May 22^nd 2016. Feast of the holy trinity

GOSPEL:  John 16:12-15

From a homily by Don Fabio Rosini broadcast on Vatican Radio

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GOSPEL:  John 16:12-15

Jesus said to his disciples:
"I have much more to tell you, but you cannot bear it now.
But when he comes, the Spirit of truth,
he will guide you to all truth.
He will not speak on his own,
but he will speak what he hears,
and will declare to you the things that are coming.
He will glorify me,
because he will take from what is mine and declare it to you.
Everything that the Father has is mine;
for this reason I told you that he will take from what is mine
and declare it to you."

THE GOSPEL OF THE LORD: Praise to you Lord Jesus Christ

Kieran’s summary . . . The Feast of the Trinity is not simply about trying to understand the mystery of the Trinity: it is about living the life of the Trinity. The Trinity is the foundation of everything. The world did not spring from darkness and obscurity but came into being out of the vivacious fecundity within the Trinity. And the Trinity does not just explain the mystery of the world, it also explains the mystery of human nature. Just as God cannot be understood apart from the relationships within the divinity of fatherhood, sonship and mutual love, so too human nature cannot be understood separate from the fact that we are children of God, and brothers and sisters  of each other. The meaning of our life, the secret of our identity, is that we are created in the image of the Trinity and called to be nurturers of relationships of love with all who surround us. I can accomplish a million things, but if I do not centre my life on authentic relationships with God and others, then my existence is a failure, I am cut off from my true identity.

The Trinity is not only a mystery to be understood but a relationship to be lived.

This week’s readings seek to help us meditate on the mystery of the Trinity, but even more important than comprehending the mystery of the Trinity is living it. The Gospel tells us how the Holy Spirit helps us to live the life of God from within, as an interpersonal relationship. As the passage says, the Holy Spirit does not speak of himself. He is humble and one of his characteristics is that he never speaks in relation to himself. He is love and is totally directed towards that which is loved. Jesus tells us that the Spirit “will declare to you the things that are coming. He will glorify me, because he will take from what is mine and declare it to you”. The Holy Spirit will enter into us and announce to us the things of the future, speaking to us of the glory of Christ. In Hebrew, the word “glory” refers to the real substance or value of something. What a curious thing: reflection on the glory or authentic meaning of Christ reveals to us the course of the future! And also curious is the revelation that the Holy Spirit will reveal to us the intimate connection between the Son and the Father. The heart of Jesus is that of a joyful Son who loves his Father, a Son who looks to his Father with the greatest love possible, someone who is happy to be the Son of such a Father. Thus the Holy Spirit introduces us to the tenderness of the Father and the joyful sonship of Jesus. It is in this relationship that the Holy Spirit moves.

The world did not spring from darkness and obscurity but from the loving reality of inter-Trinitarian life

The first reading from Proverbs speaks to us of precisely this relationship. Before the mountains and the land were formed, before the rivers or clouds came into being, this relationship of the Trinity existed. It would not be easy to explain the full Christological significance of this text. Nevertheless we see how this passage expresses the joy, delight and pleasure that is inherent in the nature of God. And we see how the creation of the world springs from this interchange of love. Being springs from the reality of love. We tend to think that the world sprang from darkness or obscurity, but it is the vivacious reality of the Trinity that lies at the foundation of everything.

Not only do we understand creation in terms of the Trinity – we also understand our own nature

Furthermore, we understand our own nature by reflection on the Trinity. Our existence as spouses, consecrated persons, workers, citizens, friends, involves a complicated network of relationships, and, for all the problems and blockages inherent in our lives, we can see that we have been created for relationships of love. If we live in order to maintain our own individuality and egoistic freedom, then our lives are a failure. Live finds its meaning when it is directed towards relationships of love. It is not important to be beautiful or ugly, old or young, rich or poor, famous or unknown. What counts is to be in relationships of love! It is not important who we are but who we are with. The Trinity is defined by paternity, sonship and love. God does not have an essence separate to paternity, sonship and love. Similarly, our human nature cannot be understood separate from our capacity to be children of God, brothers and sisters of each other, and cultivators of life – parents, siblings, friends. Life is beautiful when we are together and life becomes hell when we are isolated in complete solitude.

The meaning of life is not our accomplishments but our relationships

The Feast of the Holy Trinity is a great opportunity to centre our lives on the revelation that we have been created to live in relationship, to foster relationships, to resolve the difficulties of relationships through love. The only way to explain the meaning of our existence, the truth about our identity, is in terms of love for God and love for the people in life that God has surrounded us with. We can accomplish a million things, but if we do not centre our lives on a simple authentic openness towards relationship with others, then we have failed. The meaning of life is found in our relationships with others.