Trinity Sunday

Almighty and everlasting God, you have given to us your servants grace, by the confession of a true faith, to acknowledge the glory of the eternal Trinity, and in the power of your divine Majesty to worship the Unity; Keep is steadfast in this faith and worship, and bring us at last to see you in your one and etrnal glory, O Father; who with the Son and the Holy Spirit live and reign, one God, for ever and ever. AMEN.

Trinity Sunday. Seminarians are often called upon to deliver a sermon on this day, and many refer to is as "drawing the short straw". For me, this prayer (called a "Collect") goes a long way toward settling down to a rational approach to what might otherwise be an intimidating experience.

First, I note that the prayer declares that we are given grace. Unmerited, undeserved ability is given to me simply bacause I am beloved by God. Second, I see that this grace is given not to understand the Trinity (yikes!) but to acknowledge its glory.

Long before the Gospel was presented to the Irish, three-sided petroglyphs were etched into the old rocks of Eire. While we can only speculate about their meaning, we know that the Irish were fascinated with three-ness, giving St. Patrick a ready toe-hold when God whispered something about shamrocks into his ear.

Moving from self-reflection to dialogue to conversation, the Glory of the Three in One is readily available to our senses. We see this Glory in everyday discourse, thereby acknowledging God's Trinue Glory as we speak. It is not lost on me that the usual Old Testament reading is Isaiah 6, where the lips of the prophet are made clean.