Aladdin and the Holy Spirit’s Invitation

“A Whole New World”
Lea Salonga, Brad Kane
I can show you the world
Shining, shimmering splendid
Tell me, princess, now when did
You last let your heart decide?
I can open your eyes
Take you wonder by wonder
Over sideways and under
On a magic carpet ride
A whole new world
A new fantastic point of view
No one to tell us no
Or where to go
Or say we’re only dreaming
A whole new world
A dazzling place I never knew
But when I’m way up here
It’s crystal clear
That now I’m in a whole new world with you
Now I’m in a whole new world with you
Unbelievable sights
Indescribable feeling
Soaring, tumbling, freewheeling
Through an endless diamond sky
A whole new world (Don’t you dare close your eyes)
A hundred thousand things to see (Hold your breath, it gets better)
I’m like a shooting star
I’ve come so far
I can’t go back to where I used to be
A whole new world (Every turn a surprise)
With new horizons to pursue (Every moment, red-letter)
I’ll chase them anywhere
There’s time to spare
Let me share this whole new world with you
A whole new world (A whole new world)
That’s where we’ll be (That’s where we’ll be)
A thrilling chase
A wondrous place
For you and me
Songwriters: Alan Menken / Tim Rice
A Whole New World lyrics © Walt Disney Music Company

The other night I stayed over at my sister’s house. It was my niece’s fourth birthday. One of her first surprises was that Uncle Mike was there in the morning. So, I showed up for her, and we just celebrated her the whole day. It was Skylar’s fourth birthday celebration all day long.

She woke up, and she had balloons filling the hallway. She opened her presents. We had gotten her a trampoline, so we went outside and played on the trampoline. Afterward, we went to see Aladdin. She was very excited to see Aladdin. There’s nothing like watching Aladdin, but even better, is having a four-year-old on your lap watching it with you – just seeing their wonder and awe. I asked her what her favorite scene was, and she started to sing, “A Whole New World” and described that magic carpet ride scene.

That’s what I want to use for an image today as we focus on this Trinity Sunday – the mystery of God the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. In the first reading, we hear this profound message in Proverbs, and it is all about play and wonder. The Holy Spirit is described as playful and full of wonder.

The Holy Spirit says, “I was there beside him, beside God, as his craftsman, and I was his delight, day-by-day, playing before him all the while, playing on the surface of the earth. I found the light in the human race.” I want to talk about that image of playing and the Holy Spirit playing on the surface of the earth, being the delight of God – but also how God delights in the human race. He delights in each and every one of you.

This beautiful scene of the magic carpet ride starts off with Aladdin. He snuck into the princess’s castle. He is on the balcony, and he says to her, “Do you trust me?” This is a line he uses often to kind of get her attention. And as he says this, he takes a step backwards and falls off the balcony and disappears.

The princess looks out with horror, and all of a sudden, he floats up. He is on this magic carpet ride. He reaches his hands out to her, and he says, “Do you trust me?” She says, “Yes.” She takes his hands, and the two of them get on this magic carpet. They begin to soar all around the kingdom.

You have this experience of floating and of wondering. There is actually a scene where he shoots up to the stars and then he comes down all the way into the water. This is the part that reminded me of the Scripture today. He is kind of skimming the surface of the water. The water is splashing, and the dolphins are jumping. It is like the Holy Spirit skimming upon the waters of the earth.

I want to just focus on the lyrics of the song for a moment. I want you to think about the Holy Spirit inviting you on this wonderful adventure we call the spiritual life. “I can show you the world, shining, shimmering, splendid. Tell me, princess, when did you last let your heart decide?

I can open your eyes, take you wonder by wonder, over, sideways and under on this Holy Spirit ride. A whole new world. A new fantastic point of view. Unbelievable sights, indescribable feelings – soaring, tumbling, freewheeling through an endless diamond sky.  A whole new world. Don’t you dare close your eyes. A hundred thousand things to see. Hold your breath it gets better. It is like a shooting star. I’ve come so far. I can’t go back to where we used to be. A whole new world.”

The Holy Spirit wants to share this whole new world with you.  In the world that we live in, there is so much darkness. There is so much evil. There is so much heaviness. There is so much difficulty, but there is this whole new world that God invites us to when we enter into the life of the Trinity.

When you were baptized, you were baptized in the name of the Father, and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.  That means you were plunged into the Trinity. You were invited to take this ride.

Growing up, I think about myself when I was four years old. I didn’t always think that Mass was an adventure. Sometimes I sort of thought Mass could be boring, and I thought prayer was boring. But when we enter into this Trinity, this relationship with the Lord, it is something beyond anything we could ever explain or experience.

I just want you to think about this scene for a moment, maybe even close your eyes and imagine the Holy Spirit reaching out his hand to you now and inviting you on this wonderful ride of faith. As you take his hand and enter into this, you float blissfully over the city and the clouds.

The moon is reflecting on the water. Above the clouds, you are skimming down over the water. Dolphins are jumping, lightning bugs, waterfalls. It is breathtaking, and you are rocking gently on this carpet with God the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.

In order to get to know this whole new world, we have to be willing to trust God and to take his hands, like we hear in the first reading. “Then I was there beside him, and I was his delight, day-by-day, playing before him all the while, playing on the surface of the earth. I found the light in the human race.” God finds delight in you. He loves this wonderful adventure of life with you.

He wants to delight in just seeing you play and enjoy life. And right now, as he invites you into the Trinity, this Trinity Sunday, he wants to take you on an adventure. And so, the question is, do you trust Him? I have asked if PJ could just play a couple versus of “A Whole New World.” Just imagine taking God’s hand and saying, “I trust you.”