The Festival of Holy Trinity, or Trinity Sunday, is observed on the first Sunday after Pentecost, at the close of the Easter season. It celebrates the Christian doctrine of one God in three persons: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.
Historically the Holy Christian Church is a creedal church. The Christian church is creedal because creeds summarize apostolic faith, preserve doctrinal unity, guard against error, and connect believers across time and place. Confessing creeds in worship publicly affirms shared belief, catechizes new members, shapes prayer and preaching, and embodies the church’s participation in the historic faith. It’s an expression of love for God, and a reminder of God’s love for us.
The doctrine of the Trinity was formally articulated in the early centuries of Christianity, especially at the First Council of Nicaea in 325 AD. The Nicene Creed affirmed the co-equal and co-eternal nature of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit (Gen. 1:26; Isa. 6:8; Ps. 110:1; Mt. 28:19; Mk. 1:10–11; Jn. 1:1–2 etc.).
The Holy Trinity is a biblical teaching upheld by the church fathers and woven into Christian worship from the earliest centuries. Over time, it has remained central to Lutheran worship and the life of the Church.
Trinity Sunday affirms and celebrates the mystery of the Triune God, emphasizing the relationship of the three persons and their work in salvation. Its readings, hymns, and prayers focus on the unity and diversity of God’s nature.
Worship on Trinity Sunday often includes the Athanasian Creed, which clearly confesses the Trinity and the dual nature of Christ as fully God and fully man. In many Confessional Lutheran congregations, its use reinforces the Christian Church’s doctrinal foundation.
Trinity Sunday invites worshippers to reflect on the nature of God and the significance of the Trinity in Christian faith through reverent and meaningful worship.
The creed most associated with Trinity Sunday is named after St. Athanasius, a staunch defender of the Christian faith in the fourth century. It was prepared to assist the Church in combating two errors that undermined Bible teaching. One error denied that God’s Son and the Holy Spirit are of one being or Godhead with the Father. The other error denied that Jesus Christ is true God and true man in one person. The Athanasian Creed continues to serve the Christian Church as a standard of the truth. It declares that whoever rejects the doctrine of the Trinity and the doctrine of Christ is without the saving faith.
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