Trinity Sunday, Cycle B. Today’s readings: Deuteronomy 4:32-34, 39-40; Romans 8:14-17; Matthew 28:16-20

 

Today’s gospel, the conclusion to Matthew’s account of Christ’s life and mission, contains a rather disconcerting line. It says that during the final encounter of Jesus with his disciples, “they worshipped him, but some doubted”. This line sits very uncomfortably with people like me, who prefer everything to be clear-cut and tidy. How, we wonder, can people who experienced the Risen Christ multiple times still doubt?

Yet Matthew and the other evangelists never shy away from potentially embarrassing truths, like the fact that Christ’s own disciples were overcome by fear around his passion; or the fact that some of them were still struggling with doubt even after his resurrection.

This too is Good News, for it reminds us that there is room in God’s family for those who are still works in progress; for those who do not have all the answers, yet seek to worship nonetheless. In the words to Jesus of the distraught father seeking healing for his son: “Lord I believe; please help my unbelief!” (Mark 9:24)

Perhaps it is this attitude of struggling faith that best characterises our contemplation of the Holy Trinity. No other doctrine is as unfathomable as the concept of a God who is one, yet in three persons. In fact, Trinity Sunday has been dubbed “the preacher’s nightmare”, in recognition of how difficult it is to preach about such a mysterious reality in a clear and compelling way, without falling into theological error or banality.

The Catechism of the Catholic Church (paragraph 234) defines the Trinity as “the central mystery of Christian faith and life. It is the mystery of God in himself. It is therefore the source of all the other mysteries of faith, the light that enlightens them.”

The Trinity is “a great mystery, a mystery of love, an ineffable mystery, before which words must give way to the silence of wonder and worship"- Pope Saint John Paul II

For many, the word ‘mystery’ has negative connotations. The phrase “it’s a mystery” is employed in a far too facile way to shoot down earnest questions about faith matters, sadly. But a mystery is not some theological Rubik’s Cube or equation to be resolved by extremely clever people with a lot of patience and practice; rather, as we are taught by great saints like Augustine, Thomas Aquinas, and Elizabeth of the Trinity, it is a spiritual reality we immerse ourselves into. It requires humility from the beholder: like surfers contemplating the ocean’s grandeur, knowing it will forever be something ‘beyond’, theirs to revel in but never to dominate.

In the words of Pope St John Paul II, the Trinity is “a great mystery, a mystery of love, an ineffable mystery, before which words must give way to the silence of wonder and worship. A divine mystery that challenges and involves us, because a share in the Trinitarian life was given to us through grace, through the redemptive Incarnation of the Word and the gift of the Holy Spirit.”

As Christians, our spiritual life began with a literal immersion (baptism) in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. The Church therefore calls us today to once again gaze in wonder upon this mystery of a God whose very nature speaks of love and communion. In today’s second reading, Paul explains the practical consequences of this immersion: the Holy Spirit is poured out into our hearts, making us children of God, able to call him “Abba, Father”, joint heirs with Christ to the joys of his Kingdom.

In a wonderful and mysterious way, therefore, we too are introduced into the very life of God and – unworthy though we are – made partakers of his power and glory. How can this be, the doubter within us asks? The intellect can be satisfied by no answer, but the soul can bask in the mystery, worshipping the triune God.

 

bgatt@maltachurchtribunals.org