YEAR C: HOMILY FOR HOLY TRINITY SUNDAY (4)

YEAR C: HOMILY FOR TRINITY SUNDAY

HOMILY THEME: The Holy Trinity teaches us oneness, equality of persons and respect for each other.

BY: Rev.

YEAR C: HOMILY FOR HOLY TRINITY SUNDAY

HOMILY THEME: The Holy Trinity teaches us oneness, equality of persons and respect for each other.

BY: Rev. Fr. Callistus Emenyonu, cmf

 

HOMILY: READINGS: Prov. 8: 22-31, Ps.8, Rom. 5: 1-5, John 16: 12-15

The Most Holy Trinity celebrated Sunday after Pentecost is one of the sublime mysteries of the Church. It does not call from the obedient and faithful member of the Church arguments or rationalization but faith and submission to the teaching authority of the Church.

Most often, people argue on terminologies and ‘nomenclature and not on the reality. It is obvious that there exists only one true God (Monotheism); it is as well obvious that God manifested himself to humanity in the course of history as God the creator (Father), God the Son (Word made flesh) and God the Holy Spirit. No one can teach three Gods (polytheism) but one God who has revealed Himself in three forms which is scripturally proved. Originally today is called Trinity Sunday.

The solemnity of the Holy Trinity challenges humanity a lot in our living in this world, in our working places in our schools and everywhere we find ourselves as a group of humans. The Holy Trinity as a mystery was made a bit understandable to me when I met a man called Okechi who was A Catechist of a young parish and was also a Teacher as well as a good footballer in the town Team and was popularly called Terres. Once I went out with him to a Diocesan ceremony, his colleagues were calling him Cate, (short form of Catechist) and all knew him and called him Catechist. As we stepped out to the cathedral gate, he met his students who were shouting teacher! Teacher! Teacher! And some catechists who did not know he was a teacher were surprised that he was not known and called Catechis by these students but called teacher. When we entered our town pack to pick a car, his fellow team mates started pouring accolade on him saying: Great footballer Terres. Then it downed on me that the same person I know too well is having three identities. It can be confusing and not understandable. Then I said Okechi is the same one person who is “three persons” in one man. Oh I can see that One God is three persons.

This is an imperfect representation of the issue. The Trinitarian doctrine makes us see perfect unity, perfect oneness and perfect collaboration; we see perfect respect of personages, division of labour in one accord not leaving each to do it alone at a time but actively behind its success by all the persons; lending support and cooperation. There is singleness of purpose and perfect achievement of goal and objective by all at the same time.

Beloved, the readings put us in the serious thought of the mystery of what we celebrate today. The voice we heard in the first reading from the book of Proverbs claim not created but same existence with God; was together with him when the world was made and gave him support. That voice was giving power and reality to what God was doing. That voice speaking is in him and working with him. This gives us a thought about God’s Spirit working in him from within his being (Holy Spirit). The words he pronounced that made all things was later made flesh and dwelt among us (Jesus Christ). It was full of power and emanating from Him. In the same vein St Paul admonishing the Roman Christians made them understand that they received their faith in God the Father through Jesus Christ who poured love of God the Father into their hearts through the Holy Spirit which has been given to them. St John followed in the same irrefutable doctrine by presenting Jesus Christ (Second Person) who as Word of the Father has a lot to give the people but reserved the fullness and completion of that mission to the Holy Spirit (Third Person) who is of truth and will glorify Him. This Holy Spirit would take his scheme of teaching from Jesus Christ who has everything in him gotten from the Father (First Person). What a sublime mystery beyond human intellectual grasp and fathoming. It is in praise of this mystery that the Psalm speaks of the greatness of God and his name through all the earth. The arrangements and creation of the things by God leaves the psalmist in greater wonder. He is surprised about what great dignity God bestowed on man and subjected everything to his control even to the extent of making man little less than himself. Man indeed is Trinitarian in nature: this is the greatness of God the psalmist praised.

As we celebrate this solemnity, we are challenged to destroy all obstacles against unity, and the cooperate achievement of single purpose. Remove obstacles to unity that creates chasm and broods disunity. We must fight against things that promote lack of collaboration, situations and life that insult persons and degrade the dignity of others. Today in the world human beings that are made in Trinitarian spirit and nature behave as if we are enemies of each other raining insults and abuses on each other; killing each other violently as if man is an animal and things.

Beloved, let us learn the lessons of the Most Blessed and adorable Trinity. Let us learn to live in perfect love, in due respect for each person around us, working with each other to achieve a common purpose of life for humanity. Let us learn to live in respect for God and feel the closeness of God in our life and appreciate that we are brothers of Jesus, carrying the Spirit of the Father who with Jesus our brother will inherit from God his Father.

May we remain blessed as the people God has chosen as his own, and cherish our life in the Trinitarian component of our lives, Amen.

Rev. Fr. Callistus Emenyonu, cmf

 

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