Christian Understanding of Trinity3

TRINITY : M. M. NINAN
9. Trinity through History
words: "To Him be glory and power with the Father and the Holy
Spirit in Holy Church now and always for ever and ever. Amen"
(Against Noetus 18).
Bishop Denis of Alexandria (c. A.D. 260) who was worried
about the error of the heresy of trinity as three modes or
functions of God as proposed by bishops Euphranor and
Ammonius wrote strongly emphasizing the three Person aspect.
In order to emphasize the distinction between the Persons, he
termed the Son poiema tou Theou which suggested that the son
was generated from the Father. When this was indicated by a
council he re-emphasized the co-substantiality of the Son in his
"Elegxhos kai apologia," and in it he used the term, homoousios,
which became the central phrase of Nicean Council. He used
the the Trinitarian formula : "To God the Father and to His Son
Jesus Christ with the Holy Spirit be honour and glory forever and
ever, Amen" (in St. Basil, On the Holy Spirit 29.72).
St. Basil (329 -379.AD) tells us that it was an immemorial
custom among Christians when they lit the evening lamp to give
thanks to God with prayer: Ainoumen Patera kai Gion kai
Hagion Pneuma Theou ("We praise the Father, and the Son,
and the Holy Spirit of God").
During the period of history in an
attempt to understand the concept
of trinity as given in the Bible
various teachers presented
theories which were not always
acceptable to the Church. The
major controversy surrounded the
status of the Son in relation to the
Father. It has led to serious
confrontations and anathemas and
councils. Essentially the fight was
for the deity status of Jesus. When
we go through these we will see
that slight emphasis on certain facts shifts the argument and
make them tend towards heresy. The standard here through out
for the church was:
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