Month: May 2013

Scripture Lessons: John 3:1-17 and 2 Corinthians 13:11-13
Pastor: Kim P. Wells

In the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Ghost. Amen. This phrase has been stock in trade of the Christian church for centuries; prayers, services, greetings, beginnings and endings with this standard reference to the Trinity. In recent decades the language in English has been adapted from Holy Ghost to Holy Spirit, maybe in response to the increased association of ghosts with Halloween and the macabre. So, now, “In the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Amen,” rolls off the tongues of many a Christian.

Like so much of religion, the concept of the Trinity and the habit of invoking the Trinity, emerged in a particular context. And it accomplished several things for the church. The doctrine of the Trinity, embedded in the early creeds, helped to define the essence of Christianity. It was intended to resolve theological controversies about the nature of God and the nature of Jesus. And with the resolution of these matters, who “won” and who “lost” solidified power for certain leaders of the church. The Trinity was as much a political issue for the church as a theological issue. So the Trinity is much more that just a creedal formula.

The Trinity holds that God is revealed to humanity in three ways. As Creator of all that is, as a fully incarnate human being in Jesus of Nazareth, and through the Holy Spirit. The Creator represents the aspect of God that is responsible for all that is. Jesus fully embodies God to humans so that humans can have a fuller understanding of God. And the Spirit enters people’s lives, giving them divine power and direction. One God, three “persons,” a word that, we’re told, should be translated as “masks.” One entity, three masks, three ways of appearing. The Trinity holds that all three aspects of God are equal. There is no hierarchy to the three presentations of the Trinity. The Holy Spirit is not superior to the Creator. The Creator is not pre-eminent to Christ Jesus. The doctrine of the Trinity also was intended to resolve differing perspectives about the nature of Jesus. Was he fully human? Was he a god? Was he divine? In the early centuries of Christianity, the people were used to the idea of gods appearing as humans. This was not new and was part of other religions common at the time. Was Jesus God appearing as human, or was he really human? The Trinity takes the view, fully human and fully divine. Jesus definitely is God. One God, three aspects. The interplay of the roles. The nature of the three dimensions. A solid doctrine, yes, but a doctrine admittedly incorporating mystery and beyond full human comprehension.

The concept of the Trinity is consistent with the idea of a living God. A God who is still speaking, as we so often say in the UCC. A dynamic God. The Trinity incorporates the expectation of on-going change. That is the role of the Holy Spirit, the sticky wicket of the Trinity because the Holy Spirit is always and ever unpredictable and uncontrollable. As we heard from the gospel of John: “The Holy Spirit blows where is wills.” So there is always that “not to be countered” explanation for unorthodox behavior: The Holy Spirit led me to do it. Now that’s a conversation stopper akin to, “the devil made me do it.” But the concept of the Trinity has always had that element of unpredictability to it.

The Trinity also incorporates the historic pattern of having various names and concepts for God. In our scriptures, we hear of God as Elohim, Yahweh, Jehovah, El, Abba, and other names. So having a variety of ways to refer to God or to access God is not new by any means.

The concept of the Trinity was also a way of making the Christian faith comprehensible and resonant in the Mediterranean world of polytheism. In a culture used to having many gods, the religion of one God was a unique oddity. The Trinity seemed to be a way to put the diverse roles of the one God across to people who were accustomed to different gods having different roles.

The Trinity has also always been an important way of conveying community. The idea of the Trinity, three aspects, one God, shows us that the Christian concept of God is relational. There is relationship within the Godhead. Egalitarian community within God. This then becomes a model for community between people. Also, given that one aspect of God is creator, there is the implication of the relationship between God and creation. And the implied relationship between humanity and creation which is God’s self disclosure. So the concept of the Trinity has much to convey about relationship that is at the heart of our faith.

To truly honor and appreciate our faith heritage and tradition we want to more fully understand the concept of the Trinity and where it comes from. And if we truly intend to have respect for our tradition, then we will let the tradition speak to us, teach us, and instruct us in our faith today.

