Three-in-One
God is "triune"; that is to say, He is 'Three-in-One'. A common
form of proof of God's triunity are the many instances where scripture ascribes one
divine work indifferently to a.) God, and b.) Father, c.) Son and d.) Holy Spirit. Creation,
one case in point, is covered above in "The
First Page". Other examples:
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Who raised Jesus from the dead?
God raised Jesus from the dead: "...that if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus
and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be
saved." (Romans 10:9).
"In Him you were also circumcised with the circumcision made
without hands...by the circumcision of Christ, buried with Him in baptism, in
which you also were raised with Him through faith in the working of God, who
raised Him from the dead. (Colossians 2:11-12)
"He indeed was foreordained before the
foundation of the world, but was manifest in these last times for you who through
Him believe in God, who raised Him from the dead and gave Him glory, so that your
faith and hope are in God." (1 Peter 1:20-21)
"And God both raised up the Lord and
will also raise us up by His power." (1 Corinthians 6:14)
"Him, being delivered by the determined
purpose and foreknowledge of God, you have taken by lawless hands, have crucified,
and put to death; whom God raised up, having loosed the pains of death, because
it was not possible that He should be held by it." (Acts 2:23-24)
"But you denied the Holy One and the
Just, and asked for a murderer to be granted to you, and killed the Prince of
life, whom God raised from the dead, of which we are witnesses." (Acts 3:14-15)
"But God raised Him from the dead.
He was seen for many days by those who came up with Him from Galilee to
Jerusalem, who are His witnesses to the people. And we declare to you glad
tidings -- that promise which was made to the fathers. God has fulfilled this
for us their children, in that He has raised up Jesus...And that He raised Him
from the dead, no more to return to corruption, He has spoken thus: 'I will
give you the sure mercies of David.'...For David, after he had served his own
generation by the will of God, fell asleep, was buried with his fathers, and
saw corruption; but He whom God raised up saw no corruption." (Acts 13:30-37)
"Now may the God of peace who brought
up our Lord Jesus from the dead, that great Shepherd of the sheep, through the
blood of the everlasting covenant, make you complete in every good work to do His
will..." (Hebrews 13:20-21)
To wit, the Father of glory:
"Therefore I also...do not
cease to give thanks for you, making mention of you in my prayers: that the God
of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give to you the spirit of
wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of Him...according to the working of His
mighty power which He worked in Christ when He raised Him from the dead and
seated Him at His right hand in the heavenly places..." (Ephesians 1:15-20).
"Therefore we were buried with Him
through baptism into death, that just as Christ was raised from the dead by the
glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life." (Romans
6:4)
"Paul, an apostle (not from men nor
through man, but through Jesus Christ and God the Father who raised Him from the
dead)..." (Galatians 1:1)
"For they themselves declare concerning
us what manner of entry we had to you, and how you turned to God from idols to serve
the living and true God, and to wait for His Son from heaven, whom He raised from
the dead, even Jesus who delivers us from the wrath to come." (1 Thessalonians
1:9-10).
But wait, God the Son raised Himself from the dead:
"Jesus answered and said to them, 'Destroy this temple, and in three
days I will raise it up.' Then the Jews said, 'It has taken forty-six years
to build this temple, and will You raise it up in three days?' But He was
speaking of the temple of His body. Therefore, when He had risen from
the dead, His disciples remembered that He had said this to them; and they believed
the Scripture and the word which Jesus had said." (John 2:19-22)
"Therefore My Father loves Me, because
I lay down My life that I may take it again. No one takes it from Me, but
I lay it down of Myself. I have power to lay it down, and I have power to
take it again. This command I have received from My Father." (John 10:17-18)
Not to be left out, the Holy Spirit raised Jesus from the dead:
"But if the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in
you, He who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies
through His Spirit who dwells in you." (Romans 8:11)
"For Christ also suffered once for sins, the just for the unjust, that He
might bring us to God, being put to death in the flesh but made alive by the
Spirit..." (1 Peter 3:18)
So what Biblical conclusion can be reached from these facts? That God
has authored confusion? Or that the one God who raised Jesus from the dead is
Father, Son and Holy Spirit?
Who Authored Holy Writ?
