For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved. John 3:17

In the Name of the Father, of the Son and the Holy Spirit.

If you are a Roman Catholic or an Anglican, you will automatically say, “Amen”. It’s hard to imagine that this simple Trinitarian formula was a result of passionate and at times bitter theological debates splitting the church many times in its history. Most of the arguments seem a little confusing to us today; maybe even a little boring. It doesn’t mean that they were not important. We live in a different time and the things the early fathers thought were priority are no longer burning issues for us. None of this means that we comprehend the mystery of the Holy Trinity. We still need wrestle with it. The Trinity is a dynamic and sophisticated doctrine. Therefore, we do not want to ruin it with technical terms beyond a modern person’s comprehension. After all, it is about God. It should inspire and stir up in people a desire to know more about His mysterious character.

I thought about Felipe and the other youths. Well, the others are not quite there for me to have this kind of conversation with them. Felipe is different. He is beginning to think about God and life in a deeper manner. Every week he astonishes me with the things he comes up with. He is ready to tackle this complex issue about the Holy Trinity. In a subtle manner, I have already spoken to him about this special doctrine, albeit not explicitly. Actually, I just talked about a church with that name, “Paróquia de Santíssima Trindade” ( Church of the Holy Trinity). It was the first Anglican church we attended in this country. Mary was confirmed there too. It has an interesting story, more interesting than any theological debate about the divine economy between the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit.

It took us a while to find an Anglican church in this city. Mainly because we weren’t familiar with the city back then. This was a time before internet or mobile phones. It was before we got married or I was ordained. We were lay missionaries then. We walked into a sanctuary that once upon a time hosted a large congregation. We were encountered a small congregation of 25 to 30, mostly elderly people. Even the priest looked ancient. His hair was completely white and he had a bushy white mustache which made him even older. I didn’t get much from of the sermon, my Portuguese wasn’t up to par back then. However, thanks to the Prayer Book tradition, the liturgy was familiar. This church was definitely not what I was used to. The Anglican churches in Singapore have large congregations on Sundays and mostly a younger crowd. I thought that this church needed an injection of life and energy. I thought that maybe I could be instrumental in doing this. I admit, I was young and arrogant back then. Hopefully I have changed. Well, I am not young anymore…

This church once had a young and vibrant congregation. There were even a few prominent members of society in this church. However, it only took a chicken bone to upset the tranquility of this congregation. A street cleaner ran into the church asking the priest to help a friend who was choking on chicken bone lodged in her throat. He dropped everything and came to her rescue. She was taken to the hospital. The priest paid for all the expenses and ensured that she had the best care. He was just like the Good Samaritan in that parable we often hear about. On the first Sunday after her full recovery, she was in church with her children. Most of the members thought that she just came to express her gratitude. She lived in the outskirts, quite a distance away from the church. Her neighborhood was extremely poor and also known for crime and violence. There was very little done to help these poor communities back then. Even the public transport to these neighborhoods are precarious. She had to take several buses to come to the church. It was a long and arduous journey for her to come to this church. Nevertheless, she was there every Sunday. Each time, she brought a child from her community with her. Soon, there were a small group of children from this poor community in the church. They mingled with the other children and friendships were formed. She was bringing new life to this church. This disturbed the older members.

An ultimatum was given to the priest. It was “them” or the “new members”. Naturally, this was presented in a socially acceptable manner. They suggested that the priest organize a work in the poor community instead of making this woman drag her children to the church. They claimed that they were concerned for her financial well-being. The priest was a wise man. He took their suggestion and started a work in the community. He also got some members to help pay for the bus fares for the woman and the children to come to church every Sunday. Eventually, the disgruntled members left. It was a large exodus. The congregation was reduced to a small number with the presence of children from the poor community. The members that remained joined the priest and followed the guidance of the Holy Spirit. They went to the poor neighborhood weekly to visit with the families there. This handful of people I saw on my first Sunday were these people who worked many years in the community. They made sure all these children never felt like outsiders in the congregation. We were introduced to these people. All these people were saints. Their acts of love and kindness could fill volumes. The few young people in the church were formally from the poor neighborhood, including a pair of sisters. They told us the story of Mrs. Elizabeth; she was an elderly woman who spoke Portuguese with very strong American accent. She had been living in Brazil for almost fifty years. Her husband was the priest who started all this.

