Catechism Corner | God Is Family of Love

We cannot say this about the Most Holy Trinity. We will never fully understand this most profound and unfathomable mystery. We are grateful, however, that Jesus Christ, the Incarnate God, revealed this mystery to us. Otherwise, we would not have any idea about this sublime truth.

Through Jesus Christ, God revealed to us His innermost secret about Himself. God is one, but He is not alone. He is a family of three Divine Persons: The Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit. These are three absolutely distinct Persons, but only one God. How did this happen? That is precisely the greatest mystery, which we can never fully fathom with our limited minds. The Catechism of the Catholic Church said: "By sending His only Son and the Spirit of Love in the fullness of time, God has revealed His innermost secret: God Himself is an eternal exchange of love, Father, Son and Holy Spirit, and He has destined us to share in that exchange."

The first thing we should therefore ask is: Why did God tell us about His innermost secret? It is because He is inviting us to a more intimate relationship with Him. In other words, God made Himself known to us so that we can be made sharers in His family of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. Through Jesus, we have all become children of God, and sharers of His divine family. And how do we fully participate in this divine family?

There is only one word that can somehow describe God: love. God is love. The only reason why the three Divine Persons, though distinct from each other, are perfectly united as only one God is because God is love. We all know by experience that love always unites. It is the bond that unites us, first and foremost, to God. The Apostle John points this out quite clearly in his first Letter: "God is love, and whoever remains in love remains in God and God in him" (1 Jn 4:16b).

The only way to become sharers in the divine life of God, the family of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, is to love. In love, we become one with God, and only then do we find complete happiness.

Furthermore, if we truly love, not only are we made sharers in the divine family, but we must also become one big human family. The key to our unity as brothers and sisters is love. Again, St. John has this to say: "Beloved, if God so loved us, we also must love one another" (1 Jn 4:11). "If anyone says 'I love God' but hates his brother, he is a liar; for whoever does not love a brother whom he has seen cannot love God whom he has not seen. This is the commandment we have from him: whoever loves God must also love his brother" (1Jn 4:20-21). Imagine a world where everyone loves each other. There will be no more wars, no more crimes, and no more hungry people. Everyone will serve and care for one another. That is heaven even on earth.

The solemnity we celebrate this Sunday is a reminder to us that the Most Holy Trinity is not just an unfathomable mystery, which makes us gape in awe and wonder. Neither is it a mere doctrine of faith, which we have to profess and believe in. Rather, it reminds us that the Holy Trinity is the way of life of God. And the best news is that God invites us all to share in this way of life. This way of life is love.

It is true that the mystery of the Most Holy Trinity is impossible for us to fully understand. But we are not expected to understand this mystery anyway. Rather, we are called to live it. And, in fact, we are expected to live it, for to love is the most vivid mark of every Christian. Jesus said: "By this shall all men know you as my disciples: your love for one another."

Every time we make the sign of the cross, let us renew our faith in the One God and three Divine Persons. Let us also renew our commitment to live the life of the Trinity by loving one another as His children.

Fr. Antonius David Tristianto, O.Carm.