03 June 2007
Holy Trinity
What joy this feast day brings us! I know there are those who dread it because we get to confess the Athanasian Creed, but I must confess that I dearly love it. The hymns, the readings, the Anthanasian Creed, the preface - all of it points us to the God whose love was poured out in creation, manifested even more brightly in redemption, and shines within us by the Spirit of holiness. It's the last regular "feast" and thus stands between the half year of the Lord and the half year of the Church. The long green season is about to begin (with a few interruptions) and it will not be till next December that the crowded season of feasts resumes. But I'm definitely ready for some "ordinary time" as the Roman brothers and sisters call it. Plain old boring green is good: the season of growth.
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The Church Year is such a beautiful thing. Not only does it take us annually through the saving events in the life of Christ, it does so just like those events themselves as a fulfillment of the great events of the Hebrew Bible and the calendar of the synagogue.
"Easter", or better, Pascha, and Pentecost are the Messianic fulfillment of two of the three great festivals of the Law, Passover and Pentecost. But I always wondered, and never figured out until I was Lutheran, what happened to the third, the Days of Awe and Tabernacles, which kind of disappear. They don't, actually, and I plan a post about that on my blog.
When I was a Roman brother, "Ordinary Time" was not what this time was called. That began in 1970. Before that, it was the Time of Pentecost, and the Sundays were called the X Sunday after Pentecost. One of the things that first struck me as strange about the traditional Lutheran year, now unfortunately an option along with a Vatican II derived year, but which I came to love and appreciate, was Trinity Sunday which is the start of the Time After Pentecost, with the Sundays after being the X Sunday after Trinity. Even my old St Jospeph Missal says of Trinity Sunday "Everything in our Christian Religion is related to the Holy Trinity: Creation, Sanctification, and Salvation."
I note the LSB lays out the church year, both the real one and the Vatican II wannabe one, under three great "Times", of Christmas, of Easter, of the Church. For by whatever name, in this time until the cycle begins again the church reflects on what has been laid out for us through the Christmas and Easter time of the Lord, which even the non-sacramental therefore non-liturgical churches have to refer -- in that sense, there is nothing "ordinary" about it (Rome misses again!) but a time to rejoice and reflect and renew in what He has done for us!
Can you maybe help explain a couple things from this morning? For one thing, we've always used the TLH proper preface. This morning was LSB. Somehow, the way the chant-tone is written makes it sound like "who art with
the Holy Ghost one God, one Lord, in the confession of the only true God," instead of "in the confession of the only true
God, we worship the trinity in person and the unity in substance...." It sounds like that "in the confession of" goes with the preceeding clause instead of the one that comes after. How can that be sung without us laymen hearing the first two mushed together instead of the second two?
The other thing I wondered about this morning was the introit. Was that just an oops in the editing? Verse 4 was left out, so verses 3 and 5 were left (subordinate clauses though they be) without a noun and a predicate in the sentence. I got lost in the service for the next couple of minutes, trying to figure out what I was supposed to be praying in the introit. Finally, I opened up the front of the hymnal to the psalm and discovered what had been done to the introit. But I can't figure out WHY they put the introit together like that.
One thing I do not miss is Quicunque vult! :)
'Zeke+
Susan,
I think you put your finger on too oops. In the Preface, since it begins a new sentence, even it uses those tones, it should be indicated that there is a full stop, rather than the "breath" line or whatever they call it. The line should run across the whole clef.
On the Introit, that is most definitely a screw up. I'm not sure how that happened. But I didn't notice today because we used an Entrance Hymn in place of the Introit. I hope someone from the Commission is reading and can add that to the "fix ups" in the second edition.
Zeke??? I like it. Much more elegant than old... ;)
I noticed that John referenced the Quincunque in his homily this a.m.
Indeed he did. I still don't miss it!:) Actually, what I don't miss is the "confusion" it seemed to cause amongst some of the folk ... didn't dare used "catholic" you know, and this day and age would certainly prefer a "get out of hell free" card to a faith actually lived.
Thanks for the "pen plug" in your post about the lovely Braun family. Now -- pony up and buy some! :)
BTW: I don't remember: did I give you and Cindi pens? This year and a half has gone by so quickly, I don't remember!
But ..
back to your discussion. Today was All Saints for us -- Holy Trinity is year round! :)
Zeke+
You know, we're always looking for SOMETHING to give my father-in-law that he would enjoy and that he doesn't have. You need to let me know how much you are selling them for. I think he'd really enjoy some.
Actually, my one member who is upset about "catholic" in that Creed (he's an ex-Roman) wasn't there this year, so I didn't get the usual on his way out of church! :)
Past Elder,
I agree: Ordinary time is rather lame name for it. I repent of its use. In the Altar Book, right above the propers for today in bold letters: The Time of the Church.
The designation Ordinary Time is one on a huge list of things that made no sense to me after the Council. What is that? At the least the phrase Xth Sunday after Pentecost related it to the direction of the cycle. As does the phrase Time of the Church, or X Sonntag nach Trinitatis, which is what I have come to love. At least we didn't appropriate the X Sunday in Ordinary Time with the lectionary and calendar of Vatican II -- whose changes to the historic practice of the church I think it is becoming my crusade to sound the alarm against among us as equally injurious with Saddleback and Willow Creek et al.!
