Homily

Today we celebrate the Solemnity of the Most Holy Trinity. It is the celebration of our dogmatic belief that God while being one being is three persons, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Not three separate Gods. Not one God with three sub-parts. We believe that God is three co-equal, co-eternal, co-divine persons. It is ultimately a mystery that no words or illustrations can fully explain nor analogies completely fill out. St. Patrick has been traditionally accredited for trying to offer an illustration of the trinity akin to a three-leaf clover. Another illustration may be the mathematical equation 1 X 1 X 1 = 1. Yet, I wonder if the best image is found in the statement that the Triune God is a communion of persons, a love being shared that is alive and personal. St. Augustine attempted to offer us this image when he described the the Trinity as the relationship between a lover and a beloved, the Father being the lover, the Son being the beloved, and the Spirit being the love between the two. The thing that I find compelling about this example is that it is essentially about relationship and is personal. As persons ourselves, we can most likely relate. This makes sense since we have been made in the image and likeness of God.

As Christians, we are being called to live in this image. We are being called to share this news. Our Sacraments are fundamentally personal. Even baptism which is part of the “great commission” proclaimed in the Gospel today, we are being brought into a special relationship with God and his Church.

So in order to more fully imitate the Trinity, we must live in community. We must give love and receive love. We must be people who embody love in our actions and our words. So, let us do just that. When receiving the Eucharist today, become like the one you receive. Be good news to others. Love those around you. Love even those you don’t like. Let Christ’s presence in your life transform all hurt and pain into love. Let him remove all resentment and anger and replace it with love. Then you will be sharing with others the greatest mystery of the Triune God. Then you will let others know that he is with us until the end of the age.