Holy Trinity and our Humility
Sunday after Pentecost is the Solemnity of the Most Holy Trinity. The Church has so designated this Sunday, even though the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit are invoked at Mass every single day, to ensure that this Mystery that is central to our faith and life is never taken for granted. No human so far has fully grasped this most intensely debated dogma, and never will; yet it befits us to humbly seek to understand it.
Perhaps the most common preliminary question pertains to how someone can be three and three be one all at once! It is a divine Mystery, which we believe in on the authority of the Scriptures; we cannot, for sure, rely on our limited comprehension.
In the Old Testament there is a hint of plurality in the ‘Let us…’ uttered at Gen. 1: 26. Later, in Gen 18, when three persons visit Abraham and Sarah, God the Father is said to have best engaged with the couple. He deigned to visit them, for the duo were soon going to be key figures in salvation history.
Further in the Old Testament, God, speaking to Moses in today’s First Reading (Deut. 4: 32-34, 39-40), reveals Himself as the Creator. For his part, the Prophet reminds his people that God from on high stretches out His arm in love, like no one else does or can. And what do we do? Alas, we hold back ours.... No science or doctrine comes in the way of our relationship with God, except our pride and ingratitude! No wonder, covenant after covenant failed and humankind eventually turned unworthy of the Father’s voice.
But still, God persevered. He did not reveal Himself directly to us all right, but by His infinite love He sent us His Only Son. Thus, God the Son, Jesus, born of Mary, lived and died as humans do, in everything but sin. Jesus revealed His divine origin to those who had eyes to see and ears to hear. He exhorted them to be like little children, simple and humble, to whom He reveals the mysteries of the Kingdom. 'Truly, I say to you, unless you turn and become like children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.' (Mt. 18:3).
God has so favoured us that we ought to gratefully honour his words. As St Paul says in the Second Reading (Rom 8: 14-17), ‘You have received the spirit of sonship, whereby we cry, Abba! Father!’ And needless to say, His Resurrection and Ascension became two undeniable proofs of His divinity.
To complete the picture, we got to know about the Holy Spirit at Pentecost. Today’s Gospel text (Mt 28: 16-20) reminds that, before Jesus ascended to Heaven, He commanded the apostles to go forth and baptise ‘in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.’ He instructed them not to leave Jerusalem until they had received the Holy Spirit which the Father would send them. Ten days later, the Holy Spirit indeed descended upon the Apostles and the Mother of Jesus gathered in the Cenacle.
What else does it take to believe in the Most Holy Trinity? It is incredible that despite being blessed with so many momentous happenings, let alone eloquent teachings, there are people who hold on to their prejudices. In fact, this Mystery mixed with a good dose of virtue should cause us to yearn for God. The gift of supernatural love can indeed quench that thirst, for God is love, and our Trinitarian God a divine family of love, a model for human households: members many, yet a close-knit family!
On this magnificent Solemnity of the Most Holy Trinity, let us first thank God very especially for the Revelation, for without it we would still be groping; let us next be grateful for the doctrine of the Church, her Fathers and Doctors; and finally, notwithstanding our limited human knowledge and reasoning, let us continually pray for ever-fresh insights into the undeniable reality of the Most Holy Trinity. It requires an essential degree of faith, purity and humility.
Also see: https://www.oscardenoronha.com/2023/06/04/the-holy-trinity-a-deep-mystery/
