Showing posts with label Trinity. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Trinity. Show all posts

Sunday, May 31, 2015

The Trinity, Baptism, and Eternal Life

The Solemnity of the Most Holy Trinity, 2015:

The Solemnity of the Most Holy Trinity, 2015

By Deacon Lawrence N. Kaas
May 31, 2015

Today is Trinity Sunday, a Solemnity we celebrate throughout the Catholic world.

Our challenge is to try to put form to the idea of three persons in one God, the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. We are taught that the Father is the Creator, and at the Word of the Father we have His only Son, with the Love of the Father and Son we have the Holy Spirit. We are also taught that the three persons of God are One. By the way, if you can figure this all out give me a call cause I want to know.

Quite a number of years ago even before I was ordained I either read or heard of a hypothesis that makes sense. And have meditated much on this idea since. It goes something like this.

God, who created all things and has given each of us a body, whether that body is human, an animal's or even plant's. That gives us a good start, at the bottom of the Trinitarian ladder. This idea goes on to claim that each of us whether human, animal or plant are gifted with a soul. Now we might shudder a little bit but hear me out. By this hypothesis the soul gives form and animates the body. Here is where there becomes a distinction between humans and the rest of God's creation. For in order for us to hold to the idea of eternal life there has to be an intimate relationship with the Third Person of the Blessed Trinity, that is the Holy Spirit. It is the Spirit that gives life to the soul.

To clarify: every living thing on earth that has been created by Almighty God will completely return to dust, except the soul of man that has been gifted of the Holy Spirit. The final gift of the Holy Spirit given to man then is the restoration of his body at the end of the world.

I'm sure some of you already thinking, there is something missing? And you are right! The missing factor here is Baptism. In order to give eternal life to the soul one must be Baptized in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. The Sacrament of Baptism fills out this hypothesis that could easily be summed up again as: the body created by God is animated by the soul which is given life by the Holy Spirit.

A point to be made about baptism: when we are baptized we are made sons and daughters of the Father with the same hereditary right of his firstborn Son. The point here is to understand that this is our right, given by the sacrament, the right to everything that belongs to the son now belongs to the new baptized. That is Eternal Life. And of course it's good to remind the adult that it is sin that destroys this beautiful gift granted at baptism and can be restored by a good confession.

To my way of seeing things this completes the Trinitarian comparison between God's creation of man and his own Trinitarian life.

I'm not trying to tell you that this is the only way to look at our relationship with the Trinity but I think it's certainly worth our meditation!

So you all be Good, be Holy, preached the Gospel using Words and Holy Actions.
'Thank you' to Deacon Kaas, for letting me post his reflection here.
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The Trinity: Accepting When I Cannot Comprehend

I grew up in a mainstream Protestant household, so I think of today's Gospel reading, Matthew 28:16-20, as describing the "great commission."

The phrase started rattling around in various European languages a few centuries back. Hudson Taylor, a Protestant missionary, popularized the English translation.

Folks at the Vatican describe evangelization as the "great commission" occasionally, generally when communicating with those who are more familiar with Protestant culture:
When I became a Catholic, I had to adjust some beliefs and assumptions — but the importance of Sacred Scripture wasn't one of them. Sacred Scripture, the Bible, is the inspired Word of God; something we're forcefully encouraged to read — often. (Catechism of the Catholic Church, 101-133)

Changing the Presentation, Not the Message


That's why we've been taking Matthew 28:19 very seriously for two millennia. But this isn't the first, or 11th, century. It's the 21st. How we present our Lord's message of hope gets renewed regularly.
"...Proclaiming Jesus Christ the only Saviour of the World, today is more complex than in the past; but our task remains identical to that at the dawn of our history. The mission has not changed, just as the enthusiasm and courage that moved the Apostles and first disciples must not change. The Holy Spirit which prompted them to open the doors and made evangelizers of them (cf. Acts 2: 1-4) is the same Spirit which today moves the Church to a renewed proclamation of hope for the people of our time...."
("To participants in the Plenary Assembly of the Pontifical Council for Promoting New Evangelization,"1 Pope Benedict XVI (May 30, 2011))
Evangelization might be easier if we could side-step the hard bits: what our Lord said in John 6:54-55, for example. (June 22, 2014)

That's not an option, though. My reasons for joining my Lord's outfit are pretty much what Simon Peter said in John 6:68-69, and that's another topic. (September 13, 2014)

Today is Trinity Sunday, the Solemnity of the Most Holy Trinity: so I'd better leave Corpus Christi for next week, and talk about God being one, indivisible: and three persons.

