Original Research

Θεός, Father and the ‘Holy Trinity’ in the New Testament

Willem H. Oliver, Erna Oliver
Verbum et Ecclesia | Vol 45, No 1 | a3040 | DOI: https://doi.org/10.4102/ve.v45i1.3040 | © 2024 Willem H. Oliver, Erna Oliver | This work is licensed under CC Attribution 4.0
Submitted: 31 October 2023 | Published: 19 February 2024

About the author(s)

Willem H. Oliver, Department of Christian Spirituality, Church History, and Missiology, College of Human Sciences, University of South Africa, Pretoria, South Africa
Erna Oliver, Department of Christian Spirituality, Church History, and Missiology, College of Human Sciences, University of South Africa, Pretoria, South Africa

Abstract

The term ‘Holy Trinity’, not known to the writers of the Bible, is still an elusive term to use nowadays, especially when one first reads the New Testament in light of the Old Testament and not immediately in light of the Creeds and Statements of Faith. This article discusses the roles of Θεός (God) and ‘Father’ in the New Testament with reference to the Holy Trinity. The conclusion is that the New Testament does not depict a Holy Trinity, but rather portrays Θεός as a coordinator, bringing a harmony between his anthropomorphic assignments ‘Father’, ‘Son’ and ‘Holy Spirit’, as well as all the followers of Θεός on Earth.

Intradisciplinary and/or interdisciplinary implications: On the first level, this article covers the disciplines of Old Testament, New Testament (NT) and Practical Theology. On the second level, it makes use of philosophy and logics to help determine the ‘truths’ in the Bible. Who is Θεός? We propose that the NT depicts him as coordinator of his three revelations, ‘Father’, ‘Son’ and ‘Holy Spirit’. Using anthropomorphic terms, Θεός reveals himself to his followers on Earth. The Bible is used as the main source, with references to the three Creeds and four Statements of Faith.


Keywords

God; Yahweh; Father; Holy Trinity; Jesus; Holy Spirit; Bible

Sustainable Development Goal

Goal 4: Quality education

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