Who inspired the prophets of old, like David? The LORD God?:
"All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for
doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, that the man of God may
be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work." (2 Timothy 3:16-17)
"And the LORD has sent to you all His servants the prophets, rising early
and sending them, but you have not listened nor inclined your ear to hear." (Jeremiah 25:4).
"...because they have not heeded My words, says the LORD, which I sent to them
by My servants the prophets, rising up early and sending them; neither would you heed, says the
LORD." (Jeremiah 29:19).
"Surely the Lord GOD does nothing, unless He reveals His secret to His servants
the prophets. A lion has roared! Who will not fear? The Lord GOD has spoken! Who can but
prophesy?" (Amos 3:7-8).
"Blessed is the Lord God of Israel, For He has visited and redeemed His people,
and has raised up a horn of salvation for us in the house of His servant David, as He spoke by the mouth of
His holy prophets, who have been since the world began..." (Luke 1:68-70).
“But I am the LORD your God, ever since the land of Egypt. . .I have also spoken by the prophets,
and have multiplied visions; I have given symbols through the witness of the prophets.” (Hosea 12:9-10).
More to the point, is it God the Father who inspired the prophets?:
"God, who at various times and in various ways spoke in time past to the fathers
by the prophets, has in these last days spoken to us by His Son, whom He has appointed heir of all things,
through whom also He made the worlds..." (Hebrews 1:1-2).
"So when they heard that, they raised their voice to God with one accord
and said: 'Lord, You are God, who made heaven and earth and the sea, and all that is in
them, who by the mouth of Your servant David have said: "Why did the nations rage, and the
people plot vain things? The kings of the earth took their stand, and the rulers were gathered
together against the LORD and against His Christ." For truly against Your holy Servant
Jesus, whom You anointed, both Herod and Pontius Pilate, with the Gentiles and the people
of Israel, were gathered together to do whatever Your hand and Your purpose determined before
to be done." (Acts 4:24-28).
Not to mention that God the Son inspired the prophets:
"Of this salvation the prophets have inquired and searched
carefully, who prophesied of the grace that would come to you, searching what, or
what manner of time, the Spirit of Christ who was in them was indicating
when He testified beforehand the sufferings of Christ and the glories that
would follow." (1 Peter 1:10-11).
Prophets are visited by the 'Word of God':
"Then the LORD appeared again in Shiloh. For the LORD revealed Himself to Samuel in
Shiloh by the word of the LORD." (1 Samuel 3:21).
"Therefore, indeed, I [Jesus is speaker]
send you prophets, wise men, and scribes: some of them you will kill and crucify,
and some of them you will scourge in your synagogues and persecute from city to
city, that on you may come all the righteous blood shed on the earth, from
the blood of righteous Abel to the blood of Zechariah, son of Berechiah, whom you
murdered between the temple and the altar." (Matthew 23:34-35).
"...since you seek a proof of Christ speaking in me, who is
not weak toward you, but mighty in you." (2 Corinthians 13:3).
"Worship God! For the testimony of Jesus is the spirit
of prophecy." (Revelation 19:10).
Or rather, God the Holy Spirit inspired the prophets:
"And so we have the prophetic word confirmed, which you do
well to heed as a light that shines in a dark place, until the day dawns and the
morning star rises in your hearts; knowing this first, that no prophecy of Scripture
is of any private interpretation, for prophecy never came by the will of man,
but holy men of God spoke as they were moved by the Holy Spirit." (2 Peter
1:19-21).
"Men and brethren, this Scripture had to be
fulfilled, which the Holy Spirit spoke before by the mouth of David
concerning Judas, who became a guide to those who arrested Jesus; for he was
numbered with us and obtained a part in this ministry." (Acts 1:16-17).
"For David himself said by the Holy
Spirit: 'The LORD said to my Lord, "Sit at My right hand, Till I make
Your enemies Your footstool."'" (Mark 12:36).
"Now these are the last words of David. Thus says
David the son of Jesse; Thus says the man raised up on high, The anointed of the God
of Jacob, And the sweet psalmist of Israel: 'The Spirit of the LORD
spoke by me, And His word was on my tongue. The God of Israel said, The
Rock of Israel spoke to me: "He who rules over men must be just, Ruling in the fear
of God."'" (2 Samuel 23:1-3).
