Homily
for Holy Trinity, 2012
11.00 Mass
When we think of the Holy
Trinity, due to our upbringing and the particular focus of theological thinking
in the Church of our time, most of us normally think of three Persons in the
One nature of God. Sometimes this can
make our understanding of God seem far away and ‘up there’ - very remote from
everyday life.
In fact the knowledge
of God which Jesus gave his disciples was very personal. He spoke to them of the experience he had
with the Father. His Father was not an
idea but a Person. That seems quite a concrete
but because of the way he went on to talk of the Father, the disciples found it
difficult to understand him at times. We
can find it difficult enough to understand each other so it is hardly
surprising the disciples having this problem, too, on hearing Jesus’ words.
Jesus was an
immensely attractive individual. All
sorts of people were drawn to him by the force of his personality and the
compassion he showed to the poor and the needy.
Some looked to him for new life and others to find reasons for doing
away with him because of the threat he was to their lifestyle. So Jesus was someone who touched on the lives
of others for good or for bad. Life is
never neutral. During the course of it we
will make choices for what is life-enhancing or what is ultimately selfish. We cannot stand by and not take part in the
drama of life. Our lives are either
increased or diminished by Christ’s coming on earth.
So what is it that
made Jesus so different from the rest of humankind? He was first of all concerned not for himself
but for others. He gave from what he
himself had received. That came from
this close but mysterious ‘Father’ Jesus spoke about to the disciples. They had lived with him during his years of
ministry, so they knew him well enough to know that what he told them was
somehow true, even though they may have found it hard to understand him fully.
There was always room for misunderstanding. But those grains of truth had been sown. When he rose again from the dead those grains
of seed came to life and bore fruit in their new awareness of who he was.
And who was this man
Jesus? He is the one who spoke of God as
his Father. No son was as close to his
father as he was to his. No married
couple or closest of friends were as intimate as he was with his Father. At times he spoke as if he was the Father or that the Father was
him. At other times he said he was doing
the work of the Father and that he did nothing that was not from the Father. Jesus said that he must go to be where he was
from the beginning. It is all so unusual!
And then there is the
mention of the Holy Spirit. Jesus told
the disciples that he had to go or the Holy Spirit would not be able to come to
them. When he came he would reveal the
full meaning of all he had told them.
This Spirit was the expression of the love, of the being, of Father and
Son
Jesus told us he was
one with the Father. But now there is a
difference. Jesus, true Son of God the
Father and true son of man, has risen from the dead, and has ascended with this
humanity into the Godhead.
The Holy Trinity
which we honour today now contains some of our humanity. With the coming of the Holy Spirit at
Pentecost, this same risen Jesus said he would return to be with us
always. But the Father would also be
with us because Jesus said that he and the Father are one. Together they would remain with us. When we are alone in times of sorrow, or when
we are feeling deserted, they would still be with us in their care and
friendship.
The bishops and
theologians in the early centuries of the Church’s existence were so convinced
of Jesus’ words about the Father and the Holy Spirit that they stated clearly
that there are three Persons in the
One reality of God. This is not a puzzle
to be worked out but more a bond of love and relationship which embraces all of
us.
Today’s readings at
Mass do not give us the main texts of the gospel which speak of the
relationship of Father and Son. But they
do speak of the mystery of God and of the mission to go and preach that good
news to our world. Grace, love and
fellowship are the blessings we receive from Father, through the Son and in the
Holy Spirit. These gifts of such a
marvellous God are what the Church proclaims to the world. We are called to be true to them and to express
them through the lives we lead.
