Rational methods in the Trinitarian theology of Latin patristics

This article examines the rational methods employed in the Trinitarian theology of Latin patristics, focusing on three major figures: Marius Victorinus, Saint Augustine, and Boethius. The study adopts an analytical and comparative approach, bringing the speculative methods of the Latin Fathers into dialogue with those of the Eastern tradition. The central idea is that Latin Trinitarian theology, by privileging the unity of the divine substance as its starting point, develops a theological rationality distinct from that of the Greek Fathers, who begin instead from the plurality of hypostases. The article makes a twofold contribution: it highlights the internal coherence of the Latin tradition in its use of philosophical reason in service of Trinitarian dogma, and it situates this methodological divergence within its historical context, recalling that it was not perceived as schismatic during the period of unity between the Latin and Greek Christian worlds.