One God - - -


The Trinity isn't like Bruce Wayne or Kal-El/Clark Kent, one person with multiple identities.

I've heard and read that some folks think Christians are polytheists, worshiping three gods. That's understandable, since we worship God the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.

That's not how it is, though.

Quite a bit of the Old Testament is an account of God convincing Abraham's and Isaac's descendants that God is One.
" 'But,' said Moses to God, 'when I go to the Israelites and say to them, "The God of your fathers has sent me to you," if they ask me, "What is his name?" what am I to tell them?'

"6 God replied, 'I am who am.' Then he added, 'This is what you shall tell the Israelites: I AM sent me to you.'"
(Exodus 3:13-14)

"You shall not have other gods besides me."
(Exodus 20:3)

"I am the LORD and there is no other, there is no God besides me...."
(Isaiah 45:5)
Jesus re-affirms that God is One in Mark 12:29, where our Lord quotes Deuteronomy 6:4. The Nicene Creed starts with "We believe in one God...." (Catechism, 200-202)

But it's not quite that simple.

- - - Three Persons


God is three Persons, and all three were at our Lord's baptism:
"12 After Jesus was baptized, he came up from the water and behold, the heavens were opened (for him), and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove (and) coming upon him.

"And a voice came from the heavens, saying, 'This is my beloved Son, 13 with whom I am well pleased.' "
(Matthew 3:16-17)
Matthew 28:19 tells us to baptize "in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the holy Spirit."

That isn't a grammatical error. It's a straightforward declaration of the Trinity. (Catechism, 233)

God the Son reveals God the Father, God the Holy Spirit reveals God the Father and Son, and there's a lot more to say about the Trinity. (Catechism, 232-260)

I like understanding things, but I don't understand how the Trinity works.

I understand that the Trinity exists: the Almighty Father, His only Son, and the Holy Spirit — one God, three Persons.

But how that works? Exactly? The operational details? No, I do not understand. It's literally a mystery of faith. It is a reality that I accept: but cannot comprehend. (Catechism, 232-237)

God's God, I'm not, and I'm okay with that. Like Saint Augustine said:
"If it is God (you claim to know), you do not understand; if you understand, it is not God."
(Saint Augustine, Sermon 52, 16; via Chapter 10, "Augustine's World," Donald X. Burt, O.S.A.; Villanova University)
And that's yet another topic.

More of my take on what's happened, and what's ahead:
A tip of the hat to Fr. Robert Carr, Holy Trinity Parish Quincy, Massachusetts, for contrasting comprehension and acceptance.
1 More about the New Evanglization:
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Sunday, March 8, 2015

The Trinity: a Divine Unity, and a Mystery

I'm a Catholic, so I say "in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit" a lot: mostly when I start praying.

Coming from a recovering English teacher, that may seem shocking.

Since it's the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit: shouldn't it be "in the names of the et cetera?"

No, because I am referring to God's name: the one God; the almighty Father, his only Son, and the Holy Spirit — the Most Holy Trinity.1 (Catechism of the Catholic Church, 233)

I worship the God of Abram: God Most High, the creator of heaven and earth. (Genesis 14:18-19)

Abram's name got changed to Abraham, Abraham and his wife Sara got impatient, waiting for God's promise; three dozen centuries later, we're still dealing with that domestic disturbance; and that's another topic. Topics. (Genesis 16:1-12, Genesis 21:2-14)

Quite a bit of the Old Testament tells how Abraham's descendants finally got it through their heads that the Almighty was serious about this:
"'Hear, O Israel! The LORD is our God, the LORD alone!"
(Deuteronomy 6:4)

"Bind Them at Your Wrist...."


Taking metaphor literally isn't unique to some American Protestants, by the way. This comes a bit later in the same chapter:
"Take to heart these words which I enjoin on you today.