Unfortunately, he died in a tragic car accident not long these events. His widow, Elizabeth, decided to remain in Brazil and work in the community. It was common practice in the poorest community to keep the children locked in the house all alone while the parents were out working. The streets was too dangerous. There were no daycare services then. Little children were usually left alone in a small tiny space without anything to entertain them. The children were mostly unstimulated. Mrs. Elizabeth and a group of ladies from the church changed this. They visited these children every week. Mrs. Elizabeth used to stand outside by the window and talk to them in her limited Portuguese. They might not have understood everything she said but her love and affection were fluent. She embarked on a quest to teach them English. These little children in the worst neighborhood of São Paulo were getting private lessons from a native speaker. The children she taught learned to love her weekly presence. She opened their hearts and minds to a world that they never knew existed. The teachers who shared us this story were two of the children on the other side of the window. These sisters got an education through Elizabeth and eventually they went to college and became teachers. They started doing for others what Elizabeth had done for them.

Once Mary asked the priest of the church what he taught was the essential task of the Church in this city. He said, “We have to learn how to manifest the presence of Jesus in this world.” These weren’t just words. This church truly manifested the Spirit of Jesus in the community where they ministered. I walked into the church thinking I would change it. I ended being transformed by these saintly people. They helped me not to judge a church by appearances. This, by no means, was not an empty church. It was one completely occupied by the Divine Trinity. Anyone who enters this church won’t need to be convinced of the Holy Trinity. They can see the divine economy manifested in the lives of the members.

I told Felipe this story and he understood it. I am glad he did. His son is going to get baptized there once the pandemic is over. He wanted to baptize his son earlier and we are to be the godparents. Unfortunately, the church refused to do it because we are not members of their brand of Christianity. I talked to the present priest of Santíssima Trindade and he said that he would be delighted to baptize Felipe’s son, well maybe now, even his daughter. The church has changed now. There are more young people. It has grown in numbers but thankfully, it is still vibrant and spirit-filled like the first day when we visited this church.

“When the Advocate comes, whom I will send to you from the Father, the Spirit of truth who comes from the Father, he will testify on my behalf. John 15:26

Likewise the Spirit helps us in our weakness; for we do not know how to pray as we ought, but that very Spirit intercedes with sighs too deep for words. And God, who searches the heart, knows what is the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for the saints according to the will of God. Romans 8:26-27

All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other languages, as the Spirit gave them ability. Acts 2:4

Today we celebrate the Feast of Pentecost and we commemorate the day of the Holy Spirit by reading the gospels in different languages. It is our liturgical attempt to relive that glorious moment. It gives us a feeling of excitement and diversion. I am sure that the first disciples would have never used these words. Maybe they might have said confusing or even disturbing. Too many radical things had occurred in a short span of time. There was too much to process for any human being. They knew that Jesus was unique and special. He had changed everything in this world. They also knew that it was something that needed to be shared. At the same time, they were clueless on how to communicate everything they knew to the world. Therefore, it is not surprising that the first sign of the presence of Holy Spirit was the freeing of their tongues to break all barriers between humanity. The disciples were relieved from the burden: the weight of knowing the answer without being able to express it. Now, the Holy Spirit has overcome this obstacle. We can share the Answer to Humanity’s deepest and most profound question. The Holy Spirit has revealed that the words will come to us to communicate that Jesus is the Answer!

Once Mary and I were sitting on the steps talking with the youth when a complete stranger came to us and said, “The answer to all your problems is Jesus.” The children politely agreed and then waited for the person to leave. Immediately they continued with their conversation as if nothing had happened. In reality, nothing did happen. The person merely pronounced some empty words. She gave us an answer without knowing the question. No one doubted her sincerity neither did anyone pay attention to her message. Nothing was communicated. She perhaps believed that she was fulfilling her religious obligation. Nevertheless, Jesus did not send His disciples to fulfill a religious duty. He sent them out to heal the souls of people who were desperately seeking for the Answer to their soul’s deepest longing. The first step in healing is to listen to those who are suffering.

