Three in One

"...God in three Persons, Blessed Trinity." If you have spent any time in a Christian worship service where hymns are sung, you have most likely sung the well known hymn, "Holy, Holy, Holy." The last line of the last stanza ends with those declarative words-- God in three Persons. Blessed Trinity.

The Trinity is one of the most difficult of Christian doctrines to understand, much less explain. I certainly am no expert on the subject. The concept of God as being One, yet being Three Persons has been a matter of study, discussion, and debate for as long as there have been followers of Jesus.  The three major monotheistic religions- Judaism, Islam and Christianity part ways when it comes to the doctrine of the Trinity.

Those that accept the doctrine of the Trinity understand that God is One, yet three Persons-- The Father, Jesus Christ the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Three Persons...distinct, yet One. Three in One; One in Three. Difficult to grasp.

When we teach children about the Trinity many times we will try to use analogies. A commonly taught analogy says that God is like the substance we know as water (H2O.) Water above 212 degrees becomes steam... but it is still water. Water that is below 32 degrees we call ice... but it is still water. Of course, in between those two temperatures we know the liquid form of water. See? Three forms of the same thing. Ice, water and steam... all H2O. But, like any analogy we try to use to explain God, this one doesn't work all that well because we are merely describing three "forms" of water. The three Persons of the Trinity are not merely "forms" of God.

I drew a chart that I had seen many years ago that was helpful to me in teaching about the Trinity:

the Trinity

When we say that the three Persons of the Trinity are distinct it means exactly that. God The Father is NOT Jesus the Son. And Jesus is NOT the Holy Spirit just as the Holy Spirit is NOT The Father. But, The Father IS God. Jesus IS God. And the Holy Spirit IS God. And there is only One God.

Total Solar Eclipse 2017

A little over a week ago millions in the US were fortunate to observe the solar eclipse. What an incredible sight and experience that was, especially if you were able to witness the total eclipse for maximum duration. Maybe you remember all of the warnings about using proper eye protection in order to not damage your retinas by staring too long unprotected from the UV radiation. UV radiation is invisible but can cause a photochemical reaction that can damage the receptors of the retina.

The eclipse reminded me of another analogy sometimes used to explain the Trinity. It is the one I like the best.

Think of the sun as representing God. We can think of the physical star itself as being The Father, however we cannot actually see it (forget for a moment those fancy scientists with all their fancy equipment.) When we gaze up to the sun, we cannot actually see the star itself.... but it is there.

the light of the sun

What we can see is the light of the sun. We can equate this to Jesus. If we want to know what God is, we can look at and see Jesus. Jesus is described in scripture as the Light of the World. Jesus is what (whom) we see... like the light of the sun. But the sun also has power. In addition to those UV rays, the sun also emits an incredible amount of heat... solar energy. We have even figured out how to turn that solar energy into electricity. We can't really see the sun's power. But we can experience it, use it, and feel it.

With the naked eye, no one can see the star we call the sun. It's way too bright to even look upon for more than a couple of seconds. What we can see is the light that the sun emits. The light that chases away the darkness. The light that gives and sustains life allowing all creation to live and grow. The light that saves the world. And we know that the power of the sun is there because we can feel it, experience it, and we see the powerful things it can do. Yes, I like this particular analogy because I am reminded of the presence and faithfulness of God every time I see the sun rise in the morning. It takes away the darkness of night. It gives life. And when I feel the warmth of the sun on my face it reminds me that the Holy Spirit is very much present and provides power and strength.

God in three Persons, Blessed Trinity.

Dunkirk, Texas

Some of you may have seen the movie "Dunkirk." This Christopher Nolan film recounts an event in World War II history that I, quite frankly, was unfamiliar with. In May 1940, German troops had pushed Allied troops right up to the beaches at Dunkirk on the French coast. It's estimated that over 300,000 soldiers were trapped between the powerful German army and the sea. Evacuating 300 thousand plus troops with the limited naval resources available seemed an impossible feat.

