Word to the Wise
Sunday, June 12, 2022 -
[Proverbs 8:22-31; Romans 5:1-5; John 16:12-15]"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." [John]
SUNDAY, JUNE 12, 2022 THE MOST HOLY TRINITY - C
[Proverbs 8:22-31; Romans 5:1-5; John 16:12-15]
"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." [John]
The Holy Trinity gets into everything in Catholic life. The Sign of the Cross is a profession of faith in the Holy Trinity. It is the prayer with which we begin the sacraments and all other Catholic prayer. Every time I bless something for someone, I do it in the name of the Holy Trinity. We recite the Nicene Creed at Mass on Sundays and special solemn feats and it contains a fundamental statement of our belief in the Holy Trinity. This did not come about right away in the church but gradually developed out of reflection on Jesus' words, especially in the Gospel According to John, and other New Testament reflection. The Gospel According to Matthew [28:19] contains an early formula of this reflection. It was all more or less settled at the Council of Nicea in 325 A.D..
Theologians like to distinguish between the "immanent" Trinity and the "economic" Trinity. The first is reflection on the nature of the Trinity and the relationship of the three persons in one God. The second is reflection on the impact of the Holy Trinity in the life of the world. Jesus, in today's passage from the Gospel According to John, gives a hint of the relationship and the impact. The Holy Spirit guides us with what is given by Father and Son. Suffice it to say that this requires deeper work than this space allows. For now it is enough to know that we act in the "name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit" in just about everything Catholic. AMEN