Dear Brothers and Sisters,

Happy Solemnity of the Blessed Trinity – a feast that celebrates the mystery of God in who God is.

Our Gospel selection today comes from early in Jesus’ ministry. He has won favor with some and with others he has made enemies. Others still are curious but have yet to be convinced. They are drawn to Jesus’ teaching, but they are just not sure. Part of them wants to believe, but they struggling to make the leap of faith. We must remember that Jesus’ teaching was a radical departure from the accepted norm, but there was something in him and his words that challenged and soothed their hearts. Enter Nicodemus.

Nicodemus was a righteous man and a good Jew. John tells us he was a ‘ruler’ of the Jews, most likely a member of the Sanhedrin, which meted out justice and led the people. We are told that he comes to Jesus at night. This is symbolic on two levels. First, and most importantly, darkness and light play a significant symbolic role in the Gospel of John. Those who dwell in darkness live in sin and ignorance. This is the devil’s realm. Those who dwell in the light, live in the radiance of God. Secondly, darkness is the place where secrets are hidden. So, Nicodemus, a leader, who feels drawn to Jesus’ teaching comes to him under the cover of darkness – in secret. He is afraid of what possible association with Jesus would mean for him and so he hides in the dark while being drawn to the light of Jesus. He wants to be in the light but is afraid to make the leap of faith. So, he comes to Jesus, well meaning, trying to find his way and to understand his teaching.

Today’s gospel selection comes from their conversation. Jesus has just shared with Nicodemus the fact that one has to be born again in baptism and given the gift of the Holy Spirit, but then he goes on to share with him a teaching that you might say sums up the whole gospel.

“For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him might not perish but might have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world might be saved through him.”

This in a sense is a mini catechism. It sums up God’s reason for Jesus coming to be our savior. Love! God is all about love! The world was created as an act of love. We and all creation were brought into being as an act of love. Jesus reveals to us in this one paragraph the very heart of the Blessed Trinity. Simply put, God is love. And God’s motivation is for us to experience that love and be drawn into a loving relationship with him.

Unfortunately, our human experiences of love aren’t as perfect as God’s love for us. We are imperfect and sometimes our love or lack there of is a reflection of that. So that when we hear those words we are skeptical. How can anyone love us so perfectly and want us to be in relationship with him? How can anyone love me, so perfectly? Our human experience is littered with broken promises and relationships. We have been used and hurt by the people we love, or have told us that they love us, and we often have hurt them in return. But you see, God is not like every other person. He shows us that in Jesus who went to such great lengths in the passion to breach the gap of our cynicism. Yes, God loves us that much, that he would go to any lengths to draw us into his very heart!

My friends, as we celebrate the mystery of this God; Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, rather than trying to fathom the mystery of understanding God in himself, how he can be three in one – instead - focus on the passion and motivation of that mystery that is our all-loving God. If we want to know who God is, then we only have to look at his motivation and actions. And his motivations and actions are all about perfect LOVE.

My prayer for you this Solemnity is that you are swept up in the knowledge of the God who loves you more than you can understand and being drawn into that love, that you may be embraced in the mystery. May you be caught up in a love that surpasses all your experiences, healing your heart and giving you new life, hope, and peace.

Peace,

Fr. Steve