By Olivia Obijiaku
Professor of Ecumenism at the Ahmadu University (ABU), Zaria, Very Rev. Fr. Peter Bauna Tanko has detailed proofs of the Trinity in the Bible. The priest who made this known at the Mass he celebrated in Our Lady Queen of Peace Parish, ABU, Zaria on Trinity Sunday, 26th May, 2024, intimated that there are manifestations of the Trinity in the both parts of the Bible though the word itself is nonexistent therein.
The priest also explained why the Church administers the Sacrament of Baptism on some converts from other Christian denominations, pointing to the Trinitarian Formula as the template provided by Jesus.
He catechized that, “The idea of the Trinity can be found in the Old Testament. Gen. ‘In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth.’ The Hebrew word used for God in the original text is Elohim. Elohim in Hebrew is plural. Gen.1:26, ‘Let us make man in our image and likeness.’ The Church believes that this, ‘us, our’ are a pointer to the Trinity. Deut.6:4, ‘Here Oh Israel, the Lord, your God, (Elohim) is one. Three Persons in one God. Gen. 11:6-7, ‘Let Us go down and confuse their language.’ This is a pointer to the Trinity. Is.6:8, ‘Then I heard the Lord saying, ‘Whom shall I send? Who will go for us?’ ‘Shall I’, stands for ‘One God’. ‘For Us’, stands for ‘Three Persons’.”
“The concept of the Trinity is clear in the New Testament. Jn. 1:1, ‘In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. That was pointing to the Trinity. Jn.1:14, ‘The Word took flesh. We saw His glory. The glory which He received as the only Son of God.’ Luke 3:21-22, ‘The Holy Spirit came down upon the Son, and the Father’s voice was heard.’ The Holy Spirit, the Son, and the Father’s voice. This speaks of Father, Son and Holy Spirit at the baptism. Mt. 28:18-26, ‘I command you to go and baptize them in the Name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.’ That is a Trinitarian Formula for baptism.”
‘The Catholic Church cannot re-baptize members of any church that baptizes their members using this formula. We consider such baptism as valid because it followed the formula given by Jesus. The Catholic Church administers proper baptism on members of the churches that do not use the formula, as directed by Jesus. So, when you hear people say that the Catholic Church does not acknowledge baptized people from other churches, it is not true. It is only based on whether this formula was used or not. We know the churches that follow the Trinitarian Formula and we cannot re-baptize them.”
Fr. Tanko also taught that many other religions of the world also have traces and indications of the Trinity in their Sacred Books. He called on Catholics to embrace the Trinitarian Formula of ‘In the Name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit,’ with boldness, as they start and end their prayers, because, “We are unique and our uniqueness must stand out. So, do not be ashamed to make the Sign of the Cross in public.”