We have the tradition of Jesus telling the disciples that the Holy Spirit will come to them, to continue to lead and guide the faith community. In other words, he is assuming that they will meet new challenges and will need to address those challenges and God will continue to provide. More will be needed. And it will come. What Jesus has taught is not the end of the story. There is more. So what might be some of the illumination that we are being given for today?

The Trinity invites us to know a God that is dynamic, living, and ever revealing. This God is not an ancient relic, but a living presence that is never fully known or understood. The mystery of God is eternal and the unfolding of God is never complete. Built into our ancient, historic faith is the capacity for newness, for change, for adaptation, and for surprise. But in challenging times such as these, just when we need new vistas for faith that will have a powerful impact on the world, what does the church tend to do? Cling to the past. Revert to what was comfortable and familiar. While we should look back and see the many adaptations and changes that have emerged in our faith tradition, instead we look back and become entrenched in the past because we are afraid. This approach ultimately does not serve the world, does not embody divine love and power to the world in constructive ways, and ultimately it undermines the relevancy of religion and faith. The doctrine of the Trinity invites us to change and adapt our faith and our views of God and our trust in love for today and for the future. And we have used the Trinity as an anchor instead
of a sail.

We noted that the Trinity is a way of talking about the different roles of God and different names for God. Contemporary Christianity has been inviting the church to expand the images we use for God. To incorporate new metaphors and words that convey the living God in ways that are relevant today. One area in which we see this effort relates to using language for God that is not exclusively male. In fact, this is in keeping with the biblical tradition of the Holy Spirit being feminine in form. So the Trinity has a genderless Creator, a male Incarnation, and a female Spirit in its historic representation. It was multi-gender and beyond gender. This is instructive for the church in considering the use of language for God today. So we see the re-introduction and growing use of goddess language within the Christian community. There is also the introduction of the word “Godde” for God. This comes from the Middle English word for God that was spelled G-o-d-d-e. The added “de” implies a feminine ending. So, to the traditional masculine image of God, you add the feminine and you have a word that incorporates both masculine and feminine. This is in contrast to the word “God” which is viewed as masculine and goddess which is viewed as feminine. Godde incorporates both. This is a new wrinkle in Christianity attempting to give us new images and language for God. The idea of exploring and using different language and images for God is in keeping with honoring the various aspects of God incorporated into the ancient concept of the Trinity. It is another way of keeping the faith relevant for today’s context. And it is a way to bridge to other religions that use other names for God. If we were Christians worshipping this morning in Indonesia, we would be addressing God as Allah, because that is the name for God used by Christians in that setting. Imagine Christians in the United States regularly, not exclusively, but regularly using the term Allah for God. Think of what this would do to de-escalate tensions between Christians and Muslims. This kind of expanding vocabulary can be part of diffusing hostility and conflict between religious communions as well as expanding our concepts of the Great Mystery in ways that reflect and promote continued human development.

Part of the motivation for the doctrine of the Trinity was to contextualize the faith given the circumstances. This invites us to think about how the Christian faith needs to be contextualized today. The Trinity invites us to consider portraying God in ways that show respect for the human development that has emerged through the ages. When we think of out context today, we see that we have made vast strides in psychology and sociology, in scientific understanding, and in technology. We’re not in the world of the 4th century let alone the 1st century. This context needs to be taken into consideration when presenting the Christian faith in a relevant manner. Christianity is meant to be adapting and changing and developing along with the progress being made by humanity. To ignore or worse yet to defy the continually unfolding progress of the human species is, ultimately, to dishonor the God that wove the capacity for on-going development into our human nature. For the church, for instance, to discredit the theory of evolution is an affront to God. For the church to ignore advances in knowledge that illuminate the nature of sexuality is an insult to God. For the church to insist on clinging to archaic views based in primitive society is disrespectful to the capacity for progress and development that is hard-wired into the human species.

