TRINITY SUNDAY: THE BLESSED TRINITY REVEALS IN THE HUMAN FAMILY OF LOVE.

At the end of his mission on earth, Christ told his disciples, "I still have many things to say to you, but they would be too much for you now.” I believe he was speaking about the mystery of the Trinity. The disciples would not be able to fully comprehend this mystery. For instance, when Jesus spoke to them about where he was going, Thomas said to him, “Lord, we don’t know where you are going, so how can we know the way?” (Jn. 14: 4-5). Jesus is aware of this pressure and their lingering confusion. So, he spoke to them, “But when the Spirit of truth comes, he will lead you to the complete truth" (John 16:13). The Spirit is the Father’s Wisdom to understand the Way, Truth, and Life in Christ Jesus. The first reading personifies Wisdom. It portrays a relationship whereby God’s breath inspires life in all creatures. Hence, creation reveals God's glory. Divinity gives birth to humanity. Christ affirms this in the gospel, "Everything the Father has is mine."

The church teaches that there are three Persons in one God called the Holy Trinity. Saint Paul also reckons that the mystery of our religion is anchored on the mystery of the Trinity, too deep for comprehension (1 Timothy 3:16). Right from the annunciation (Lk.1:35) through his baptism (Matt.3:16-17), Jesus’ ministry encapsulates the mission of the Father through the Holy Spirit: "He saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and coming down on him. And suddenly there was a voice from heaven, "This is my Son, the Beloved; my favor rests on him." It is a mystery beyond human comprehension.

The Catechism presents the mystery of the Trinity as central to the Christian faith, “the mystery of God himself,” and “the source of all other mysteries of faith.” In the Trinity, other truths of our faith gain meaning and purpose (CCC 234). In the mystery of the trinity, the three persons are intrinsically united; Father, Son, and Spirit, yet each being God wholly and distinctly: "The Father is that which the Son is, the Son is that which the Father is, the Father and the Son that which the Holy Spirit is, i.e., by nature one God" (CCC 253).

The greatest lesson from the Trinity is God’s love revealed in creation. God the Father loves the Son, and the Son loves the Father. The Spirit is the bond of love between the Father and the Son. The Council of Nicea proclaims, "…Light from Light, true God from true God; begotten, not made, one in substance with the Father, through him all things were made... I believe in the Holy Spirit, the Lord the giver of life, who proceeds from the Father and the Son, together with the Father and the Son is adored and glorified." Christ invites believers to remain in his love just as through keeping the commandments, he has remained in the Father’s love (John 15:9-10), especially considering that He and the Father are one (Jn.10:30). He asserts, "Anyone who has seen me has seen the Father" (Jn.14:9). And at his ascension he says, "When the Paraclete comes, whom I shall send you from the Father, the Spirit of truth who issues from the Father..." (Jn.15:26). 

By extension, humanity is the image of God's love, made in God’s image and likeness (Gen.1:26). When the priest or minister pours the baptismal water on the catechumen, he reinforces the bond of love into which we are made, "I baptize you in the name of the Father, and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit." Believers are initiated into the divine family through baptism. Hence, love becomes our trinitarian identity.  When consent is exchanged during Catholic weddings using the words, "Take this ring as a sign of my love and fidelity; In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit," couples profess commitment to the divine love. Marriage, therefore, becomes an important reflection of God and a resemblance of the procreative nature of the Trinity: "Be fruitful, multiply, fill the earth." Hence, the wisdom of God breathes freshness through humanity’s openness to God’s love. 

Cardinal Sarah once spoke at the National Catholic Prayer Breakfast in Washington DC on the true meaning of marriage and family. The Cardinal bore testimony to the relationship between the Trinity and the human family in these words: "The generous and responsible love of spouses, made visible through the self-giving of parents, who welcome and nurture children as a gift of God, makes love visible in our generation. It makes present the perfect charity of the Trinity.” He quoted Saint Augustine as saying, “If you see charity, you see the Trinity.” 

The Trinity reminds us that God has built a Trinitarian structure into our very nature. What a privilege! In a very simplistic sense, here is my stepdown of love through the family: In a traditional sense, dad is the provider and creator of the family’s mission. Mom is the heartbeat of family life, fulfilling the family’s mission with dad. Children proceed from both dad and mom. Together with dad and mom, everyone unites to make a happy home. This is not an expert analogy but a description of the image of God's love transmitted through family life on earth. The love of the Trinity is both dynamic and affectionate.

Let us pray to the Blessed Trinity today to bless our families and to give us the grace to live up to our expectations of love. As we also celebrate Father’s Day in the United States, let us invoke the blessings of the Holy Spirit on all men for wisdom to be the men in their families, inspiring love and commitment to God’s love. As Cardinal Sarah enjoins us, "Be prophetic, be faithful, pray!" May the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, the love of God the Father, and the communion of the Holy Spirit be with our families now and forever. Amen.

READINGS: 1ST- PRO. 8:22-31; 2ND- ROM. 5:1-5; GOSPEL- JN. 16:12-15