What is the Holy Trinity and why is it contradictory?

Answer 1

A:The Holy Trinity, or Blessed Trinity, is simply understood as three persons in one God: the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. As a concept, this is not at all contradictory. After all, Hinduism has a godhead that is three gods in one, and the ancient Egyptian syncretism of its gods was far more complex than anything imagined in the Christian Trinity.

The Church does not describe the Holy Trinity as contradictory, but does often liken it to a mystery, continuing with an explanation that only serves to make the Trinity seem more difficult to understand. This even sometimes seems like a defensive response in the face of disbelief.

What is more contradictory is that the Church prefers to say the Holy Trinity was always part of Christian doctrine yet the earliest known proponent of the Holy Trinity was Tertullian, a Latin theologian who wrote in the early third century.

The new concept gradually gained adherents throughout the third century but also faced opposition, particularly from Arius, a popular Libyan priest at the beginning of the fourth century. The Trinity was adopted as Christian doctrine at the Council of Nicaea in 325, but the Church remained divided until Emperor Theodosius made belief in the Trinity a requirement for all Christians, around 380 CE.

Theologians point to the 'Johannine Comma', 1 John 5:7-8 ("For there are three that bear record in heaven, the Father, the Word, and the Holy Ghost: and these three are one.") to demonstrate that the Holy Trinity was always part of Christian doctrine, but that passage was never in the early Greek manuscripts. It appeared in the Latin translation of the fifth century, after the Trinity doctrine had been accepted by the Council of Nicaea and long after the time of Tertullian.

Answer 2

The holy trinity is made up of the father, the Son and the Holy Ghost, three in one.