Father Gary’s Sermon

Inspired from Matthew 28:16-20

Proclaimed on May 22, 2005

The late Richard Feynman was a co-winner of the 1965 Nobel Prize in physics. However, he was not only a great scientist, he was also a superlative teacher. One of his graduate students, Marcus Chown, recalls this story about his professor. Apparently Marcus's mother had watched an educational program on television that profiled the great professor's work. She had found it so exciting that she watched it from beginning to end and told Marcus all about it. Marcus then had an idea. He went to his professor and asked him to drop a note to his mother. Perhaps then, when he would try to explain why the earth is round or the sky is blue, she might be more interested in listening to him.

Dr. Feynman did write the letter. It read: "Dear Mrs. Chown--Ignore your son's attempts to teach you physics. Physics isn't the most important thing. Love is. Best wishes, Richard Feynman."

Such a story as this is important for us to hear, especially today, for today is Trinity Sunday. Today is when Churches all over the world are talking about the Great Mystery, and to many it will sound like utter non-sense. Today we intentionally contemplate the Three in One and the One in Three. God in Three Persons, perfect Unity. It's a mystery and mysteries are hard to put into words. Indeed, words are simply inadequate. As the great Anglican preacher, John Wesley, once said, “Bring me a worm that can comprehend a man, then I will show you a man that can comprehend the triune God!”

Despite the inadequacies of words, however, we must continue to quest to both understand and to explain. One of my colleagues recently wrote that he found an ideal way of explaining the Trinity. It is like a tree, paper, and a pew. All are made of one substance, but have three distinct forms and functions. Even as this morsel is passed by us, however, our minds begin to cloud over as our consciousness begins to shut down. In all honesty we wonder, “Why bother?”

We must talk about the Trinity because it is the basic foundation of Christianity. And really, it is not all that new! Before the early Church even began talking about God as Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, the Hebrew Scriptures often referred to God as Father, Word, Spirit, Wisdom, and Power. They may have believed “Behold, O Israel, the Lord your God is One,” but they had to use a lot of different words and descriptions in order to talk about this One God. Indeed, the terms "Father, Son, and Holy Spirit” come directly out of the Hebrew faith--a faith that itself was revolutionary! The revolution of Judaism was not only there is only one God, instead of many, but also that this Almighty God entered into a Covenant relationship with humanity. In the ancient world, covenant treaties between persons formed the very fabric of life itself. One's very survival was totally dependent upon the covenant relationships one had with others. These covenant contracts were official documents. The parties involved in these contracts had official or technical titles. The stronger of the parties involved was called the “Father” of the treaty, while the weaker, more dependent one was referred to as the “Son” of the treaty. That which was so radical about Judaism was that the Hebrew people saw themselves as being different from all other peoples in the world because the Almighty God was covenant “Father,” and they were the “children” of God. To facilitate this relationship the Hebrews had a leader who was called a “Mediator.” This person stood between God and the people to mediate their relationship with one another. The one who mediated had a very special relationship with God. Throughout the history of the Jews this person might be a spirit-filled Moses, a spirit-filled prophet, or a spirit-filled king. The mediator also had a special name—the “Son.” As proof of this special relationship, the covenant was recorded on tables of stone and stored in the Temple as a public record.

So the terms “Father, Son, and Holy Spirit” were not a Christian invention, but concepts with deep roots in the Hebrew tradition. That which made Christianity so radical to the already revolutionary Hebrews was that there was now a new Covenant, a New Covenant between God and humanity, a covenant mediated through a new mediator, a covenant mediated by Jesus the Christ! What was so radical about this New Covenant? Was it that God was now “Father?” No, this was not new. Was it that Jesus was even a mediator? No, for even today both Jews and Moslems recognize Jesus as a great prophet. What was so new, what was so radical was the lengths God went to maintain a relationship with humanity. You see, in those ancient treaties between those nations that surrounded Israel, a covenant remained in place until both the suzerain Lord and the vassal mediator died. Both the blessing and the curse of the covenant between God and the Hebrew people was that God did not die. On the other hand, their mediators had to be replaced with each passing generation. Some of these were good, but most of them were deplorable. Under their leadership the people often had to be harshly disciplined by an angry God with whom they would be forever saddled. It was a relationship forever doomed to be unhappy and unsatisfactory to both parties.

In God’s great wisdom this deficiency is dealt with through Jesus. As both God and human, Jesus proves to be the perfect mediator. As God he died. This left both parties free to pursue a new relationship. As Resurrected Man Jesus provides the people with a new covenant, along with an eternal mediator. Furthermore, with his ascension the Holy Spirit is poured into the hearts of all the people, empowering them to keep this new covenant. In essence, where God once only played one role in the old covenant that failed, in the new covenant God covers all the bases. God is not only Father, but God is also the Son and the Holy Spirit. It is built out of pure love and guaranteed to succeed forever. This covenant cannot fail.

What does all this mean to us? God is three in one and one in three. God in Trinity is a perfect Unity. However, Professor Feynman reminds us of the most important part. It is not about physics or complicated theology. It’s about LOVE. The Trinity is simply about perfect and unfailing love.