Homily, Trinity 2022

Proverbs 8:22-31; Romans 5:1-5; John 16:12-15

Dear friends, today brings us to a Sunday in Ordinary Time since the first Sunday of Lent on March 6, but we don’t use green vestments this Sunday or next Sunday. The Easter season is followed by two doctrinal feasts: the Solemnity of the Most Holy Trinity and the Solemnity of the Body and Blood of Christ (Corpus Christi). Those who were baptized at Easter were baptized into the life of the Trinity and initiated into the eucharistic meal that sustains us in living out our baptismal commitment.

The celebration of the Holy Trinity has long seemed like an ‘idea’ feast, focusing our attention on the mystery of three persons in one God. Well, it is an idea that boggles the mind and has led to numerous frustrations among theologians and preachers trying to “explain” it. We really cannot fully explain such a mystery, but that is not the point of this belief anyway. What is important is that we realize that we are called to enter into the very life of the Trinity, to share in the eternal love that flows within this primary community of persons we call Father, Son and Holy Spirit. The Most Holy Trinity is not the product of human reasoning but the face with which God actually revealed himself, not from the heights of a throne, but walking with humanity. It is Jesus himself who revealed the Father to us and who promised us the Holy Spirit.

All of us were born into this world as sons and daughters, and dependent upon our parents or guardians for our existence. No matter how our life stories have unfolded, we are all connected to a biological, “natural” family in some way. But it is an earthly connection only, one that is temporary and finite. Our celebration of the solemnity of the Most Holy Trinity helps us remember that we are also connected to a family that is eternal and infinite. God is a family, a communion of persons: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. We are created in God’s image and are members of this divine family. Humanity rejected this offer, falling out of right relationship with God through sin and disobedience. As such, we were destined to be kept from the divine inheritance because we were no longer rightful heirs. 

Jesus came to reunite us to the Father and repair our relationship. Those who are baptized into Christ become children of God by adoption – by grace we are configured to the reality of Jesus’ Incarnation – thus making us both children and heirs to the promises of God. When we are baptized, we are clothed in a white garment as a sign of the dignity with which we have been clothed by the Holy Spirit. We have also taken the name “Christian,” much as one who is adopted takes on the name of his or her adopted family. This is a permanent adoption that cannot be changed or diluted. As the catechism says, “Baptism seals the Christian with the indelible spiritual mark … No sin can erase this mark, even if sin prevents Baptism from bearing the fruits of salvation. Given once for all, Baptism cannot be repeated” (CCC1272). No sin can erase this mark, but just as some children are estranged from their earthly parents, some children of God stray away from our heavenly Father. But God is always calling his children back to himself, no matter how far they stray. This is because we were made for eternity with him, and we are invited into the fullness of relationship in the Trinity. 

In our readings for today, we hear how God lives out this Triune relationship. In the book of Proverbs, Wisdom is personified- identified later with both Jesus and the Holy Spirit- and brings joy to God, the creator. In the second reading, the Holy Spirit conveys the love between Father and Son, just as in the gospel the Spirit gives truth. Could this combination of joy, love and truth serve as blueprint for own relationships?

Dear friends, relationships are very important to all of us. From the very beginning of our lives, relationships bring us the greatest joy, but they can also cause us the deepest sorrow. After birth, a baby who is given food and shelter but does not receive loving human interaction will fail to develop normally. All relationships require love, whether it is the relationship between spouses, parents and children, friends, or co-workers. Relationships also demand truth especially an authentic sharing of oneself with the other. Within the Trinitarian relationship, love is dynamic and constantly outpouring. Father, Son, and Spirit are bound in perfect love, love that can be extended to humanity. In a world where so much revolves around transactions, we need quality time for relationships where we simply enjoy each other. On this feast of the Most Holy Trinity, let us rededicate ourselves to living out our relationships in joy, love, and truth.  ###