XPost: alt.religion.christian.east-orthodox, alt.christnet.theology
From: hayesstw@telkomsa.net
On Fri, 5 Jan 2024 05:00:30 -0800 (PST), Nick Cobb
wrote:
The Manifestation of the Trinity
Jesus’ baptism in the Jordan, which contains all the mysteries of our
salvation, is not only His epiphany as the Messiah, the Suffering
Servant of the Lord. It is also the first manifestation to the world
of the greatest mystery of all, the worship of the Holy Trinity.
Let streams of tears exhaust our eyes,
Let us cleanse the filth of our souls, 0 believers!
We shall see Christ,
The Light from the Three-fold Light,
Coming to be baptized.
The Father will bear witness from heaven,
And the Holy Spirit will come in the form of a shining dove.1
When You, 0 Lord, were baptized in the Jordan,
The worship of the Trinity was made manifest.
For the voice of the Father bare witness to You,
And called You His beloved Son.
And the Spirit, in the form of a dove,
Confirmed the truthfulness of His word.
O Christ our God, who has revealed Yourself
And has enlightened the world,
Glory to You!2
At Jesus’ baptism the mystery of all mysteries is clearly revealed to
the world for the very first time. It is the open revelation, hinted
at dimly in the “shadows” of the previous covenants of Israel, that
the one true God is essentially a Father,3 Being Love itself, God
cannot remain isolated in the perfection of His divinity. This, we are
told in the events of God’s “final and everlasting covenant,” sealed
by the divine blood of the Messiah, would be a contradiction in terms.
The absolutely perfect God who is Love itself—’ ‘for God is love” (1
Jn 4:8, 16)—must be self-sharing by nature. He must manifest Himself
and His divine perfection in the divine person of Another. And He
does. For He has a Son who is eternal, divine, and uncreated; a Son
who is His divine Image and Word4 a Son who is “the Radiance of the
glory of God and the Express Image of His Person” (Heb 1:3) .~ This is
His beloved Son, or, in the more exact expression of the apostle Paul,
the “Son of His Love” (Col 1:13).~ All things were created by and for
this Son.7 “He is before all things, and in Him all things hold
together” (Col 1:17) .~ But “though He was in the form of God, [He)
did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied
Himself, taking the form of a slave, being born in the likeness of
men” (Phil 2:6-7.)
And being found in human form He humbled Himself and became obedient
unto death, even death on a cross. Therefore God has highly exalted
Him and bestowed on Him the name which is above every name, that at
the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and
under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord,
to the glory of God the Father. (Phil 2:8-11)
3The apostolic writings of the first Christians use the distinction
between “shadow” and “reality” to describe the relationship between
the two covenants; see Col 2:17 and Heb 10:1.
4Jn 1:1-18; Col 1:15; 2 Cor 4:4. See above, pp. 12-14.
5See above, p. 14, n. 4.
°The Revised Standard Version translates this as “beloved Son”;
literally, the text says “the Son of His love.”
7Jn 1:1-3; Heb 1:1-3; Col 1:16.
8John the Baptist-himself testifies that Jesus was before him (Jo
1:30). And Jesus claims that even “before Abraham was, I AM” (Jn
8:58).
With the manifestation of God’s Son as Jesus the Christ of Israel and
the Savior of the world, God’s Holy Spirit is also manifested as a
unique divine person. He too was dimly prefigured in His activities in
the old covenants, but is now revealed in His personal glory. He is
the “Spirit of Truth, who proceeds from the Father” (Jn 15:26). He
descends per-sonally on the man Jesus, anointing Him in His humanity,
and all people in Him, showing Him to the world as the promised
Messiah, and shining forth from Him upon all who receive Him as their
Lord and God.9
This is the unique doctrine of orthodox Christianity: the worship of
the Divine Trinity “one in essence and un-divided.”10 It was
foreshadowed in the theophanies of the Old Covenant of Israel. It was
approached in the contemplations of the holy people of various “world
religions.” It was obscurely discovered in the speculations of the
mystical phil-osophers of all nations, especially the Greeks. And it
was clearly made manifest in the “final and everlasting covenant of
peace” of the one true God with His people, first revealed in the
Messiah’s epiphany at His baptism in the Jordan. This worship stands
at the heart of the celebration of the Winter Pascha in the Orthodox
Church.
Seeing You, 0 Christ our God,
Drawing near to him in the river Jordan,
John said: Why are You who are without defilement
Come to Your servant, 0 Lord?
In whose name shall I baptize You?
Of the Father? But You bear Him in Yourself.
Of the Son? But You are Yourself the Son made flesh.
Of the Holy Spirit? But You know that from Your own lips You give Him
to the faithful.
O God who has appeared, have mercy on us!11
9SeeJn 1:33-34; 15:26; 16:7.15; 20:28.
10This is a liturgical formula from the divine liturgy of Saint John
Chrysostom.
11Compline of the feast of the Epiphany; also sung at vespers of the
second day of the postfeast.
The Trinity was made manifest in the Jordan,
For the Father, supreme in divinity, bore witness saying,
He who is here baptized is My beloved Son;
And the Spirit, equal in divinity, rested upon Him,
Whom the people bless and exalt above all forever.
Come, 0 faithful,
Let us speak of things divine,
Joining the angels in unending hymns
To glorify the God in whom we have received initiation:
Father, Son, and Holy Spirit,
The Trinity, consubstantial in Persons,
Yet one God to whom we sing:
Blessed are You, 0 God of our fathers!12
12 Matins of the feast of the Epiphany
[Taken from, "The Winter Pascha" by Protopresbyter Thomas Hopko, SVS
Press, 1984. Available at: 800-204-book]
--- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05
* Origin: you cannot sedate... all the things you hate (1:229/2)
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