THE TRINOSOPHIA, ANOTHER WAY OF LOOKING AT GOD/DESS
Come to me, all you who desire me, and eat your fill of my fruit.
To think of me is sweeter than honey, to possess me sweeter than the honeycomb.
Whoever feeds on me will hunger for more; whoever drinks from me will thirst for more.
To obey me is to be safe from disgrace; those who make me their business will not go astray.
(Ecclus.24:19-22)(Sirach24: 18-21)
In our Mystery School, we typically represent the masculine-feminine duality of the Godhead using the kabalistic “Yod-Heh-Vahv-Heh” model, also called the Tetragrammaton. This is a powerful and useful model, yet it is not the only one. Indeed, among “Sophiologists” (yes, that is a word!), there is another way of looking at this duality, one that, like Margaret Starbird’s theory of the “Heiros Gamous”, or Sacred Marriage, is rooted in the symbolism of the Star of David. In this model, there are actually two Trinities, the traditional masculine one (Father-Son-Holy Spirit) and another feminine one(Mother-Daughter-Holy Soul), also known as the Trinosophia.
These Trinities are separate, yet, by their very nature, intertwined. They represent the eternal, life-making interplay between the active and passive aspects of the Godhead, a complicated dance that represents both the initial creation of the universe and the universe’s ongoing creation. Remember: God/dessis a verb and creation was not a one-time-only affair. All known matter–including our very selves!–is constantly evolving, progressing towards completion and perfection. Because we, as human beings, were made in the image and likeness of the Divine, we play a vital role in helping to make The Kingdom/Queendom of Heaven a reality. We are the Divinity’s helpers,His/Her hands, feet, arms, legs, and mouths here on Earth.
Because this dual-Trinity hypothesis is complicated, we’re going to do our very best to break it down for you. Keep in mind that it is not meant to replace the Tetragrammaton model, but to compliment it. Because God/dess is so vast and our own minds so limited (at least for now,) we are incapable of devising all-inclusive symbols or theologies to represent Him/Her. The very best we can do is study, compare, and synthesize various systems in the hope of coming to some limited understanding that has meaning and relevance for us as individuals.
As you can see from the diagram, the “Father-Son-Holy Spirit” and the”Mother-Daughter-Holy Soul” triads are “wedded” in perfect union. Their interconnected-ness forms the archetypal hexagram, which you have already learned is the universal symbol of male-female equality. Each point of the six-sided star represents one aspect or “person” of either the Trinity or Trinosophia. When this is understood, we come to realize what is so wrong with the orthodox Christian emphasis on the “male” triad to the exclusion of the “female”. The unity is broken and the hexagram ceases to exist, becoming simply a triangle in search of its mate.
In order to fully understand the interrelationships between the various persons of the two Trinities, it is best to break them down into complementary pairs.For example, let’s start by looking at the Father and the Mother. These figures represent the creative, generative impulses within the Godhead. As their names imply, they are our Universal parents and it was through their Divine Union that all known (and unknown) things came to be. They signify the gendered aspects of the Deity in their most archetypal, primal form.
Now, if we look at the Son and the Daughter, we find something interesting.Christian teachings assert that the Son of God is the Krist, who took on bodily form as Yeshua. In the next lesson, we’ll try and find out if, perhaps,the Daughter might not also have taken on human form. (A hint: She probably did.) Those of you who are familiar with the Gospel of John probably know that the Krist is also called the “Logos” or Divine Word and that it was through this Word that the world was created. Fine, so far. But, if we really think hard about it, words are useless unless they are infused with meaning and purpose. For Sophiologists, the Daughter, as manifested Wisdom, is that meaning and purpose. It was through the marriage of The Logos (the Word)and Daughter-Sophia (the Divine Intent) that creation was and is made possible.
That brings us to the final couple, the Holy Spirit and the Holy Soul. In some ways, their roles are the hardest to explain, but we’ll give it a try.The Holy Spirit, the Sustainer, is the part of the Godhead that brings spiritual change to the individual. He is the one who gives us the strength to believe in a power greater than ourselves and who helps us maintain that strength.He is the one who speaks to our hearts and spirits and allows us to experience Divine Grace. The Holy Soul, on the other hand, is the Sustainer of community.Whereas we experience the Holy Spirit on a very personal level, we experience the Holy Soul in relation to others. She is there at church when we join together to sing hymns of praise and thanksgiving. She is there when we share our deepest thoughts and hopes with friends and family. She is there when we work together to serve the poor, the helpless, and the oppressed. Also called the “World Soul”, she is that part of God/dess that constantly reminds us of our interconnectedness to other human beings and to the Earth. When we deny the Holy Soul, we run the risk of becoming self-involved or of forgetting that the real point of spirituality is to unite us to others as the beloved creatures of and eternal co-creators with the Living Godhead.
Much more could be said about the Trinosophia and its relationship with the Trinity, but this seems more than enough for now. What this model stresses is the dynamism of the Godhead, its complexity, and its power to change human lives. It also reminds us of the mystery of the Divine and demands that we approach God/dess with awe and reverence in our prayers and devotionals.
Questions. Please Send your answers to the Mystery School with Sophia2 from ________ (your magikal or clergy name) in the subject line.
1. T/F The theory of the Trinosophia presupposes that there are, in fact,two complementary Trinities.
2. God/dess is a ____ and creation was not a ___ ____ ____ affair.
3. What are the names of the three “aspects” of the Trinosophia? What is the “alternate” name for the third aspect?
4. Name, if you can, one or two means by which you “sense” or “feel” the Holy Spirit as an active presence in your life.
5. Name, if you can, one or two means by which you have “sensed” or “felt”the Holy Soul as an active presence in your life.
Exercise
Read Proverbs 1:20-33. Think about or journal the many ways that modern men and women have “ignored” the call of Wisdom in the present day. What have been the results of this willful ignorance? (Think sexism, oppression, ecological crises, etc.) If you’d like, send in your answers to the Mystery School.