Husband. Father. Anglican Priest.
Today the Church observes the Feast of Saint Barnabas. He stood before the apostles in Jerusalem and vouched for Saul when no one else would. If he had been wrong, the cost would have been real. He was not wrong. The man he testified for wrote half the New Testament.
The Pharisees had the sacrifices exactly right. They’d lost the "hesed". Jesus quotes Hosea to the Bible scholars: ‘I desire mercy, and not sacrifice.’ Without the inner reality, the outward form is a morning cloud — gone before noon.
The Visitation reminds us that some of God’s greatest works unfold quietly. A greeting, a leap, and a song, and the Lord is already in the midst of his people. Faith receives grace, and grace turns us outward in love.
Why does the church observe a feast rooted in the Advent story on May 31st, right in the middle of Trinity season? The answer reveals something surprising about how the church orders time, and something beautiful about the scene at the heart of this feast.
The Trinity is not primarily a doctrine to master, it is a God to worship. On Trinity Sunday we look past the acts of salvation to the one who performed them. We have been receiving his gifts all season. Today we behold the giver.
Trinity Sunday is unlike any other Principal Feast. It doesn't commemorate an event; it celebrates who God eternally is: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. This week we explore the history, doctrine, and significance of the day the church sets aside to worship the Triune God.