I am always amazed in the gospels the number of times when Jesus asked someone who was blind or lame, what they desired. I thought that it was obvious that they wanted to be healed. However, Jesus did not assume this. He did not think that he knew their’s deepest longing. He wanted them to express it. In a way, it prepared them to receive the healing. The early disciples knew this. They knew that having the answer alone was not enough. They needed to know the deep existential question that plagues the soul of every individual before they could administer the healing. Without knowing this, there is nothing significant to communicate. It would be a grave mistake to assume to know the question. No one can know the questions of another person’s soul except God’s spirit as St Paul explains in the verses above. Before we open our mouths to proclaim the answer, we need to listen to the voice of the Holy Spirit first in order to know the question.

Recently Bruno and I were having a light hearted conversation about our strange habits. I told him that I have a habit of falling asleep on the public bus. Once I take a seat, I go into deep sleep. There were countless times that I missed my stop and ended up in the bus terminal being woken up by the driver. Bruno laughed and shared that he does the same thing. He told me that when he was young, he loved riding on the public bus with his mother for this very reason. He found the rumbling of the bus’ engine comforting and it never failed to soothe him to sleep. He added that many times his mother would take this opportunity to leave him on the bus and go home without him. He said that he always found his way home much to the chagrin of his mother. She would always make excuses that she completely forgot to wake him. He said that he knew that she was just trying to get rid of him. He was smiling when he shared this. It was his funny story even though it was extremely poignant. Bruno did not want me to feel sorry for him. He wanted me to know that he was able to look at these things he suffered and be able to laugh at them. However, he wasn’t making light of his harsh reality. Our youths do not have the luxury to avoid their brutal past. However, he wanted to communicate something to me. He knew that I would understand. The truth is that I will never understand the kind of rejection which he has suffered. There is a great gulf between our life experiences. I grew up in a home where my parents would wait for me at the bus stop everyday. If I was a minute late, my father would go out looking for me. This was the environment in which I grew up. I did not deserve nor choose it. It just happened. Bruno did not choose his environment either. None of our children chose to be homeless. There is a social schism between us but the answer to our existential question is still the same. This has brought us together.

We convinced of the answer. This is why we are here. This is why we call ourselves Christians. Like the early disciples, we know that we cannot just sit on this. The Answer compels us to share it to everyone. Needless to say that we realized that going around saying Jesus is the Answer is just not going to cut it. We need to know the questions that our children are asking about themselves and their existence in order to speak the Answer meaningfully to them. Sometimes, it is tough just to formulate the question. I realized that our children do not know how to ask their own existential questions. They have gone through so much in their lives that everything seems confusing and painful. They need the Holy Spirit to free up their tongues so that they can express themselves clearly. Perhaps our greatest evangelistic task is not going around trying to impose an answer but rather to help them understand that there is gentle Spirit who will give them the ability to formulate the ultimate question in their souls. Maybe the Spirit is working through us. Each time they share a story from their lives, they are offering us a little piece for us to put together so that we will understand the deep questions of their souls. It is possible but we will never know. We just have to wait and pray until the Spirit opens our eyes and hearts to understand the questions so that we can help them discover the Answer.

I give you a new commandment, that you love one another. Just as I have loved you, you also should love one another. By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another. John 13:34-35

As the Father has loved me, so I have loved you; abide in my love. If you keep my commandments, you will abide in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commandments and abide in his love. I have said these things to you so that my joy may be in you, and that your joy may be complete. “This is my commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you.” John 15:9-12

I used to read these verses and say to myself, “Yes, I got this! These are beautiful and necessary words.” Then I would go on with life without giving it a second thought. I imagined that knowing this commandment was the same as living it. It is because I lived a comfortable and sheltered life where everyone around me was just like me. I was never challenged. Reading these verses in the streets among the homeless youth has changed everything. Suddenly these words have taken a whole new perspective. They have become one of the tough and difficult sayings of Jesus.

If I told our youth that they must love that person who made a snide remark to them in the way Jesus loved them, it would create a gulf between them and me. They would shake their heads and say, “Stephen doesn’t understand our world.” If they don’t think that I understand their reality, then naturally I can’t say anything relevant to them. However, this is an important commandment. It contains the good news for the youth. Nevertheless, I do feel a little embarrassed repeating these words. I lack the kind of authority Jesus had. It is better to read these words with them. Let them see for themselves that these are really Jesus’ words. After all, He knows more than anyone else about the true nature of this world. He met many egocentric and ungrateful people in His life on earth. He heard many flattering words about Him that meant nothing. He wasn’t fooled by the enthusiasm of the multitude. He even said that they were untrustworthy. Furthermore, He was aware that his close friend was going to betray him unto a certain cruel death, yet He never faltered in His love for him. He saw through the hypocrisy of the religious leaders and their murderous hearts. Yes, Jesus was completely aware of the presence of evil in this world. Despite this, His final advice for living a joyful life in this world is to love another as He loved us. This is what He discovered in His life on earth. It’s His legacy to us.

