Today’s Gospel reading takes us back to before the crucifixion when Jesus was telling the disciples what would happen next. Jesus promises that an advocate will come to bring a spirit of truth. This verse is often read on Trinity Sunday, which today is, to connect Jesus to the sending of the Holy Spirit.
The original Greek word is parakletos παράκλητος or paraclete. And this gets translated a number of ways- comforter, advocate, helper. It essentially means, called to one's aid or called to help. John uses this word 5 times as Jesus delivers his farewell speeches to the disciples. This is important because in sending the Paraclete, Jesus is establishing a method for communication and action with his followers after he is no longer physically among them.
The difference in translations between various versions of the text really intrigues me, as they are really very different from each other.
There’s the comforter. A comforter would come to provide consolation. There’s a reason we call a warm cozy blanket a comforter- it provides warmth and solace. In fact, one of my seminary professors told a story about a child who translated these passages as, “Relax, your quilt will come.” Which honestly isn’t too much of a stretch.
Jesus is saying, don’t be too worried about what comes next- I’m sending something to help. This understanding of the Holy Spirit is a cozy blanket, cup of tea, chicken soup, and grilled cheese sandwich cut diagonal version of the Holy Spirit. I like this idea- a snuggly presence that wraps you up and makes you feel all warm and safe? Sounds rather ideal to me.
Truly there are moments when what we need most is comfort. We need someone to sit beside us and tell us that it’s all going to be ok. And sometimes that comfort needs to come from God- either via a physical person who looks in on us or via a presence of warmth and consolation. When we are sad or hurting, we need that kind of loving care and support. And I can totally understand how paraclete could be translated this way. Jesus is promising to send a manifestation of love that is not limited by physical presence. That’s a pretty comforting idea and one that makes sense.
Another understanding of the paraclete is as helper. Now I find this translation a little harder to reconcile. A helper is usually someone who assists someone of a higher social or occupational rank- it seems to be an auxiliary position or a subordinate one. A helper comes to the aid of someone or some cause, but somehow this seems limiting. But again, I understand the impulse to describe the Holy Spirit in this way- as a provider of assistance or support.
LBut maybe the helper isn’t OUR Helper but God’s Helper or Jesus” helper? I’m not sure that works either because it implies that the Holy Spirit is an auxiliary position to God and Jesus. And for Trinity Sunday especially, that doesn’t seem to track. Yes, God, Jesus, and the Holy Spirit can all provide help, but I don’t think of “helper” as their primary roles.
The NRSV, the version I usually use, chooses the translation “advocate.” Now, this translation intrigues me. Because an advocate publicly supports a person or a cause. An advocate is there to be sure your views are respected and your rights are honored. So using this translation, the Holy Spirit’s job is to stick up for us and encourage us to stick up for ourselves and others. This makes sense in light of who Jesus was.
Time and time again we’ve talked about what it means that Jesus advocated for people and empowered people to advocate for themselves and others. He taught his followers how to support people and to pay attention to the needs of those who society had forgotten. It isn’t surprising that synonyms for advocate include apostle, espouser, gospeller, supporter, and friend.
I’m imagining the Holy Spirit here as that friend who will always push you to say the right thing or do the right thing. This understanding of paraclete leaves a lot of room for us to get up to “good trouble” in Jesus’ name and in God’s name. We have a power on our side that pushes us to advocate and support other people- to lift them up and help them lift themselves.
But even if we settle on a definition for the Holy Spirit- comforter, helper, or advocate. What is the ROLE of the spirit in the lives of modern Christians? Is it a force of inspiration? A sense of calm? A nudge? An intermediary between us and Jesus and God? What does the Holy Spirit do? Does it descend in a weird wind and land like tongues of fire? Or is it a mysterious force like “the force” in Star Wars- something that somehow connects us all, but provides what we need in the moment? I mean, as a giant Star Wars nerd, I see the comparison- an energy created by living things that surrounds us and bind the galaxy together. It makes sense.
Other faiths beyond Christianity have an understanding of a holy spirit. Judaism, Islam, and Hinduism all have a version of a spirit that works as an agent of the divine. So this isn’t a concept that is unique to the New Testament or to Jesus. But why does Jesus make such a point of it? Why does he specifically talk about the paraclete’s arrival five different times? Why does John find this so important?
I think it goes back to what we talked about a few weeks ago with Thomas. It’s about provisions. It’s about Jesus being sure his Disciples know that they have what they need to continue ministry without him being physically present. The Paraclete becomes “the link between the historical ministry of Jesus and the future life of the church after Jesus’ death”. The presence of the Holy Spirit fulfils the promise that nothing can separate us from God’s love. But it’s clear that this gift isn’t just an “in the moment” or “for right now” kind of thing. This is a gift for all time and for all times. It allows the church to connect to the past, but “enables the word of Jesus to move forward form its moment in history to the present life of the church.” It provides a continuous way forward for the church and her people.
It’s easy to get caught up in a translation/interpretation issue like this one. To go down a rabbit hole of Greek and Hebrew trying to figure out what Jesus meant when he promised the gift of the Paraclete. It’s also easy to brush this moment off or relegate it to “oh yeah, that’s how we got the trinity- the end!” It’s important to note that nowhere in John does Jesus claim that He, God, and the Paraclete are all one and the same. And it’s hard to reconcile this version of the Holy Spirit with the tongues of fire at pentecost or with the concept of the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost from Matthew.
But I think the answer lies somewhere in the culmination of it all. There is a recognition that there is something that remains with us even after Jesus has died, been resurrected, and has ascended. There is a power- yes, even a force- that advocates with us and pushes us. For early Christians, this promise ws one of continuity that there would be support and advocacy for Jesus’ followers. This gift was not bound by the limits of time, and human lifespan, but rather transcends to be for all people for all time. The advocate is still among us. The helper is here. Our comforter has arrived. And she isn’t going anywhere.
Amen.