The Annunciation and the Trinity

Abstract

Classic studies of the Trinity explain that doctrine and draw widely on Scripture to illustrate it (see, e.g., Gilles Emery). Supplementing these works, this study explores how, when and to whom God revealed His Three Persons, for this can teach us more of how we are to respond to Him. The Virgin Mary has always been recognized as our uniquely perfect model of theosis, with her maternity an analogy for the individual Christian's openness to God and fruitfulness for Him. At the Annunciation, ὁ Ευαγγελισμός, in her conversation with the angel Gabriel two momentous events occurred: God revealed to her -first of all mankind -His Three Persons, and then she -first of all mankind -voiced her assent to God's will. These two events were the necessary prelude to the actual moment of the Son's beginning His Incarnation. Moreover, Mary exemplifies the new autonomy ushered in by Christianity, by being the first person to assent overtly to God. Recognizing all this is a development in doctrine as defined by John Henry Newman. This analysis also affirms in more detail how the Theotokos is a model for everyone in living in relation to God.