I got to thinking about mathematics recently. As a student of literature, this isn’t something that I do very often. But mathematics shares something with language. There is a sense of precision and symmetry that can be found in both. Within mathematics there are equations that are so perfect that one could spend a lifetime contemplating their beauty.
Take this one for example. a2 + b2 = c2. The Pythagorean Theory states that if you measure the lengths of the sides of a triangle that meet at a right angle and square them, they will always equal the square of the third side. And even though this equation was discovered by a mathematician on a Greek island back in the 6th century BC, without this calculation your cell phone would not be able to direct you to the nearest Starbucks.
Another famous equation is Einstein’s theory of mass and energy equivalence. E=mc2. The amount of energy contained in anything is equal to its mass times the speed of light squared. What this equation means is that anything that we can hold in our hands can be described as simply being a very compressed bundle of energy.
Then there’s the unlikely Christian mathematical equation of The Trinity. 1+1+1 = 1. What this improbable calculation attempts to describe is our belief that God is a mystery that is shared with us in three ways: as our creator, redeemer and sustainer. God is one, yet God is three. The Trinity is how we experience our relationship with God. And, of course, the simple truth is this …God as Trinity is beyond the scale of our understanding.
And maybe that’s the most wonderful part of this experience we have of God. There is beauty in mystery. We bow our heads in awe because of our sense of wonder.
The doctrine of the Trinity is not a mathematical puzzle or an academic formula for us to debate. Instead, the idea of God as Trinity is born out of the day-to-day experiences of those who are living as disciples of the risen Christ. The very first Christians could sense that God was active in this world in a way that was beyond their understanding.
God was actively creating, forgiving, and empowering them to live in the shadow of Jesus’ ministry. God was no longer just “up there” somewhere, distant from humanity. God had lived among us amid the brokenness of this world. And God was still present as they gathered to celebrate the resurrection of Jesus.
Today we experience God in much the same way as those very first believers did. God is present among us as Trinity. We experience God as a relationship of Father, Son and Spirit. In response, we are called to live in relationship with God, and in relationship with one another. We gather in worship as a reminder that we are to love and to bless the world through our relationships with God and with one another. We are called to be faithful in our lives so that we can carry on Jesus’ mission of responding in love to those who are most in need.
When I think of this I am reminded of a story of a kindergarten teacher who was watching her classroom as they were drawing pictures. As she walked past a young girl who was working feverishly on her picture, she stopped to ask what it was. The girl replied, “I’m drawing God.” The teacher frowned and said, “But dear, no one knows what God looks like.” Without even looking up, the girl replied, “Well, they will in a minute.”
In a way, that’s our calling as disciples in a nutshell. We are invited to imagine what God’s presence in our life looks like, and then make that presence visible for everyone to see. We are called to envision how God lives in relationship with us, and then go out and model that relationship with those who are desperately searching for God’s presence in their lives.
Living in response to a loving God who is revealed to us as Trinity means living in loving relationship with others so that they can experience just how much God loves and values them, too. We are called to bear witness to the love and the mercy of a God we know and proclaim as Father, Son and Holy Spirit. And in doing this we are reminded that God is with us always, even to the end of the age.
Each month a member of the Cook County Ministerium will offer Spiritual Reflections. This month’s contributor is Tom Murray of the Lutsen and Zion Lutheran Churches.
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