"Drill them into your children. Speak of them at home and abroad, whether you are busy or at rest.

"Bind them at your wrist as a sign and let them be as a pendant on your forehead."
(Deuteronomy 6:6-8)
To this day, some of Abraham's descendants have tefillin strapped to their arms and heads: little boxes holding parchment scrolls inscribed with verses from the Torah. My hat's off to them for taking Deuteronomy 6:8 and 11:18 seriously.

I don't wear tefillin. I'm about as gentile as it gets, west of the Urals; and I'm pretty sure that "bind them at your wrist" was meant figuratively. On the other hand, I appreciate folks who can follow directions. And that's yet another topic.

God is One



(Detail from John Martin's "The Destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah.")

Considering what's happened before and after Moses came back from that interview on Mount Sinai, I can understand why some folks take no chances about violating Mosaic law.

God is good, God is merciful, but God can play hardball. (May 5, 2013)

Failure to recognize that God's uniqueness may not be what set off the Sodom and Gomorrah incident: not directly, anyway. Genesis 19:13-30 cites regrettable sexual practices as the trigger — that's the version screenwriters seem to like.

But Isaiah 1:9-17 and 16:46-51 says social injustice and disregard for the poor was the issue, and Jeremiah 23:14 gives a short list of sins, including "...siding with the wicked, so that no one turns from evil...." Either way, as Moses said:
" 'Future generations, your own descendants who will rise up after you, as well as the foreigners who will come here from far-off lands, when they see the calamities of this land and the ills with which the LORD has smitten it -

"all its soil being nothing but sulphur and salt, a burnt-out waste, unsown and unfruitful, without a blade of grass, destroyed like Sodom and Gomorrah, Admah and Zeboiim, which the LORD overthrew in his furious wrath - "
(Deuteronomy 29:21-22)
Most folks probably don't remember Admah, Zeboiim, and Zoara, the other cities in that pentapolis. At Lot's request, Zoara/Zoar got designated as a refuge area. (Genesis 19:22)

Anyway archeologists aren't sure where the cities of the plain were: or if they existed. That's not surprising. The Bible isn't a "history text, a science book, or a political manifesto." (USCCB)

Besides, the post-strike assessment suggests that there isn't much left to find. (March 31, 2014)
"Early the next morning Abraham went to the place where he had stood in the LORD'S presence.

"7 As he looked down toward Sodom and Gomorrah and the whole region of the Plain, he saw dense smoke over the land rising like fumes from a furnace."
(Genesis 19:27-28)
High-profile responses like Sodom and Gomorrah's abrupt termination, and that evacuation involving a fiery cloud described in Exodus 14:19-29, are — very few and far between.

Most of the time what happens is the sort of unpleasantness described in 2 Kings 16:2-2 Kings 19:37.

Short version: under the mismanagement of Ahaz; Hoshea, son of Elah; and Hezekiah, son of Ahaz, Abraham's children built and used altars with multiple code violations. It probably seemed like good diplomacy at the time, but didn't end well.

Eventually, descendants of Abraham and Israel got the message: "...The LORD is our God, the LORD alone!" Emphasis on "alone."

I think that helps explain why folks reacted violently when Jesus made this claim:
"24 Jesus said to them, 'Amen, amen, I say to you, before Abraham came to be, I AM.'

"So they picked up stones to throw at him; but Jesus hid and went out of the temple area."
(John 8:58-59)
Knowing what had happened to their ancestors when they accepted ersatz deities, forcefully rejecting someone who claimed godhood makes sense. After Jesus stopped being dead — well, that came later. (March 11, 2012)

I had something in mind for this post. Let's see. "In the name of;" Moses;  tefillin; cities of the plain, the defunct ones, not McCarthy's novels; assorted unpleasantness. Right.

Persons, Fictional and Otherwise


The Trinity isn't like Superman and Clark Kent, or Batman and Bruce Wayne, where one person has multiple identities.

The Trinity is not three Gods, either.

Do I understand how the Trinity works? No. Certainly not. I probably can't understand it. God's God, I'm not, and I'm okay with that.

I worship one God.

