Jesus always used nature to teach his followers the deepest truths about life and the Kingdom of God. In the Parable of the Sower he actually said:- “The seed is the word of God.” Not ‘like the word of God’ but ‘IS the word of God’. Nature reveals the workings of God. This is a two way process. As we look at nature it can teach us about God. As we think about God that can teach us about life and nature.
It is a wonderful time of the year with all the colour of flower and blossom, and new growth opening out in exuberant fullness, to cover, and transform, the bare outlines of Winter. I make no claims to any competence in Biology or Ecology, but you do not have to be an expert to witness the inter-dependence and interconnection across the spectrum of nature, in environment and climate; in flora and fauna. Sunday 6 June is Trinity Sunday. It always strikes me it is just the right time in the cycle of nature, to celebrate the festival of Trinity: the fullness of God as Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Having followed through each detail of Christ’s life and ministry, Passion and Resurrection, it is as though we have progressively witnessed the growth of our understanding of God from bare outline to the complete picture – like putting individual pieces into a jigsaw till it is complete – it all fits together and is interlinked.
At the risk of gross oversimplification, it could be said that the Christian faith in this country has grown from two separate strands of tradition. The one, which came from Augustine and Canterbury, represents the more formal and structured expression of faith. Increasingly today, we are ‘rediscovering’ the other influence which came via St Patrick and Columba from Ireland to Iona and the mainland, representing the Celtic tradition. The Celtic expression of the Christian faith is rich in imagery which is intertwined with nature. Right from the time of St Francis who, in his ‘Canticle of the Sun’, wrote of ‘dear mother earth’ and regarded the animals as his brothers and sisters, there has been the experience of the ‘oneness’ of the whole creation. So, also, St Cuthbert, for example, in the North East, developed what could be called a ‘wildlife sanctuary’ a millennium before its more recent ‘invention’.
The Celtic Saints and Monks observed nature and saw how all life is connected and inter-dependent. They saw this in itself, as an illustration, not only of the worship of God, but of the very nature of God. It is not by chance that the Celtic tradition emphasises the Trinity – God as Father, Son and Holy Spirit. They came to see that God’s creation is an illustration, an outpouring, of his own nature. Our God is a God in relationship, a God of community. Right at the heart of our faith is God in three persons, blessed Trinity. The Celtic tradition is rich in imagery with highly intricate, interconnected illustrations – itself a pattern of the faith.
As we begin to appreciate and assimilate this part of Christian tradition, we begin to see our place within God’s creation. We are woven into the rhythm and pattern of life. As we do this we become part of that pattern and accept our place, living in harmony and wholeness. So the Christian year and the cycle of the seasons become the rhythm of our life and worship. Perhaps, too, we begin to appreciate that worship is not so much something we initiate and offer, but the ceaseless cycle of praise of which we become part, and which carries us. Our faith does not start with what we give, but with what we are given: it is not so much to do with what we achieve as what we receive.
As we celebrate the Festival of Trinity, at this lovely time of the year, may we accept in our hearts, in awe and wonder, that we are part of the great web of life – something so beautiful yet so delicate, and needing care and respect. Also that this is not only pattern and purpose, but the nature and being of God in Trinity, who is love, and who invites us to become part of his community of creation.
Yours sincerely
Peter Lee
Prayer of the Month: ‘Lord of Land and Sea’ by David Adam
Lord of land and sea
Reveal yourself to me
Keep my vision clear
To know you are near
At the rising of the dawn
In the freshness of the morn
In the raging of the sea
In the birds’ sweet harmony
In each star set in the sky
In all places dark and deep
In the mountains high and steep
In every place and every coast
Father, Son and Holy Ghost
Keep my vision clear
To know you are near
Lord of land and sea
Reveal yourself to me. Amen.
