A Trinity Sunday Thought to Start the Week Off Right
With Trinity Sunday, we've fully emerged from the Easter Season. In our venerable traditional liturgical calendar, we observed the Octave of Pentecost this past week, an Octave that was cut out of the new calendar, as were so many Octaves. (Don't ask!) But thank God we have our traditional calendars to remind us and we can still dwell within the dramatic glory of Pentecost for a full week - if we so choose.
If there's a bit of a "letdown" as we exit the Easter Season, to take up what the new calendar calls "Ordinary" Time, Trinity Sunday does it's best to shake us up from anything approaching "ordinary."* Just take a few moments and try to think about, even contemplate, the awesome mystery of the Trinity: Three Persons in One God. It takes your breath away. It took centuries for this mystery to plainly manifest itself, beginning with Adam (Yes, there are references in Genesis), continuing throughout the history of the Chosen People as recounted in the Old Testament.
(*While "Ordinary Time" doesn't really refer to "ordinary" in the ordinary sense, I suspect most Catholics think of it that way anyway.)
For the most part, the Old Testament focuses on God the Father. And, indeed, (many? most? all?) Jews would likely not accept what we Catholics see as references to Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit, they're there nonetheless. Of course, without an understanding and acceptance of Jesus as Son of God, you can understand the rejection of any talk of a Holy Spirit as a Person. After all, it was only when God Himself, Our Lord Jesus Christ, condescended to dwell amongst us that something of a clear picture eventually emerged from the mists of those centuries. Yet, even Our Lord's own words could not firmly establish the Holy Spirit in the hearts and minds of His Apostles and disciples. It took the dramatic events of that first Pentecost Sunday to do that. With that, the Trinity, once and for all, emerged from hints and whispers to the full flowering of knowledge.
So it seems natural that this feast of the Holy Trinity comes right after Pentecost. Only with the clear, forceful manifestation of the Holy Spirit do we have the completion of the concept of the Trinity: Father, Son, Holy Spirit. As for the specific "Three Persons in One God," that was a development of the doctrine needed over time, as questions arose regarding this Trinity of Father, Son, Holy Spirit. Our forebears did their best to sort things out and explain as well as they could the essential meaning of what would and continues to remain a mystery.
As most of us would likely acknowledge, knowing of the Trinity and understanding It are two very different things. And, of course, today is the day when many sermons will attempt to augment that understanding. How many such attempts I've heard over the years! Yet even with all of those sermons taken in and considered, has my understanding of the Trinity really taken a firm hold? From the point of view of my beliefs, yes. But my intellectual grasp leaves something to be desired.
For a while, I found this frustrating. No longer. It's clear that this mystery will remain so until that happy day when we enter into the actual Presence of the Trinity. Perhaps you'll join me in praying for the grace to understand exactly what God wants us to understand. No more, no less.
The fact is, as fallen creatures in a fallen world, our intellects remain dimmed by Original Sin - no matter how "smart" you think you are. Heck, I studied philosophy in college and emerged with straight A's. Doesn't help. The Trinity remains beyond the grasp of the greatest philosophers and theologians. Some things simply aren't meant to be fully grasped as long as we remain tethered to this earthly life.
In any case, my lack of complete understanding of the Holy Trinity no longer frustrates me. But that doesn't mean I "ignore" this awesome reality. It just means that rather than rack my brains to understand what God intends as a mystery, I direct my energy elsewhere. For me, the best direction for that energy is deepening my relationship with each of those Three Persons: Father, Son, Holy Spirit.
I suspect most of us have an easier time with the Father and the Son when it comes to a relationship. That's probably natural. But if that's the case, we can - and should - get to work on developing a serious and deep relationship with the Holy Spirit. Fine words, easily spoken, but not always easy to actually attend to - at least for me. But I persist. And over time, I think I've made some progress. Of course, the best judge of any progress I might have made would be the Holy Spirit. The only thing I know for sure is that any lack of effort to know and love Him is on me. Any degree of closeness is on Him.
