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of God which the holy Scriptures give us, and not, through our intellectual pride and prejudice, to turn aside from the light, close our eyes, and substitute man's philosophy for God's revelation. God Most Merciful gave us this holy revelation because man's utmost efforts to find God had failed, as it is written: 'Hath 1 not God made foolish the wisdom of the world? For seeing that in the wisdom of God the world through its wisdom knew not God, it was God's good pleasure, through the foolishness of the preaching 2 to save them that believe. Seeing that Jews ask for signs, and Greeks seek after wisdom: but we preach Christ crucified, unto Jews a stumbling-block, and unto Gentiles foolishness; but unto them that are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God, and the wisdom of God.'

The doctrine of the trinity of Hypostases in the unity of the divine nature is doubtless mysterious; but, when we compare it with any of the philosophical dogmas which we have considered above, it must be confessed that it is simplicity itself. There may be something in the scriptural teaching on the nature of God which exceeds the limits of our finite intellect and in that sense is above reason; but it is certainly not contrary to reason, as these philosophical theories are. Nor does the scriptural


1 1 Cor. i. 20-4.
2 That is, by means of the Gospel, which such men thought to be foolishness.
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doctrine of the Trinity in Unity lead either to pantheism or agnosticism, as the human systems of speculation do. In this they tend to render the worship of God an absurdity; for who can adore the universe as God, or worship an unknown God? Pantheism does away with all distinction between right and wrong; and so also does agnosticism, thus abolishing all morality. The scriptural doctrine of the Trinity reveals God, enables men to know Him through His Word and His Holy Spirit, leads them to hate sin and love holiness, to worship Him in spirit and in truth. It also does away with fate, substituting for it the will of an All-Wise, All-Good, All-Holy, All-Loving, Heavenly Father. True wisdom therefore, the wisdom which is from above, leads us to accept what God has taught us about His own most Holy Nature, and not to substitute for it the baseless and illogical theories of men, which have neither analogy nor authority to support them, and which satisfy neither reason nor conscience.

From what we have already said it will be clear to our honoured readers that no philosopher has succeeded by means of his keenness of intellect in solving the mystery of the divine nature. In fact we find that all human study and effort has failed to fathom the measureless depths of the knowledge of God. The finite cannot fully comprehend the infinite. Of God's nature man can know only what God has revealed in the sacred Scriptures and in