Almost every prayer in the Book of Common Prayer ends with calling upon the Trinity; Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Maybe you are like me and feel like these formal endings to our prayers are uncomfortably long. I wonder can’t we simply edit it down to one name for God or offer a quick Amen and move on. However, our tradition and ancient teachings will not let us think of God or talk about God without regrading God as a Trinity.
More than, “the way we have always done it.” The Trinity holds the church in every generation to an important vision of God.
Let’s think about it, God is three and yet united in one being. The Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit are one God. That is to say, God is not a solo. God is not an independent source and yet in three forms is one substance.
Maybe I can say it this way, God is a community in perfect unity, expression and being. God is love expressed in multiple forms.
The Trinity teaches us that we cannot imagine the mystery of God without community. Like the famous Russian icon by Andre Rublev called Trinity, we cannot envision God without God’s very nature being a community.
Love cannot love without expression. Love must go toward another. Love must be received just as it must be given. God is both receiving love of the Son as God is outpouring expressive love in the Holy Spirit.
As people of faith in the 21st century this is not just a beautiful idea it is imperative to true religion. The church must be a community. We are not solo. We are not independents. We are not an aggregate of individuals. We are united in love. And we must both receive and express love to be complete.
It is a revolutionary belief if you consider the culture in which we live. A culture that focuses so much on individual achievement and success. When we gather for church we form a new community, a reflection of God’s reality. Our way of responding to our neighbor is an expression of our belief in who God is.
Church is not just a place of tradition it is a revolutionary place of becoming a new community of Love.
This week we celebrate Trinity Sunday. Instead of focusing on how long our prayers can be join me in the revolution. Celebrate that our God is a community of love inviting us to join the outpouring –giving – receiving reality that does not count the cost and enjoys the gift of being united now and forever.
With you on the journey,