Nietzsche, a notorious enemy of Christianity who also was once a student of theology, commented that there is only one true Christian in this world and He died two thousand years ago. He wasn’t mocking when he said this. He was being honest. He thought that it was virtually impossible to follow in Jesus’ footsteps. Only Jesus was able to be Jesus and the rest of us are pretty sad in comparison. Maybe we need to think about this first. Can we ever love anyone in the way Jesus loves us? If not, then it would be rather cruel of Jesus to set such a high standard that no one could attain. On top of that, He made it necessary for our joyous living in this world. We know that Jesus wouldn’t do such a thing. Therefore, there must be answer or at least several answers for living out this commandment. Ignorance is not one of them.

I have a dear friend from seminary who is a Lutheran pastor. He began his pastoral ministry as a prison chaplain. He ministered to people who perpetrated the most heinous crimes, the kind which would make it easy for us to despise them. My friend had to face these people every day. He was Jesus’ ambassador to these people. He was challenged to love the unlovable. Everyday my friend confronted people who were unrepentant of what they did. Every day he fought against hatred. He is a loving person by nature, even then it is hard not to have anger and hatred in our hearts when we meet people who don’t care about another human being. He served out his time as a chaplain. It is safe to say that there were no major breakthroughs. None of the incarcerated become a saint as a result of my friend’s ministry. Nothing spectacular happened except for one simple miracle. My friend came home each day free from hatred. It constantly taunted him but was not able to consume him. He was able to see these men as human beings despite their monstrous crimes. He was able to see the image of God in them even though it has been clouded by their sin. He hoped that in the brief moments he spent with each one of them, they knew that he saw them as human beings and not as monsters. It was all he could do. It was enough. It helped him persevere in this dark place and not succumb to its darkness.

My friend would tell me that he did not intentionally try to fulfill this commandment when he ministered there. He tried his best to deal with these men. The truth is that in this extreme circumstances, we tend to understand the deep meaning of love. As Christians, we believe that the presence of Jesus in this world was to show us how to become truly human beings reflecting the image of God. All of us wear a distorted image of God. Jesus was able to perceive our true nature: the way God sees us. The only way He could see us as who we are supposed to be is through Love. If we only see distorted and wicked humans around us, then we would end up in despair. However, if we are able to see people the way Jesus sees them, then we can see Hope even in the most hopeless situation. This commandment is really for us. It is for our joy.

Thankfully, most of us don’t have to deal with the kind of people that my friend confronted on a daily basis. Maybe some reading this minister in the prison system. These can appreciate what my friend experienced. Our homeless youth deal with murderers and corrupt and violent police apart from mean spirited people. The rest of us are fortunate to be in a comfortable space. There is nothing wrong about this. Being in a so-called safe place doesn’t mean that we are immune to the cycle of hatred being propagated in this world. When we turn on the T.V., we see news that demonizes and dehumanizes people who are different from us. There is nothing being reported to help us see God’s image in the people. To the contrary, these reports serve to promote hatred. We need to stop the influx of hatred in our lives. A good start is to stop allowing hatred to invade any space in our lives. The commandment of Jesus is hard enough without all the negative input. We don’t need to hear about the nasty things humans do to each other hundred of miles away or even in our own neighborhood to make it more difficult.

This commandment is about us living our lives in this world. All we need to do is to step out of our homes and we meet people who have succumbed to hatred and bitterness. Sometimes they belong to our families. Other times we meet them by chance saying hurtful words. They might even be in our religious communities. Jesus did not ask us to change them. We don’t have that capability. He just does not want us to succumb to the hatred that is out there. This is not an easy commandment. It was never meant to be easy. We cannot honestly say that we can fulfill it. We can struggle with it each day in this world filled with hatred. It is a daily endeavor. The reward is at the end of each day as we can truly appreciate how much Jesus loves us because despite our frailty. He still believes that we can reflect God’s image in this world. This is our joy and strength to flourish in this world.