That's God the Father, Son and Holy Spirit — three persons, one God; a divine Unity; "...the Father who generates, the Son who is begotten, and the Holy Spirit who proceeds...." (Catechism, 253-256)

All three Persons of the Trinity showed up for our Lord's baptism, an occasion I've used when telling my kids about our faith:
"12 After Jesus was baptized, he came up from the water and behold, the heavens were opened (for him), and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove (and) coming upon him.

"And a voice came from the heavens, saying, "This is my beloved Son, 13 with whom I am well pleased.' "
(Matthew 3:16-17)
Given the sort of people my kids and are, I haven't literally drilled them on details of our faith. But I take Deuteronomy 6:7's instructions seriously, and that's yet again another topic.

"A Mystery"


The Trinity is a mystery — with 20-20 hindsight we can see hints of the Trinity in the universe and Old Testament, but we weren't going to reason it out. God had to tell us. (Catechism, 237)

That picture on the right, a "Shield of the Trinity" or "Scutum Fidei," is the best way I've found — for me, anyway — of quickly describing the Trinity.

Saint Thomas Aquinas discussed the Trinity in more detail, putting it mildly. Here's a sample:
"In its etymological sense, this word 'Trinity' seems to signify the one essence of the three persons, according as trinity may mean trine-unity. But in the strict meaning of the term it rather signifies the number of persons of one essence; and on this account we cannot say that the Father is the Trinity, as He is not three persons. Yet it does not mean the relations themselves of the Persons, but rather the number of persons related to each other; and hence it is that the word in itself does not express regard to another."
("Summa Theologica," First Part, Question 31; Saint Thomas Aquinas)
St. Thomas Aquinas is a doctor of the Church. That's a title we reserve for those with top-rate intellectual understanding, outstanding holiness — and it's an official title, not often given.

Saint Catherine of Siena died in 1380: but wasn't officially recognized as a doctor of the Church until 1970, when Pope Paul VI corrected that oversight. My opinion.

I'm not upset that it took nearly six centuries to declare the author of "The Dialogue of Divine Providence," a prolific correspondent, and one of the folks who got Gregory XI back to Rome, as a doctor of the Church.

Being part of an outfit that's two millennia old, and a student of history, I recognize that things take time: occasionally lots of time. (October 26, 2014)

It's likely enough that some folks in the 41st century will complain that an outstanding philosopher and Saint who died around 3350 wasn't officially recognized until the mid-3900s. And that's still another topic.


(Raphael-Lacoste, ''city view, Matte Painting," used w/o permission.)

More of my take on the Trinity, and guest posts:
1 Here's some of what the Catechism of the Catholic Church has to say about God:
"In no way is God in man's image. He is neither man nor woman. God is pure spirit in which there is no place for the difference between the sexes. But the respective 'perfections' of man and woman reflect something of the infinite perfection of God: those of a mother and those of a father and husband.241"
(Catechism of the Catholic Church, 370)

" 'So then the Lord Jesus, after he had spoken to them, was taken up into heaven, and sat down at the right hand of God.'532 Christ's body was glorified at the moment of his Resurrection, as proved by the new and supernatural properties it subsequently and permanently enjoys.533 But during the forty days when he eats and drinks familiarly with his disciples and teaches them about the kingdom, his glory remains veiled under the appearance of ordinary humanity.534 Jesus' final apparition ends with the irreversible entry of his humanity into divine glory, symbolized by the cloud and by heaven, where he is seated from that time forward at God's right hand.535 Only in a wholly exceptional and unique way would Jesus show himself to Paul 'as to one untimely born,' in a last apparition that established him as an apostle.536"
(Catechism, 659)

"The One whom the Father has sent into our hearts, the Spirit of his Son, is truly God.10 Consubstantial with the Father and the Son, the Spirit is inseparable from them, in both the inner life of the Trinity and his gift of love for the world. In adoring the Holy Trinity, life-giving, consubstantial, and indivisible, the Church's faith also professes the distinction of persons. When the Father sends his Word, he always sends his Breath. In their joint mission, the Son and the Holy Spirit are distinct but inseparable. To be sure, it is Christ who is seen, the visible image of the invisible God, but it is the Spirit who reveals him."
(Catechism, 689)
  • God
  • Trinity
    • As the central mystery of the faith, 232, 234, 237, 261
    • Divine economy as the common work of the three divine persons, 257-260
    • Family as image of the Trinitarian communion, 2205
    • Filioque, 246-248, 264
    • God one and three, 202
    • "Hypostasis" or person, 252
    • Liturgy as the work of, 1077-1109
    • Definition of substance, 252
    • Prayer as communion with, 2655
    • Presence of Trinity in man, 260
    • "Theology" and "economy," 236
    • Unity of the Trinity and the unity of the Church, 813
    • Divine persons in the Trinity, 252
    • Expression of the Trinity
    • Revelation of God as Trinity
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Sunday, May 25, 2014

