I was thinking the other day. It is hard to find an analogy that really helps us understand the trinity. It is so difficult to find something else that has both uniqueness and sameness in the same way as the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.
Some have suggested water, ice, and steam, but one molecule is never all three at the same time. That leads to a view called modalism. It teaches something like the father leaving heaven and putting on his Jesus mask. Then Jesus leaves Earth and God puts on his Holy spirit mask. It is strong on the unity of God and the oneness of God, but weak on the distinctions that you see throughout scripture.
Here is a modern symbol that many like to use to help people understand the trinity. While it is accurate, I'm not sure how helpful it is.I read about time being an analogy: "I would like to use 'time' to illustrate the Trinity. Is the "past" plus the "present" plus the "future" a total of three times? Not at all. It simply is a representation of three distinct aspects of the nature of time: past, present, and future. Likewise, the Father and the Son and Holy Spirit are not three separate beings or entities, but three distinct persons in the one nature of the Godhead." Link
Others point to an egg: the shell, the yolk, and the white all composing the egg (but Jesus is fully God, and the yolk is not fully egg)
So I was thinking, what about a person with multiple personalities. They all share one body and one soul. But they each have a will/desire of their own. I'm assuming that each can simultaneously live and exist inside the same person. I don't mean to be offensive, and there may be too much stigma associated with this disorder to use it to describe God, but is it a good analogy?
What do you think? Have you come across an analogy that helps you understand the trinity better, or is it just supposed to remain a mystery?
5 comments:
I've always liked the analogy of body, soul, and spirit.
We all have a body, a soul, and a spirit. They are three different entities, but they are all me.
for me this is one of those faith things. Anytime I try to use a human analogy to explain it, I fall short because though they are all one God, they are three separate individuals. okay, now my brain is starting to hurt.
Alright Andy I'm willing to call you a heretic already.
I'm just kidding.
Here are my thoughts on your analogy. The problem I see is that each personality cannot funtion at the same time. Only one can "show" itself while the others remain hidden. I would think this would lead to Modalism as well. All three personalities would have to function at the same time and I have never heard of this with split personalities.
Michael
I think it is to be a mystery. But I also like to think of it like this:
I am one person, Brian Bradsher.
But I am a Father
I am a son
I am a child of God. Spirit.
All three are me, but all three have different attributes that are different.
A long shot I know, because how do you explain God, being man on Earth, while also being spirit, and Omnipresent God the father all at the same time.
A great mystery.
I used to have multiple personalities, but we're o.k. now. No really...
Since this attribute is unique to God, no analogy fits. God is not three in one. He's three and one. It's a paradox.
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