Trinity Sunday – First Sunday after Pentecost Trinity Sunday – 30 May 2021 The Faith Nurture Forum would like to thank Rev Dr Sandy Forsyth, Minister of Mayfield Salisbury, Edinburgh, for his thoughts on Trinity Sunday. “We may not all be gathered in the same building, but at this time, when we need each other so much, we are invited to worship together, from where we are – knowing that God can hear us all and can blend even distant voices into one song of worship.” National Worship Team As the restrictions on our ability to meet in groups continue, worship leaders continue to deliver their services both online and offline. We can help to facilitate participation from the whole congregation by exploring imaginative approaches to inclusion, participation and our use of technology in the service in ways that suit both physical gatherings and video-conference style settings, such as: • Opening and closing moments of worship that help people mark out a time set apart with God • Introducing various parts of the worship service to help worshippers understand the character and purpose of each one (framing) • Enabling conversations or prayers in breakout groups • Holding spaces that allow people to go deeper in worship • Using the chat function and microphone settings to allow people to actively participate in prayer, e.g. saying the Lord’s Prayer together unmuted, in a moment of ‘holy chaos’ • Using music and the arts as part of the worship Useful links: Up to date information for churches around Covid-19 can be found here Useful tips for creating and leading worship online can be found here You can listen to samples of every song in the Church Hymnary 4th edition (CH4) and download a selection of recordings for use in worship here Introduction ................................................................................................... 3 Isaiah 6:1-8 .................................................................................................... 4 Psalm 29 ........................................................................................................ 5 Romans 8:12-17 ............................................................................................. 5 John 3:1-18 .................................................................................................... 5 Sermon ideas ................................................................................................. 6 Prayers .......................................................................................................... 7 Alternative Material ...................................................................................... 10 Musical suggestions ...................................................................................... 16 Introduction Celebrated in the liturgies of all of the mainstream Western churches on the Sunday following the coming of the Spirit to the church at Pentecost, ‘Trinity Sunday’ brings a sense of excitement in its homiletical possibilities. It also brings, however, the perennial challenge of explaining comprehensibly a doctrine that on the one hand seems so simple, but on the other is almost beyond our grasp. And that’s before we get to any analogies! You may well have an illustration that works well for you to explain the inter-relationship and procession of the ‘three in one’, in particular in the context of school chaplaincy or an all-age address. Many attempts are, however, fraught with the resonances of ancient ‘heresies’ which might seem somewhat arcane to us now, but were the source of the great historical divisions in the church whose effects are still obvious today. Among them, the attempted illustration that the Trinity is like water in its three forms of an ordinary state, ice and steam (‘modalism’ or ‘Sabellianism’, I hear you cry!); that it is like a person being both a mother, daughter and sister (‘partialism’!), or that the Son and the Spirit in any way emerge after, and are thus subordinate to, the Father (‘subordinationism’ or ‘Arianism’!). Reflecting that my past use of the rainbow is also arguably ‘partialism’, I may resort to the image of the Celtic triquetra, the continuous loop of its design indicating the inter-connectedness and yet differentiation of the Godhead. If you would like an amusing exploration of these dangers by St Patrick and some leprechauns (honestly!), as well as a good explanation of how to come up with any sensible solution, have a look at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KQLfgaUoQCw . We have to engage in some way with the fact that the doctrine, on the one hand, is not explicitly addressed in Scripture except by tacit acknowledgment, and instead is the process of many centuries of meditation on the Christian faith; but that, on the other, it is still nothing short of foundational to Christianity as a monotheistic religion. We are called in whatever detail we feel appropriate to re-assert the central driving force of the Councils of Nicaea and Constantinople (325 & 381 CE) that Father, Son and Spirit are ‘mia ousia, treis hypostaseis’ i.e. ‘one in essence, distinguished in three persons’. Nevertheless, the lectionary texts for Year B also provide us with an opportunity to focus on a more purposive use of the doctrine: to concentrate on the ‘economic Trinity’ (Trinity at work), rather than the ‘immanent Trinity’ (what it is). In other words, the scope is there to explore how the inter-relationship of the three parts of the Godhead has meaning for the reality of our Christian lives, rather than investigating definitions in detail to satisfy our intellectual pursuits. Focusing on the ‘economic Trinity’ might also help to answer the questions of those in the congregation who might not be so readily interested in its theological nuances, but instead may ask ‘well, what does it actually mean for me’? We are blessed this week with two of the ‘classic’ Biblical verses, which could easily be repeated by many within the church: Isaiah 6:8 and John 3:16. Not only do both the Isaiah and John passages have Trinitarian overtones and references, they can lead beyond consideration of the Trinity in many directions. My theological inclination is always to approach Scripture with a ‘missional hermeneutic’, recognising how many of our past lenses of Scriptural interpretation have tended to legitimise the status quo of church as institution, its social power, the prominence of patriarchy, or the privatisation of faith to a personal piety alone. Thankfully, the missional implications of this week’s readings are front and centre, whatever your approach! Isaiah 6:1-8 This famous passage has often been taken as a precursor of the Trinity with its triple refrain (v.3) ‘Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of hosts’ and the plural response of God in verse 8 (‘who will go for us?’ echoing Genesis 1:26). Furthermore, the revelation of God to Isaiah is seen by some as an anticipation of the revelation of Christ (see John 12:39-41), and Paul believed that prophecy of Isaiah was indeed the voice of the Holy Spirit (Acts 28:25). Whilst this does not in any way ‘prove’ the Trinity, it is important to remember that the Councils of Nicaea and Constantinople did not make God a Trinity – if that is a sound conception, God has always been so, and therefore echoes in the Old Testament would not be fanciful. As for the Trinity at work, this is indeed a missional passage where we can identify a sense of vocation in being called by God. It is in those dramatic words of verse 8 that the call of Trinitarian mission resonates, whereby as James Torrance puts it: ‘the mission of the Church is the gift of participating through the Holy Spirit in the Son's mission from the Father to the world’. The words of verse 8 have been formative in many a calling towards ministry and other forms of service, including my own. Notice the background in the passage which precedes God’s call and Isaiah’s response: the presence of God, in the context of worship, the confession of wrongdoing, the receipt of forgiveness, and only then the acceptance of God’s call. Whilst this is an inspiring passage for many, particularly those whose life course has been affected by it, it is also important to recognise in dealing with passages of such drama, similar to Paul on the Damascus Road, that for many ‘our own religious experience does not include thunderous voices and winged messengers’(G. Lee Ramsay Jr). Perhaps words of acknowledgement are due here that for many God speaks also in the comparative banality of the everyday, and also in times of silence and meditation. Psalm 29 This Psalm has been interpreted as a song of victory, of God’s conquest and Kingly rule (‘enthroned’) over the Canaanites and indeed the forces of nature. Verses 3 and 8 (‘thunders’, ‘shakes’) suggest a God to which we can only respond in awe and wonder. Natural forces are of great beauty, but also possess an innate power which human ingenuity cannot harness. And yet the majestic and transcendent God, who is beyond the full grasp of our knowledge, whom we cannot control and to whom we can only cry ‘Glory’ (vv.1, 2 and 9), is also a God who is intimately connected with the flourishing of human life (vv.10-11). Such is the Trinitarian God who we are called to worship and follow. Romans 8:12-17 The passage is suffused with Trinitarian overtones – ‘led by the Spirit’ to be ‘children of God’, whereby the Spirit calls us to cry ‘Abba, Father; as ‘joint heirs with Christ’. The perichoresis of the three persons of the Trinity (see below) is immediately apparent – their interplay