This weekend, we celebrate the Solemnity of the Most Holy Trinity. This can be a hard feast to wrap our heads around, as it invites us into a deeper understanding of who God is, as three distinct persons, yet one true God. These past weeks, as the reality of the sinful acts of racism again finds its way into prominent conversations as a country, the Lord invites us, as a people of faith, to examine injustices present in the world and in our communities, by continuing to discover the truth of who God creates all of His people to be: made in His image. The common denominator and answer to both the feast we celebrate today and the issues our world continues to grapple with is summarized in the word LOVE. We see the fullness of God's relationship manifested in the Trinity-- a relationship He so deeply desires to have with each and every one of us, by way of our chosen encounter with Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. In the same way, God reveals His love to us by who He created us to be. We are built with an innate desire to love and be loved. Most especially in recent times, we have seen examples of how humanity falls short of this call, and innate evils take root. We, in turn, can exemplify Christ's love in the way in which we choose to love and care for others.
In our daily lives, we are inundated with constant content, opinion, videos, posts, etc., as we flip through channels and scroll through social media. As we sift through our information-heavy culture, may we keep God's desires and love for His people and His saving act of sending Christ to earth in order to redeem us, as the lens for which we view our world. These are times to unceasingly proclaim the Gospel message into the many conversations absent of it-- both in word and in the way in which we live and love. May the Holy Spirit be our ultimate mover and guide. These are also the times we are invited to soften our hearts, open our ears, and listen to one another with understanding, while boldly proclaiming the light and hope of Christ's love. We will encounter many messages in the world today; however, there is only one which promises steadfast hope, true joy, full transformation, perfect forgiveness, and eternal peace here on this earth and the promise of redemption in eternal life to come for all humankind.
Regardless of race, political persuasion, or other differences between God's people around which humans create divisiveness we see today, the message and Truth of Jesus Christ breaks through all of it as the ultimate source of our life. May we accept the sometimes difficult challenge to keep Christ at the forefront of all we say, do, and believe, trusting in His will to transform and unite all of His people. Allow our Lord to enter, bless, and speak into each conversation today. The Holy Trinity puts love into motion. The Trinity can literally be defined as a movement of God's love. May we, too, embrace God's love as a movement and desire within us to better the world in which we live.
Peace,
Mike
Below are some resources for parents to view and share and/or view and discuss alongside your middle schooler, using parent discretion:
