Trinity | FidesDB

In official formulation, God is one in essence and three in really distinct persons: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Catholicism understands this doctrine as the normative synthesis of Christian revelation, consolidated in the councils of Nicaea and Constantinople, and not as a merely later philosophical speculation. Its usual basis includes the baptismal formula of Matthew 28:19, Pauline passages, and the broader Christological and pneumatological reading of the New Testament. Historically, the doctrine was refined in controversies against subordinationist, Arian, and modalist readings. Common objections argue that the word Trinity does not appear literally in the Bible or that the doctrine would be a later development; the Catholic response maintains that the terminology is later, but that the confessed reality is implied in apostolic witness. There have also been historical differences between East and West over the Filioque, although Latin Catholicism maintains its own formulation.

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2 Corinthians 13:13

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Pauline blessing that associates Jesus Christ, God, and the Holy Spirit.

In the closing greeting of 2 Corinthians, Paul mentions the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit. The verse does not formulate a dogmatic treatise, but it is often cited because it already shows a significant triadic structure in ancient Christian worship and theology.

Matthew 28:19

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Baptismal formula with Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.

Reference to Jesus' final commission in the Gospel of Matthew. The text commands baptism in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, bringing the three references together in a single liturgical formula. Catholic tradition uses it as a classic biblical basis for Trinitarian faith and also for the sacramental understanding of baptism.

Nicene-Constantinopolitan Creed

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Profession of faith that defines the classical language about God, Christ, and the Church.

The creed formulated at Nicaea and Constantinople summarizes ancient Christian faith in normative language: one God, the Son consubstantial with the Father, the Holy Spirit, the one, holy, catholic, and apostolic Church, baptism, and the future resurrection. In Catholicism, it functions as a doctrinal synthesis and universal liturgical reference.