"Then Saul sent messengers to take David. And when
they saw the group of prophets prophesying, and Samuel standing as leader
over them, the Spirit of God came upon the messengers of Saul, and they
also prophesied." (1 Samuel 19:20).
"Yet He sent prophets to them, to bring them back to
the LORD; and they testified against them, but they would not listen. Then the
Spirit of God came upon Zechariah the son of Jehoiada
the priest, who stood above the people, and said to them, 'Thus says God: "Why do
you transgress the commandments of the LORD, so that you cannot prosper? Because
you have forsaken the LORD, He also has forsaken you."'" (2 Chronicles
24:19-20).
"Then the Spirit of the LORD fell upon me, and said
to me, 'Speak!' Thus says the LORD: 'Thus you have said, O house of Israel; for I
know the things that come into your mind.'" (Ezekiel 11:5).
Who authored scripture? The One God who is Father, Son and Holy Spirit!
A case in point: Who authored of the Book of Revelation? The Same who
inspired the Old Testament: "Then he said to me, 'These words are faithful and
true.' And the Lord God of the holy prophets sent His angel to show
His servants the things which must shortly take place." (Revelation 22:6).
God the Father through His Son Jesus Christ: "The
Revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave unto him, to shew unto his servants things
which must shortly come to pass; and he sent and signified it by his angel unto
his servant John: Who bare record of the word of God, and of the testimony of Jesus
Christ, and of all things that he saw." (Revelation 1:1-2). A typical route:
"For I have given to them the words which You have given Me; and they have received
them, and have known surely that I came forth from You; and they have believed
that You sent Me." (John 17:8).
Or God the Son?: "I, Jesus, have sent My angel to testify to you these things in
the churches. I am the Root and the Offspring of David, the Bright and Morning
Star." (Revelation 22:16). Or the Spirit?: "He who has an ear, let him hear
what the Spirit says to the churches. To him who overcomes I will give to
eat from the tree of life, which is in the midst of the Paradise of God." (Revelation
2:7). Or the One God who is Father, Son and Holy Spirit!
You Alone are Holy
Who alone is Holy? Only One, in the fullest sense: the Lord God Almighty:
"Great and marvelous are Your works, Lord God Almighty! Just and true are Your ways,
O King of the saints! Who shall not fear You, O Lord, and glorify Your name? For
You alone are Holy..." (Revelation 15:4).
"No one is holy like the LORD, For there is none besides You, Nor is there
any rock like our God." (1 Samuel 2:2).
In more detail, "The God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, the God of our fathers,
glorified His Servant Jesus, whom you delivered up and denied in the
presence of Pilate, when he was determined to let Him go. But you denied the Holy
One and the Just, and asked for a murderer to be granted to you, and killed
the Prince of life, whom God raised from the dead, of which we are witnesses."
(Acts 3:13-15).
"For you will not leave my soul in Sheol, Nor will You allow Your Holy
One to see corruption." (Psalm 16:10).
The Holy Spirit: "But you have an anointing from the Holy One, and
you know all things." (1 John 2:20).
Not to mention the Father: "Now I am no longer in the world, but these are in the
world, and I come to You. Holy Father, keep through Your name those
whom You have given Me, that they may be one as We are." (John 17:11).
The One God, worshipped and adored, is alone Holy: "The four living creatures,
each having six wings, were full of eyes around and within. And they do not rest
day and night, saying: 'Holy, holy,
holy, Lord God Almighty, Who was and is and is to come!' Whenever the
living creatures give glory and honor and thanks to Him who sits on the throne, who
lives forever and ever, the twenty-four elders fall down before Him who sits on the
throne and worship Him who lives forever and ever, and cast their crowns before the throne,
saying, 'You are worthy, O Lord, To receive glory and honor and power, for You created all
things, and by Your will they exist and were created.'" (Revelation 4:8-11).
Who Sanctifies Believers?
God the Father sanctifies believers: "Jude, a bondservant of Jesus Christ, and
brother of James, To those who are called, sanctified by God the Father, and
preserved in Jesus Christ: Mercy, peace, and love be multiplied to you." (Jude 1:1-2).
The Holy Spirit: "Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ, To the pilgrims of the
Dispersion in Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, and Bithynia, elect according to the
foreknowledge of God the Father, in sanctification of the Spirit, for
obedience and sprinkling of the blood of Jesus Christ: Grace to you and peace be
multiplied." (1 Peter 1:1-2).
