{"id":867812,"date":"2022-05-12T16:03:27","date_gmt":"2022-05-12T20:03:27","guid":{"rendered":""},"modified":"2026-06-23T20:15:05","modified_gmt":"2026-06-24T00:15:05","slug":"bible-study-trinity-sunday-c-june-12-2022","status":"publish","type":"bible_study","link":"https:\/\/staging.episcopalchurch.org\/es\/bible_study\/bible-study-trinity-sunday-c-june-12-2022\/","title":{"rendered":"Bible Study: Trinity Sunday (C) \u2013 2022\ufffc"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.episcopalchurch.org\/lectionary\/pentecost-1c\/\">[RCL] Proverbs 8:1-4, 22-31; Psalm 8 or Canticle 13 (or Canticle 2); Romans 5:1-5; John 16:12-15<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\"><figure class=\"alignright size-large is-resized\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.episcopalchurch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/05\/TS-2022-Bible-Study-Graphic-1024x536.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-267829\" width=\"512\" height=\"268\"\/><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Proverbs 8:1-4, 22-31<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The book of Proverbs is a collection of traditional cultural lessons\u2014propositional statements, observational sayings, analogies, and ethics\u2014structured as the teachings of a father to a son. This kind of \u201cinstructional literature\u201d is one of the ways a family nurtures how a child is socialized into a certain world. These proverbs were passed on in the oral tradition and are therefore used extremely contextually: they use references and assumptions housed in a particular time, place, and culture. This particular passage comes from the Proverbs of Solomon (David\u2019s son, King of Israel.)<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Wisdom is one of the major themes here. The Proverbs illustrate wisdom as an agent of Yahweh, present and active even in determining the shape of creation. Wisdom (anthropomorphized throughout Proverbs as a lady or goddess) was involved in the creation of the world, and so forms a bridge between the Creator and the created. This offers an alternative way to see the relationship between God and the universe\u2014 instead of blind obedience, here we have collaboration and co-creation. This kind of relationship teaches that by acquiring wisdom, human beings can also share in the wisdom of God and can flourish and receive a sense of purpose and meaning. As Walter Brueggemann says, \u201cThis is indeed literature for \u2018grown-ups.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>What kind of sayings, analogies, and proverbs have socialized you in your context? Think about the aphorisms, nursery rhymes, songs, family tales, etc. that have influenced you.<\/li><li>How does or can wisdom help grow your relationship with God?<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Psalm 8<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">This psalm praises God\u2019s majesty in awe and wonder. According to the poet of this psalm, just as the heavenly beings are given dominion in the heavenly world, earthly beings reign over the sky, earth, and sea. Despite our limitations, the Creator has given humanity great honor and responsibility. The psalm reminds us that everything we have is an unwarranted gift from a God of abundance. However, when we look at how humanity has received and then used, abused, and neglected the gift of creation, it is hard to hold our heads high to thank God for it. Have we risen to the responsibility God has given us to be a responsible part of the community of creation, or have we accepted the gift selfishly without looking at the repercussions of our actions? God gives out of abundance, and we are called to respond with awe and wonder\u2014 not selfishness and short-sightedness.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>How are you in relationship with the sky, earth, and sea?<\/li><li>How can you respond to creation with awe and wonder instead of selfishness?<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Romans 5:1-5<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cSuffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, and hope does not disappoint\u201d\u2014 I think I saw this on a classroom poster one time! Paul\u2019s letter to the Romans attempts to make meaning from the suffering of Jesus\u2019 followers. His death and suffering\u2014 and the early Church\u2019s grief and oppression\u2014 is not in vain. Jesus having been crucified as a martyr in political execution puts the God of Israel no longer at the top of the pyramid of power. Instead, as Dewey writes, \u201cThis God has entered into solidarity with the nobodies of the empire. Such a vision of God upsets the first-century world of power and authority.\u201d His suffering on the cross demonstrated the grace and love God has for us. That\u2019s meaningful.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Becoming a follower of Christ does not mean we will never suffer. It means that we have an invitation to experience the newness of a life free from bondage to sin. What God has done since the beginning of time, including Jesus\u2019 martyrdom, fulfills a hope that is with us now and in the future.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>In God\u2019s economy, nothing is wasted, not even suffering. How can you make meaning out of your suffering? How can you make your pain purposeful?<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>John 16:12-15<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">A few years ago, I went through a really horrible situation. I kept thinking I had hit rock bottom, and then I would find that I could, in fact, fall even lower. If I had seen the whole story at once, all the trips and stumbles it would take for me to be whole again, I would probably have given up. Instead, I could only look at what was right in front of me\u2014 one day at a time.