Understanding the Trinity by J. P. Arendzen

Although many religions acknowledge the oneness of God and recognize the good things He does for us, Christians alone have been admitted to sacred intimacy with Him. God has spoken to us about Himself as only a friend dares speak to a friend, telling us about His own inner life. In loving kindness and tender condescension, God has through the words and deeds of Jesus allowed us to come to know Him as three divine Persons — Father, Son, and Holy Spirit — so that we might adore Him not merely for what He has done for us, but for what He is in Himself. Love calls us to respond to this divine self-revelation by seeking to know and understand God as He now wishes to be known: as the Trinity. These pages make that task immeasurably easier for you. It is of course impossible to make any work on the Trinity popular in the usual sense of the word: there can be no Idiot’s Guide to the Trinity that is not foolish or heretical. But you can know more than most people realize, and Fr. Arendzen’s eminently lucid, non-technical discussion in these pages is the perfect place for you to begin. Yes, for some readers new to this topic, parts of this book may be challenging; but Fr. Arendzen’s treatment is far less forbidding than all other trustworthy books on the topic. And it’s vastly more helpful because Fr. Arendzen does not here seek to speak the final word on the Trinity; rather he illuminates for ordinary Christians the beauty and attractiveness of the Trinity so that having read these pages, you will know God better and will finally be able to give proper glory to the Father, to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit.