A Much Needed Challenge

An image depicting the martyrdom of Thomas Becket of Canterbury.

Way back during the Middle Ages the Church ordained Thomas Becket as the Archbishop of Canterbury. Better known for his martyrdom when he stood up to King Henry II over the rights of the Church, Becket also bears a powerful connection to this coming Sunday. After Becket was consecrated as archbishop on the Sunday after Pentecost, he instituted a new festival to be celebrated yearly on that occasion. It was not a self-congratulating feast but rather a day dedicated to the Holy Trinity. Thus, Trinity Sunday was born—and for almost 856 years now clergy people throughout the Western World have been grumbling.

For 51 other Sundays throughout the year the Episcopal Church has a fairly straightforward way of doing things. Particularly, we practice a familiar pattern in regards to the Liturgy of the Word when we learn from parts of the Bible. Through various seasons we celebrate God’s saving love as exemplified in Holy Scripture and particularly in the story of the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus the Christ. Easy enough right? Well, it’s not easy, but it is at least straightforward. But then, almost out of nowhere comes this Trinity Sunday, which feels a bit like the tail wagging the dog.

Even with almost a millennia of practice, Trinity Sunday retains a certain sense of oddity. It is a day in the Church when we remember a doctrine. The rest of the Sundays in the Church Year we let the Scriptural themes and stories speak for themselves, but on this day we shoehorn chosen Scripture to fit this belief about God. This day almost feels backwards. Almost. As we have been practicing it for the better part of a thousand years, it has also almost gained some sense of normalcy. But, imagine for a moment if we had Resurrection of the Dead Sunday, Justification Sunday, Total Depravity Sunday, or Doctrine of Your Choice Sunday. I am sure some would love it, but it would feel odd to me.

You may be thinking, other parts of the Church do this, and you are right. Nowadays in the broader Church, preachers circle a topic for a week or multiple weeks. They might use a thematic series to discuss sin, relationships, prayer, mission, or calling. And yet, rarely do preachers engage such a challenging doctrine as that regarding the Holy Trinity. It is one that has led to so many heresies. So, why do we do it?

The cop out is to say that all powerful word in the Church: TRADITION! Still, I think there has to be more to this than we did it last year (and the 850 something before it). Why would we keep doing something that is so challenging? Why keep going with something that leaves us—not just the preacher but the entire congregation—feeling a bit off kilter? Why continue bumbling and stumbling around in a delicate area that could get us labeled as a heretic? Well, perhaps it is because despite reciting our belief in a Triune God every week in the Collect, the Nicene Creed, and the Eucharistic Prayer, we seldom live our lives with this belief at the core. Maybe it’s dangerous to speak for you, but I have to sadly admit that I am a bad Trinitarian Christian.

How many of my prayers start with Father? How many of them end with Jesus? We just celebrated the Spirit coming down at Pentecost yesterday, but how easy it is for me to overlook the work of the Holy Ghost! I am deficient in remembering that Our Triune God exists co-eternally together. It is hard for me to remember that while the Father is not the Son is not the Spirit, and the Son is not the Father is not the Spirit, and the Spirit is not the Father is not the Son, they are all God.

So, while this week is frustrating, and while I might say a few choice words under my breath about Thomas Becket, I need this week. I need the challenge that God gives me to try and wrap my mind, heart, spirit, and strength around who God truly is. I won’t ever finish that work on this side of the grave. And, I will probably butcher some description of God this week—if I have not already. Still, I believe when we try to faithfully understand, experience, and express the beautifully complicated nature of God we please God. Yes, we must be careful and cautious to speak the Truth, but to be afraid of speaking it altogether is like not sharing the best news you have ever heard.

As I bumble my way through speaking of the unspeakable, I find that a couple good places to start the work of understanding, experiencing, and expressing God's Triune Nature are the Collect for Trinity Sunday (below) and the Creed of Saint Athanasius.

Almighty and everlasting God, you have given to us your servants grace, by the confession of a true faith, to acknowledge the glory of the eternal Trinity, and in the power of your divine Majesty to worship the Unity: Keep us steadfast in this faith and worship, and bring us at last to see you in your one and eternal glory, O Father; who with the Son and the Holy Spirit live and reign, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

(Book of Common Prayer, 228).