Two Views on the Doctrine of the Trinity

Part of the popular Counterpoint series, this look at the doctrine of the Trinity compares the newer “social” model with the more traditional view.

After a sustained drought of trinitarian engagement, the doctrine of the Trinity has increasingly resurged to the forefront of Evangelical confession. The second half of the twentieth century, however, saw a different kind of trinitarian theology developing, giving way to what has commonly been referred to as the "social Trinity."

Social-or better, relational-trinitarianism has garnered a steady reaction from those holding to a classical doctrine, prompting a more careful and thorough re-reading of sources and bringing about not only a much more coherent view of early trinitarian development but also a strong critique of relational trinitarian offerings. Yet confusion remains.

In this volume, leading contributors-one evangelical and one mainline/catholic representing each view-establish their models and approaches to the doctrine of the Trinity, each highlighting the strengths of his view in order to argue how it best reflects the orthodox perspective. As Evangelicals get better at articulating the doctrine of the Trinity, and as the current and next generation of believers in various Christian traditions seek to be more trinitarian, the way forward for trinitarian theology has to choose between the relational and classical model, both being legitimate options.