On the Trinity (Latin: De Trinitate) is a Latin book written by Augustine of Hippo to discuss the Trinity in context of the Logos. Although not as well known as some of his other works, some scholars have seen it as his masterpiece, of more doctrinal importance even than Confessions or The City of God.[1]
It is placed by him in his Retractationes among the works written (meaning begun) in AD 400. In letters of 410 and 414 and at the end of 415,[2] it is referred to as still unfinished and unpublished. But a letter of 412[3] states that friends were at that time asking to complete and publish it, and the letter to Aurelius, which was sent with the treatise itself when actually completed, states that a portion of it, while still unrevised and incomplete, was in fact surreptitiously made public. It was still in hand in 416: in Book XIII, a quotation occurs from the 12th Book of the De Civitate Dei; and another quotation in Book XV, from the 99th Tractate on John's Gospel.
The Retractationes, which refer to it, are usually dated not later than 428. The letter to Bishop Aurelius also states that the work was many years in progress and was begun in Saint Augustine's early manhood. It was finished in his old age. Arthur West Haddan inferred from this evidence that it was written between 400, when he was forty-six years old and had been Bishop of Hippo about four years, and 428 at the latest; but it probably had been published ten or twelve years earlier, in or around 417.[4]
In an apocryphal letter of Augustine to Cyril of Jerusalem, Augustine referred to having seen a child who was trying to pour the seawater in a hole with a seashell. After having explained to the child that it was impossible, the child replied in Latin to Augustine: "Augustinus, Augustinus, quid quaeris? Putasne brevi immettere vasculo mare totum?" (which means: "Augustine, Augustine, what are you trying to do? Do you believe to be able to pour the whole sea in a little jar?"). Then the child disappeared from his sight.[5][6]
The anecdote means the impossibility for the finite human mind to know deeply the faith mystery of the Holy Trinity. The anecdote became a popular iconographic subject.[5] Some interpreters identify the child with the Lord Jesus.[7]
Augustine of Hippo, also known as Saint Augustine, was a theologian and philosopher of Berber origin and the bishop of Hippo Regius in Numidia, Roman North Africa. His writings deeply influenced the development of Western philosophy and Western Christianity, and he is viewed as one of the most important Church Fathers of the Latin Church in the Patristic Period. His many important works include The City of God, On Christian Doctrine, and Confessions.
The Athanasian Creed — also called the Pseudo-Athanasian Creed or Quicunque Vult, which is both its Latin name and its opening words, meaning "Whosoever wishes" — is a Christian statement of belief focused on Trinitarian doctrine and Christology. Used by Christian churches since the early sixth century, it was the first creed to explicitly state the equality of the three hypostases of the Trinity. It differs from the Nicene-Constantinopolitan Creed and the Apostles' Creed in that it includes anathemas condemning those who disagree with its statements.
Richard of Saint Victor was a Medieval Scottish philosopher and theologian and one of the most influential religious thinkers of his time. A canon regular, he was a prominent mystical theologian, and was prior of the famous Augustinian Abbey of Saint Victor in Paris from 1162 until his death in 1173.
The Trinity is the Christian doctrine concerning the nature of God, which defines one God existing in three, coeternal, consubstantial divine persons: God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit, three distinct persons (hypostases) sharing one essence/substance/nature (homoousion).
A Select Library of the Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers of the Christian Church, usually known as the Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers (NPNF), is a set of books containing translations of early Christian writings into English. It was published between 1886 and 1900.
Theodoret of Cyrus or Cyrrhus was an influential theologian of the School of Antioch, biblical commentator, and Christian bishop of Cyrrhus (423–457).
Hilary of Poitiers was Bishop of Poitiers and a Doctor of the Church. He was sometimes referred to as the "Hammer of the Arians" and the "Athanasius of the West". His name comes from the Latin word for happy or cheerful. In addition to his important work as bishop, Hilary was married and the father of Abra of Poitiers, a nun and saint who became known for her charity.
Pelagius was a British (Brittonic) theologian known for promoting a system of doctrines which emphasized human choice in salvation and denied original sin. Pelagius was accused of heresy at the synod of Jerusalem in 415 and his doctrines were harshly criticized by Augustine of Hippo, especially the Pelagian views about mankind's good nature and individual responsibility for choosing asceticism. Pelagius especially stressed the freedom of human will. Very little is known about the personal life and career of Pelagius.
Theophilus was Patriarch of Antioch from 169 until 182. He succeeded Eros c. 169, and was succeeded by Maximus I c. 183, according to Henry Fynes Clinton, but these dates are only approximations. His death probably occurred between 183 and 185.
Confessions is an autobiographical work by Augustine of Hippo, consisting of 13 books written in Latin between AD 397 and 400. The work outlines Augustine's sinful youth and his conversion to Christianity. Modern English translations of it are sometimes published under the title The Confessions of Saint Augustine in order to distinguish the book from other books with similar titles. Its original title was Confessions in Thirteen Books, and it was composed to be read out loud with each book being a complete unit.
Gennadius of Massilia, also known as Gennadius Scholasticus or Gennadius Massiliensis, was a 5th-century Christian priest, monk, and historian.
The Johannine Comma is an interpolated phrase (comma) in verses 5:7–8 of the First Epistle of John.
Gaius Marius Victorinus was a Roman grammarian, rhetorician and Neoplatonic philosopher. Victorinus was African by birth and experienced the height of his career during the reign of Constantius II. He is also known for translating two of Aristotle's books from ancient Greek into Latin: the Categories and On Interpretation. Victorinus had a religious conversion, from being a pagan to a Christian, "at an advanced old age".
William Greenough Thayer Shedd was an American Presbyterian theologian from Massachusetts.
Augustinus or Augustine of Hippo (354–430) was a Christian theologian.
The Pneumatomachi, also known as Macedonians or Semi-Arians in Constantinople and the Tropici in Alexandria, were an anti-Nicene Creed sect which flourished in the regions adjacent to the Hellespont during the latter half of the fourth, and the beginning of the fifth centuries. They denied the godhood of the Holy Ghost, hence the Greek name Pneumatomachi or 'Combators against the Spirit'.
Debate exists as to whether the earliest Church Fathers in Christian history believed in the doctrine of the Trinity – the Christian doctrine that God the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit are three distinct persons sharing one homoousion (essence).
Arthur West Haddan was an English churchman and academic, of High Church Anglican views, now remembered as an ecclesiastical historian, particularly for Councils and Ecclesiastical Documents relating to Great Britain and Ireland, written with William Stubbs.
The Church Fathers, Early Church Fathers, Christian Fathers, or Fathers of the Church were ancient and influential Christian theologians and writers who established the intellectual and doctrinal foundations of Christianity. The historical period in which they worked became known as the Patristic Era and spans approximately from the late 1st to mid-8th centuries, flourishing in particular during the 4th and 5th centuries, when Christianity was in the process of establishing itself as the state church of the Roman Empire.
De videndo Deo is an epistle written by Augustine of Hippo regarding whether God can be physically perceived. It is designated epistle 147 in the Augustinus-Lexikon. The letter is addressed to Paulina, the wife of Armentarius, and it has 54 chapters. It is estimated to have been written between 412 and 413 AD.
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