Owing to commitments in other areas of our lives, so many of our fellowship are scattered to the winds next Sunday (10 June 2023) that we have cancelled our regular gathering. Watch this space for news of the next time we will meet together.
04 June 2023
Long ago friend, long ago quote, fresh idea? Something from a Unitarian on Trinity Sunday
These words came from someone I once knew, who has long since moved away, as have I.
On this day, which most churches label as 'Trinity Sunday', it might be quite reasonable to ask what the difference between and Unitarian and a Trinitarian is. Actually, it might be less than you imagine, given that these words were written by a priest in the Church of England, and I as a Unitarian am happy to entertain them, in the light of the Hindu saying: "You think you understand two, because you understand one, and 'one and one make two'. But first you must understand 'and.' "
We come to the Trinity. God in three persons. Trinity is logical non-sense. How can one be three and vice versa? But at the heart of Trinity is relationship and not logic. God is relationship embodied. How can “one” have a relationship with itself? From a human point of view this would be extreme narcissism. But how do you say being connected is at the heart of what it means to be? Who each of us is, is only seen and known in relationship to someone or something else. I am the son of Andrew, the brother of Tim, the person who ignored the beggar on 59th St etc. Relationship is at the core of all existence. Trinity is the expression of God beginning and continuing as relationship. And ultimately, we know ourselves most fully when we see ourselves in relationship to Him who is Life itself. Karl Rahner has described Creation as “God becoming present to himself.” In a very real sense, all of us is God becoming present to each other as well.
Andrew Staley
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