinking about trinitarian issues.

Now in a revised edition, this book examines the Old Testament roots of trinitarian thought, the historical developments that gave rise to the doctrine of the trinity and contemporary thinking about trinitarian issues.

This is the first full-length study of the doctrine of the Trinity from the standpoint of analytic philosophical theology. William Hasker reviews the evidence concerning fourth-century pro-Nicene trinitarianism in the light of recent developments in the scholarship on this period, arguing for particular interpretations of crucial concepts. He then reviews and criticizes recent work on the issue of the divine three-in-oneness, including systematic theologians such as Barth, Rahner, Moltmann, and Zizioulas, and analytic philosophers of religion such as Leftow, van Inwagen, Craig, and Swinburne. In the final part of the book he develops a carefully articulated social doctrine of the Trinity which is coherent, intelligible, and faithful to scripture and tradition.

This book attempts to reconceive the Trinity. Its thesis is that the Father beget the Son in or by the Holy Spirit. The Spirit proceeds from the Father as the one in whom the Son is begotten. While some contemporary authors have proposed a similar view, no-one has done so in such a complete and systematic fashion. Reconceiving the Trinity in this way has a number of advantages. Firstly, it is more in keeping with the New Testament proclamation, and thus it more closely aligns the economic and immanent Trinity. Secondly, it overcomes the inadequacies of traditional trinitarian formulations, in both Eastern and Western Churches, which incorporates erroneous philosophical presuppositions. Thirdly, it offers a resolution to the filioque controversy, which may be acceptable to both the Latin and the Orthodox Churches. This book is, therefore, highly ecumenical in importance. Fourthly, it gives a more active and essential role to the Holy Spirit within the immanent Trinity, something that has been lacking throughout the trinitarian tradition. The true subjectivity or personality of the Holy Spirit is more clearly defined. This book brings out the spiritual and practical importance of the Trinity for the everyday lives of Christians. It defines more clearly how Christians are grafted into the very life of the Trinity: how they come to relate to the persons of the Trinity in a manner analogous to the way they relate to one another.

Peters examines the works of Karl Barth, Karl Rahner, Eberhard Jungel, Jurgen Moltmann, Catherine Mowry LaCugna, and other theologians, as he highlights talk about the becoming of God by process theologians, sexism in trinitarian language by feminists, and divine and human community by liberation theologians.

"Why be concerned with the Trinity? What does it mean to say, "I believe in the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit?" In this accessible work Leonardo Boff takes up the ancient doctrine of the Trinity showing its meaning and relevance for Christian faith today." "In a series of short chapters Boff unpacks the mysteries of the Trinity, spelling out the difference it makes to believe that God is communion rather than solitude. Instead of an image of God as solitary ruler standing aloof above a static universe, belief in the Trinity means that at the root of everything there is movement, there is an eternal process of life, of outward movement, and love." "While comprehensive in his treatment of the theological and anthropological dimensions of the Trinity, Boff is especially interested in the social implications. In the Trinity we find a program of liberation to the infinite degree: "difference and distinction, equality and perfect communion." The Holy Trinity is, among other things, the image of the perfect community. At the same time, in the Trinity we find the best image of the church: not a hierarchy of power, but a community of diverse gifts and functions. Thus comprehension of the Trinity, in which God comes out to meet us in the full realization of our yearnings, empowers our efforts for a better world and a more faithful church. Book jacket."--Jacket.

William Hasker reviews the evidence concerning fourth-century pro-Nicene trinitarianism in the light of recent developments in the scholarship on this period, arguing for particular interpretations of crucial concepts. He then reviews and criticises recent work on the issue of the divine three-in-oneness, including systematic theologians such as Barth, Rahner, Moltmann, and Zizioulas, and analytic philosophers of religion such as Leftow, van Inwagen, Craig, and Swinburne.

How does God respond to trauma in a world full of horrors? Beyond their physical and emotional toll, the horrors of this world raise difficult theological and existential questions. Where is God in the darkest moments of the human experience? Is there any hope for recovery from the trauma generated by these horrors? There are no easy answers to these questions. In God of All Comfort, Scott Harrower addresses these questions head on. Using the Gospel of Matthew as a backdrop, he argues for a Trinitarian approach to horrors, showing how God--in his triune nature--reveals himself to those who have experienced trauma. He explores the many ways God relates restoratively with humanity, showing how God's light shines through the darkness of trauma.