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A Digest on the Trinity - Pat 10: Historical Definitions

This article is tenth in a series called A Digest on the Trinity.

In the previous article, we looked at some Trinitarian heresies and errors that arise when speaking of the Trinity in analogies. In this article, we will examine several historical creeds and confessions that defined the doctrine of the Trinity, laying the standard of Christian orthodoxy. These definitions are authoritative insofar as they are consistent with the Scriptures; no Christian denies that they are (broadly at least). The definitions this article will examine are the:

Nicene Creed
Athanasian Creed
Belgic Confession
Westminster Standards
1689 London Baptist Confession of Faith

Nicene Creed

The creed we call the Nicene Creed today should more accurately be called the Niceno-Constantinopolitan Creed, since it involved the efforts of both the councils of Nicea I (325) and Constantinople I (381). It was drafted in the same structure as the earlier Apostles’ Creed, with more elaboration on the deity of the Son, since it was produced to refute Arianism. The keystone phrase in this creed would probably be the term homoousios, of the same ousia, translated into “being of one substance with the Father”, establishing unequivocally the full deity of the Son.

"I believe in one God, the Father Almighty, maker of heaven and earth, and of all things visible and invisible."

"And in one Lord Jesus Christ, the only-begotten Son of God, begotten of the Father before all worlds; God of God, Light of Light, very God of very God; begotten, not made, being of one substance with the Father, by whom all things were made. Who, for us men and for our salvation, came down from heaven and was incarnate by the Holy Spirit of the Virgin Mary, and was made man; and was crucified also for us under Pontius Pilate; he suffered and was buried; and the third day he rose again, according to the Scriptures; and ascended into heaven, and sits on the right hand of the Father; and he shall come again, with glory, to judge the living and the dead; whose kingdom shall have no end."

"And I believe in the Holy Spirit, the Lord and Giver of life; who proceeds from the Father and the Son; who with the Father and the Son together is worshipped and glorified; who spoke by the prophets."

"And I believe in one holy catholic and apostolic church. I acknowledge one baptism for the remission of sins; and I look for the resurrection of the dead, and the life of the world to come. Amen."

One can notice from the broad themes of the Nicene Creed that it was not meant to simply be a Trinitarian creed; it was supposed to provide the standard of Christian orthodoxy of its day, including issues on Christology, pneumatology, ecclesiology and eschatology.

Athanasian Creed

Though Athanasius is revered as a staunch and courageous defender of Trinitarian doctrine, it is unclear who actually wrote the Athanasian Creed – it is widely accepted that the author of the creed simply used Athanasius’ name for clout. As such, it ought not to be seen as authoritative as the Nicene Creed, for it was not produced by the Church catholic. Yet, it is produced in part here for its absolute stunning descriptions balancing the absolute singularity yet plurality of God.

"Now this is the catholic faith: that we worship one God in Trinity and the Trinity in unity, neither confounding their persons nor dividing the essence. For the person of the Father is a distinct person, the person of the Son is another, and that of the Holy Spirit still another. But the divinity of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit is one, the glory equal, the majesty coeternal."

"Such as the Father is, such is the Son and such is the Holy Spirit. The Father is uncreated, the Son is uncreated, the Holy Spirit is uncreated. The Father is immeasurable, the Son is immeasurable, the Holy Spirit is immeasurable. The Father is eternal, the Son is eternal, the Holy Spirit is eternal. And yet there are not three eternal beings; there is but one eternal being. So too there are not three uncreated or immeasurable beings; there is but one uncreated and immeasurable being. Similarly, the Father is almighty, the Son is almighty, the Holy Spirit is almighty. Yet there are not three almighty beings; there is but one almighty being."

"Thus, the Father is Lord, the Son is Lord, the Holy Spirit is Lord. Yet there are not three lords, there is but one Lord. Just as the Christian truth compels us to confess each person individually as both God and Lord, so catholic religion forbids us to say that there are three gods or lords."

"The Father was neither made nor created nor begotten from anyone. The Son was neither made nor created; he was begotten from the Father alone. The Holy Spirit was neither made nor created nor begotten; he proceeds from the Father and the Son. Accordingly, there is one Father, not three fathers; there is one Son, not three sons; there is one Holy Spirit, not three holy spirits."

"None in this Trinity is before or after, none is greater or smaller; in their entirety the three persons are coeternal and coequal with each other. So in everything, as was said earlier, the unity in Trinity, and the Trinity in unity, is to be worshipped. Anyone then who desires to be saved should think thus about the Trinity."

The beauty of the Athanasian Creed lies in the way it moves rhythmically and seamlessly between the affirmation of there being only one God and the affirmation of there being three persons in this one God. All three share the same attributes not because of a common divine essence, but because of the same divine essence that enables us to say that the Father is X, the Son is X, the Spirit is X, but there is only one X.

Belgic Confession

The Belgic Confession was written in 1561 by Guido de Bres, to persuade Spain’s Philip II that the Protestant faith was biblical and ought not to be persecuted. He was to die for the faith later.[1] Together with the 1563 Heidelberg Catechism and the 1619 Canons of Dort, it would form the Three Forms of Unity, the confessional standards of the Reformed churches in continental Europe. Articles 8 to 11 deal with the Trinity, with Article 8 providing the general definition of the Trinity produced below:

"In keeping with this truth and Word of God, we believe in one God, who is one single essence, in whom there are three persons, really, truly, and eternally distinct according to their incommunicable properties – namely, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit."

