Today is the Feast of the Holy Trinity, and all I keep thinking about as I reflect on this Feast is my trio of little boys laughing hysterically while they played “Plants vs Zombies” on their iPads yesterday.
They begged us to download this game all week, and so we finally did yesterday afternoon. About five minutes into playing, my oldest declared the game the best game he had ever played in his whole life. (Most new games get this distinction until another new one comes along).
It was kinda nice to watch them laugh and chat excitedly about the game as they played. It was also nice to see them run to each other to show off a new cool plant or zombie they acquired (or whatever, mom is not up on this game’s lingo). Occasionally, they would also run up and ask dad (the video game guru) for help.
At some point, they ended up piled up next to each other on the couch creating their little plant and zombie worlds, legs and laughter intertwined in one big knot.
This is how I hope they always will be – tangled up in each other’s lives – the celebrations and the sorrows. So close sometimes that it’s hard to tell where one ends and the other begins.
This morning, as I thought about this huge and complex teaching of the Holy Trinity for Trinity Sunday, I struggled to put words on the screen.
I drew this ancient symbol of the Trinity because it never fails to remind me of the unity and distinction present in the Trinity. It reminds me of the tight knit relationship as well. Sometimes symbols help express things words cannot.
But I also like this quote I found by Meister Eckhart because it reflects some of the most important components of relationship: laughter, liking, delighting, and loving.
No human words to describe our Triune God will be sufficient, but maybe a combination of the image of three boys laughing hysterically all tangled up together, an ancient symbol, and a wise theologian’s quote will be a step forward today.
May you be blessed with laughter, delight, love, unity and relationship today – and see them as signs of the Trinity at work in your life.⠀
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