June 19: Solemnity of the Most Holy Trinity

Scripture readings: 

• Exodus 34:4-9
• Daniel 3:52-56 (responsorial)
• 2 Corinthians 13:11-13
• John 3:16-18 

Theme:  
God revealed himself to man gradually over time.

In this week’s first reading, God appears to Moses proclaiming his name, originally made known in the burning bush: “Lord”—“I Am.” It’s a common mistake to equate the God of the Old Testament with the first Person of the Trinity. Throughout the Old Testament the Father, Son and Holy Spirit are fully present, though the distinction may not be obvious.

God is fully present to Moses in all his glory. He speaks his word (Son) as Moses is enveloped by the heavenly cloud (Spirit).

God had initially revealed himself to Moses simply as “I AM.” God now reveals more:

“The Lord; the Lord a merciful and gracious God; slow to anger and rich in kindness and fidelity.”

The second reading comes from the end of St. Paul’s second letter to the Corinthians. The reading was chosen for the final blessing in which Paul invokes all three Persons of the Trinity.

The Church in Corinth was troubled by discord. Paul’s blessing was also a prayer that the members of the Church would “agree with one another, and live in peace.”

Communion with each other is rooted in our communion with the Most Holy Trinity in whom we “live and move and have our being” (Acts 17:28). 

Through Christ the true nature of God has been fully revealed. In this week’s Gospel we hear how “God so loved the world that he gave his only Son.”  “God is love” Scripture says in another place (1 John 4:8) and love, by its very nature, is relational.

Relative to us, God is one; in himself God is a communion of persons: Father, Son and Holy Spirit. The doctrine of the Trinity is a “mystery” in the sense that it’s not something we could have figured out on our own.  In Christ, God has revealed his innermost secret.

Key verse:
“The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ and the love of God and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with all of you” (2 Cor 13:13).

Catechism of the Catholic Church:
“From the beginning, the revealed truth of the Holy Trinity has been at the very root of the Church's living faith, principally by means of baptism.

It finds its expression in the rule of baptismal faith, formulated in the preaching, catechesis, and prayer of the Church. Such formulations are already found in the apostolic writings, such as this salutation taken up in the Eucharistic liturgy:

"The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ and the love of God and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all" (No. 249).

Pope Benedict XVI:
“Thanks to the Holy Spirit, who helps us understand Jesus' words and guides us to the whole truth (Jn 16:13), believers can experience the intimacy of God himself, discovering that he is not infinite solitude but a communion of light and love: given and received in an eternal dialogue between the Father and the Son in the Holy Spirit—Lover, Loved and Love, to echo St. Augustine.” (Angelus, June 11, 2006).

Life application:
When we were baptized “in the name of the Father, and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit” we entered into the innermost life of God. Every time we celebrate the Mass, the divine life in us is renewed. The doctrine of the Most Holy Trinity is not a puzzle to be solved, but a relationship to be lived.

James Cavanagh is director of Evangelization and Catechesis for Metro-area Parishes of the Denver Archdiocese. Cavanagh’s column is distributed by the Denver Catholic Register.