Reflections on the readings for the Solemnity of the Most Holy Trinity (May 30, 2021): DT 4:32-34,39-40; PS 33:4-5,6,9,18-19,20,22; ROM 8:14-17; MT 28:16-20
MISSIO offers “Preaching Mission,” as a homily help, providing connections to mission from the readings of Sundays, Feast Days and Holy Days.
"Then Jesus approached and said to them, “All power in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go, therefore, and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, until the end of the age.” (Matthew 28:18-20)
On this Sunday when we venerate the Most Holy Trinity, we also move from the Easter Season back into Ordinary Time. In the way we commonly use the term ordinary we might believe that this period is less significant that others in in the Church year. Actually, it is a reference to days that are simply counted, outside of the Advent, Christmas, Lent, and Easter Seasons. This is a good point for us to stop and focus on both the essence and the totality of Christian life. There is no better way to begin than by worshipping and contemplating the Blessed Trinity. The Trinity is a divine mystery that only God Himself can reveal to us. In the one and only God, there are three persons. The Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit are truly distinct. However, they are consubstantial, that is, of the same substance or essence. We hear this term when we pronounce the Nicene Creed, yet that does not make it easier for us to grasp. Nevertheless, the rest of our belief in God – our Creator, Savior, and Advocate – depends on our faith in the Trinity as shared with us by Jesus Christ and the power of the Spirit.
In the reading today from the Gospel according to St. Matthew, we meet our Lord saying His final words to the disciples before He returns to heaven: “All power in heaven and on earth has been given to Me. Go therefore, and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, until the end of the age” (Matthew 28:18-20). Jesus directs them to preach to the whole world and to gather all people to Him. He particularly tells them how to baptize these new followers in the name of the Father, and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. The Blessed Trinity is not only the most elemental doctrine of the Church, but also the key to appreciating the unfathomable eternal relationship that each one of us is called to have both with God and with one another.