Gospel Reflection June 12 – Deacon Paul
Sunday, June 12
The Solemnity of the Most Holy Trinity
John 16:12 – 15
Gospel:
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.”
Gospel Reflection:
Today is the Solemnity of the Most Holy Trinity and it is one of those challenging and thought-provoking doctrines of our faith that can be difficult for us to grasp.
Though we do not find the word “Trinity” in the Bible, if we go back to the beginning of the third century, we learn that the term was used to represent the central Christian doctrine that God is absolutely one in nature and essence, and is three distinct persons: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.
Friends, the doctrine of the Holy Trinity serves the purpose of informing us that God is not distant from us or unreal, but it is such that God desires to know us and to have a relationship with us, just like we know and relate to ourselves and to one another. No matter where we are, or what we are doing – God is always with us. And, the Trinity reveals how God has desired to have a relationship with humanity throughout time, throughout all of salvation history…from the days of Moses and the exodus of the Hebrew people from Egypt…to the time when Jesus walked among us…to the early Church following Pentecost and to the modern-day times of our Church.
On this feast of the Holy Trinity, we need to ask ourselves, “How well do we know God?” Have we perhaps become satisfied with just the bare minimum of knowing Him? Are we striving to know Him better? Do we know Him better today than we did one year ago, five years ago, twenty years ago?
Friends, the presence of God within our souls is what defines us. The more deeply we ponder and absorb this revelation of God, the more we will love Him. And the more we love God, the happier we will be. When we profess our faith in God and when we pray the Nicene Creed together, let us really mean it. And let us ask God to stir up our desire to know Him better.
Deacon Paul Zemanek