Winston Churchill, the new prime minister, ordered the commander of the British Expeditionary Force, Lord Gort, to evacuate as many British troops as possible. And so Operation Dynamo was initiated, led by Vice-Admiral Bertram Ramsay. A call was put out for as many seagoing vessels as could be found to cross the channel and aid in the evacuation. It was estimated that only 45,000 could be evacuated in 48 hours. 933 vessels were involved in the rescue, 700 of which were "little boats" with civilians at the helm. British boat captains responded in private yachts, motor launches, lifeboats, paddle steamers, and barges. Regular civilians came with whatever they had to rescue the soldiers stranded at Dunkirk. Even a 14-ft open top fishing boat was involved in the rescue efforts. That boat now is on display in the the Imperial War Museum.

Over 8 days, 338,226 allied troops were rescued from the beaches at Dunkirk.

Reuters image

Watching the weather situation in Texas yesterday as a result of Hurricane Harvey, I couldn't help but be reminded of the events dramatized in the Dunkirk movie. The Weather Channel and other news coverage showed the efforts of regular citizens using every manner of floating device to rescue their neighbors from the rising floodwaters.

Boston Globe image

I saw canoes, kayaks, rafts, jon boats, jet skis, air boats, pontoon boats, bass boats... just about anything that would float... brought to the aid of stranded neighbors. These people were strangers last week but are strangers no more.

Dunkirk is a port town in France. But, I think this week it is a city in Texas. Prayers for all those in southeast Texas and other parts of the gulf area affected by this catastrophic storm.

The Night They Tore Old Dixie Down

The Band's iconic song "The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down," released in 1969, features Virgil
Caine, a Confederate soldier who served on the Danville, VA supply train which had, once again, suffered destruction of the tracks at the hands of Union Major General John Stoneham's calvary.

The song, written by Robbie Robertson, talks about the last days of the Civil War (or the War Between the States if you are a southern loyalist) and the suffering of soldier and family. It's not a happy song but it's also not a song that overly romanticizes.

The reasons for and legitimacy of the Southern states' secession from the Union are hotly debated... even 150 years later. Many southerners describe the issues of federal power versus states' rights, economic/ tax fairness issues between the northern states and southern states, and political power/representation inequality as being major causal issues in the mid 1800's. No living southerner I know attempts to defend what is clearly the elephant in the room... slavery. It is disingenuous, however, for southern loyalists to say that slavery and the states' decision making power regarding slavery was not the major issue that overwhelms all the other issues. The fact that slavery had some defenders (or, at a minimum, people who were ambivalent) in the north does not change the most basic point. The southern states wanted to maintain the right to allow slavery and even expand it into the newer western states; the abolitionist sentiment in the north had severely strained the relationship between north and south. While slaveholders represented a very small percentage of the total southern population, the benefit of that economic "system" was not something southern leaders were willing to relinquish.

So, the southern states seceded and the war was on. The country, which was then less than 100 years old, was breaking apart and many felt that this could not be allowed to happen. (I believe that neither the Union nor the Confederacy could have survived long term separated from one another.)

Fast forward.... the South is defeated....soundly. The South is devastated both economically and psychologically... that's what happens when you are on the losing end of a war. But the war ends and the country has to be restored. But, in some ways, due to guilt, shame, inability to accept that the south lost, inability to accept that the north won the right to invoke its will concerning the contested issues, and a host of other reasons, the idea of "the lost cause of the Confederacy" arose which attempted to provide some amount of redemption for those that fought against the Union.

Confederate monuments began to be erected shortly after the war ended, and continued for years afterward. In 1911, the year that marked the 50 year anniversary of the war's outbreak, there were a significant number of monuments put up. These monuments and statues honored soldiers like General Robert E. Lee all the way down to soldiers like Sergeant Berry Benson, whose likeness sits atop the Confederate Monument in Augusta, GA. According to Wikipedia, there are over 1500 various symbols of the confederacy on public spaces across the United States. This includes statues, names on schools, roads, parks, bridges, counties, cities, lakes, dams, military bases, and other public works.

Today there is a renewed effort to rid the country of all things that might even suggest that the Confederate "cause" was honorable in any way. Some want to extinguish all visible symbols of the

Monument of African American Confederate soldiers

Confederacy and any persons who fought for or were sympathetic to that cause. Civil wars are unlike other country-versus-country wars. These wars involve a country tearing itself apart. For a civil war to end, the fighting has to eventually stop, even after soldiers stop shooting at one another....especially after the soldiers stop shooting at one another. If not, healing never occurs. In many ways, the racial strife we still see today is due to that war never truly coming to an end. And that's painfully unfortunate. Sadly, slavery in the South was replaced by segregation. And we had hoped that the evil and attitudes of segregation had been beaten into submission 50 years ago.

