  We introduce a bicomplex which computes the triple cohomology of
Lie--Rinehart algebras. We prove that the triple cohomology is isomorphic to
the Rinehart cohomology \cite{Ri} provided the Lie--Rinehart algebra is
projective over the corresponding commutative algebra. As an application we
construct a canonical class in the third dimensional cohomology corresponding
to an associative algebra.
