Trinity Sunday

Following Pentecost, we as a Church exit the Easter Season and return to Ordinary Time. However, before getting back into the normal rhythm, the Church places before us a few special Sunday feasts to celebrate very important aspects of our faith. The first Sunday after Pentecost is what is known as "The Solemnity of the Most Holy Trinity," or Trinity Sunday. It is a day on which we are encouraged to think more directly about the Holy Trinity, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, whom we have heard much about in our readings during the Easter Season. And it is said that this feast is celebrated the Sunday after Pentecost because it was after the original Pentecost that the doctrine of the Trinity was first proclaimed by the Apostles to the world.

What is most interesting about the Gospel reading for Trinity Sunday to us here at Gesu is the final quote of Jesus before he ascends in Matthew's Gospel: "Behold, I am with you always." Of course, this quote is significant to us because it is written on the arch above the altar in our beloved church (see above image). But it is also a promise from Jesus: He, as the Second Person of the Trinity, is ascending to the Father, the First Person of the Trinity, but will remain present with us always by the sending of the Holy Spirit, the Third Person of the Trinity. It is through the Holy Spirit's action on earth that the sacraments are made possible and able to have effect; it is through the Holy Spirit that the Eucharist is made present on the altar; and it is through the Holy Spirit that we are given the gifts we need to do as Jesus commands when he says "Go, therefore, and make disciples of all nations."

So, as we move forward reflecting on our one God in three Persons, let us remember that this God, who is love, is indeed with us always and giving us all that we need to continue the work of Jesus in a world desperate to know him!

Want to prepare your heart and mind for next Sunday's Mass? Click here to find the readings.