Godly Play on Trinity Sunday
Welcome to our Godly Play circle on Trinity Sunday. Today our story is “The Holy Trinity: a strange three-in-one logic.”
Teaching our children about following Jesus includes inviting them to consider the mystery of the Holy Trinity. Sometimes, illustrations can help. Consider discussing this one with your child:
Today's lesson does not simplify the concept of the Trinity. Rather, it encourages children to think about the complexity of our faith through the lens of three interrelated stories. From the Godly Play, Volume 4 guide, we learn some background:
"Through the Sacred Stories, we have followed God's elusive presence. In the fourth century, the People of God discovered yet another way to understand this experience. It was by a strange three-in-one logic. The stories in which God, Jesus and the Holy Spirit were characters were somehow one story, and yet distinct. This way of thinking preserved the unique aspects of the stories, yet joined them as one.
The Holy Trinity's inner communication is unknown to us. This is because we are created beings, made by God. We can only guess about this inner communication from what we know about how we experience God's relationship with us.
This lesson combines three narratives, transforming them into the concept of the Holy Trinity. That's exactly what happened in the history of the Church in the fourth century."
Here are the wondering questions plus some additional ones for today's story:
Now, I wonder which one of the three-in-one ways you like best to come close to God?
I wonder which one of the three-in-one ways is the most important way to come close to God?
I wonder which one of the three-in-one ways is most like the way you come close to God most easily? Which one is the most natural for you?
I wonder which one of the three-in-one ways God likes best to be with God?
I wonder which one of the three-in-one ways God knows is the most important way to be with God?
I wonder which one of the three-in-one ways is the way God most easily and naturally is with God?
I wonder if God can leave out any of the three-in-one ways to be with God and still have all the ways God needs to be God?
In our introduction to today’s story we also included a prayer to end racism. Here is the text of the prayer for you to revisit at home:
In baptism we promise to “strive for justice and peace among all people, and respect the dignity of every human being.” As a baptized people trying our best to follow Jesus, it is critical that we have open and honest conversations about race and justice with our children. Here is an amazing list of Anti-Racism Resources for Families created by Forming Faithful Families.