Reflection
Across recent decades the meaning of the Trinity highlights the heavy emphasis on the relational dynamics that constitute the reality that we call God. In other words, the doctrine of the Trinity is a human attempt to name and explain a long held spiritual conviction of the human spirit, namely, that whatever else we discern about the divine mystery, above all it embodies a deep capacity for intimate relating. And this fundamental quality of the Godhead imbues everything in God’s creation. Relationship and not estrangement or isolation is our default position in the divine plan, whether understood interpersonally or in planetary/cosmic terms. It is reassuring and inspiring to note that a doctrine of the Trinity exists in every major faith system known to humankind. Despite all the cultural and political differences, the religions hold this one truth in common: God, by whatever name we use, represents a fundamental orientation to everything in creation, including the divinity itself, namely, the capacity for deep bonding.
Diarmuid O’Murchu
Prayer
Glory to You, Creator, Word and Holy Spirit.
Action
Reflecting on God as a God of relationship, review your own actions as a person in loving relationship to others and to all God’s beloved creation. How does thinking of God as “capable of deep bonding” impact on your life?
Suggested Reading
Jesus approached and said to them,
“All power in heaven and on earth has been given to me.
Go, therefore, and make disciples of all nations,
baptizing them in the name of the Father,
and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit,
teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you.
And behold, I am with you always, until the end of the age.
Matthew 28:16-20
God is not solitude, but perfect communion. For this reason the human person, the image of God, realizes himself or herself in love, which is a sincere gift of self.
Benedict XVI
In its own singular way religious belief in the triune God sums up the experience that far from being an isolated monad, the unfathomable mystery of God is a communion of overflowing love enfolding the world with gracious compassion.
Elizabeth Johnson
Trinitarian theology affirms not only communion but also difference. It locates unity in difference at the heart of God. A trinitarian theology supports a relational view of reality, but it is a specific kind of relationality, one in which distinction and difference are enabled to flourish,
Denis Edwards
What is asked of religion, therefore, is to let go of answers that no longer respond to questions; to accept change and possibility rather than fixate on interpretations that came from another worldview and were profitable then, but have lost all significance today.
Barbara Fiand
Jesus did not spend a great deal of time discoursing about the trinity or original sin or the incarnation, which have preoccupied later Christians. He went around doing good and being compassionate.
Karen Armstrong