Guide, Friend, Counselor, Comforter: the Holy Spirit

Readings for the Sixth Sunday of Easter 2014:

Sixth Sunday of Easter 2014

By Deacon Lawrence N. Kaas
May 25, 2014

In an anonymous e-mail, we are told a story we need to hear on this Memorial Day weekend. It's about an old man and his wife sitting in the parking lot of a supermarket. The hood is up on their car. Evidently they were having engine problems.

A young man in his early 20s with a grocery bag in his arms walks in the direction of the older couple. The older gentleman emerges from his car and takes a few steps in the young man's direction. He points to the open hood and asks the young man for assistance. The young man puts his grocery bag into his expensive SUV, turns back to the old man and yelled at him: "you shouldn't even be allowed to drive a car at your age." And then with a wave of his hand, he gets into his car and speeds out of the parking lot. The old gentleman pulls out his handkerchief, mops his brow and goes back to his car. Again he looks at the engine. He then goes to his wife and appears to reassure her that everything will be okay.

A stranger approaches the old man. "Looks like you're having a problem," he says. The old man smiles sheepishly, and quietly nods his head. The stranger looks under the hood of the car, but he has no more expertise with engines than the old man.

He assures the elderly gentleman he will return and heads to a nearby service station. He explains the situation to a mechanic saying he will pay him if he would help the elderly couple with their car.

Returning with a mechanic, the stranger gets into a conversation with the old gentleman. The stranger is wearing a ring signifying that he had been a Marine. Coincidentally, so had the old man. He confides that he had served in some of the harshest battles in our nation's history, including Guadalcanal in Okinawa. He retired from the Marine Corps after the war.

After the car was repaired and running, the old gentleman handed a card to the stranger and shook hands and parted. Little while later the stranger happened to look at card and the name of the old gentleman was on the card in gold leaf and under his name was written: Congressional medal of honor Society. It was only then that the former Marine realized that he had come to the aid of one of America's heroes.

This, just a reminder that this Memorial Day weekend there are men and women who have served their country, and received very little in return. It is only right we recognize their sacrifice and honor their memory this holiday weekend. And with much sadness we hear of the scandal at the VA Hospitals across our country.

Our gospel for today is of a loving relationship between the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit and how this relationship extends to all of humanity with a simple admonition: "if you love me, and keep my commands, I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Advocate to help you and be with you forever-- the Spirit of truth. With a further promise: I will not leave you as orphans; for I will come to you before long.

Another Story:

A man who underwent open-heart surgery told his friend about his experience. He said, "the day before surgery a nurse came into my room to visit she took hold of my hand and told me to feel it and to hold it."

"Now, she said, "during the surgery tomorrow you will be disconnected from your heart and you will be kept alive only by virtue of certain machines. When your heart is finally restored and the operation is over and you are recovering, you will eventually awaken and a very special room. You will be immobile for as long as six hours. You may be unable to move, or speak, or even to open your eyes, but you will be perfectly conscious. You will hear and you will know everything that is going on around you. During those six hours I will be at your side and I will hold your hand, exactly as I'm doing now. I will stay with you until you are fully recovered. Although you may feel absolutely helpless, when you feel my hand, you will know that I will not leave you."

It happened exactly as the nurse told me, the man continued. "I awoke and could do nothing. But I could feel the nurse's hand in my hand for hours and that made all the difference in the world.

Similarly this happen to me some months ago when getting up in the morning, attempting to get dressed I knew I was in trouble. I know I shouldn't use names, but in this case I feel it necessary. I called Connie and asked her to call Dr. Jim from next door and Maria Minette that I needed their help. In a very short time they came to my aid and stayed with me all morning. To say that I was and am grateful is an understatement, but much like the old man whose hand was being held by a nurse I felt their comfort, their concern and their love.