The Trinity, with its built in capacity for God’s continuing presence and guidance through the Holy Spirit, speaks of a faith meant to adapt and address the issues and concerns of every age in new ways. Our faith is intended to bring the unconditional, expansive LOVE that is at the heart of the universe to bear in today’s world. Sadly, much of Christianity seems stuck in the past and thus is having a detrimental effect on the world. That is not what Jesus was about. He lambasted entrenched, out-moded, irrelevant religion. We are given the image of being born anew. Today the church is being called to be born anew out of patriarchy. Born anew out of homophobia. Born anew out of the addiction to violence. Born anew out of entrenched patterns that perpetuate ecocide. Born anew out of outmoded theology. The Trinity invites us to be born anew and to embrace new avenues of faithfulness that incarnate divine love, grace, and generosity in creative ways for the world of today and tomorrow.

We also noted that the concept of the Trinity makes a bold statement about relationship and community: Relationship with the world around us as well as within the human community and within the faith community. Different roles, yet co-equal. What if we were to think about different world religions as having differing roles yet all addressing our human yearning for wholeness, for meaning, for a way of navigating the human experience? Different ways of addressing the same needs, equally valued and respected? That would be transforming for the world. It would be a great leap forward for peace. What about appreciating cultures and races and ethnicities as differing expressions of one human identity. Co-equal all serving the good of the whole? Again, this would lead to vast strides in efforts for peace, justice, and fairness in the world. And, closer to home, and thus perhaps more difficult, what about an egalitarian foundation for relationships within the life of the church itself? The church, of every expression, embodying mutual respect and equality? Rather than leading the way, a vast segment of the church has chosen to reflect the sexism, homophobia, and the cultural wars of the society around us. Instead, we should be offering society new visions of communitarian living, mutual respect, and justice based on equality. I am imagining a worldwide church united in addressing poverty, violence, and creation care. Wow! The Trinity invites us to embrace these possibilities.

The Trinity has always had a dimension of mystery. How can three be one? How can they all be equal? Why three? While we do not need to answer these questions they remind us that there is always a dimension of the faith that is mystery. That is inexplicable. That we cannot fully understand. That we cannot definitively account for. When we presume that our doctrines are definitive and cover all aspects of belief and are right and true, then where is the room for the mystery? So this idea of the Trinity reminds us that we never fully understand. We don’t get the whole picture. There is always the unknown in life and in faith. And any credible concept of God will incorporate a heavy dose of mystery.

Jesus challenged the orthodoxy of his faith tradition. He challenged core doctrines and assumptions and what some felt were foundational beliefs of his religion. Jesus is our model, then, for continued reformation. For the ongoing transformation and evolution of our religious tradition. And the doctrine of the Trinity invites us to a relationship with a living God, a dynamic faith, a transforming power. The early church positioned Christianity to be adaptable and flexible and meaningful whatever the future would hold.

So we ask ourselves today, What does the Trinity say to someone who has cancer but does not have health insurance? What does it say to the residents of Moore, OK? What does it say to a married couple of the same gender one of whom is a US citizen and the other being deported? What does it say to 90% of the Palestinian refugees pushed out of their homes in 1948, who then settled in Syria, and now have been forced to flee to Lebanon where the kids can’t go to school, there is no access to health care, and no way to earn a living? What does the Trinity say about violence and war? About oppression? About ecocide? About reverence for life? What does the Trinity say to us that gives us strength to face the living of our days?

People need faith. They need it as a framework to interpret experience. The need faith as a language to make meaning out of experience. People need faith to see them through. They need faith that mitigates awe and inspires.

The Trinity shows us a God big enough to be known in many ways but never fully known. A God always relevant and ahead of what is emerging. A God gathering a faith community that’s never afraid to embody the power of love.

