Feel the Spirit

Of the three persons of the Trinity—God, Christ, and the Holy Spirit—the Spirit is probably the most difficult for many of us to understand and relate to. The Spirit seems like the less "personable" of the three. It's not so clear what it means to engage with the Spirit.

I'm not going to try to offer a definition or some kind of sophisticated explanation. But I had a series of three experiences on Sunday that, for me at least, help make sense of some parts of what the Spirit is all about and how we might experience her in our lives.

On Sunday morning (and stretching into early afternoon), I took our confirmation class, Fourth Church Rising, on our annual visit to another Christian church. The point is to expose the confirmands to expressions of Christianity that are different from our own. It helps us understand others as well as ourselves.

This year we went to Trinity UCC on Chicago's south side. It was a 2 1/2 hour tour de force of spirited worship in classic and contemporary styles of African American churches. People sang and clapped and maybe even danced a little. The congregation was welcoming and gracious. The preaching by new pastor Otis Moss III was simply amazing—perhaps one of the best sermons I've ever heard. I was sincerely moved by the entire experience.

Immediately after returning downtown, I hopped in a cab and just barely made it in time to sneak in for the second and third acts of La traviata at the Lyric Opera of Chicago. Since moving to Chicago I have tried to take advantage of one of the great cultural treasures this city has to offer and learn about opera. I've been to many performances and have found that I actually like opera quite a bit. This performance featured the great soprano Renée Fleming. To hear her sing the tragically sad songs of Violetta is nothing short of a spiritual experience. The pathos of opera is what most draws me in, and this performance was stunning.

Finally, I went home that night to watch the Packers ultimately lose to the Giants in overtime in the NFC championship game. I'm always amazed at football games and other sporting events. I love watching a stadium full of tens of thousands of people, all focused on the events happening on the field. The bond of the crowd creates a special atmosphere, a spirit if you will, that renders the entire stadium into something like a living organism. Add to that the millions who are watching on their televisions at home and you really have a massive collection of humanity focused on a common cause.

Church, opera, and football. The Spirit is a little like that.