History of the Solemnity of the Most Holy Trinity[1]
Readings for the Solemnity of the Most Holy Trinity[2]
Readings from the Jerusalem Bible
Commentary:
Reading 1 Prv 8:22-31
The author of Proverbs here reflects on the eternal nature of the plurality of persons in God. Wisdom here is used as a metaphor for Christ and the Holy Spirit, the first becoming incarnate and the second coming on the heels of the first. Concurrently we are reminded of the creative Gift of the Triune God who delights in His people.
Responsorial Psalm Ps 8:4-5, 6-7, 8-9
R. O Lord, our God, how wonderful your name in all the earth!
The psalmist here reflects upon the marvel of God’s creation and man’s place of underserved honor in it. Recognizing mankind’s power over the created environment, we thank God for his gifts to us.
Reading II Rom 5:1-5
In this passage St. Paul declares the peace of Christ which flows to the faithful from the Father through Jesus who cast out sin and death for our salvation. The complete acceptance of our earthly station is made possible by the Holy Spirit which flows from the Father and the Son into our hearts.
Gospel Jn 16:12-15
Jesus, in this reading from St. John’s Gospel, is telling the disciples that the Holy Spirit will not bring new revelations but will allow them to understand the things that have already happened. And in that revelatory understanding Christ will be glorified because He and the Father are one.
Reflection:
I believe it was at the beginning of our Diaconal Formation Class on Christology that Father Phil Gallagher asked each of the individuals in our class to rise and give a definition of the Trinity. After each person stood and gave forth pious wisdom, Father would say; “You’re a hieratic, sit down.” To try to put into words that which is beyond human understanding is a dangerous thing.
The Catechism of the Catholic Church says this:
“237 The Trinity is a mystery of faith in the strict sense, one of the "mysteries that are hidden in God, which can never be known unless they are revealed by God". To be sure, God has left traces of his Trinitarian being in his work of creation and in his Revelation throughout the Old Testament. But his inmost Being as Holy Trinity is a mystery that is inaccessible to reason alone or even to Israel's faith before the Incarnation of God's Son and the sending of the Holy Spirit.”
So many people have said over the years have said, “What does that tell us? It’s a mystery.” We need to look at the traces of its effect upon us in scripture to answer that question. Today we are happily exposed to a divinely inspired reflection on that “What does that tell us” question. In Proverbs we see the ancient understanding of how God existed in that unknowable pluralistic state from before the world was. We rejoice in the consequences of that diversity because it gives us the ability to be touched by our creator on so many levels.
Today we thank God the Father for creating heaven and hearth and choosing us as His special possession. We thank God the Son for revealing the amazing love He has for us by sacrificing himself so that we might have lives of peace and happiness. And we thank the Holy Spirit for coming to us at our baptism and guiding in the ways of peace throughout our lives.
Pax
[1] The image used today is “Holy Trinity” by Hendrick van Balen, 1620s
[2] After Links Expire
Readings for the Solemnity of the Most Holy Trinity[2]
Readings from the Jerusalem Bible
Commentary:
Reading 1 Prv 8:22-31
The author of Proverbs here reflects on the eternal nature of the plurality of persons in God. Wisdom here is used as a metaphor for Christ and the Holy Spirit, the first becoming incarnate and the second coming on the heels of the first. Concurrently we are reminded of the creative Gift of the Triune God who delights in His people.
Responsorial Psalm Ps 8:4-5, 6-7, 8-9
R. O Lord, our God, how wonderful your name in all the earth!
The psalmist here reflects upon the marvel of God’s creation and man’s place of underserved honor in it. Recognizing mankind’s power over the created environment, we thank God for his gifts to us.
Reading II Rom 5:1-5
In this passage St. Paul declares the peace of Christ which flows to the faithful from the Father through Jesus who cast out sin and death for our salvation. The complete acceptance of our earthly station is made possible by the Holy Spirit which flows from the Father and the Son into our hearts.
Gospel Jn 16:12-15
Jesus, in this reading from St. John’s Gospel, is telling the disciples that the Holy Spirit will not bring new revelations but will allow them to understand the things that have already happened. And in that revelatory understanding Christ will be glorified because He and the Father are one.
Reflection:
I believe it was at the beginning of our Diaconal Formation Class on Christology that Father Phil Gallagher asked each of the individuals in our class to rise and give a definition of the Trinity. After each person stood and gave forth pious wisdom, Father would say; “You’re a hieratic, sit down.” To try to put into words that which is beyond human understanding is a dangerous thing.
The Catechism of the Catholic Church says this:
“237 The Trinity is a mystery of faith in the strict sense, one of the "mysteries that are hidden in God, which can never be known unless they are revealed by God". To be sure, God has left traces of his Trinitarian being in his work of creation and in his Revelation throughout the Old Testament. But his inmost Being as Holy Trinity is a mystery that is inaccessible to reason alone or even to Israel's faith before the Incarnation of God's Son and the sending of the Holy Spirit.”
So many people have said over the years have said, “What does that tell us? It’s a mystery.” We need to look at the traces of its effect upon us in scripture to answer that question. Today we are happily exposed to a divinely inspired reflection on that “What does that tell us” question. In Proverbs we see the ancient understanding of how God existed in that unknowable pluralistic state from before the world was. We rejoice in the consequences of that diversity because it gives us the ability to be touched by our creator on so many levels.
Today we thank God the Father for creating heaven and hearth and choosing us as His special possession. We thank God the Son for revealing the amazing love He has for us by sacrificing himself so that we might have lives of peace and happiness. And we thank the Holy Spirit for coming to us at our baptism and guiding in the ways of peace throughout our lives.
Pax
[1] The image used today is “Holy Trinity” by Hendrick van Balen, 1620s
[2] After Links Expire
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