Today is the Solemnity of the Most Holy Trinity which celebrates the mystery of our God. Interestingly, the readings are some of the shortest readings that we hear on a Sunday all year. This reality points to the fact that a relationship with God is less about comprehension and more about union.
In the first reading, God reveals His glory to Moses after the incident of the Golden Calf and Israel’s repentance. Yet, Moses is only able to experience a portion of God’s glory because its fullness would cause Moses to die. In the Gospel, we hear the famous John 3:16 that God loves us so much that He sent His Son to save us. Jesus comes to be one of us so that we can know the Father. Yet again in God’s love, He reveals Himself to us, but in a manner that hides His glory in human form. Finally in the second reading, we hear of the early Christian community, the Church, being united by the fellowship and power of the Holy Spirit. This unity is the same unity that bonds the Holy Trinity and is the doorway into God’s life.
In all of these readings, God reveals two things about Himself. The first is His awe-some-ness. Many times we look at God as a sort of Superhero or even a Genie or Wizard in the Sky who can do great signs and wonders. While God has these types of attributes (and many more), who He is is something categorically different from what we can even understand. He is greater than anything than we can conceive. As a result, in this life we are forced to hide from the full revelation of His glory due to our sinful nature. Even men like Moses or John the Beloved Disciple (who inclined at table with Jesus) bow before God’s awe-some might. This is why Jesus comes into the world. He is God’s humble invitation into the fullness of His glory. He knows we cannot behold all of His greatness in our sinful natures so He hides himself.
This divine condescension leads us to God’s second revelation in these readings which is that God desires mercy for us. In the first reading, God had just spared the people of Israel and agreed to go with the people into the Promised Land at Moses’ request. In the Gospel, God sends His Son to give mercy the whole world. Of all the things a categorically different, all powerful God could do with His existence, He chooses to descend to our level and offer us mercy. And He does this out of no gain for Himself other than union with us.
But this leads us to the lynchpin of all of salvation history. It is not enough for God to reveal Himself to us and offer us mercy. We must have an active response to Him. God loves us and desires our love in return. And this desire is not because it makes Him feel any better, but because loving Him is what is best for us. But He will never force or coerce us to love Him because that is not love. Love has to be a gift freely given. So He reveals Himself to us, offers Himself to us in the saving action of His Son, and gives us the aid to choose Him through the power of the Holy Spirit.
These actions to us are a great mystery. It is against our sinful natures to receive and give mercy. We are prone to use, abuse, and distort. But God, through His revelation and invitation allows us to enter into His life, not so we can understand Him, but to be like Him who is mercy and love. So as we celebrate this Holy Trinity Sunday, let us not attempt to mentally grasp who our God is. Rather, let us receive His revelation of who He is, and enter into the mystery of a relationship with Him.