Some day we'll know this mystery when - by God's grace - we dwell in the Presence of the Trinity. What a day that wil be!
If there's a bit of a "letdown" as we exit the Easter Season, to take up what the new calendar calls "Ordinary" Time, Trinity Sunday does it's best to shake us up from anything approaching "ordinary."* Just take a few moments and try to think about, even contemplate, the awesome mystery of the Trinity: Three Persons in One God. It takes your breath away. It took centuries for this mystery to plainly manifest itself, beginning with Adam (Yes, there are references in Genesis), continuing throughout the history of the Chosen People as recounted in the Old Testament.
(*While "Ordinary Time" doesn't really refer to "ordinary" in the ordinary sense, I suspect most Catholics think of it that way anyway.)
For the most part, the Old Testament focuses on God the Father. And, indeed, (many? most? all?) Jews would likely not accept what we Catholics see as references to Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit, they're there nonetheless. Of course, without an understanding and acceptance of Jesus as Son of God, you can understand the rejection of any talk of a Holy Spirit as a Person. After all, it was only when God Himself, Our Lord Jesus Christ, condescended to dwell amongst us that something of a clear picture eventually emerged from the mists of those centuries. Yet, even Our Lord's own words could not firmly establish the Holy Spirit in the hearts and minds of His Apostles and disciples. It took the dramatic events of that first Pentecost Sunday to do that. With that, the Trinity, once and for all, emerged from hints and whispers to the full flowering of knowledge.
So it seems natural that this feast of the Holy Trinity comes right after Pentecost. Only with the clear, forceful manifestation of the Holy Spirit do we have the completion of the concept of the Trinity: Father, Son, Holy Spirit. As for the specific "Three Persons in One God," that was a development of the doctrine needed over time, as questions arose regarding this Trinity of Father, Son, Holy Spirit. Our forebears did their best to sort things out and explain as well as they could the essential meaning of what would and continues to remain a mystery.
As most of us would likely acknowledge, knowing of the Trinity and understanding It are two very different things. And, of course, today is the day when many sermons will attempt to augment that understanding. How many such attempts I've heard over the years! Yet even with all of those sermons taken in and considered, has my understanding of the Trinity really taken a firm hold? From the point of view of my beliefs, yes. But my intellectual grasp leaves something to be desired.
For a while, I found this frustrating. No longer. It's clear that this mystery will remain so until that happy day when we enter into the actual Presence of the Trinity. Perhaps you'll join me in praying for the grace to understand exactly what God wants us to understand. No more, no less.
The fact is, as fallen creatures in a fallen world, our intellects remain dimmed by Original Sin - no matter how "smart" you think you are. Heck, I studied philosophy in college and emerged with straight A's. Doesn't help. The Trinity remains beyond the grasp of the greatest philosophers and theologians. Some things simply aren't meant to be fully grasped as long as we remain tethered to this earthly life.
In any case, my lack of complete understanding of the Holy Trinity no longer frustrates me. But that doesn't mean I "ignore" this awesome reality. It just means that rather than rack my brains to understand what God intends as a mystery, I direct my energy elsewhere. For me, the best direction for that energy is deepening my relationship with each of those Three Persons: Father, Son, Holy Spirit.
I suspect most of us have an easier time with the Father and the Son when it comes to a relationship. That's probably natural. But if that's the case, we can - and should - get to work on developing a serious and deep relationship with the Holy Spirit. Fine words, easily spoken, but not always easy to actually attend to - at least for me. But I persist. And over time, I think I've made some progress. Of course, the best judge of any progress I might have made would be the Holy Spirit. The only thing I know for sure is that any lack of effort to know and love Him is on me. Any degree of closeness is on Him.
Some day we'll know this mystery when - by God's grace - we dwell in the Presence of the Trinity. What a day that wil be!
Happy Feast of the Holy Trinity!
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