Father Christophe Godel – Church of Our Lady of Peace, La Chowks-de-Fonts, NE

Long ago, in the fourth century, the pope sent to Ireland a young man who had discovered God. This young man’s name is Patrick. At that time, the Irish had never heard of Jesus and his message. Patrick took it upon himself to preach the gospel to them, and many applied for baptism. At one point, Patrick wondered how this characteristic, which exists in three persons, could represent God. He then chose a trefo with its three lobes, showing that the first lobe represents the Father, the second the Son, and the third the Holy Spirit. Yet there was only one club. This interpretation was so successful that Shamrock became the symbol of Ireland and St. Patrick became the patron saint of the country.

Today is exactly the Feast of the Trinity. The word “trinity” is a good acronym because it stands for “three” and “unity”: three persons … fully united; One God … in three persons; “Trinity”.

A total novelty

When Jesus reveals that God is like that, it is a whole new thing: the Jews who knew God existed and cared for him did not know that God was so. Even today, in other religions, we believe in the existence of God, but we do not know that he is a Trinity.

Why do we know this? Because Jesus, one of the three, revealed it to us. Jesus calls God “Father”; He speaks of himself as “the eternal Son of the Father”; He speaks of the “Spirit” who will be sent down from heaven after his departure. That’s what we heard in today’s reading.

Zoom in on God

One might say that there is a “zoom in God”. Like seeing a star in the sky with binoculars. But a high-quality telescope is coming, and when you look at the same star you see three of them lying very close, and you do not know that these three exist until you get this telescope. Before Jesus came, we did not know that God is three persons.

What is the difference between the three? It changes everything! This means that God is not a lonely person in heaven, but needs humans to rule over someone. The fact that they are three makes it clear what St. John wanted to say in his letter: “God is love”; It is the “transfer of love” forever. He leads a deep and blessed life of fellowship and love. He wants to share it.

Fellowship of life and love

He wants to share what he is going through. That is why, when he creates humanity, he creates “man and woman”, a couple. His plan is for man to be able to live life to the fullest, that is, “the fellowship of life and love.” This project will take shape at all levels: in the unity of the family, a community, a church, a people, a world. The plan will always be the same: build a community of life and love, where people are different and unique, but call for living in unity, peace and kindness that give quality to life.

The Trinity is an interesting calculation: there are 3 people, but not 3 gods. Each one shares the wholeness of the divine life with the other two. If the clover loses one of its lobes it will no longer be a clover.

But one thing must be said, it will be very useful to us as you can see: each of the three persons of the Trinity does not live life together in the same way. There is a giver; There is one who receives it; There is a sender of it.
The Father is the source of life, passing it on: He gives what he has and what he has to another so that he can live and be happy.
The Son is alive because he accepts it, forsakes another life, is separated from the Father, and has complete faith in Him. He can do anything because he has accepted everything.
It is the Holy Spirit who gives life and transmits it, like a postman who brings a letter from one person to another. He is in the service of both, as a self-sufficient and effective servant, in the service of the happiness of others.

To try to imagine it a little bit, I can tell you a little story: Once upon a time, there was a young man sitting on the shores of Marseilles. It was early in the morning. Opposite him was a bar, from which smelled of croissants and coffee. He wants to sit at a table to enjoy anything that tickles his nose, but has no money for it. As he meditated on his fate, he suddenly saw a waiter from the bistro approaching him, holding a steaming coffee and a hot croissant in his tray. In the first step, realizing his inability to pay the bill, he said: “I did not order anything! But the waiter replied: “A woman gave it to you.” The young man got up and thanked the woman, but she was already gone.

In the Trinity, the Father is like this woman who gives this gift without even asking for thanks. His only joy and happiness. It is a model of self-giving, of generosity, of the gift of life, with the desire that they should be happy, that they have everything they need, that they have everything they need, and that He is loved.
In the Trinity, the Son is like this young man who has nothing, but accepts this gift. He is a model of trust, acceptance in others, a desire to enter into someone else’s plan, free and chosen obedience, and humility to know that his abilities have been given to him and have been acquired. Service to others.
In the Trinity, the Holy Spirit gave the young woman like the waiter who brings the young man. He is the epitome of service, of unwavering sweetness, of the desire to put others ahead of oneself, the builder of bridges and the means by which everyone can fulfill its mission.

You see: To understand the depth of human life, of our lives, of the most important values, the key is the Trinity.
We can thank Jesus for allowing us to discover it and ask the Holy Spirit to help us delve deeper into this beautiful mystery. Because it is through meditation and the application of reason that we discover that our lives will flourish and our hearts will be filled.

Amen.

Feast of the Holy Trinity
Bible Readings: Proverbs 8, 22-31; Psalm 8; Romans 5, 1-5; John 16, 12-15

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