"But we are bound to give thanks to God always for you, brethren beloved of the
Lord, because God from the beginning chose you for salvation through
sanctification by the Spirit and belief in the truth, to which He called
you by our gospel, for the obtaining of the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ." (2
Thessalonians 2:13-14).
The Son: "For both He who sanctifies and those who are being sanctified
are all of one, for which reason He is not ashamed to call them brethren,
saying: 'I will declare Your name to My brethren; in the midst of the assembly
I will sing praise to You.'" (Hebrews 2:11-12).
"By that will we have been sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus
Christ once for all...For by one offering He has perfected forever those who are
being sanctified." (Hebrews 10:10-14).
"Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ also loved the church and
gave Himself for her, that He might sanctify and cleanse her with the
washing of water by the word, that He might present her to Himself a glorious
church, not having spot or wrinkle or any such thing, but that she should be holy
and without blemish." (Ephesians 5:25-27).
To sum up, the One God who is Father, Son and Holy Spirit sanctifies His people:
"Speak also to the children of Israel, saying: 'Surely My
Sabbaths you shall keep, for it is a sign between Me and you throughout your
generations, that you may know that I am the LORD who sanctifies
you.'" (Exodus 31:13, Leviticus 20:8);
Now may the God of peace Himself sanctify you completely; and may your whole
spirit, soul, and body be preserved blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus
Christ." (1 Thessalonians 5:23).
Who Gives Eternal Life?
The Son: "And I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; neither shall
anyone snatch them out of My hand." (John 10:28).
"Jesus said to her, 'I am the resurrection and the life. He who
believes in Me, though he may die, he shall live.'" (John 11:25).
God the Father: "For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal
life in Christ Jesus our Lord." (Romans 6:23).
"For as the Father has life in Himself, so He has granted the Son to have life in
Himself..." (John 5:26).
The Spirit: "For he who sows to his flesh will of the flesh reap corruption,
but he who sows to the Spirit will of the Spirit reap everlasting life." (Galatians 6:8).
"For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has made me free from the law
of sin and death." (Romans 8:2).
The living God: "Now see that I, even I, am He, And there is no God besides Me;
I kill and I make alive; I wound and I heal; Nor is there any who can deliver
from My hand." (Deuteronomy 32:39) - namely, "But you, beloved, building
yourselves up on your most holy faith, praying in the Holy Spirit, keep
yourselves in the love of God, looking for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ unto
eternal life." (Jude 1:20-21).
"'Then you shall know that I am the LORD, when I have opened your graves, O My
people, and brought you up from your graves. I will put My Spirit in you,
and you shall live, and I will place you in your own land. Then you shall
know that I, the LORD, have spoken it and performed it,' says the LORD." (Ezekiel
37:13-14).
Pastoral Supply
Who supplies pastors to the church? The living God, of course: "And I
will give you shepherds according to My heart, who will feed you with knowledge
and understanding." (Jeremiah 3:15).
"And you shall say to them, 'Thus says the LORD: "If you will not listen to Me,
to walk in My law which I have set before you, to heed the words of My servants the
prophets whom I sent to you, both rising up early and sending them (but you have
not heeded), then I will make this house like Shiloh, and will make this city a
curse to all the nations of the earth."'" (Jeremiah 26:4-6).
That is, the Father: "So He said to them, 'You will indeed drink My
cup, and be baptized with the baptism that I am baptized with; but to sit
on My right hand and on My left is not Mine to give, but it is for those
for whom it is prepared by My Father.'" (Matthew 20:23).
The ascended One, the Christ: "And He Himself gave some to be apostles, some
prophets, some evangelists, and some pastors and teachers, for the equipping of
the saints for the work of ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ..."
(Ephesians 4:11-12).
"These twelve Jesus sent out and commanded them, saying: 'Do not go into
the way of the Gentiles, and do not enter a city of the Samaritans.'" (Matthew
10:5).
"This He spoke, signifying by what death he would glorify God. And when
He had spoken this, He said to him, 'Follow Me.'" (John 21:19).
"And I thank Christ Jesus our Lord who has enabled me, because He
counted me faithful, putting me into the ministry..." (1 Timothy 1:12).
