by: Ber Stackhouse, MBA October 19, 2012
The Church, the reflectively christified portion of the world, the Church, the principal focus of interhuman affinities through supercharity, the Church, the central axis of universal convergence and the precise point of contact between the universe and Omega Point.”
-Teilhard (My Fundamental Vision, 1948, XI, 191-192)[1]
Trinitarian thought holds that there are three aspects within One. To assert that panentheism is Trinitarian would require the premise that there is some aspect of interrelated action and unity within such aspects and within the dimensions of such aspects. Therefore, defining the terms trinity and panentheism is important.
TRINITY
The doctrine of the T. states that in the BEING of the one eternal deity there are three eternal and essential distinctions, traditionally named Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. In Western Christendom, the classical formula has been ‘three persons in one SUBSTANCE’ (una substantia et tres personae); in Eastern Christendom, ‘three HYPOSTASES in one being’ (treis hypostaseis, mia ousia). The doctrine did not crystallize until the 4th century, although Trinitarian language is found in the N.T. and in the primitive CHURCH.[2]
[T]here was no fixed terminology in either Greek or Latin. Men first had to agree what they meant and then to translate that into terms which were themselves not agreed upon. The aim of the orthodox party in the East [Greek vocabulary], led by Athanasius (c.295-373), was to preserve the unity of God and the coequal status of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. For years this party was unable to agree on the precise terminology until a reconciling formula and interpretation were provided by the Cappadocians. It was ‘one ousia (or being) in three hypostases’ (distinctions in being). This formula appealed to the Western theologians because it seemed parallel to Tertullian’s (150?-225?) earlier Latin formula, three persons in one substance.[3]
PANENTHEISM
Panentheism is the view that attempts to reconcile the insights of PANTHEISM, on the one hand, and of DEISM on the other. If pantheism identifies God and the world taken as a whole, and deism insists that God and the world are separate entities, P. argues that the world is included in God’s being something as cells are included in a larger organism, although the world does not exhaust God’s being or creativity. Just as a PERSON is both the sum of all his experiences and parts and yet more than they, so God has all of finite being as part of his being and experience but transcends it.[4]
Trinitarian thought also relates with notions of Self. Imelda Shanklin describes notions of Self in her book, What Are You?. She observes, “You know your starting point for a better manifestation when you see that in your present status or being you are triune. You can observe the three-sided aspect of your being by noticing the ways in which you think of yourself. The following points approximate your thoughts concerning your individuality:”[5]
1. ‘I feel the assuring presence of a vast good, a something indefinably but infinitely desirable’….As spiritual being you have identity with God, and because of identity you feel the presence of God as vast good.
2. ‘I know. I think. I understand.’ These declarations are evidence that you have a mental character.
3. ‘[M]y body’; ‘my circumstances’; ‘my life.’ These phrases show that you recognize a third state of being. This state is the physical you.
Thomas Shepherd, D.Min. describes an incarnational monism[6] as a form of panentheism. Characteristics of Incarnational Monism are:
· Biblical
· Metaphysical
· Panentheistic
· Expansive
· Traditional (Eckhart, Teilhard, etc)
· Head-Heart Cooperative
· Fillmorean
Shepherd describes this view within Christianity. He states, “the tradition of mysticism insists that God can be known directly. One such form is Christian monism, which recognizes only One Presence/One Power [OP2] in the cosmos. Add to this a belief in spiritual evolution, which discovers this Presence and Power at work within every sentient being to transform human consciousness into Christ consciousness, and the result is a creative process that moves from Divine Mind to a self-perfecting expression in sentient beings like humans.”[7]
In recognizing the triune aspects of Self, one can consciously effect personal situations and be an active part in creation. French philosopher, Jesuit priest, and paleontologist, Pierre Teilhard de Chardin surmised a connection of science and creation. “[His] thought and works represent the widest and deepest attempt to reconcile Christian theology and the scientific worldview of biological evolution. Arguing that evolution moves toward complexity and consciousness, he noted that the order implied by creation is in the future and is achieved as a result of both the mechanisms of evolution and the action of humankind. The theological vision of the movement of creation toward unity, redemption, and salvation is now referred to as the evolutionary universe.”[8]
Through knowing the aspects of Self and aspects of God, we can effectively see the representation of the Son in and through our lives. With Christ-Consciousness, that divine within us and realization of Divine Ideals, we can express in profound ways. Then we can contemplate, are we moving toward the Omega Point or do we become aware of the Omega Point in the now moment?
[1] Teilhard’s Quotes, American Teilhard Association, http://teilharddechardin.org/index.php/teilhards-quotes (accessed October 19, 2012).
[2] Van A. Harvey, A Handbook of Theological Terms (New York: Touchstone, 1997), 244.
[3] Ibid, 245.
[4] Ibid, 172.
[5] Imelda Shanklin, What Are You? (Kansas City, MO: Unity School of Christianity, 1928), http://www.truthunity.net/texts/books/what-are-you-5-21 (accessed October 19, 2012).
[6] Thomas Shepherd, “The Trinity Part II God as Father & Mother” (presentation, Unity Village, MO: Unity Institute & Seminary, October 17, 2012).
[7] Thomas Shepherd, Jesus 2.1: An Upgrade for the 21st Century, (Unity Village, MO: Unity House, 2010), 65.
[8] Teilhard de Chardin, Study Guide & Homework Help, eNotes, http://www.enotes.com/teilhard-de-chardin-pierre-referene/teilhard-de-chardin-pierre (accessed October 19, 2012).
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