The Triune God (CT3012Y)

Content

“Trinitarian theology could be described as par excellence a theology of relationship, which explores the mysteries of love, relationship, personhood and communion within the framework of God’s self-revelation in the person of Christ and the activity of the Spirit.” (Catherine LaCugna, God for Us, 1). This unit assumes the central importance of the doctrine of the Trinity in the Christian Church and undertakes an exploration of the reasons – biblical, patristic and theological – for this high status. It will include an estimate of the weight of its biblical foundations and Christological presuppositions against the Jewish insistence that God is one. Through influential theologians and key conciliar statements, the unit traces the major landmarks in the development of the doctrine in both the Greek and Latin parts of the church. It also investigates a range of contemporary exposition of the doctrine in theologians of different traditions and concludes with a study of the trinitarian bearing on some other doctrines and contemporary issues.

Learning outcomes

Unit sequence

Pre-requisite: 1xCT level 8 unit or equivalent

Pedagogy

Weekly inter-active lectures and tutorials

Indicative Bibliography

• Ayres, Lewis. Nicaea and Its Legacy: An Approach to Fourth-Century Trinitarian Theology. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2009.
• Beeley, Christopher A, and Mark E Weedman, eds. The Bible and Early Trinitarian Theology. CUA Studies in Early Christianity. Washington, D.C.: Catholic University of America Press, 2018.
• Coda, Piero, and Peter J Casarella. From the Trinity: The Coming of God in Revelation and Theology. Edited by William Neu. Washington, D.C.: Catholic University of America Press, 2020.
• Emery, Gilles. The Trinity: An Introduction to Catholic Doctrine on the Triune God. Washington: Catholic University of America Press, 2011.
• Emery, G. & Levering, M. The Oxford Handbook of the Trinity. Oxford University Press, 2011.
• Grenz, Stanley Rediscovering the Triune God. Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 2004.
• Hurtado, Larry W. God in New Testament Theology. Nashville, TN: Abingdon Press, 2010.
• Hurtado, Larry W. Ancient Jewish Monotheism and Early Christian Jesus-Devotion : The Context and Character of Christological Faith. Waco, Texas: Baylor University Press, 2017.
• Kärkkäinen Veli-Matti. Christian Understandings of the Trinity: The Historical Trajectory. Christian Understandings. Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 2017.
• Osborne, Kenan. An Infinite God and a Father-Son God: The Theology of God for a Contemporary World. Eugene, Oregon: Wipf & Stock, 2019.

Assessment