Questions and Opaque Answers
Trinity Sunday
26 May 2024
The Rev. Robert J. Kossler
Nicodemus said to him, “How can this be?” Jesus answered him, “Are you the teacher of Israel, and yet you do not understand these things?” (Jn. 3:9-10, NRSVue)
Good morning, my friends, and welcome.
Questions. Part of being human is asking questions. Children are really good at asking questions, sometimes to the great annoyance of their adults! An answer leads to another question and another, and finally, the exasperated parent says, “Enough already!” All of this makes me wonder what happens to us as we age. Although I don’t want to generalize too much, it seems that maturing increases our need for certainty and often dampens our curiosity.
The Heart Sutra is one of the critical texts in the Buddhist tradition. In the text, one of Buddha’s disciples asks Avalokiteshvara, who is the Bodhisattva of Compassion,
“In the words and actions and thoughts of my life, how do I apply the Prajna- Paramita? What is the key to training in this practice? What view do I take?” (Chodron, pp. 182-183)
For those unfamiliar with Buddhist thought, the Bodhisattva, a figure of great significance, aspires to act from the “awakened heart of bodhicitta,” or the heart of loving-kindness and compassion, for the benefit of others. This desire is deeply rooted in the practice of questioning and seeking wisdom. Prajna is Sanskrit for “Wisdom,” the highest form of knowledge. Paramitas are six qualities that take us beyond our “habitual ways” of seeking security and solidity. The qualities are generosity, patience, discipline, exertion, meditation, and Prajna or wisdom.
The Bodhisattva Avalokiteshvara answers with the most famous paradox in Buddhism.
“Form is emptiness, emptiness is also form. Emptiness is no other than form, form is no other than emptiness.” (ibid.)
We could spend hours, days, weeks, or years trying to understand what the Bodhisattva meant, but we should reserve that exploration for an extended coffee hour discussion.
I bring this quote up because Pema Chodron described it as “The Essential Paradox.” Today, we celebrate Trinity Sunday, one of Christianity’s paradoxes. As Christians, trying to wrap our heads around the nature of the Trinity is as challenging as Buddhists trying to understand the Heart Sutra. It is a common practice for established rectors to assign the Trinity Sunday sermon to newly minted deacons and priests as a right of passage. I must admit that this is not the first time I struggled with writing a sermon on this particular Sunday.
Today’s Gospel passage doesn’t provide many clues to help us unpack the nature of the Trinity. Instead, we listen to a conversation between Jesus and Nicodemus. Nicodemus comes to Jesus under the cover of night. He greets Jesus with a simple statement acknowledging Jesus’ close relationship with God. Before he can ask Jesus a question, Jesus replies cryptically.
“...no man can see the kingdom of God without being born from above.” (Jn. 3:3)
Nicodemus is an important man, a leader, and a Pharisee. His visit poses a significant risk to his station in the Jewish hierarchy, which explains his caution. His curiosity gives him the courage to seek out Jesus. In one way, his love for truth helps him overcome his hesitation. (Cyclopaedia of Biblical, Theological, and Ecclesiastical Literature)
Like the discussion in the Heart Sutra, Nicodemus's questions center on the pragmatic, the practical, while Jesus answers puzzle Nicodemus with a sequence of paradoxes.
• You cannot enter the kingdom of God without being born of water and the Spirit.
• You must be born from above.
• No one has ascended into heaven except the one who descended from heaven, the Son of Man.
Jesus ends his lesson with, “For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him may not perish but may have eternal life.” (Jn. 3:16) It is one of the most quoted lines in all scripture but says nothing about the Trinity.
Scripture does not explicitly refer to the Trinity, so why do we, as Episcopalians, celebrate this doctrine? It’s a good question, and it makes me wonder if we are celebrating a doctrine or, more importantly, celebrating how the Divine behaves.
In the Orthodox tradition, the Trinity is often depicted as Three Angels visiting Abraham. Russian painter Andre Rublev wrote one of the most famous icons in the Orthodox tradition. According to the story in Genesis, Abraham insists that the visitors remain while he and his servant prepare a suitable meal. The visitors remain and quietly talk amongst themselves while Abraham looks on. During this visit, one of the angels tells Abraham that Sarah will finally bear a son.
Icons can help explain scripture and theology. This icon intentionally tries to explain the Trinitarian paradox. At the time of Rublev, the Trinity embodied spiritual unity, peace, harmony, mutual love, and humility. His icon depicts those qualities in how the angels relate to each other.
So, we have a paradox and a way of understanding. Paradoxes intentionally cause us to think and ask questions. And, if you think about it, the questions are often far more important than the answers. Ultimately the nature of the Trinity is a matter of faith, a matter of acceptance. However, rather than dwelling on the how of the Trinity, it is more important to consider the behavior of the Trinity.
If the Trinity embodies unity, peace, harmony, love, and humility, then this understanding gives us a model of how to behave and attempt to live up to the same characteristics. The Trinity also embodies family and how family members relate to each other.
Looking at the back of your bulletins, you will find a note from Natasha Merritt explaining the images painted on our beautiful Paschal Candle, which we lit throughout Eastertide. Her inspiration was the Hawaiian notion of Ohana or family. We can also learn something from the Hawaiian understanding of the Aloha spirit.
Hawaiʻi’s people define the Aloha Spirit as:
“Aloha Spirit” is the coordination of mind and heart within each person. It brings each person to the self. Each person must think and emote good feelings to others. In the contemplation and presence of the life force, “Aloha”, the following unuhi laulā loa may be used:
“Akahai”, meaning kindness to be expressed with tenderness;
“Lōkahi”, meaning unity, to be expressed with harmony;
“ʻOluʻolu”, meaning agreeable, to be expressed with pleasantness;
“Haʻahaʻa”, meaning humility, to be expressed with modesty;
“Ahonui”, meaning patience, to be expressed with perseverance.
These are traits of character that express the charm, warmth and sincerity of Hawaiʻi’s people. “Aloha” is more than a word of greeting or farewell or a salutation. “Aloha” is the essence of relationships in which each person is important to every other person for collective existence. (Eddins, 2023)
These traits closely mirror those described as Paramitas in the Buddhist faith. They also describe Christian traits. Jesus reminds us that the “Greatest Commandment” is to love God and to love neighbor. All the witnesses of the prophets are reflected in that command. And this, my friends, is the true lesson of Trinity Sunday. God, in all God’s manifestations, loves abundantly without limit and expects us to have mutual regard, affection, and caring for each other without expectation of return or gain.
Amen.
Works Cited
Chodron, P. (2003). Comfortable with Uncertainty: 108 Teachings on Cultivating Fearlessness and Compassion. Boulder, CO: Shambhala Press.
Cyclopaedia of Biblical, Theological, and Ecclesiastical Literature (Vol. 7). (n.d.).
Eddins, T. W. (2023, October 31). The Supreme Court of the State of Hawai'i, SCAP-22-0000429. CONCURRING OPINION BY EDDINS, J. Honolulu, HI.