Over 17 years ago there were just 4 members of our immediate family. It was near Mother’s Day. We were at a glass art gallery. In the shop, there was a beautiful necklace made from dichroic glass with 4 figures on it. I thought it was a great Mother’s Day gift. Then, I read the description from the artist. The piece was called “Trinity.” And, yes, there were 4 figures. When I read that I knew that I had to buy it. Community, inexplicable mystery, a glass technique developed by NASA. It was everything the Trinity should be. Amen.

Scripture: Acts 16:9-15
Pastor: Rev. Kim P. Wells

What is the purpose of Christianity? We probably have as many answers as there are people in this room. John Chrysostom, who lived from 347-407, offers this description of Christianity:

This is the rule of the most perfect Christianity, its most exact definition, its highest point, namely, the seeking of the common good. . . For nothing can so make a person an imitator of Christ as caring for their neighbors. [Quoted in Sojourners, 4/2013, p. 17]

Christianity is defined by concern for the common good. It is other-centered. Community-focused. With the good of the whole of more importance than the desires of an individual. After all, the common good ensures the well-being of the individual; each and every individual, that is.

While we may associate the common good with Jesus and Christianity, I’m not sure we usually associate the common good with the wealthy, those who are rich, the 1%. But in the beautiful story that we heard from Acts this morning, the exemplary disciple who commits to the common good is a wealthy woman. The first convert on European soil, Lydia is a seller of purple cloth. Purple cloth was worn by royalty and those of high status and position. It was extremely expensive. The purple dye was created from from a secretion of the hypobranchiel gland of the Mediterranean mollusk of the Gastropoda class. [The Interpreter’s Dictionary of the Bible, vol. 3, “Purple,” p. 969] So it was an involved process. And those who dealt in purple cloth were lucratively compensated for their efforts. A dealer in purple cloth is someone who is rich. In Lydia, we see a successful business woman. There is also a reference to “her household.” Evidently, Lydia is seen as a head of household, a position of prominence, extremely unusual for a woman. In response to faith, Lydia exerts her authority for the common good by having her whole household baptized. She wants to share the life-giving Gospel with her whole household and not just keep it to herself. She obviously believes that baptism is for the well-being of all those in her domain. Lydia further asserts her authority and power as a wealthy business person and head of household by extending hospitality to Paul and his cohorts. Her home becomes the headquarters for the Jesus community in Philippi. Lydia generously and graciously offers her full support to this new church. This is an extraordinary story of a wealthy women who exhibits her faith by her commitment to the common good.

In this story, we see Lydia, a wealthy, successful business woman and head of household, coming to the riverside, on the outskirts of town, on the margins, evidently, a spiritual seeker. When she hears Paul’s witness to the way of Jesus she is moved. She hears words of life. Her hungers and thirsts are met. And her heart becomes centered on the common good; evidence that she has truly accepted the way of Christ.

This story reminds us that the gospel of Jesus Christ truly is life-giving for ALL people. Yes, we often think of the gospel as liberation to those who are made poor economically, to those who are oppressed, to those who are prisoners, to those who are hungry, homeless, or suffering. And the way of Jesus is Good News to all those people. The gospel is a message of justice, peace, and comfort to the downtrodden, the lonely, and the forgotten. But the story of Lydia reminds us that the gospel is also a message of hope, peace, and wholeness for those who appear successful. The way of Jesus is life-giving to those who are comfortable, even wealthy, economically and materially. The gospel is truly for the common good; for everyone.

Our society glorifies monetary accumulation and lavish opulence. The implication of the glorification of wealth is that being rich means being happy. Yet this myth can prove hollow. Rich people may suffer from bondage to work or to the expectations of others. They may struggle with addiction. They have kids who end up on drugs. They may suffer isolation and loneliness at the top of the pyramid. They may suffer a sense of guilt or remorse over compromises made to obtain wealth and power. They may bear the burden of having taken advantage of others to succeed financially. When you’re rich, can you truly have a friend? Or is everyone out for your money and your favor? And, of course, even though the rich have access to healthcare, wealthy people still get sick, suffer, and die.