I just don't see, though, what tearing down all these monuments accomplishes unless it's seen as a way to exact some new punishment for the past sins of slavery and segregation. But then what? Does it solve a single problem? Some may think that we still need to tear Old Dixie down. While tearing down may not create another war with armed soldier combatants, it does run the risk of causing so much bitterness that we effectively launch a whole new civil war. And no one wins that one. Let's allow those monuments to be reminders that we cannot ever do that to ourselves again.

Unequivocal

Crystal clear

Big word. This one will score you big points in Scrabble. It can also score you big points if you are trying to be clear and committed.

Here is how the English Oxford dictionary defines it:

"leaving no doubt, unambiguous"

Merriam-Webster adds the word "clear" to the definition.

Collins English Dictionary says: "If you describe someone's attitude as unequivocal, you mean that it is completely clear and very firm."

Maybe, when you were a kid, your mom or dad instructed you on something important and then asked you, "is this crystal clear?" You knew they were serious and it was important that you understood. Because... there is clear... and then there is crystal clear. Unequivocal is crystal clear.

Some statements deserve unequivocation. Things like apologies. If you apologize and then add the word "but" followed by some further commentary... you may not have truly apologized.

When President Trump commented in response to the threats made by North Korea's Kim Jong-un, he was unequivocal. It was important to give a clear message.

President Trump had the opportunity to deliver a clear message to the white supremacists that gathered in Charlottesville, VA. Yes, they have the First Amendment right to deliver their message even if it is a hateful one. Yes, they have the right to protest and demonstrate. The rights contained in our Bill of Rights can sometimes be messy that way. Calling out a group of racists does not, however, require you to call out another group of people on the opposite side of the argument/ cause that may have responded badly. That's equivocation. And that's what he did.

I condemn in the strongest way the attitude and message of white supremacists. Their message is particularly dangerous. It is dangerous because whites make up about 70% of our population and the opportunity exists for their message to gain traction or to gain sympathizers. We can't allow that to happen. Some of what they say sounds appealing to those who would never consider themselves to be racist. Some can become sympathetic because of the actions and statements of those who confront them. But we can never be sympathetic to white supremacists because, at their core, they believe that another group of people is inferior or undeserving of equal treatment. Many of them identify as Nazis for a reason. History has seen this before.

Unfortunately, they and their predecessors have always been around. Our country has a painful history of slavery and terrible attitudes and actions towards African-Americans. I remember as an 11 year old watching fully hooded KKK members marching through the street in Beaufort, SC. I didn't understand the message and hatred then and I don't understand it now.

Any statement that suggests that "this group is just as wrong as that group" reeks of equivocation.

Condemning racism requires you to be clear. Speak in the strongest of language. No "if, ands or buts"

The Way Things Used To Be

"Why can't things be the way they used to be?" "I wish we could could go back to the good old days." Have you ever heard anyone say this? My guess is you've heard it a lot recently. Maybe you have even said it yourself. Certainly we all can get nostalgic for times in the past when life seemed simpler. In many cases it is a desire to go back to a time when we were younger... maybe when our grandparents or maybe even our parents were still alive. On the other hand, it may be a time when you felt more comfortable, more in control, more in charge of things.

So if you have a yearning to reverse course and go back to the "way things used to be," I'd be curious to know what time in your past you specifically are talking about. What time in American history do you consider to be the "good old days?"

Unless you are over 100 years old, the earliest a very small number of you may look back on fondly would be the 1930's. Not to give a history lesson here but, I believe the 1930's was one of the toughest decades in our history. The Great Depression began at the end of the prior decade so, unless you were unaffected by the stock market crash, bank closures and job losses, you experienced some serious financial hardships, possible homelessness and hunger during those years. The Great Plains states suffered through the Dust Bowl causing many to lose everything and forcing them to uproot their families and head to California seeking opportunity. Unemployment in the US was as high as 50% for African-Americans (who, if they had jobs, were generally paid 30% less than whites) while the rest of America experienced 30% unemployment. Other minorities in America also suffered as many whites felt that any job held by a minority was taking their rightful job away from them. Lynchings of blacks continued into the 1930's. Congress attempted to pass anti-lynching legislation but it was thwarted by Southern legislators.