The Holy Spirit: "Therefore take heed to yourselves and to all the flock, among
which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers, to shepherd the church of God
which He purchased with His own blood." (Acts 20:28).
"As they ministered to the Lord and fasted, the Holy Spirit said, 'Now
separate to Me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them.'" (Acts 13:2).
In summary: the One God who is Father, Son and Holy Spirit!
Who Draws Believers?
The Father: "No one can come to Me unless the Father who sent Me draws
him; and I will raise him up at the last day." (John 6:44).
"And He said, 'Therefore I have said to you that no one can come to
Me unless it has been granted to him by My Father.'" (John 6:65).
The Son: "And I, if I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all peoples
to Myself." (John 12:32).
The Holy Spirit, who convicts us of sin: "And when He has come, He will convict the world of sin,
and of righteousness, and of judgment..." (John 16:8).
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Analogies |
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No finite, creaturely analogy for the infinite God can ever 'fit' in all
respects. Not even the analogy of one creature to another is ever
perfect. Are believers really in all respects just like a mustard
plant? Yet Jesus likened the Kingdom of God to a mustard seed. In
respect of 'having woody stems', believers are not at all like a mustard
plant; but looking to 'things that start small and end up big', the indicated
point of resemblance, the Kingdom of God is just like a mustard seed. Is
God really all that much like a forgetful housewife sweeping the place
for a lost coin? Yet Jesus likened God's search for the lost to her
absent-minded mission.
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So putting aside unreasonable expectations of perfect 'fit' in all respects,
here are some interesting analogies for the Trinity:
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The Sun
"There are two more eminent and remarkable images of the Trinity among the creatures. The one
is in the spiritual creation, the soul of man. There is the mind, and the understanding or
idea, and the spirit of the mind as it is called in Scripture, i.e., the disposition, the will or
affection. The other is in the visible creation, viz., the Sun. The father is as the substance
of the Sun. (By substance I don't mean in a philosophical sense, but the Sun as to its internal
constitution.) The Son is as the brightness and glory of the disk of the Sun or that bright and
glorious form under which it appears to our eyes. The Holy Ghost is the action of the Sun which
is within the Sun in its intestine heat, and, being diffusive, enlightens, warms, enlivens and comforts
the world. The Spirit as it is God's Infinite love to Himself and happiness in Himself, is as the
internal heat of the Sun, but as it is that by which God communicates Himself, it is as the
emanation of the sun's action, or the emitted beams of the sun.
"The various sorts of rays of the sun and their beautiful colors do well represent the Spirit.
They well represent the love and grace of God and were made use of for this purpose in the
rainbow after the flood, and I suppose also in that rainbow that was seen round about the throne by
Ezekiel (Ezek. 1:28; Rev. 4:3) and round the head of Christ by John (Rev. 10:1), or the amiable
excellency of God and the various beautiful graces and virtues of the Spirit. These beautiful
colors of the sunbeams we find made use of in Scripture for this purpose, viz., to represent the
graces of the Spirit, as (Ps. 68:13) 'Though ye have lien among the pots, yet shall be as the wings
of a dove covered with silver, and her feathers with yellow gold,' i.e., like the light reflected
in various beautiful colors from the feathers of a dove, which colors represent the graces of the
Heavenly Dove." (Jonathan Edwards, Unpublished Essay on the Trinity).
Three Dimensions
"Objects have three dimensions -- length, breadth, and height - that are distinguishable, but
inseparable, unified in a single object, yet three-dimensional. Our experience of the physical
world always has three dimensions -- space, time, and matter - unified in the being of any physical
object, yet distinguishable. The seeming paradox of three in one is familiar to the human experience of
physical reality." (Thomas C. Oden, The Living God, p. 185).