Rich people need meaningful, caring community. Rich people need to feel part of a larger whole. Rich people need to be needed. Rich people need to serve. Rich people need to be dedicated to the common good for their own good as well as for the health of the world. Rich people, too, need the gifts of the gospel.

In Christianity , we believe that the greatest salve to the human spirit is service. Rich people who can have everything done for them may not be readily presented with the opportunity to serve others. In addition, wealth and the lifestyle that accompanies it may insulate/blind/shield them from human need and opportunities for service.

The church believes that all people are beloved and all are children of God. All human beings have some of the same needs to be whole and to flourish. We all need community. Caring and trusting relationships. We need to feel part of a larger whole. We need to be needed. We need to serve. Dedication to the common good ensures the well-being of all and calls forth our highest good. The way of Jesus is life-giving to all, the rich just as much as others.

We can quibble about what constitutes rich and who is poor, but to most of the world, we are rich. Yes, those of us sitting in this sanctuary. Last summer, after returning from the mission trip to the Dominican Republic, the Rev. Dr. David Pitt preached about his experience at La Romana. Some of you heard his sermon. After hearing his sermon and hearing from others who have gone with him to the DR, it is clear that going there, serving the poorest of the poor, blesses those who serve. They are moved. They receive hope and joy. They come back not depressed at the awful things they’ve seen, but energized, enlivened, and transformed by their experience. They find new life in the Dominican Republic. By immersing themselves in the common good in that setting, their spirits are lifted. They are changed. The gospel truly is good news for all.

We say we are an Open and Affirming church but when we imply that there are no income barriers what we have in mind is welcoming the poor. And we should welcome the poor. But as the story of Lydia reminds us, we are also called to reach out to the rich, and to offer the good news of the gospel as a lifeline of hope and transformation to the rich.

Statistics tell us that the wealthiest Americans, those in the top 20% in terms of wealth, contribute 1.3% of their income to charity tending toward support of the arts and education. The bottom 20% give 3.2% of their income to charity, usually to social service and church organizations. One theory is that the wealthy are more insulated from the needs of the poor and that’s why they don’t give more. [The Christian Century, 4/17/13, p. 8] But could it also be that the church has not done enough to reach out to the rich, to invite wealthy people to discipleship, to follow Jesus, and so to be committed to the common good? Maybe the church is not reaching out the way Paul and his friends reached out to Lydia.

By not reaching out to the rich, maybe we are being exclusive and prejudiced. And this is depriving the rich of the life-giving power of the gospel to make them whole. And this neglect could be depriving the wider community of the resources that the rich have to invest in the common good.

Remember, inspired by the gospel, so glad to be welcomed, to be wanted, and to be included, Lydia immediately reaches out with generosity and hospitality for the good of all.

Mother Teresa is known for her compassionate care to the poorest of the poor. But true to the love of Christ, she saw poverty as more than economic deprivation. She says, “Here you have a different kind of poverty – a poverty of spirit, of loneliness, of being unwanted. And that is the worst disease in the world today, not tuberculosis or leprosy.” [Mother Teresa, A Gift for God, p. 64] “Even the rich are hungry for love, for being cared for, for being wanted, for having someone to call their own.” [p. 39] Mother Teresa goes on the share this story: “Some time back a very rich man came to our place, and he said to me: ‘Please, either you or somebody come to my house. I am nearly half-blind and my wife is nearly mental; our children have all gone abroad, and we are dying of loneliness, we are longing for the loving sound of a human voice.’” [p. 65]

The story of Lydia truly tells us of the expansive embrace of the gospel. We all find our highest good in service. The heart of Christianity is life-giving for all, rich and poor and everyone in between. May the church truly proclaim and live out the gospel of universal unconditional love. The common good depends on it. Amen.

A reasonable effort has been made to appropriately cite materials referenced in this sermon. For additional information, please contact Lakewood United Church of Christ.