Trinity Sunday

Is always the first Sunday after Pentecost Sunday.  Historically speaking, the Festival of the Holy Trinity is a late development in the church.  It was first celebrated throughout visible Christendom beginning in the eleventh century A.D.  In the eleventh century Pope Alexander II, and in the following century Pope Alexander III discouraged such an observance as unnecessary because the Holy Trinity was acclaimed in every day’s worship.  However, Pope John XXII, in 1332, ordered this festival to be observed universally on the first Sunday after Pentecost.  Hence this Festival of the Church was celebrated for several centuries before Martin Luther nailed the 95 Theses to the door of the Castle Church in Wittenberg Germany in 1517.  From the beginning, therefore, the Lutheran Church has observed the Festival of the Holy Trinity on the First Sunday after Pentecost, with the following Sunday’s, all the way to the Advent Season, observed as “Sunday’s After Trinity.”  Only rather recently have some within visible Christendom sought to reverse this trend and eliminate the Trinity Season and convert it back to “Sunday’s After Pentecost.”  Thus the Hymnal of the LC-MS; “Lutheran Worship,” and the Hymnal of the WELS; “Christian Worship (not even Lutheran), have “Sundays After Pentecost,” copying the trend set by those who wish to modernize the church.  Although Scripture itself is silent on the celebration of this Christian Festival, it seems that time and circumstance dictates that we maintain the observance of Trinity Sunday and the Sundays after Trinity in the churches.  In a day and age in which “Trinity bashing” is in vogue (witness the Muslim movement, etc.), we Christians should never be ashamed to confess our belief in the Tri-Une God and be willing to suffer the loss of all; even death; rather than give even the appearance of having abandoned this teaching of Scripture.  Therefore, it seems unwise to revert back to “Sundays after Pentecost,” for at this particular time in the history of the church, it appears to be a concession made to the anti-Trinitarians, and it is not necessary to create any indecision by making such a change.

The doctrine of the Holy Trinity is taught from Genesis to Revelation.  In Genesis chapter one God says, “Let us make man in our image...”  The Aaronic benediction of Numbers 6:24-26 says, “The LORD bless thee, and keep thee: The LORD make his face shine upon thee, and be gracious unto thee: The LORD lift up his countenance upon thee, and give thee peace.”  The LORD - three times - no accident!  The call of Isaiah to be a Prophet of the LORD is in chapter 6.  The angels say in 6:3, “Holy, holy, holy is the LORD of hosts; the whole earth is full of His glory!”  Three times, again no accident.  Our hymn “Holy, Holy, Holy” is based upon this verse.  The Prophet says in Isaiah 61:1, “The Spirit of the Lord GOD is upon Me, because the LORD has anointed Me to preach good tidings to the poor; He has sent Me to heal the broken-hearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to those who are bound.”  So the Spirit of God is mentioned; the LORD is there; and the Son is there, being “anointed” for His work as Messiah.  This passage is a prophesy of the first Advent of Jesus, and teaches that the God of Isaiah is Tri-Une.