One-and-Many Solution, Applied

Now, in wrapping up our discussion on the One/Many problem from a theological point of view (precious posts have focused on the philosophical dimensions).

Review. The Christian solution to the One/Many problem makes one very important point: Only the Christian trinitarian understanding of God provides us with a good reason for accepting truths discovered by both reason (i.e. here I’m talking specifically about Universals) and believes acquired by our 5 sense (particulars). Thus the Christian understanding of God solves a basic metaphysical and epistemological problem.

How is this point made theologically? A simple, unitarian understanding of God (i.e. the belief that God is one Being, as well as only one person, such as Muslims and Jews have) makes the display of His attributes dependent on His creation, i.e. God cannot be “loving” until after he creates the world, then giving Him something to love (contrast this with the Christian position with it’s notion of Intra-trinitarian love, the love that the three persons of Godhead have for one another). This demonstrates the unitarian understanding of the God does not provide us with a self-sufficient God, denying His aseity. A god that is not completely self-sufficient cannot act as the final anchor for all things (as scripture clearly states He does).

Moreover, and more pragmatically, if the preconditions for rationality are provided to us from the whole of Scripture, both OT and NT, then we should see what all of Scripture says about God, demonstrating from Scripture that God is Triune, using the historical proof-texts and exegesis for trinitarian belief.

So, while this isn’t an easy issue to master, the benefits of trinitarian belief serve as a power reason for why Christianity, and not traditional Judaism or Islam give us a worldview that makes life meaningful.