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Jesus knew that sometimes the whole story is too big, scary, and complex to tell at once. This passage from John comes from the account of the \u201clast supper.\u201d Jesus tells his friends that the truth he has told them so far is radically incomplete. As Martin Smith writes, \u201cThey are incapable of taking in any more until his death, resurrection, and ascension have opened up a totally new relationship with God.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">With the Spirit\u2019s help, the truth of God\u2019s love and Jesus\u2019 resurrection will continually be revealed to the disciples and to us. As our lives continually change, we will continually be moved into deeper relationship with Christ. And we will hear what we need to hear, even if it\u2019s not the whole story.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>How do you make space to listen to the Spirit in your life?<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><em>This Bible study was written by <strong>Anna Sutterisch<\/strong> for Trinity Sunday (C) in 2019.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-file\"><a id=\"wp-block-file--media-8a07bde8-d597-493b-9d6d-af6821cdc73e\" href=\"https:\/\/www.episcopalchurch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/05\/Bible-Study-Trinity-Sunday-English.docx\">Word \u2013 Trinity Sunday (C) Bible Study<\/a><a href=\"https:\/\/www.episcopalchurch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/05\/Bible-Study-Trinity-Sunday-English.docx\" class=\"wp-block-file__button\" download aria-describedby=\"wp-block-file--media-8a07bde8-d597-493b-9d6d-af6821cdc73e\">Download<\/a><\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-file\"><a id=\"wp-block-file--media-cbef6c44-f3cb-4905-b8b1-76cff0bb91db\" href=\"https:\/\/www.episcopalchurch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/05\/Bible-Study-Trinity-Sunday-English.pdf\">PDF \u2013 Trinity Sunday (C) Bible Study<\/a><a href=\"https:\/\/www.episcopalchurch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/05\/Bible-Study-Trinity-Sunday-English.pdf\" class=\"wp-block-file__button\" download aria-describedby=\"wp-block-file--media-cbef6c44-f3cb-4905-b8b1-76cff0bb91db\">Download<\/a><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>[RCL] Proverbs 8:1-4, 22-31; Psalm 8 or Canticle 13 (or Canticle 2); Romans 5:1-5; John 16:12-15 Proverbs 8:1-4, 22-31 The book of Proverbs is a collection of traditional cultural lessons\u2014propositional statements, observational sayings, analogies, and ethics\u2014structured as the teachings of a father to a son. This kind of \u201cinstructional literature\u201d is one of the ways&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"featured_media":201221,"template":"","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_tec_requires_first_save":true,"_kad_blocks_custom_css":"","_kad_blocks_head_custom_js":"","_kad_blocks_body_custom_js":"","_kad_blocks_footer_custom_js":"","_EventAllDay":false,"_EventTimezone":"","_EventStartDate":"","_EventEndDate":"","_EventStartDateUTC":"","_EventEndDateUTC":"","_EventShowMap":false,"_EventShowMapLink":false,"_EventURL":"","_EventCost":"","_EventCostDescription":"","_EventCurrencySymbol":"","_EventCurrencyCode":"","_EventCurrencyPosition":"","_EventDateTimeSeparator":"","_EventTimeRangeSeparator":"","_EventOrganizerID":[],"_EventVenueID":[],"_OrganizerEmail":"","_OrganizerPhone":"","_OrganizerWebsite":"","_VenueAddress":"","_VenueCity":"","_VenueCountry":"","_VenueProvince":"","_VenueState":"","_VenueZip":"","_VenuePhone":"","_VenueURL":"","_VenueStateProvince":"","_VenueLat":"","_VenueLng":"","_VenueShowMap":false,"_VenueShowMapLink":false,"_tribe_blocks_recurrence_rules":"","_tribe_blocks_recurrence_description":"","_tribe_blocks_recurrence_exclusions":"","_kad_post_transparent":"","_kad_post_title":"","_kad_post_layout":"","_kad_post_sidebar_id":"","_kad_post_content_style":"","_kad_post_vertical_padding":"","_kad_post_feature":"","_kad_post_feature_position":"","_kad_post_header":false,"_kad_post_footer":false,"_kad_post_classname":"","ep_exclude_from_search":false,"footnotes":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"categories":[23,52,33,3],"tags":[378],"class_list":["post-867812","bible_study","type-bible_study","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-bible-studies","category-sermons-that-work","category-the-season-after-pentecost","category-worship-and-prayer-menu","tag-trinity-sunday-c"],"acf":[],"taxonomy_info":{"category":[{"value":23,"label":"Bible Studies"},{"value":52,"label":"Sermons That Work"},{"value":33,"label":"The Season After Pentecost"},{"value":3,"label":"worship_and_prayer_menu"}],"post_tag":[{"value":378,"label":"Trinity Sunday C"}]},"featured_image_src_large":false,"author_info":[],"comment_info":"","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/staging.episcopalchurch.org\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/bible_study\/867812","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/staging.episcopalchurch.org\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/bible_study"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/staging.episcopalchurch.org\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/bible_study"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/staging.episcopalchurch.org\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/bible_study\/867812\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":952310,"href":"https:\/\/staging.episcopalchurch.org\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/bible_study\/867812\/revisions\/952310"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/staging.episcopalchurch.org\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=867812"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/staging.episcopalchurch.org\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=867812"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/staging.episcopalchurch.org\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=867812"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}