The Blessed Trinity: Jesus as App

Contents

  1. The Blessed Trinity?
  2. God as Computer
  3. How so?
  4. Jesus as App
  5. References

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1. The Blessed Trinity?

According to Catholic theology, God is said to exist in the form of three persons in one, namely: the Father, the Son (Logos or Word of God) and the Holy Spirit / Holy Ghost. A pop culture manifestation of this Blessed Trinity is seen in the British author J.R.R. Tolkien and his The Lord of the Rings enigmatic character Tom Bombadil, who is a manifestation on Middle-earth of the Holy Spirit (Tolkien 1954-5, Tolkien Gateway 2012). How can this be, when Tolkien has stated that God - the One - is not present on Middle-earth within The Lord of the Rings, though exists in his greater legendarium? The 65,000 word preliminary answer to that question can be found in The evolution of Tom Bombadil (Organ 2017).

Catholics are usually introduced to the concept of the Blessed Trinity in their childhood, it being such an integral part of the catechism. But, for those who may have subsequently lapsed in their spiritual practice, or turned towards the more philosophically grounded Buddhism, understanding of the concept and its relevance in everyday life likewise fades. If a deep dive into the meaning of the Blessed Trinity should subsequently occur, thanks to Tolkien or the ongoing search for truth and meaning, then it is likely that an important piece of the jigsaw will pop up.

After many years of reading and research, just such an epiphany has taken place for the present author, who finally found peace with the concept in the early 2020s (Organ 2021). The journey and outcome were summarised in a book with co-author Danny Côté Davis entitled Guests, Hosts and the Holy Ghost: Who Tolkien's Tom Bombadil and Goldberry are and why it really matters (Davis and Organ 2022). And there it rested, until early April 2024 when a viewing of the 2020 YouTube 20 minute long video episode of the Closer to Truth channel, presented by Agnostic Jewish commentator Robert Lawrence Kuhn, entitled The Trinity: A Philosophical Inquiry, left the author totally confused, if only temporarily. The many so-called Christian academic and theosophical experts interviewed came up with a complex and ultimately ambiguous collection of descriptions, which the interviewer appeared to find just as confusing as the present writer. A simple entry-point description of the complex concept of Trinity was needed. One is presented below, utilising the material-bound, earthly computer as metaphor.

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2. God as computer

In trying to provide a veritable plain English Idiots Guide to the Blessed Trinity, the author had, prior to the Kuhn video viewing, developed a useful metaphorical conception of God as Computer. It ran thus:

(1) God the Father is the hardware, the CPU (central processing unit) and associated technology;

(2) God the Son / the Word of God is the software, the supplementary intelligent operating system which works in tandem with the hardware and, in operation, is indistinguishable from it;

(3) God the Holy Ghost / Holy Spirit is the computer screen, the outward facing or communication element of the computer, and the so-called live link with the world / universe beyond.

So how does this metaphor work? How does one apply it? It could be seen at the outset that something as simple as a piece of modern technology could never hope to explain an aspect of God and religious belief as complex as the Blessed Trinity. However, the present author thought, and thinks, otherwise.

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3. How so?

God is an Apple Mac, a PC, an Android Smartphone, an Apple iPhone, or the IBM Big Blue. This metaphor, or analogy, assists in simplifying the concept of the Blessed Trinity. It takes it from the realm of unknown, infinite, non-physical cosmic consciousness and spiritual theology into the everyday world on Earth of the tangible, the physical, the knowable and the practiced. A computer is a single thing, yet it has those three distinct elements described above which are integral to its operation: hardware, software and outward communication (i.e. applicability). Of course a computer is a mindless, soulless machine - even the most advanced artificial intelligence-enhanced example is simply that. It needs to be plugged in, turned on and booted up. Its software - operating system and applications - needs to be accessed by the system or an operator, all of which has a multifaceted purpose. As such, this simple metaphor has applicability to the concept of the Blessed Trinity.

In equating God the Father to the hardware we are showing how that element of the Trinity lies at the core. It is the key to the very existence of the computer. However, without the integrated software (i.e. the Son of God / the Logos or the Word of God) the computer does not work. Likewise, the computer is useless if it is not able to interact in performing its core tasks, and that interaction with both internal and external systems and 'things', whether that be a human operator or a external machine or device, is essential to the computer's very existence. Like the computer, God exists for a reason. In addition, it is the Holy Spirit which is the element of the Blessed Trinity, on Earth and throughout the Universe, that interacts with sentient beings in a direct way as a guide and provider of information. This is equivalent to the role of the computer screen, Bluetooth, or HDMI cable connection which all operate in exposing the software application to external entities such as humans or non-sentient machines. In doing so, those three core elements and functions of a computer all need to operate as One, though they remain distinct, i.e., three entities / persons in one computer / God.

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4. Jesus as App

God the Son, or the Word of God, in manifesting for a period on Earth in the form of Jesus Christ, can likewise be metaphorically equated to a modern-day computer application or a Smartphone App, in being design and separated for a specific purpose, namely, to come to Earth for a certain period of time and carry out God's works. That is all that the metaphor of Jesus Christ as App seeks to achieve, namely, to help one understand the process of the Blessed Trinity and how the App is nothing without the Smartphone, which in turn is nothing without the core Android system software, i.e., all are separate but connected. In combination the system software and the external communication elements of the Smartphone such as the app are One, or a package. So also, Jesus Christ is part of the One, or of an integrated package in the form of God.

All of this cold, technical, material-based language is far removed from the reality of the infinitely and ultimately unknowable concept of God and cosmic consciousness, in which sentient beings such as humans are mere fractal elements. But the metaphor nevertheless serves a purpose, at least to the present author, in enabling understanding - to a very limited degree - of the reality of the Blessed Trinity. And God as Computer is simply the initial step on that stairway to Heaven, or Nirvana, or whatever ultimate state of pure being is sought.

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5. References

Davis, Daniel Côté, Why Some Catholics Think J.R.R. Tolkien Could Be a Saint, The European Conservative [Blog], 12 March 2022.

----- and Michael Organ, Guests, Hosts and the Holy Ghost: Who Tolkien's Tom Bombadil and Goldberry are and why it really matters, The Authors, London & Sydney, 2022, 254p. Forward by Joseph Pearce.

Organ Michael, The evolution of Tom Bombadil: From the Oxford and Berkshire countryside to Middle-earth and beyond [blog], 14 September 2017.

-----, Tom Bombadil - Tolkien's Holy Spirit of the Blessed Trinity [blog], 2 August 2021.

Tolkien, J.R.R., The Lord of the Rings, George Allen & Unwin, 1954-5.

Tom Bombadil, Tolkien Gateway [blog], 2012. Available URL: http://tolkiengateway.net/wiki/Tom_Bombadil.

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Tom Bombadil & the Blessed Trinity: Cosmic Consciousness (Video) | Dead Hobbits & Barrow-wights | Eru in Arda - God | Guests, Hosts & Holy Ghost | Holy Spirit | Jesus as App | Jesus in England | Jesus in India | Karma & Nirvana 1895-6 | Origins | Reincarnation & Karma | Tolkien's Holy Spirit | Religious Bibliography | Taylor Swift's Karma | Tolkien's Koala |  Tom Bombadil: Evolution - Excellent spirit - Playing Cards - Powers (Video) - The Mystery Solved (Video) - Who is Tom Bombadil? Part 1 (Video) - Part 2 (Video) - Who is he really? (Video) |

Last updated: 1 May 2024

Michael Organ, Australia

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