Ep. #191 – The Holy Trinity [New book!] w/ Fr. Thomas Joseph White
Summary
What are the different ways Catholic theologians arrive at a knowledge of God? How did the Catholic practice of thinking about the Trinity arise over time? What is The Triplex Via, and how does it relate to our analogical discourse about God? How do we know that God is triune, and can we discover that through natural reason? Fr. Thomas Joseph White O.P. joins the podcast to discuss these questions and his new book, The Trinity: On the Nature and Mystery of the One God (Catholic University Press, 2022).
Guest Bio
Father Thomas Joseph White, O.P., entered the Order of Preachers in 2003. He is the Rector Magnificus of Rome’s Pontifical University of St. Thomas (Angelicum). He did his doctoral studies at Oxford University and has research interests in metaphysics, Christology, Trinitarian theology, and the theology of grace. His previous books include The Incarnate Lord, A Thomistic Study in Christology (2015) and The Light of Christ: An Introduction to Catholicism (2017). He is co-editor of the academic journal Nova et Vetera and, in 2011, was appointed an ordinary member of the Pontifical Academy of St. Thomas Aquinas. In 2019 Fr. White was named a McDonald Agape Foundation Distinguished Scholar. In 2022, he released his book The Trinity: On the Nature and Mystery of the One God.
Topics
- Why Fr. TJW wrote his new book
- The two-fold approach to the knowledge of God in the Catholic intellectual tradition
- Explaining the “Triplex Viae” as three steps to thinking about God
- Univocal vs. analogical statements about God
- The problem with philosophical arguments for the Trinity
- Indications of the Trinity in the Old Testament
- How the Holy Trinity is revealed to (and through) the Blessed Virgin Mary at the very start of the Christian era
- Metaphysical natures of human and divine “persons”
- If each divine person in the Trinity is the One God, how do we distinguish them?
- One objection to the Trinitarian processions
- Useful things Catholics should keep in mind when studying and worshiping the Trinity
- How better understanding the Trinity will help us understand our own dignity
Resources
The Angelicum – Pontifical University of St. Thomas Aquinas
Books by Fr. Thomas Joseph White – The Catholic University of America Press
Divine Simplicity and the Holy Trinity by Fr. Thomas Joseph White O.P. (International Journal of Systematic Theology)
Why the Trinity Matters – Fr. Thomas Joseph White’s presentation at the Pontifical University of St. Thomas Aquinas
Q&A with Thomas Joseph White – The Catholic University of America Press
The Hillbilly Thomists – Fr. Thomas Joseph White’s Band
One of the Trinity was Crucified – Lecture by Fr. Thomas Joseph White at Oxford on 7 November 2019
Related Episodes
Ep. #100 – Divine Simplicity & the Holy Trinity w/ Fr. Thomas Joseph White O.P.
Ep. #101 – Does the Trinity Entail Simplicity? w/ Christopher Tomaszewski
BONUS – The Trinity in St. Thomas w/ Ryan Hurd
Acknowledgments
This show notes page was prepared by Joseph J. of the CT Research Team.
Outstanding interview, John. I plan on listening to it at least a couple more times, because although Fr Thomas Joseph says he’s just scratching the surface, the discussion is so deep (at least to my young theological ears) that it needs time to sink in. Great stuff. His book on the Trinity just arrived yesterday, and this interview is a fantastic intro to that massive tome.