The Mystery of the Trinity: Trinitarian Experience and Vision in the Biblical and Patristic Tradition

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Summary: Ground yourself in the traditions of the church.
Review: I don't come from an Orthodox background, but found Borinsky's book an excellent introduction and overview to the teaching of the Fathers on the Trinity. This book also explores the Trinity in relation to the Old and New Testament as well as the Liturgy. For me, the book provided an excellent foundation for thought and for exploring the significance of the Trinity in relation to all things. In fact, some of Borinksy's ideas could be applied to a Trinitarian view of interpersonal communication.

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Summary: A scholarly look at the Trinity as manifested in the Church
Review: This book offers an excellent look at the experience and vision of the Holy Trinity in the life of the Orthodox Church. Rather than attempting to explain that which words cannot explain, the author instead chooses to illustrate how the Triune God has manifested Himself to mankind throughout history. The book is divided into four parts: The first section, "Biblical Theology," deals first with how the Trinity was revealed mysteriously to the Patriarchs and Prophets of the Old Testament. It then moves on to the more clear manifestations of the Trinity in the New Testament, both in the Gospels and in the early Apostolic communities. The second section, "Liturgical and Sacramental Theology," illustrates how the Holy Trinity is manifested and experienced in the liturgical and sacramental life of the Orthodox Church. In the third section, entitled "Trinitarian Theology in the Fathers and in the Councils," the author examines how the Trinitarian Theology of the Church developed in the writings of the Church Fathers and Church Councils which refuted such teachings as Arianism and other heresies. Bobrinskoy does an excellent job of illustrating the continuity as well as the diversity of the theologies of the Church Fathers throughout the ages. The final section, "Doctrinal Synthesis," looks at the continuity of the biblical manifestations of the Trinity, the experience of the Trinity in the liturgical life of the Church, and the Trinitarian theology of the Church Fathers. It then turns to how each of these manifestations of the Trinity come together to form the doctrine of the Orthodox Church. I highly recommend this book. Although difficult to follow at times, Bobrinskoy gives the reader an indepth look at the manifestation of the Trinity to mankind throughout history.