WisdomForge

Faith & Reason · Sitting 9

One What, Three Whos

Say one English sentence. Then one fact: the Nicene letter is not Basil of Caesarea's formula.

  • 40 min
  • Practice · Reflect
  • 15–18

Parent briefing · 5 minutes, before they sit

The objective is that sentence, and a parent can say it with no Greek in it. Say it before any Greek word. Then one historical fact only: the Nicene letter is not Basil of Caesarea's formula. Do not say the Cappadocians argued about a preposition. A letter is not a preposition. The parent holds any question past the sentence. There is no model prompt. Parent aside, after the English sentence has been said: homoousios means same essence; homoiousios means similar essence; the extra mark is the letter iota. Ousia is the one essence. Hypostasis is each particular who. None of those words is a preposition. Parent note, not part of the student reading: Eusebius of Caesarea, writing home after Nicaea, says the council added one word, that the Son is one in essence with the Father. Basil of Caesarea, Letter 236, section 6, is a different argument: one essence, and the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit not blurred into one. Basil of Caesarea is not Basil of Ancyra. The letter is not dated here. No Greek creed line is quoted.

Hard edges

  • Do not put a Greek word in the objective or in the sentence the parent says.
  • Do not say the Cappadocians argued about a preposition.
  • Do not run the two arguments together. Eusebius's letter after Nicaea is not Basil of Caesarea's formula.
  • Basil of Caesarea is not Basil of Ancyra. Do not date Letter 236.
  • Do not quote a Greek creed line, and do not quote Gibbon.
  • Do not force a confession. The action is the English sentence and the one fact.

If they say

“The Cappadocians argued about one preposition.”
Do not say that. A letter is not a preposition. The one-letter summary belongs to the Nicene letter. Basil's formula is one shared what and three particular whos. Those are not the same argument.
“So it is 1+1+1=3, not 1.”
The sentence is not that sum. God is one what and three whos: one being, and the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. The parent holds anything past that sentence.

Objective

God is one what and three whos: one being, and the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.

The sentence, then the one fact

God is one what and three whos: one being, and the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. The Nicene letter is not Basil of Caesarea's formula.

Big idea

God is one what and three whos. The Nicene letter is not Basil of Caesarea's formula.

Try this~8 min total

Say the sentence

8 min
  1. The parent says, with no Greek: God is one what and three whos: one being, and the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.
  2. The student says that same sentence back, still with no Greek.
  3. The parent states the one fact in English: the Nicene letter is not Basil of Caesarea's formula.
  4. Stop. Greek stays in the parent aside. The parent holds any question past the sentence. Do not ask a model.

Lesson guide

Ask after you try

Off.

  1. None.
  2. Did they say the English sentence with no Greek?
  3. Did they keep the Nicene letter separate from Basil's formula?

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Practice · Reflect15–18

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Dinner table

Can we say the sentence with no Greek in it, and can we say that the Nicene letter is not Basil of Caesarea's formula?

Sits beside

  • Parenting. Careful words matter when people disagree about something they cannot fully picture.

Integrity. The parent holds the question. Do not ask a model to explain the Trinity, and do not ask it for the Greek.

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