– Blaspheming a Blasphemy

Change in references to Trinity questioned
BY ALBERTA LINDSEY

Presbyterians comment on proposal to allow use of alternative phrases for deity.

Language will always fall short in describing God, say area Presbyterians asked about talk of substituting words for "Father, Son and Holy Spirit" in referring to the Trinity.

Avoiding using that personal language is a departure from biblical witness, said the Rev. James C. Goodloe IV, minister of Grace Covenant Presbyterian Church on Monument Avenue.

Goodloe and other area Presbyterians were asked their views of "The Trinity: God's Love Overflowing," which, if approved, would let congregations use alternative phrases for the Trinity except in baptisms. The paper was presented to the 217th General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) in Birmingham, Ala., Monday. The assembly voted 282 to 212 to send it to local churches for study.

"Our language for God is inadequate," said the Rev. Janet James, associate pastor of Second Presbyterian Church on Fifth Street. "The formula for 'Father, Son and Holy Spirit' came out of a process. You can't just take three names and change them and have it mean the same thing."

New language is going to be just as limited as the old in describing God, said Dawn DeVries, a professor who teaches systematic theology at Union Theological Seminary and Presbyterian School of Christian Education in North Richmond.

"I think they overplay a little how helpful the doctrine of the Trinity is for encouraging people's personal piety or what it means to lead the Christian life or how the church should do its mission," DeVries said. "The doctrine of the Trinity is one we get to theologically because of certain claims we are making about who Jesus is."

The Trinity is poorly understood by many congregations, according to the report. The task force that prepared it sought fresh ways to speak of the mystery of the triune God and to help the church renew its faith in the Trinity. Many people want the church to avoid gender-exclusive terms, such as father and son. Some pastors already use language in their liturgies that is neither human nor gender-specific.

Changing the words for the Trinity does more than avoid male references. "It substitutes an incomplete list of God's functions for the naming of the persons and relations of the Trinity," Goodloe said. However, it is possible to supplement "Father, Son and Holy Spirit" with various images from Scripture, he said.

DeVries added: "All our language for God is metaphorical. The more we have, the more we approach the infinity of the divine. One metaphor only captures one thing."

Contact staff writer Alberta Lindsey at alindsey@timesdispatch.com  or (804) 649-6754.