¹²“I still have many things to say to you, but you cannot bear them now.¹³When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all the truth; for he will not speak on his own, but will speak whatever he hears, and he will declare to you the things that are to come. ¹⁴He will glorify me, because he will take what is mine and declare it to you. ¹⁵All that the Father has is mine. For this reason I said that he will take what is mine and declare it to you. (John 16:12-15)

The Feast of Pentecost celebrated last Sunday completes something revealed through the Christian story. It brings together the mystery of creative purpose, the human divine reality that walked and continues to walk amongst us and the energy of the ever-present and always abiding spirit. The ancients saw this as the dance of perfect relationship within the one overarching and and ever-loving universal God – described traditionally as Father, Son and Holy Spirit – three-in-one.

Trinity Sunday, the Sunday following Pentecost, sees many pulpit attempts to convey this understanding.

Next Sunday celebrates Pentecost. The Christian faith story left the season of Easter last Thursday by marking the Ascension of the risen Christ – launched out of the midst of the disciples who were still getting used to seeing him around in resurrected form. They are bereft all over again. He’s no longer there? Could they have just imagined these past days of being with him? Had their collective grief been playing tricks on them? But the teaching and promise of these last days has lingered. It’s one thing to have his physical presence with them. It’s another to have a pouring out of an abiding presence of Christ that empowers, emboldens and transforms. This presence, this Holy Spirit, is now immanent. All they have to do is wait. And it will come as Jerusalem celebrates the Festival of Booths (Shavuot) – otherwise known to Christians as Pentecost. They wait…