June 11, 2006 At Saint Mark Church in Norman, OK
Deuteronomy 4:32-34, 39-40 + Romans 8:14-17 + Matthew 28:16-20
This week and next we are led by the church’s readings to ponder the wonder of relationship and presence with themes of the Trinity and the Body and Blood of Christ. The easy way is to simply dismiss the wonder of this relationship by declaring it a “mystery” and thereafter never give it another serious thought. I suspect because of our leanings in that direction the church simply keeps bringing it up year after year following Pentecost. In my own progression of thought and understanding I know this to be so. But little by little, year after year, like water dripping on stone, that easy dismissal is not so easy nor satisfying. In my own progression I went from mystery to dogma, which was satisfying enough at the time, but never got the point. Any student of Church History knows well the progression and development of thought and language, the trials and schisms, violence at times and fracture of the family of faith. This is all very well and good,
but it leaves the truth of this revelation in one’s head which is not very well and good. The Holy Trinity is not an idea to be studied. It is a relationship to be enjoyed. The mission of Jesus Christ was about living, not about thinking. If right thinking leads to right living, then let that progression stand, but the progression must go all the way to that point of conversion.
We have not done too well as a church about this progression. In the eyes of far too many, our church is a church of dogmas and rules. There is no point in disputing what others see, and we are responsible for what we have shown them.
Jesus had a lot of trouble with a Judaism of laws that did not prompt and encourage right living. In years that are gratefully well behind us, a person became a Catholic as soon as they memorized the rules. Their preparation was an intellectual endeavor we called: “Instructions.” Now we are beginning to the heart of the matter, the Trinity. Realizing that it is about living in relationships, the preparation now takes a long time because real relationships do not just happen in a month, so the focus now is moving into a sacramental life, a way of behaving that comes from the heart more than knowing the rules in your head.
Even the words used to reveal this truth are about relationship. Father, Son, Spirit.
It isn’t just about God anymore. If I call God or experience God as “Father” it changes the relationship between you and me and so it’s not just about God. If I know, believe, and accept the Incarnation: Jesus Christ born in the flesh, it changes the relationship and so it is no longer about God off somewhere else all powerful and all knowing. It is also now about suffering, death, weakness, betrayal, healing, touching, embracing, forgiving. If I say I believe in the Holy Spirit, then it’s all about life animated, purposeful, and holy. If I say I believe in the One Holy Catholic and Apostolic Church, it means I have transcended the mystery of the Trinity and begun to live and lead a life that unified, holy, inclusive of others, and inspired by a vision of the Kingdom of God, our future, proposed and revealed by Jesus Christ.
So, if the Trinity is the heart of our faith, our lives will be the textbook from which others may learn and be drawn to God. We will live in “communion” in “covenant” and it will not be a rule that brings us to Mass at least once a week, but a thrilling, life-giving relationship. While dogmas will develop as they always have historically from the lives of faithful people, it will be their lives, their joy, their courage, their service, their kindness, their peacefulness, and their love that draws others to God.
I think that is what Matthew is proposing when he has Jesus disperse the Apostles and says: “Make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit and teaching them to observe all I have commanded you. Know that I am with you always to the end of the age.”