Interesting your ex-Roman. As one myself, I cherish the term "catholic" because it underscores to me what the evangelical Lutheran church is, the catholic church, which I am now more truly in, as opposed to the Catholic Church, a denomination within it with some serious errors. I used to think Lutherans were just trying to be Catholic without being Catholic. Now I see what they -- we -- really are: catholic. It would be a shame to let Rome rob us of a term which so precisely describes us.
Nothing on Trinity -- I woke up during the night and found our dog Sheba passed away during her sleep, on the bed.
She was picked out by Nancy, my wife and the boys' mom, who herself has been gone almost ten years.
Just like Smokie the cat, Sheba spared me the dreaded trip to the vet, though as her health continued to fail that would have been needed.
I hope it won't be too hard on the boys, 9 and 10. Haven't decided yet whether to have a burial in the backyard or have the body disposed of by the humane society. Smokie was buried in the back yard.
So it is our time to say as we spoke about not too long ago -- Ich mache alles neu. I'll tell the boys when I get them up in a couple hours. They could see her health was failing and knew the time would come, but it's always a little different when the time does come.
Lord, have mercy, Terry! I'll keep you guys in my prayers today. That's got to be very hard for them and for you. But that's right: Alles neu!
A bit of a clarification of "ordinary" time in the Roman calendar:
The rest of the year following Epiphany and Pentecost is known as Ordinary Time. Rather than meaning "common" or "mundane," this term comes from the word "ordinal," which simply means counted time (First Sunday after Pentecost, etc.), which is probably a better way to think of this time of the year. Counted time after Pentecost always begins with Trinity Sunday (the first Sunday after Pentecost) and ends with Christ the King Sunday or the Reign of Christ the King (last Sunday before the beginning of Advent).
My deepest condolences on the loss of Sheba, Past Elder. It's always hard to lose a friend.
It's about 1230 where I am. Both boys heard the news and said their good-bye. The older one is more like me, stiller water, but deeper water, than the younger one, and he will take more time. We've opted for burial in the back yard, which Frank (older) clearly said would be better for him, like with Smoikie, she's not just someplace but we know where she rests. The things we discussed after Pumpkin were part of my talk with them, and I thank you that we had the opportunity to share about that not so long before I would need it myself.
For me too, it is also a loss of a part of Nancy, who picked her out and brought her home without me knowing it -- one of the few times something happened without discussion first, but I think she knew I was a dog guy and it would be fine, and it was. This was the Christmas before the older (Frank) was born, so both boys (the younger is Zach) have known her all their lives.
Frank is with me to-day and Zach is at his day care. We will have a little funeral later when both boys are home, and alles neu no doubt will be said again.
y mind isn't really on it right now, so I'll just say the ordinal nature of "Ordinary Time" is to me clearer when we actually count from something -- X Sunday after Trinity, or Pentecost.
so I'll just say the ordinal nature of "Ordinary Time" is to me clearer when we actually count from something -- X Sunday after Trinity, or Pentecost.
Perfectly acceptable. I just wanted to address that the "ordinary" in "Ordinary Time" did not devalue this season of the Church Year from any other.
A friend of mine recently lost her much beloved Golden Retriever. She had him cremated by a pet funeral service and the ashes placed in a special wooden box that has room on the front for his picture.
Some folks might find that to be too much but I rather like the idea.
I do know I am going to save a goodly piece of my dog's beautiful creamy coat when his time comes (please, let it be in his sleep !)
Well we just had our funeral in the garage and burial in the backyard. It went well, really. All three of us expressed gratitude for the times we had, and also the idea the salvation is for all of fallen creation, for us as sinners, but also that all creation participates in the world to come.
We actually have a new dog -- which might seem a little soon, and I did talk to the Humane Society people about it. They suggested bringing Frank in to see some dogs, and if he began to cry, it's too soon. He didn't. In fact he already by afternoon expressed he can handle Sheba being gone but can't handle being without a dog, and the kennel where we ended up too said if the boys understand that, they'll be OK.
We discussed pet cremation, which is what is usually done here, but it just didn't seem right to Frank (cremation doesn't seem quite right to me either, so he's his father's son) plus both like the idea that our deceased pets are buried on our property -- two of them now.
Yes it was a blessing that Sheba went peacefully,and the boys know that too, that it could have been a lot worse had she lingered on and got worse and worse.
Funny how I had the day off. Thus had time to do all this. I'm not one to holler God at every good timing, but in this case, I think he was working everything to-gether for the best, short of the new heavens and the new earth when we all are to-gether again.
Thank you all for your support and words. The Internet can be a rough place, but also another form of fellowship and comfort.
AH! The Anthanasian Creed! Who doesn't like the Anthanasian Creed????!!!! FUR SHAME! I love that Creed. We'd say it every Sunday if I had my way.
Dear Past Elder,
From reading your posts it seems to me that your children have been blessed with a wonderful father and that father has been blessed with wonderful children!
What a great way to honor the memory of your beloved Sheba by taking into your home another dog in need of a family.
In another time and place, you and the boys will see Sheba running towards you, no doubt ready to jump into your arms when He indeed does make all things new.
Thank you, Christine, and thanks for stopping by my blog. You can even read the Little Catechism in German there!
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