The Trinity: A Relationship of Love

Homily for the Solemnity of the Holy Trinity

As I mentioned last week, from the very moment of our birth, we human beings actively seek some sort of relationship. A newborn child forms a relationship with its mother and father. As it grows and matures, it seeks a relationship with a friend or friends. Once it has reached its teenage years, it begins to sort out those relationships as it seeks a mate. Those who choose to remain celibate form a relationship of friendship or communion with God. Scripture tells us that we were formed in the image of God. Consequently, it is reasonable to assert that God also seeks a relationship. It is the relationship that we call the Most Holy Trinity.

Relationships depend upon communication. No relationship can survive without it. Throughout the Gospel, Jesus tells us that he speaks the words given to him by the Father. The word that the Father speaks to Jesus is the very essence of God, and we all know that God is love. That love is expressed or communicated in the Holy Spirit.

We all profess our faith in the triune God. It is the essence of our religion. God’s self-revelation to us is the man Jesus. Jesus left us not only the Gospel, but also the sacrament of his Body and Blood. The Gospel is our charter, our plan of life. Through it we are all called to holiness, the holiness that exists in our God. Down through the ages, various men and women have laid out a way to live the Gospel. Today we celebrate one of those ways as we witness the profession of a novice of the Secular Franciscan Order promises to live out the Gospel way of life according to the Rule written by St. Francis of Assisi.

I now call on Sr. Marilyn who will share with us some reflections on the Secular Franciscan Order.