Martin Luther King, Jr. recounts driving through the South and looking at the many churches, “Over and over I have found myself asking: ‘What kind of people worship here? Who is their God?’” Perhaps now is the time to ask this of ourselves; as we board up our churches that we haven’t been in for weeks, as we worry about the loss or destruction of our churches’ property in the midst of these riots, let us ask ourselves, “Who are we who worship in these places? Who is the God we worship, and what does that God ask of us?”

The word “Pentecost” literally means “50th,” as in the 50th day following the Easter vigil. It may seem strange to name one of our high holy days in this way. Why have we been counting days since Jesus’ Resurrection? Has the Resurrection inaugurated something we’re supposed to wait for? 

Our liturgy is saturated with the Trinity.

The resurrection does not just make a difference to the after life. It makes a difference in this life, too.

Most of us live with a certain amount of anxiety. Sometimes it’s because the world is a terrifying place, and some of the humans who live here with us seem capable of great evil. Thinking of New Zealand this week, or a synagogue in Pittsburg and a school in Parkville, Florida just a year ago, it’s hard to imagine not being worried.

I’m sorry to say that the majority of our sins are just not that remarkable. They’re small trifles. They’re mediocre.