The Solemnity of the Most Holy Trinity: A relationship of self-sacrifice

Lectionary Readings:

• Proverbs 8:22-31. God exist in relationship. The Holy Spirit, “The Wisdom of God,” Describes her intimate relationship with the Lord God and their working relationship during creation. The wisdom of God is especially delighted with the human race.
• Romans 5:1-5. We are justified by faith. Through our faith we have been given the Holy Spirit and as a result we are aware of the Love of God and that gives us the greatest hope.
• John 16:12-15. The disciples are not able to bear the ultimate truths that God has for humanity. But with the Holy Spirit they will be able to discern these ultimate truths more clearly. The Holy Spirit will speak the truths directly from God and Christ.

Thoughts for your reflection: By John Gonzalez

Judaism, Islam and Christianity share a common religious heritage. We are all rooted in the firm belief that there is One God. Furthermore we also acknowledge the same historical origins beginning with Creation and we each acclaim Abraham as the founder of all our faiths. After that we begin to diverge within our separate doctrines as developed by Moses, Jesus and Mohammed. One of the greatest distinctions that we have with our monotheistic cousins is that while we honor the Supreme oneness of God we have also come to understand the Creator in terms of existing in relationship. For us Christians God’s very existence is defined in terms of the relationship of the Holy Trinity. The readings for this week express for us this mystical truth. This truth is cited early on in our Sacred Scripture when God creates humanity saying “Let us make man in our image, after our likeness,” from the beginning God’s own existence is understood in the plural form. What a powerful image of God that we are privileged to have. It reminds me of a famous American motto “E Pluribus Unum,” Out of many, One.   

Prophets are great people who have been able to serve God faithfully in expressing the message and wisdom of God to us throughout human history. The other great faiths identify Jesus as one such Prophet but we see him quite differently. In a very unique way Jesus shares an intimate relationship with God as a member of the Trinity. We too are invited to share in this deep and incarnate relationship that Christ has with God the Father through the power of the Holy Spirit. While many of the great religions comprehend salvation in terms of relating with God we Christians have been offered an intimate relationship to “share in the divinity of Christ who humbled himself to share in our humanity.” I honor the great religious traditions that have emanated God’s holy wisdom through their own prophetic tradition. But this intimate union strikes me as a special privilege indeed. With privilege however comes great responsibility.

In the second reading Paul identifies this unique relationship to share in the Love of God as a great opportunity for hope that does not disappoint. But this hope and privilege calls us to build our character in a manner consistent to the Love that we in faith know that God has for us all. Paul starts not by boasting of the privilege itself but of the afflictions that we can expect to have from this faith based condition. Through the example of Jesus we know that the Love of God is an unconditional Love, an unconditional love that sacrifices itself for the sake of relationship. The ultimate expression of this love was demonstrated by Christ on the Cross. He would not compromise the love that God had for all humanity and which was initially directed to the poor and marginalized members who suffered greatly. When society sought to stop him he accepted death on a cross. This non-violent example of Jesus is taught to us also by St. Paul in his letter to the Romans: “Do not repay anyone evil for evil; be concerned for what is noble in the sight of all. … Do not be conquered by evil but conquer evil with good.”

Catholic social teaching has raised the principle of the common good as a social value that helps explain our faith based goal to promote a supreme and unconditional love that surpasses social limitations. As Christian we are all called to share with each other the great love that God has for us all. For us to apply this we cannot be limited to our own personal good or even our own national good. We are called to support the common good which is “noble in the sight of all.”           

The privilege of being called to share in an intimate relationship with God calls to live a life of self-sacrifice. This is the message that Jesus thought would be to much for the disciples to bear. On our own we cannot hope to achieve this privilege. That is why we must learn to quite ourselves in contemplative solitude so that we can hear the guidance of the Holy Spirit. Divine truths offer us great joy coupled with great afflictions. Our ability to express this relationship with each other will stand in stark contrast to the worldly relationship that we are used to. Only through prayer and solitude will we be able to hear the “Spirit of Truth” which will guide us in expressing an order based on the common good.

2 Responses to “The Solemnity of the Most Holy Trinity: A relationship of self-sacrifice”

1. Philip Paxton says:

   May 27, 2010 at 2:14 pm

   John, Thank you for the reflection. We need to accept “afflictions” as part of the call to love.
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