THE LOVE THAT GIVES
ALL
SOLEMN FEAST OF THE TRINITY
Today we celebrate the great
feast of the Christian God, the One God who is Father, Son and Holy Spirit, the
Most Blessed Trinity. Is the
Trinity an “opening” prayer? Is the
Trinity a matter only for the catechism class? Is the Trinity merely a doctrine to embellish our faith?
The Trinity is real – real God,
real life, real love! How must we
reflect on the Trinity? The best way to do so is to start with what we do each
day – by means of the Cross. Jesus
explained to us the Father and Himself and the Holy Spirit. But most specially,
he showed to us that God is One and God is Three Persons as he went through his
death and resurrection. Take a cross and look at it.
On the Cross, we see Jesus slowly
dying a most painful, a most difficult death. This is the Son of God whose life
was for others and whose death was all an offering for the entire world. While on the cross, if we listen to his
words carefully, we sense that Jesus is not alone. Though he is suffering much, his pain is a shared pain. His Father is present there! “Father,
forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing.” And then, “Father, into your hands, I commend my
spirit.” At first, he felt
abandoned but later reassured that the Father is close by as any parent is when
a child is helplessly in death’s throes.
In God there is a Son with a
unique mission to save all humanity.
In God there is truly a Father overflowing with love for the Son who
obeys and honors him. Does the
Father feel the pain of his Son?
Yes, and in a unique and exceptional way, shares it too. He suffers not the nails but the
piercing, tragic loss of his only love. Any loving parent who lost a child can testify to this. And yet, God too, had to undergo this
experience, the Father and the Son together. All out of love for you and me.
But between the Father and Son
there is another Presence revealed.
The Father slowly loses his Son, and the Son slowly distances from the
Father. But nothing can sever their intimate bond because there is this
Presence that binds them firmly together. The Spirit of love that has united
them from the beginning when the Word was in heaven and as the Word became
flesh and walked the earth is now the Spirit of love and unity even on the
cross. If nothing can separate us from the love of God, surely nothing can
separate the Father of love and the Beloved Son ever because of the Holy Spirit
who cements their love.
What does it say to us? We are
not spectators to this great love story.
It is not just between Three Persons in One God. It includes you and me. “Baptize them
in the name of the Father, and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,” Jesus tells
his disciples. But he also assures
them, “I am with you always…” This
God of love is with you always. Feel his love, receive his love, grow in his love. Keep close to the Father and the Son
and the Holy Spirit, now and always. Amen.
