Theology, Sanity, and the Trinity

by Carl E. Olson

Frank J. Sheed was an Australian law student who, after moving to London in the 1920s, became one of the most famous Catholic apologists of the century. He was an outstanding street-corner speaker who popularized the Catholic Evidence Guild in both England and America (where he later resided). Along with his wife Maisie Ward he founded the Catholic publishing house of Sheed & Ward in 1926, publishing some of the best Catholic literature of the first half of the twentieth century. A cradle Catholic, Sheed was a central figure in what he called the "Catholic Intellectual Revival," an influential and loosely knit group of converts to the Catholic Faith, including authors and apologists such as G.K. Chesterton, Evelyn Waugh, Arnold Lunn, and Ronald Knox.

Sheed wrote many books, including Theology and Sanity, A Map of Life, Theology for Beginners and To Know Christ Jesus. He and Maise also compiled the Catholic Evidence Training Outlines, which included his notes for training outdoor speakers and apologists and is a valuable tool for Catholic apologists (and is available through the Catholic Evidence Guild). His writing was marked by rare erudition, strong philosophical knowledge, and a comprehensive grasp of Catholic doctrine.

Theology and Sanity (orig. 1946; San Francisco: Ignatius Press, 1993] is arguably Sheed's most important book. It is especially helpful for apologists since every part of it had been, Sheed states, "tried out on forty or fifty outdoor audiences before I got it down on paper." (p 9). The result is an enjoyable and filling theological meal, served with the natural ease and clarity that characterizes Sheed's writing.

Part of that meal is what apologist Karl Keating has rightly described as "the clearest explanation of the Trinity ever put to paper." In the course of forty pages, Sheed provides a precise and accessible apologetic for the belief in the Triune God. This defense and explanation of the central doctrine of the Christian Faith is carefully structured, composed of three major steps.

The Meaning of Mystery

Early in Theology and Sanity, before ever broaching the subject of the Trinity, Sheed explains the limitations of man's imagination and intellect and how that relates to "what we call Mysteries in religion" (p 37). A religious or theological Mystery is not a puzzle or sheer darkness, nor is it "something that we can know nothing about: it is only something that the mind cannot wholly know" (p 38). He uses the analogy of an art gallery into which the visitor walks deeper and deeper—never reaching the end but finding the visit to be completely satisfying.

"A Mystery, in short," Sheed continues, "is an invitation to the mind." The well of Truth has no bottom and we can drink from it endlessly, our minds never going away thirsty. A Mystery is revealed by God—it cannot be known by human reason, nor fully explained by logic or argument. "Thus in the Mystery of the Blessed Trinity, we cannot see how God can be Three if He is infinitely One" (p 38). The human mind balks at such a statement, seeing an apparent contradiction. Or, by faith, man can simply accept the Mystery of the Trinity. But while this might make for a quiet life, Sheed dryly observes, it does not make "for any growth in the knowledge of God" (p 39).

Another temptation is to overemphasize one part of the Mystery. This ultimately leads to heresy or stunted spiritual growth. In the case of the Trinity, focusing only on the three Persons can lead to polytheism. Setting aside the three Persons to focus only on the Oneness of God means missing out on the great riches found in the knowledge of the relationship between the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, and what it means for man. 

We are to have a balanced perspective when it comes to Mystery. "Thus a Mystery," Sheed explains, "is not to be thought of as simply darkness: it is a tiny circle of light surrounded by darkness" (p 42). We must use our intellectual powers and rely on God's grace so that the light will grow. God revealed the doctrine of the Blessed Trinity "because He wanted us to know it," Sheed writes, "We must try."

Mathematical Misunderstandings

Essential to helping the light grow and knowledge increase when it comes to the Trinity is the removal of impediments. Based on his countless hours spent defending Catholicism, Sheed states that the main obstacle for the apologist is what he humorously calls "the mystery of mathematics." 

How is it, the Christian is asked, that one can equal three? All to often the resulting dialogue is destined for disaster. Sometimes the frustrated Christian informs the questioner that the Trinity is a mystery revealed by God and it must be accepted by faith. Such a statement, Sheed points out, is true enough: the doctrine of the Trinity is a mystery and it can only be known by faith. But more often than not, what has been described by the Christian is not the Mystery of the Trinity, or the mystery of anything at all: it is "wretched nonsense" (p 89) and wholesale confusion.

Essential to addressing the mystery of mathematics is recognizing that "three persons in one nature" is not a slogan, but a starting point. And we must start by attaching meaning to the word person and the word nature. If we don't "then both the nouns have dropped out of the definition, and we are left only with the numbers three and one, and get along as best we can with these" (p 90). 

Defining "Person" and "Nature"

Defining these two terms, as challenging as it is, is vital to making any significant progress is a cogent explanation of the doctrine of the Trinity. As Sheed writes, "It is a decisive stage of our advance into theology to get some grasp of the meaning of nature and the meaning of person" (p 92). Although I cannot do full justice to Sheed's masterful explanation here, I will point out some of his essential points.

First, nature refers to the question: "What am I?", while person answers the question, "Who am I?" Each being has a nature, but not every being is a person since "only rational beings are persons." An inanimate object has a nature, but is not a person.

Secondly, my nature is the source of my actions, but "it is not my nature that does them: I do them, I the person" (p 93). It is in our nature to do certain things, but is not my nature that does them—I do them. So "there is a reality in us by which we are what we are: and there is a reality in us by which we are who we are." The difficulty is that we struggle intellectually to perceive the clear distinction between the what and the who, even though it obviously exists. 

Thirdly, while man's nature is finite, God's nature is infinite. And while I have one nature and I am one person, I cannot limit God to the same. In other words, if God reveals (as He has) that He is three distinct Persons with one nature, it goes beyond our full comprehension, but it is not, in fact, contrary to what we can grasp about person and nature. "Thus," Sheed argues, "since the nature of any being decides what the being is, each person is God, wholly and therefore equal with the [other Persons]." And so, since the nature decides what the person can do, "each of the three persons who thus totally possess the Divine Nature can do all the things that go with being God" (p. 97).

There is, of course, more to Sheed's explanation and apologetic. He goes on to describe the relationship between the Persons of the Father, the Son, and Holy Spirit. And he provides some further "precisions" about terms and concepts, concluding with more observations about the relationship between reason and revelation. "The difficulties in extending the area of our understanding," he concludes, "do not in the least affect the certainty of what we do know of the Blessed Trinity" (p 115). And thanks to Frank Sheed, many people know a bit more about the great Mystery of the Triune God.

[This article originally appeared in The Catholic Answer with a different title.]
Related Links on Ignatius Insight and Insight Scoop:

• Frank Sheed author page
• Sheed on the Trinity
• St. John the Baptist, Forerunner | Frank Sheed
• The Incarnation | Frank Sheed
• The Problem of Life's Purpose | Frank Sheed