Of course, you may mean the 1940's as the times in which you'd like to return. Hitler invaded Poland on September 1, 1939 and World War II began, throwing the world into war in the 1940's. The Japanese surprise attacked Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941. Within 3 days the US entered the war, declaring war on Japan as well as Germany and Italy. 110,000 Japanese, most of whom were loyal Americans (75,000 were US citizens,) were rounded up and placed in detention camps because of their Japanese ancestry. Over 400,000 Americans were killed during the war. Many more times than that were wounded. Race riots in Detroit and Harlem in 1943 caused 40 deaths and 700 injuries. Racial segregation continued to exist in the 1940's. In 1945, California passed legislation "prohibiting marriage between whites and 'Negroes, mulattos, Mongolians, and Malays.'" Equal treatment for women in the workplace was not practiced nor required in the 1940's. Good times.

You probably mean the 1950's. World War II was over for nearly 5 years but the Cold War was already in full swing. Six months into the 1950's, North Korea crossed the 38th parallel invading South Korea thus beginning the Korean War. Nearly 40,000 Americans died and over 100,000 were wounded in the three years before the cease fire was finally agreed upon. The US began its presence in Vietnam by providing training to the South Vietnamese. The US Supreme Court ruled in 1954 that racial segregation in public schools was unconstitutional. Southern states continue their fight to keep schools segregated. In 1957, Arkansas National Guard troops are ordered by the governor to Little Rock to prevent nine black students from attending Central High, an all-white school. In December 1955, Rosa Parks refuses to give up her seat (in the "colored" section) to a white man on a Montgomery, AL bus after the whites-only section had filled up. Her act of defiance and the later bus boycott gives traction to the modern civil rights movement. Many look fondly on the 1950's as the US economy rebounded from the war years. Unfortunately, minorities who fought bravely during WWII and Korea were still treated as second class citizens at home. Might have been the good old days for you... not so much for them.

So maybe you are talking about the 1960's? John F. Kennedy, the space race (eventually landing a man on the moon in 1969,) and the explosion of pop music of many persuasions, television, and cool cars were notables of the 1960's. Civil rights legislation passed through Congress banning discrimination in jobs, voting and accommodation. President Johnson signs the Voting Rights Act of 1965, to include outlawing the requirement of potential voters to pass a literacy test. Thurgood Marshall becomes the first black Supreme Court justice in 1967. But the 1960's also produces the Bay of Pigs debacle in Cuba and the resulting Cuban Missile crisis, where the US and Russia were on the brink of nuclear war. US involvement in Vietnam escalates to the point of over 300,000 US troops involved. Over 50,000 would die before the war ends. Assassinations of President John F. Kennedy, Martin Luther King and presidential hopeful Senator Robert F. Kennedy all occur in the 1960's. Racial tensions remained very high with race riots occurring all over the country. The notion of racial equality continued to be vigorously challenged throughout portions of the United States. So much occurred during the 1960's that itemization of the events seems almost impossible. To say the 1960's were turbulent would be a gross understatement. Were these the the good old days you speak of?

The 70's saw the end of the Vietnam war and the shunning of many of its veterans. Spit upon and called baby killers, these soldiers never experienced the affection from their country afforded to their WWII and Korean war predecessors. The 70's were when we learned of the Watergate scandal eventually leading to the resignation of President Richard Nixon as well as the conviction of many of his top aides including the former Attorney General John Mitchell. In a very controversial move, Nixon was pardoned by President Gerald Ford who had assumed the presidency upon Nixon's resignation. Four students, protesting the Vietnam war at Kent State University, were shot and killed by National Guard troops. The Supreme Court ruled in Roe vs. Wade that a state cannot prevent a woman from having an abortion performed during the first six months of pregnancy. The 1970's sees the Middle East oil embargo causing significant gas shortages and further tensions in that region. Sixty-three American embassy workers are taken hostage by Iran. Popularity of disco music and bell bottoms become widespread in the 1970's...enough said about that. In a hugely surprising election, former Governor of Georgia Jimmy Carter is elected president in 1976. The economy falls into recession and mortgage interest rates begin a rise that peaks in the early 1980's. Do you want to return to the 1970's?

