Spaced out...

here's a bit of me going bonkers:

previously i commented on Gunton's need for 'space' in the Trinity - http://youarethechrist.blogspot.com/2010/06/space.html

Now think about this...

In childbirth, the mother makes 'space' for her baby.. it is space for new life, and that new life grows until it is permitted 'to have life in itself' and comes out of the mother...
yet of course is utterly linked to the mother in various ways,
first in the milk,
then in being provided for
then in genuine spiritual relationship

therefore it is no wonder that Christ makes space within Himself for His creation - of course all this done within the Spirit

yet by Christ making space, He only does what the Father has always done, made space within Himself for Christ - i.e. Christ is begotten eternally

but by making space for Christ, He Himself gets bigger - just like any pregnant lady

So the Father always enlarges Himself even as He constantly makes room for Christ and allows Him to grow

now the Son also has for the first time enlarged Himself - and in creation we see 1 cycle of an eternal expansion in God - something the Son has been subjected to ad infinitum

no wonder then creation and redemption are but 'the corner of His robe'

practically speaking - it means as Christ makes space for us, we must enter into the darkness with Him, and let Him feed us

for others, we make space for them - but only when we ourselves are full of the seed, and filled to the full..
then can they grow within us, and we hand them over to Christ (think John 4)
yet not apart from Christ when they are in us (think John 5) for Christ is in our flesh (Gal 2)

???????????????????

More Triniarian Hierachy

Even when it comes to understanding 'space'

The Trinity makes sense only in a hierarchical structure

Think Biblically - the Son is always where He is in reference to the Father
so where is the Son now?
on the right hand side of God

is the Father on the Son's left hand side? No! Never!

so is the Son facing the opposite direction so that the Father is on His right hand too.. of course not

The Son is always at the Father's right hand
the Father is where the Father is... that's it

the whole world is where it is in relation to the Father's throne

more specifically
the world is where it is in relation to the Father, and where the Son is in relation to the Father, and where we are in relation to the Son
in that specific order


now have a think how this works with relation to 'time' =)

Differential Perichoresis (2)

Continuing with the previous thought...

i'm going to suggest equality is a concept only necessary amongst individuals
i.e. when there are persons desiring to be recognised 'apart' from the other, they must claim their 'rights'
or rather - their 'individual right' that is to keep them apart from others

when there is one-ness or true unity, equality is a meaningless term
there is only the oneness,
in that one-ness, there are persons, distinct and other, but in their distinct-ness and other-ness coming together to form true one-ness

in the life of the Triune God - the greater the diversity, the richer and fuller the one-ness
and this is amplified in the church

the one-ness is also a dynamic (non-static) one-ness with the Son going away from the Father and coming to the Father in continuous motion, each time increasing the fullness of the One

the church is again an expansion of the expanding one-ness
with more 'space' and allowing for more growth - and continuous growth in the ages to come

coming up with ideas like the economic trinity (seen in the salvation plan) that is different from the immanent (or eternal) trinity, simply is derived from human thoughts of the necessity of equality

The Son is eternally 'lesser' than the Father, in the sense that He always relies on Him and derives His very being (even His own life from Him), and the Father gives off Himself to the Son, allowing the Son to have everything He is in Himself

Can i then derive a meaning of weakness..

Weakness then is not the lack of strength within oneself
but in the context of the Trinity, the refusal to look within oneself for strength - the insistence to rely on the other

The Son can not do anything without the Father
The Father will not do anything without the Son

So then Phil 2 - is a lesson that true strength comes from reliance on the other, emptying self to hold the other
as opposed to filling self - which is a releasing of the hand of the other
(cf prodigal son)

We are then purposely made weak physically that we may learn these eternal familial dynamics
in eternity our strength is characterised by our reliance on the other(s)
and our refusal to do anything except what is in the best interest of the other

i think these principles are rooted into the very physics of the universe - thinking of magnetic forces, resonance, fluid dynamics etc.. the unity of the many creates strength exponentially greater than the sum of their parts

it is the logarithmic curve of God-dynamics

Yet back to point one - the rhythm of this is not random, not reversible
there is always a directionality about things - it flows from the Father

We match our spirit with His Spirit, and not each others' spirits

Space

What is the point of space?

In the beginning the Living God created 'space' to put the world in..
and at the end... that space will be reconciled to the Father, that the triune God may be all in all.. (1 Cor 15)

the church is also said to fill up the space - so that the church is all in all (eph 1)

according to Colin Gunton...
space is required for 'otherness' to happen
one cannot be 'other' unless you have the space between the two persons - that allows otherness even within relatedness

the 'space' within the Triune God then has to be the Holy Spirit
the one that relates and unites the Son with the Father,
and yet goes with the sent out from the Father as the eternal Word of God
and He too will bring Him back as the Father draws Him

of course then, in the creation of the world,
the Spirit is everywhere within the created space
yet there is also an element of cutting off
a space where other created spirits reign instead of the Holy Spirit of God
this is all reconciled in the cut-off Son of the Father,
who will place all of creation back into the proper space of God

but there's another reason for space
space allows growth
thus if the Son is to always grow
He must always be filled by the Father
and then sent out by the Father to 'grow'
and in coming back.. the Father also 'grows'

not that this causes God to be change-able
because His perfection is that He always loves in increasing amounts
hence the overflow into the creation of the world
so this is His unchangeability

but yet in the cross, there must be something different
the 'space' of God is cut open so that others may enter into God
through the wounded side of the sent-out Son
and through this 'rip in the fabric of space' creation is born, and also reconciled in the healing of the wound
yet the scar will always be there to remind us of our birth
in the wounds of Christ

so that God continues to be the same God in everlasting ages
love expanding and growing... for eternity

too far fetched?