Many people have commented on the resurgence of Protestant Trinitarian writing and research post-Barth. In an era where the postfoundational, postcritical, postmodern, post-etc. reign supreme, objective propositional claims of truth no longer carry the weight they once carried with certainty. Dispensationalism seems to be running on fumes, and the nails are all but in the coffin on the inerrancy debate, arguably signs are in the air of the erosion (or at least evolution) of Reformed systems. The “Trinity” appears to be developing as one of the new – which is very old – litmus tests of Christian orthodoxy.
I know of a number of churches and organizations whose doctrinal statements have been whittled down to belief in the Holy Trinity, (then comes a debate over the names to use for the ‘persons’).
This reductive Trinitarian emphasis is both glorious and heinous. Its glory is found, in part, because it attempts to make the “Main Thing” the main thing. It’s heinous, in part, because it reduces Divine plurality/oneness into a belief or a dogma. If God is indeed plurality/oneness then it would be less a theory to believe and more of a way of life. The concept of diversity/unity would become the hermeneutical key to understanding self, society, God, sin, relationships, etc.
I am concerned that our emphasis on Trinitarian dogma may reduce it to another ‘empty’ Christian theology. Clearly I am using “dogma” or “belief” in a more popular Western sense.
If we hold to God’s multiplicity and oneness (which we must also lovingly deconstruct), than love is the only appropriate response. Love is rarely the goal of dogma. Beware of Christian theology… and love it.
Peace, dwight
