June Trinity
There was a
man in the circle of the Pharisees, whose name was Nicodemus; he held high rank
among the Jews. He came to Jesus in the night and said, “Master, we know that
you are a high teacher of mankind, come to us from God, for no one can do such
signs of the Spirit as you do unless God himself is working together with him
in his deeds.”
Jesus answered and said to him, “The truth out of the spirit I say to
you: whoever is not born anew from above cannot behold the kingdom of God.”
Nicodemus said to him, “How can a man be born again when he is old? Can
he return to his mother’s womb to be born again a second time?
Jesus answered, “the truth out of the spirit I say to you: whoever
remains as he is, and does not come to a new birth out of the formative power
of the water and out of the breath of the spirit [or, …and is not born anew out of the spiritual power of eternal
becoming and out of being touched by the might of the spirit world] cannot enter into the kingdom of God. What is born out of earthly
elements is of earthly nature. But what is born out of the breath of the
spirit, is itself spirit. Do not wonder that I said to you that you must be
born anew from above. The spirit wind blows where it will; you hear the sound
of it, but you do not know where it comes from, or where it is going. So it is
with everyone who is born anew out of the breath of the spirit.
Nicodemus replied and said to him, “How can one attain this?”
Jesus
answered, “You are a teacher of Israel and do not know? Amen, the truth I say
to you: we speak of what we know, and we bear witness to what we have seen in
the spirit, but none of you accepts our testimony. When I speak to you of
earthly things and you do not believe them, how shall you believe when I want to
speak to you of heavenly things? No one has ascended to the spiritual world who
has not previously descended out of the spiritual world, that is, the Son of
Man.
 |
| van Dyck |
Just as Moses once lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, so must the
Son of Man be lifted up, so that everyone who finds his power in their hearts
can win a share in the higher life beyond time. God has so loved the world that
he has given his only begotten Son. From now on, no one who fills himself with his
power shall perish, for he will share in timeless, higher life. God did not
send the Son into the world to condemn it, but in order that the world be saved
[healed] through him, and not fall prey to ruin.”
1st June Trinity
John 3:1-17
We are approaching the
longest day, the shortest night of the year. The plants have grown
enthusiastically. Their flowering has released clouds of pollen. Carried up by
the wind and thermals, it will be kissed by the life-giving power of the sun.
When it returns to the plants, it will bring them the potential to create the
seeds of new life.
We too have our times when we
expand out into the universe. Mostly we do so unconsciously, in sleep. When we
return to our bodies in the morning, blessed and strengthened by an encounter
with our angel, we are refreshed and ready for the new life in a new day.
Nicodemus comes to Christ in the
realm of night. And Christ tries to make clear to him that it is now necessary
to become aware, to consciously work with these spiritual forces of new birth
from above with our day-waking consciousness. The spirit breath, the spirit
wind carries with it words of creation, the potential for the next step in the
evolution of humankind. The spirit gives us the impulses for the new—a new way,
a new direction, a new paradigm. For the old is falling away. But the spirit
needs our voluntary cooperation.
As we approach the zenith of
the year, it is time to open ourselves. It is time to receive the blessing and strength
from the spirit, for what is coming. We may not know where exactly which
direction the impulse for the new is coming from; we may not know where it will
lead us.
_-_WGA25579.jpg) |
| van der Weyden |
It will most certainly at
first lead us through the death of the old way, just as following Christ led
Nicodemus through the events of Christ’s death and resurrection. For we hear of
him helping to prepare Christ’s body for the tomb. John 19:39 Nevertheless, we can listen for the
sound of the spirit wind, and rise to hear the words of becoming, sounding on
the breath of the spirit. As we do so, we will begin to share in Christ’s
timeless, higher life. John 3:16
As poet said:
Beyond
living and dreaming
there
is something more important:
waking
up.[1]
www.thechristiancommunity.org
[1] Antonio Machado, The Winged Energy of Delight,
translations by Robert Bly
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