Wisdom raises her voice.
At intersections and entrances,
she proclaims to the people:
“Before the earth, I was.
Before the springs and mountains, I was.
Before the skies and seas, I was.
I have always been
the Inspiration
and the Delight.”
(Proverbs 8:1-4 & 22-31,
Revised Rachel Version)
In the Revised Common Lectionary readings for this coming Sunday, Trinity Sunday, Wisdom commands attention. How is her command received in your faith community? How is she spoken of, regarded, imagined in your preaching?
O Sovereign, our Queen,
how majestic is your name in all the earth!
How glorious is your robe above the heavens!
Infants and children are your oracles.
The sun and stars have your flair,
the moon has your sensuality.
What are we, that you cradle us
and trust us to care compassionately?
(Psalm 8, RRV)
The beautiful Sovereign is praised by the psalmist for their magnificence … and questioned for their partnership with humanity. How is their mystery honored in the worship of your congregation? How is their invitation to partnership accepted and engaged?
Therefore, since faith is our measure
and grace is our confidence,
we are at peace with our Friend.
In the peace of having a Friend,
we can be patient with all
that we do not understand.
In the peace of having a Friend,
we can endure together
until hope is found again.
(Romans 5:1-5, RRV)
The Friend called Jesus waits with us in suffering and breaks bread for the sake of our endurance. How is this friendship nurtured with Jesus — and with one another — in your church/ministry? How is our Friend showing up for you these days to keep you encouraged?
Wisdom,
Sovereign,
Friend.
Are you celebrating Three-in-One this Sunday? Does Trinity Sunday feel like a Herculean feat of theological gymnastics? Does your congregation have traditions for its observance of Trinity Sunday? How are you prepping to preach?
Share your brainstorming, your quandaries & wonderings, your bloglinks & ideas in the comments as we encourage one another toward the Sunday sermon.
Rachel G. Hackenberg‘s book with co-author Martha Spong, Denial Is My Spiritual Practice (and Other Failures of Faith), searches for faith through life’s trials. Rachel has also written Writing to God and Sacred Pause.
RevGalBlogPals encourages you to share our blog posts via email or social media. We do not grant permission to cut-and-paste prayers and articles without a link back. For permission to use material in paper publications, please email revgalblogpals at gmail dot com.
I wrestle with traditional Trinitarian theology, for a few reasons but one of the biggest is that my Christology is far lower than that decreed by the great ecumenical councils. In the end I think the point of the doctrine is to get us to think seriously about how we understand GOd and how we understand GOd to be active in the world and how God was active in the particularity of Jesus of Nazareth.
My early thoughts:
http://ministerialmutterings.blogspot.com/2019/06/looking-ahead-to-june-16-2019-trinity.html
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Thanks for sharing your blog link, Gord! I resonate with your observation: that it’s less about our conclusions/answers and more about our engagement with the question, “How do we understand God?”
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I really liked Jill Duffield’s lectionary reflection in Presbyterian Outlook, asking how our communities reflect the character of God as reflected in threeness. I tried out one of the reflection questions on my board this evening. Clueless.
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Do you have a link to that piece? I am just nowhere on thinking ahead to my sermon, and this sounds interesting!
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It came by email and doesn’t appear to be on the website yet. If you can send me your email address, I’ll forward it. mallonxaris@verizon.net
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Could you also email a copy to me?
Thank you
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Even when the questions seem to fall flat, I believe it’s so good to pose them anyway!
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I don’t know quite what I will tackle for Trinity Sunday. I’ve been busy grappling with memories of conversations past. Perhaps there is something in my recollections that will help as you sort through your Trinity (or not) sermon ideas. https://rachaelkeefe.wordpress.com/2019/06/13/sophia-is-calling/
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Thank you for sharing this memory, Rachael, both the pain of it and also the continued urgency of it.
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I wish there was no urgency by now…
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