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The orthodox definition of the theistic god includes omnipotence, omniscience, and omnibenevolence (i.e., God is all-powerful, all-knowing, and all-good). Moreover, Christianity holds that this god comprises three persons, viz., God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Ghost. Now while there seems to be nothing illogical about claiming that more than one person is all-knowing and/or all-good, there does seem to be a problem in claiming that two or more persons are simultaneously all-powerful. Does anyone know a Christian response to this quandary?

Wallace 7 May 12
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16 comments

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0

What? I don't quite understand the question but it's one Supreme with 3 faces, 100% for sure.
Edit 1: It's Holy Spirit, not a "Ghost" I find this one rude and probably done on purpose!
Edit 2: Also there are differences between each Orthodox Church so this exact explanation don't have to be true for all of them but most probably is.

0

There is also the holy pedofile!

zesty Level 7 May 22, 2019

LOL!

That's in Catholicism and Protestantism,Orthodoxy has nothing to do with it.

@InSaNe_97 Exactly the same excrement with different food coloring.

No. Don't tell that. Never was and never will be same.

@InSaNe_97 All religions are shit!

0

Loggically, I don't see how one person can know everything about everyone on this planet at any one second at any one time.

Trod Level 5 May 14, 2019

Well, the problem I mean to ask about is this: supposing a person could know everything it would not interfere with a second person knowing everything too, whereas if one person were all powerful it would it would keep a second person from being so too (else each would be more powerful than the other). I agree the idea of a person's knowing everything is pretty ridiculous to begin with, but apparently that is what orthodox Christianity holds.

1

The response would be that they are all parts of one god, so each and all would be all-powerful, all-knowing, etc.

1

Maybe this 'god' was Confucius in disguise, i.e. Many hands make light work.....LOL.

1

Yeah, I hear it ALL the from my Jesus Jockey neighbour, i.e. " It is all in Gods great plan."
To me it sounds more like a 'passing the buck' kind of solution in that if something does NOT go well with 'Great Plan' then the blame for the failure gets laid upon ONE of the # rather than all of them.

2

The construct of The Father, The Son & The Holy Ghost was needed to complete the Christian myth. There are many unexplained inconstancies in the myth regarding how the three can be one entity but that is the story as the word of God is written in the bible by the different authors. Given that the three are one and the one is all powerful then there is no conflict. Does it make sense - not to me but Christian scholars will try and explain it by saying "it is in the bible -believe it".

1

I think maybe the Son and the Holy Ghost are tools of human thought by which we interface with Ultimate Reality, otherwise totally inaccessible using the space/time/matter model of our perception.

It would probably be better to give them less magical-sounding labels. Subjective higher self and subconscious mind perhaps.

2

"It's a sacred mystery"

Orbit Level 7 May 13, 2019
4

The response to me has been, "Stop being so intellectual, and just accept it on faith. We don't have to understand everything."

When they say that to me, I insist that unless they can show me reasonable evidence I cannot believe.

That's sad. It's shame they told you that, I don't believe that's good Orthodoxy monks or whatever. Yes answer is mostly "You don't have to understand it." but rest is just something I never seen any good Orthodox would say.

@InSaNe_97 I've heard it numerous times.

What else to say but "USA", do not think that "USA" have any religion.

3

The trinity is loosen explained as the 3 ways the god interact with the world.
Imagine that you are the player in the SIM game.
You can control the time speed, the sims itself, or their houses, for the sim they see the commander, the builder and the time wizzard, but in the end it is just the way their limited perception sees your interacrions over the world.

Yeah, good one, I mostly agree <3.

@InSaNe_97 of course that is what the myth says, this does not mean I agree or believe in this...

Sue I know.

3

I think the trinity is explained as the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost are aspect of the one God. The roles of the 3 individuals are preserves (supposedly) without violating the monotheistic claim of the religion. I don't believe it makes sense but this is why I'm here and not at church today.

I am also interested in the contradiction of the claim of omnibenevolence and omnipotence with the existence of evil in this world. If God is the creator of all, wouldn't this include evil? If not creating evil directly, God would have to at least allow its creation. My thoughts originate from a quote attributed to Epicurus.

"Is God willing to prevent evil, but not able? Then he is not omnipotent. 
Is he able, but not willing? Then he is malevolent. 
Is he both able and willing? Then whence cometh evil? 
Is he neither able nor willing? Then why call him God?”

@creative51 - The philosopher was Epicurus
[britannica.com]

As I understand it, the view that the parts of the trinity are three “aspects” of the one God is an instance of “modalism” which was condemned by one of the early church councils (Nicea?) in favor of “trinitarianism” (=three person) and this remains orthodox today. I agree the modalism interpretation would sidestep the quandary I mentioned and would also leave monotheism in tact. Incidentally, I think the “shield of the trinity” diagram you attached was given in the attempt to illustrate the “mystery of the trinity”—in of how the three separate persons could all be identical to the one God. Like for you, it doesn’t make sense to me. In fact, if taken literally it seems to be contradictory since “things identical to the same things are identical to each other.”
I have also had a long interest in the problem of evil (as with Epicurus) and I suppose it, more than anything else, led me to abandon theism. I have come to the view that it is not a genuine contradiction for theists after all, but that it does make the claim that God exists highly improbable.
Thanks for your response.

Split personality Disorder mixed with equal portions of Schizophrenia imo.

0

First remember that you are dealing with undeveloped minds who still have that mind-set. Just a part of the typical indoctrination (Muslims do the same thing, but that's a discussion for another time). My father is a minister and I remember believing in that way. I just always thought of it as the god figure being number one, and the god could pass his powers to his son, and he could also just send his spirit out into the universe kind of like a drone with a camera sending a picture back to your phone. But the god figure would always be in control. (how did I ever believe that shit?)😵😲😱

0

Don't care because it is all BS. Don't want to spend a second more to understand this shit.

2

God works in mysterious ways. It is not a quandary for believers. It is an accepted fact and no further explanations needed. _____* says it, I believe it, that settles it.

  • Bible, God, Jebus, Pope, Franklin Graham, Rush Limbaugh, Donald Trump, etc.
1

sorry -- i have never been christian.

g

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