Sermon preached by the Rev. John Kafwanka

Trinity Sunday, 30 May 2010

At the heart of the Triune God are two truths, Relationship and Unity & Diversity – that is, God is relational both in terms God’s relationship with the created order but also God’s relationship within God’s being – Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.

When Jesus prayed for unity among his followers (John 17:11-12)., he knew very well how different they were as individuals and as a group – they were very diverse in many ways, different social background, different characters, etc.

I understand diversity in terms of being a human reality that exists NOT only among or between different cultures and languages, but even among people who speak one language and come from same culture.

Even people who come from one family don’t think, behave and act the same – they have different interests, skills & abilities, have different opinion on life and other matters. So, there is diversity even in a family! Diversity is a ‘given’, and not something human beings make!

Often diversity is portrayed in the negative light – so, for instance we ask “How can the Anglican Church world-wide (also known as Anglican Communion), with so many diverse cultures and languages, and liturgies, so many ways of expressing their faith, can ever dream of unity?”

The question has even been more heightened in the last few years when the Anglican Church has experienced significant pain and strained relationships. Diversity is often been blamed as a cause!

Within society, and depending on where one is, diversity is regarded as a bad, because, for instance, ‘we can’t any more simply be who we are without seeing in our neighbourhood people who look different from us, who behave differently, who speak differently, and in some instances people who have a different religion from us! This, so called, diversity is simply a sham and a betrayal of our historical existence!’

Well, may I say that diversity is not such a bad thing after all – it’s part of our human existence! For me diversity is a gift God has given to humanity and to the rest of the creation. On another level diversity reflects who God is, the being of GOD - Father, Jesus Christ the Son, and the Holy Spirit (Creator, redeemer and advocate) – the Triune God.

I firmly believe that as society and especially as Church, we ought to celebrate diversity, which of course manifests in various forms – men & women, young & old, tall & short, bubbly & quiet, etc.

Everyone here for example is endowed with various gifts and skills, which we each bring to the body of Christ, the Church – in our commitment to God’s mission in the world, and particularly in the communities we live and serve.

We are blessed to have the various gifts we all have. But this is only possible because we are all different - we are diverse!

In the Pentecost experience, we see that diversity was never a hindrance to communicate God’s truth to the world – “each one heard them speaking in his own language” (Acts 2:6b).

In fact as the early Church became diverse, diversity became a tool to the growth of the Church but most importantly to the communicating of the message of God’s love to the world. It was not without problem for sure, as others wanted to confine the Gospel within one particular tradition and culture – but that was not to be - God had a higher agenda for the Church and the world.

The Holy Spirit enabled people of various languages and cultures to communicate God’s love to the equally diverse people and communities.

When we develop a sense of common mission and common purpose, diversity becomes a tool to accomplishing it and not a hindrance. A sense of unity of purpose is forged among people – not only those who serve but also among those who are served. It is beautiful and it’s what God wills for humanity.

Today is Trinity Sunday and I think that on this Sunday we ought to celebrate diversity and unity as God’s gift to all, and especially for the Christians. We also need to celebrate our relatedness to one another and to God.

One of the things I have always appreciated as an Anglican is the sheer variety and diverse ways Anglicans or Episcopalians carry out God’s mission in their communities and across the world. The variety and abundance of gifts and resources among Anglicans are a blessing not only to the Church but also to the communities in which we live and serve.

One of the things we do at the Anglican Communion Office, where I work, is to provide a platform, within the Communion, for exchange of experience and skills, and sharing of resources and gifts - an opportunity to learn from one another, and simply for mutual support and prayer.

I am committed to this work because I am convinced that the diversity that exists in the Anglican Communion (in spite of the challenges we face) is a gift God has given us for mission – for God’s mission to bring wholeness & healing, and hope to the world, and that people in our communities may experience God’s abundant and unconditional love.

That is what the Triune God has called us to, and that is what I believe we ought to celebrate on this Trinity Sunday. That God, Father, Son and the Holy Spirit, not only created the world but also entered the human world and identify with us in our suffering but also in happiness, in hopes and our aspirations.

Often when we talk about the Trinity, it sounds and feels rather remote and distant from us and from our world. It sounds merely a concept or dogma!

We are in fact referring to the Triune God, God who is always present with us and in our world, God who has been with us since creation and in creation. God who has more interest in our lives than we have in Him or appreciate.

This God comes in the world as human and makes himself vulnerable and suffers pain and death. This God also comes as the Holy Spirit to empower and give encouragement to the rather trembling and scared disciples, who do not know the direction and the future (John 20:19-20; Acts 2:1).

This Triune God continues to be present among us, whether we recognise his presence or not. God continues to invite us to participate in His mission to the world – to bring restoration and wholeness to our world and our communities.

So that the variety and diversity that exist may be seen as a tool for mission, for God’s mission to bring healing, restoration of relationships and wholeness to the world. That the Church may once again (or continue to) be a beacon of hope, and that we may be able to recognise in others, God’s image, in which we were created!

Amen