Rather than continuing this decade by decade itemization, let me ask a question. If you are white and are yearning for things to be "like they used to be," what do you mean? Because I don't hear black people talking about the "good old days." As Americans, shouldn't the good old days be good old days for all of us? If you are white and believe that this country primarily belongs to you, I vigorously reject your thinking and attitude. This is supposed to be a country of us. Stop trying to defend things in our past that are indefensible. Stop trying to find moral equivalences in every situation. Stop using the word "them" with disgust in your voice. Stop relying on politicians to solve what is wrong in our country. Examine your own heart. Be honest. Whites comprise an overwhelming majority in this country. If you are white and have lived in the US your whole life, you have no idea what it is like to live as a minority. You may want to believe that the inequality that minorities experience is entirely of their own making but then I would say you are delusional. If you think that legislation can eliminate this reality you are wrong. No law can make a person respect and perceive another as an equal. But that's what our American covenant with one another says we are to do. The good old days are a work in progress. They are not in the past.

"Recalculating Route"

GPS Recalculating Route

the trusty road atlas

I guess, by now, just about everyone owns some type of GPS device; whether it's the old school Garmin suction cupped to your car windshield, or your smartphone, or the GPS that came standard on your vehicle (which is obviously much newer than mine.) In the old days, if you were trying to get from Point A to Point B, you had to rely on a map. But even with a map, you had to figure out the best route to take. And then you had to try to not kill yourself and others while you periodically glanced over at the map.

But now, the magical GPS device not only routes you to your intended destination, but it also gives you turn-by-turn directions as you go. How did we ever get anywhere in the old days? Oh yeah, that's right.... we sometimes got lost or went the wrong way.

As a Christian, I strive to live my life in accordance with how God wants me to live. I believe that God has a will for my life and my desire is to live in such a way that I am in His will. Ultimately, God desires to be in relationship with me (you too!) and, because of the saving work of Jesus, I, despite my sin, have been restored into relationship with Him.

I have had conversations over the years with fellow Christians who have lamented to me about some thought, action or direction they have taken that they believe has taken them outside of God's will. And because of that, they struggle with the fear that they may have strayed too far from God and cannot find their way back. They feel like they are off-track...they feel lost. They may believe that God is mad at them and maybe has turned His back on them.

Gotten off track? Who hasn't?

Have you ever disobeyed your GPS? Maybe you deliberately chose to not follow the turn-by-turn direction because you thought you had a better way to get to where you were going. Sometimes we just get busy or distracted and sometimes we just miss a turn. If your GPS is like mine, you likely have heard these comforting words.... "recalculating route." Sure, you have gotten off track but your GPS knows where it is you want to go and it does not give up on you. If you get off route, it simply considers where you now are.... even if you are way off track, and assures you that it can still get you to where you are going.

I think God is a lot like my GPS. If you are seeking God and have a desire to be on the road leading to Him, he'll get you home. He can work with the wrong turns you have made. He can provide a new way to get there even when you deliberately ignore the previous instructions. "Recalculating route." Every time my GPS says that I get the assurance that I can still get to where I am going.

Repent! U Turns Allowed!

Sometimes I have gotten so far off track when traveling that my GPS gives me a very interesting instruction... "at the next safe location....turn around." You know you've messed up when you get that command. "Turn around." You need to do a complete change of direction when you get that one. Most of us are familiar with the word- repent. It's one of those bible words that we don't say very often and we might think it's one of those weighty theological terms. But it has a pretty simple definition. Repent basically means turn around... maybe more specifically- change the way you think. Sometimes I simply need to make some minor adjustments. Sometimes I need to repent!

Can you imagine if, when you got too far off track, that your GPS said... "I'm done with you. You obviously do not want to listen to me and my guidance so you are on your own. Goodbye." What kind of GPS would that be?

Your GPS does not do that.... it will continue, no matter what, to keep working to get you to your destination. God does not give up on you either. No matter how off-track you have gotten, He continues to say, "OK... I can still get you home from there." He's always working to get us home... to Himself.

Next time your GPS says "recalculating route," I want you to smile and think about how your Heavenly Father is there always guiding you to where you need to go.