Memory, Understanding, Will
"Since, then, these three, memory, understanding, will are not three
lives, but one life; nor three minds, but one mind; it follows certainly
that neither are they three substances, but one substance. Since memory,
which is called life, and mind, and substance, is so called in respect
to itself; but it is called memory, relatively to something. And I should
say the same also of understanding and of will, since they are called understanding
and will relatively to something; but each in respect to itself is life,
and mind, and essence. And hence these three are one, in that they are
one life, one mind, one essence; and whatever else they are severally called
in respect to themselves, they are called also together, not plurally,
but in the singular number. But they are three, in that wherein they are
mutually referred to each other; and if they were not equal, and this not
only each to each, but also each to all, they certainly could not mutually
contain each other; for not only is each contained by each, but also all
by each. For I remember that I have memory and understanding, and will;
and I understand that I understand, and will, and remember; and I will
that I will, and remember, and understand; and I remember together my whole
memory, and understanding, and will. For that of my memory which I do not
remember, is not in my memory; and nothing is so much in the memory as
memory itself. Therefore I remember the whole memory. Also, whatever I
understand I know that I understand, and I know that I will whatever I
will; but whatever I know I remember. Therefore I remember the whole of
my understanding, and the whole of my will. Likewise, when I understand
these three things, I understand them together as whole. For there is none
of things intelligible which I do not understand, except what I do not
know; but what I do not know, I neither remember, nor will. Therefore,
whatever of things intelligible I do not understand, it follows also that
I neither remember nor will. And whatever of things intelligible I remember
and will, it follows that I understand. My will also embraces my whole
understanding and my whole memory whilst I use the whole that I understand
and remember. And, therefore, while all are mutually comprehended by each,
and as wholes, each as a whole is equal to each as a whole, and each as
a whole at the same time to all as wholes; and these three are one, one
life, one mind, one essence."
(Augustine, On the Trinity, Book 10, Chapter 11, 18).
The Fountain
"The Word, therefore, is both always in the Father, as He says, 'I am in the Father'; and is
always with God, according to what is written, 'And the Word was with God;' and never separate from the
Father, or other than the Father, since 'I and the Father are one.'...For God sent forth the Word, as
the Paraclete also declares, just as the root puts forth the tree, and the fountain the river, and the
sun the ray...I should not hesitate, indeed, to call the tree the son or offspring of the root, and
the river of the fountain, and the ray of the sun; because every original source is a parent, and
everything which issues from the origin is an offspring. Much more is (this true of) the
Word of God, who has actually received as His own peculiar designation the name of Son. But
still the tree is not severed from the root, nor the river from the fountain, nor the ray from the
sun; nor, indeed, is the Word separated from God...Everything which proceeds from something else
must needs be second to that from which it proceeds, without being on that account separated:
Where, however, there is a second, there must be two; and where there is a third, there must be
three. Now the Spirit indeed is third from God and the Son; just as the fruit of the tree is
third from the root, or as the stream out of the river is third from the fountain, or as the apex of
the ray is third from the sun. Nothing, however, is alien from that original source whence
it derives its own properties. In like manner the Trinity, flowing down from the Father through
intertwined and connected steps, does not at all disturb the Monarchy, whilst it at the same time
guards the state of the Economy."
(Tertullian, Against Praxeas, Chapter VIII)
Triangle
"A common symbol for the Trinity, the triangle, will help to explain this conception. Picture
a triangle made of gold with each angle taken as one of the three persons. The material out of
which the triangle is made is the common substratum and provides the unity of substance. The
three angles provide the triad since they are identical neither with each other nor with the gold
out of which the figure is made."
(Linwood Urban, A Short History of Christian Thought, p. 60).
Physical analogies suffer from this disadvantage: material things are divisible into parts,
whereas God is simple: "There is but one only, living, and true God, who is infinite in being and
perfection, a most pure spirit, invisible, without body, parts, or passions;..." (Westminster Confession).
Nevertheless such analogies are helpful, because antitrinitarians assume that, because God is one,
the answer to every question about God must be 'one.' But this is like
saying, 'If a man is one, then he can only have one kidney,' or 'If a car
is one, then it can only have one spark plug.' The issue is rank, not divisibility.
Three Lamps
"Let me resort here to examples from what we perceive and from what is
familiar. In a house the light from all the lamps is completely interpenetrating, yet each is
clearly distinct. There is distinction in unity and there is unity in distinction. When there
are many lamps in a house there is nevertheless a single undifferentiated light and from all of them
comes the one undivided brightness. I do not think that anyone would mark off the light of one
lamp from another in the atmosphere which contains them all, nor could one light be seen separately
from the others since all of them are completely mingled while being at the same time quite
distinctive." (Pseudo-Dionysius, The Divine Names, Chapter 1, 641B).
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