The Solemnity of the Most Holy Trinity
Lectionary: 166
Reading I
Thus says the wisdom of God:
"The
LORD possessed me, the beginning of his ways,
the forerunner of his prodigies of long ago;
from of old
I was poured forth,
at the
first, before the earth.
When there
were no depths I was brought forth,
when there
were no fountains or springs of water;
before the
mountains were settled into place,
before the
hills, I was brought forth;
while as yet
the earth and fields were not made,
nor the
first clods of the world.
"When
the Lord established the heavens I was there,
when he
marked out the vault over the face of the deep;
when he made
firm the skies above,
when he
fixed fast the foundations of the earth;
when he set
for the sea its limit,
so that the
waters should not transgress his command;
then was I
beside him as his craftsman,
and I was
his delight day by day,
playing
before him all the while,
playing on
the surface of his earth;
and I found
delight in the human race."
Responsorial Psalm
R (2a) O Lord, our God, how wonderful your
name in all the earth!
When I behold your heavens, the work of your fingers,
the moon and
the stars which you set in place —
What is man that you should be mindful of him,
or the son
of man that you should care for him?
R O Lord, our God, how wonderful your name in all the earth!
You have made him little less than the angels,
and crowned
him with glory and honor.
You have given him rule over the works of your hands,
putting all
things under his feet:
R O Lord, our God, how wonderful your name in all the earth!
All sheep and oxen,
yes, and the
beasts of the field,
The birds of the air, the fishes of the sea,
and whatever
swims the paths of the seas.
R O Lord, our God, how wonderful your name in all the earth!
Reading II
Brothers and sisters:
Therefore, since we have been justified by faith,
we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ,
through whom we have gained access by faith
to this grace in which we stand,
and we boast in hope of the glory of God.
Not only that, but we even boast of our afflictions,
knowing that affliction produces endurance,
and endurance, proven character,
and proven character, hope,
and hope does not disappoint,
because the love of God has been poured out into our hearts
through the Holy Spirit that has been given to us.
Alleluia
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Glory to the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit;
to God who is, who was, and who is to come.
R. Alleluia,
alleluia.
Gospel
Jesus said to his disciples:
"I have much more to tell you, but you cannot bear it now.
But when he comes, the Spirit of truth,
he will guide you to all truth.
He will not speak on his own,
but he will speak what he hears,
and will declare to you the things that are coming.
He will glorify me,
because he will take from what is mine and declare it to you.
Everything that the Father has is mine;
for this reason I told you that he will take from what is mine
and declare it to you."
MY BROTHERS AND SISTERS,
Today is Trinity Sunday, which encourages us to take a closer look at The Holy Trinity and our relationship with it. The Trinity is a central dogma of our faith and not understanding it means that we are in danger of not fully experiencing our faith and of not enjoying a close relationship with our God. The relationship between The Father, the Son, and The Holy Spirit is a perfect relationship that we are constantly invited into. This is what our faith is all about. It starts with relationship, continues in relationship, and ends in relationship. Just like there are different sides of us and people perceive us in different ways based on our different roles, the same can be said about The Trinity. When a part of The Trinity is revealed, we embrace that part of it and our relationship with it is affected at that moment. When one part is revealed, it doesn’t mean the other parts cease to be working, for the three remain as one and work as one. I do not cease being a father when Iacting as a deacon, nor do I cease being a husband. I can be defined by what I am doing at that moment, but that is only a revelation of the moment. There is more to me then what is displayed. The concept of The Trinity can be viewed the same way.
Much of our faith and our relationship with God is based on acceptance. It is impossible to know and understand everything. No one can claim to know everything about our faith. There is just too much to learn and to experience. There is no end to the wisdom of God. We are encouraged to learn as much as we can because it is through learning that we gain wisdom. The more wisdom we have, the closer we get to God. Jesus Christ has been described as The Word and as being the wisdom of God, thus being intricately connected with God, being one and the same. This develops an understanding that knowing more about God is essential in our relationship with Him. It is in the processing of learning that we can experience Him.
We all have different passions in our lives which drive us. We all have different interests which define us. It is good to remember that God and the pursuit of knowing God should be at the center of all of these. We are social creatures, created to interact with one another. We were not created to be alone or to act alone. This includes participating in a relationship with God. This goes beyond prayer and worship. It means experiencing Him in the moment and in all things. It is through our relationship in The Trinity and The Trinitarian Experience that makes this more possible. Jesus is the gate which we pass through to get to The Father, drawn by The Love of God which is The Holy Spirit. Being open to The Love of God, focused on The Son and seeing The Father as the destination can enrichen all our experiences in this life of ours.
The Apostle Paul tells us to accept spiritual things in spiritual terms. This means that spiritual wisdom is not earthly wisdom, thus spiritual wisdom cannot be described or understood with earthly wisdom. Earthly wisdom is limited by its origin. There is no limit to spiritual wisdom because it comes from God. When we pursue it, we will find ourselves in a better place as a result. This is also Paul’s teaching in his second letter to the Corinthians: The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ and the love of God and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all. For grace and the gift of the Trinity are given by the Father through the Son in the Holy Spirit. Just as grace is given from the Father through the Son, so there could be no communication of the gift to us except in the Holy Spirit. But when we share in the Spirit, we possess the love of the Father, the grace of the Son and the fellowship of the Spirit himself.
Jesus tells us that The Kingdom of God is within us. The Trinity is constantly at work within us, and we are encouraged to participate in this relationship always. It is through this understanding and acceptance that we can benefit from this experience flourish as a result.
Deacon Tom
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