Wednesday, July 2, 2014

Lessons for Independence Day from the Holy Trinity

My July 1, 2014, article for the Grand Haven Tribune, "Lessons for Independence Day from the Holy Trinity,"
Four years ago on July 4, I celebrated my first service as the rector of St. John’s. In preparation for the day, the interim rector and I noticed the strange coincidence that my first Sunday also happened to be a year when the Fourth of July fell on a Sunday.

In the Episcopal Church, Independence Day is actually a major feast of the church. That means it has its own collect (opening prayer), with readings and a Eucharistic preface assigned to it. Interestingly enough, our prayer book assigns the preface for Trinity Sunday to be used at worship on Independence Day.

Both Father Laycock and I remarked that this is an interesting choice — to call us to the Holy Trinity as a way of focusing worship on Independence Day...
Read more at the Tribune's website here.