June Trinity
John 3: 1-17 (adapted from Madsen)
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| Nicodemus, Hendrik Crijn |
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?”
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| William Blake |
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.
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
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| Cedar Pollen |
We are approaching the
longest day, the shortest night of the year. The plants have released clouds of
pollen. Carried up by the wind and thermals, the pollen 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.
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
Nicodemus helping to prepare Christ’s body for the tomb. John
As poet said:
Beyond
living and dreaming
there
is something more important:
waking
up.*
*Antonio Machado, The Winged Energy of Delight,
translations by Robert Bly
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