"The Father is the cause, origin and source of all things, visible as well as invisible. The Son is the Word, the Wisdom, and the image of the Father. The Holy Spirit is the eternal power and might, proceeding from the Father and the Son."

"Nevertheless, this distinction does not divide God into three, since Scripture teaches us that the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit each has his own subsistence distinguished by characteristics – yet in such a way that these three persons are only one God. It is evident then that the Father is not the Son and that the Son is not the Father, and that likewise the Holy Spirit is neither the Father nor the Son."

"Nevertheless, these persons, thus distinct, are neither divided nor fused or mixed together. For the Father did not take on flesh, nor did the Spirit, but only the Son."

"The Father was never without his Son, nor without his Holy Spirit, since all these are equal from eternity, in one and the same essence. There is neither a first nor a last, for all three are one in truth and power, in goodness and mercy."

Article 9 provides the Scriptural basis for the doctrine, while Articles 10 and 11 deal with the specific deity of the Son and Spirit respectively. A unique feature of the Belgic Confession is that it aligns itself with the church fathers’ tradition of calling the Son the Father’s Wisdom and the Spirit the Father’s Power, to indicate the eternality of each – the Father is never without His Wisdom nor His Power.

Westminster Standards

The Westminster Standards, drafted from 1646 to 1647 by the Westminster Assembly, has proved to be one of the most enduring Reformed confessions. It includes the Westminster Confession of Faith, the Westminster Larger Catechism and the Westminster Shorter Catechism. These Standards would become the confessional standard of Reformed churches on the British Isles, featuring most prominently in Scottish Presbyterianism. Today, it remains the confession of Presbyterian churches around the world.

The confession establishes first the one true and living God in Chapters 2.1 and 2.2, before mentioning the diversity in Chapter 2.3. The two catechisms take for granted the doctrine produced in the confession, as seen in their apparent “leap” in the order of questions.

Westminster Confession of Faith, Chapter 2.3:

"In the unity of the Godhead there be three persons, of one substance, power, and eternity: God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Ghost: the Father is of none, neither begotten, nor proceeding; the Son is eternally begotten of the Father; the Holy Ghost eternally proceeding from the Father and the Son."

Westminster Larger Catechism

8. Are there more Gods than one?

"There is but one only, the living and true God."

9. How many persons are there in the Godhead?

"There be three persons in the Godhead, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost; and these three are one true, eternal God, the same in substance, equal in power and glory; although distinguished by their personal properties."

10. What are the personal properties of the three persons in the Godhead?

"It is proper to the Father to beget the Son, and to the Son to be begotten of the Father, and to the Holy Ghost to proceed from the Father and the Son from all eternity."

The Westminster Standards stand firmly within the orthodox tradition of affirming the eternal processions as the only way to distinguish between the otherwise indistinguishable divine persons.

1689 London Baptist Confession of Faith

Originally written in 1677 by Calvinistic and covenantal Baptists to show their similarities with the Reformed, the Second London Baptist Confession was only adopted officially in 1689. It is an essential modification of the Westminster Confession of Faith, edited to allow for a Baptistic understanding of the covenants and baptism. Its chapter and paragraph ordering are virtually identical to the Westminster Confession. The 1689 Confession’s Chapter 2.3 includes attractive additions to Westminster’s Chapter 2.3, which provides an altogether richer definition of the Trinity.

"In this divine and infinite Being there are three subsistences, the Father, the Word (or Son), and Holy Spirit, of one substance, power, and eternity, each having the whole divine essence, yet the essence undivided, the Father is of none, neither begotten nor proceeding, the Son is eternally begotten of the Father, the Holy Spirit proceeding from the Father and the Son, all infinite, without beginning, therefore but one God, who is not to be divided in nature and Being; but distinguished by several peculiar, relative properties, and personal relations; which doctrine of the Trinity is the foundation of all our communion with God, and comfortable dependence on him."

The attractive additions would be the assertion that each person is the whole divine essence, which us undivided – this affirms against partialism, as well as the assertion that the doctrine of the Trinity is no high theology – rather, it is the very foundation of the Christian faith and piety.

Given that I myself hold to the 1689 Confession, I would believe this definition to be superior to the Belgic and Westminster confessions. My only gripe, however, would be the unreasonable number of commas and lack of periods.

Value of creedal and confessional definitions

Christianity is doctrinal in nature. Paul’s instruction to Timothy was to “hold fast to the form of sound words” (2 Tim 1:13, emphasis added). The ancient creeds and Reformed confessions provide a form of sound words with which we can begin describing the Trinity accurately and biblically. With these definitions, it is easier to identify heresy and establish fellowship in orthodoxy. We neglect creeds and confessions at our own peril.

Other than written definitions, the teaching of the doctrine has also been helped along by diagrammatic representations, to which the next article will turn.

[1] Chad Van Dixhoorn, “Introduction to the Belgic Confession” in ESV Bible with Creeds and Confessions (Crossway, 2016) at p 1264.