It does make a difference when someone comes along side us when we are in need. That is the work of the Holy Spirit. In some instances the Holy Spirit comes with power. At other times the Holy Spirit comes as a guide. But there are times when we need a friend, counselor, comforter. Then the Holy Spirit served in these capacities as well. But why did Jesus say, "I will give you another advocate."

The writer of John wants us to understand that the same Spirit that was in Christ is a Spirit that will be with us in our time of need. John is very clear that this is why Christ departed from this world so that his Spirit could be available to every person in this world who opens himself or herself to him. This is the importance of the Trinity. The same Spirit that created this world became flesh and Jesus Christ returns on the day of Pentecost to make available to every believer, with guidance, comfort, and empowerment, also for clarity of mission and for strength as we seek to be Christ's people. All this is wrapped up in that short phrase, "and I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Advocate to help you and be with you forever."

You all be Good, Be holy and Preach the Gospel always and if necessary use words!
'Thank you' to Deacon Kaas, for letting me post his reflection here.
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Sunday, January 5, 2014

God, Jesus, and Me: Personal?!

I'm called to a "personal relationship with God."

This isn't some newfangled notion. It's in the Catechism of the Catholic Church:
"Because God creates through wisdom, his creation is ordered ... The universe, created in and by the eternal Word, the 'image of the invisible God', is destined for and addressed to man, himself created in the 'image of God' and called to a personal relationship with God.152 Our human understanding, which shares in the light of the divine intellect, can understand what God tells us by means of his creation, though not without great effort and only in a spirit of humility and respect before the Creator and his work...."
(Catechism of the Catholic Church, 299) (emphasis mine)
In "The Joy of the Gospel," Pope Francis invited all Christians "to a renewed personal encounter with Jesus Christ, or at least an openness to letting him encounter them." My wife probably heard an exasperated tone when I said, "I'm a person, Jesus is a person: what kind of relationship could I have, except 'personal?' "

God the Father is a person, too, and so is the Holy Spirit. God is One, God is three persons, and that's another topic. (Catechism, 232-256)

My wife suggested that what the Pope meant by a "personal encounter with Jesus Christ" is what I'm doing now: taking God seriously; recognizing that I'm close to my Lord, no matter where I am; and talking with my Lord at frequent intervals.

It's not that I make the ultimate long distance call. Prayer is 'talking with God,' and - as it turns out - part of "a vital and personal relationship with the living and true God."
" 'Great is the mystery of the faith!' The Church professes this mystery in the Apostles' Creed (Part One) and celebrates it in the sacramental liturgy (Part Two), so that the life of the faithful may be conformed to Christ in the Holy Spirit to the glory of God the Father (Part Three). This mystery, then, requires that the faithful believe in it, that they celebrate it, and that they live from it in a vital and personal relationship with the living and true God. This relationship is prayer."
(Catechism, 2558)
It looks like I'm on the right track: and still have a long way to go.

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Sunday, May 26, 2013

Trinity Sunday: Our God is a Sharing God

Readings for May 26, 2013, Trinity Sunday:

Trinity Sunday 2013

By Deacon Lawrence N. Kaas
May 26, 2013

Keep in mind that God is family. As we begin in the Name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, Amen.

How often we have done this probably not giving it much thought, it's sort of like saying good morning to someone, it's quite automatic.

But that's the reason that today we celebrate the Holy Trinity Sunday. Today is a day set aside by the Church to remind us why we say these particular words.

The bottom line reasoning, is that, because that's who we are as a family of Faith. We need to be reminded of this reality because we easily forget that in all of human history, we are the unique Religious Community.

What makes our Faith so exceptional, so unique is the belief that our God is a family! Our God is a community of persons, a fellowship of Love that has burst forth in ecstasy to the point that St. Paul can say in the reading we heard today. "The love of God has been poured into our hearts by the Holy Spirit which has been given to us."

But this tells us about the God we believe in, that He is One, who is constantly communicating infinite love between the Father and the Son and Holy Spirit. Our God is a sharing God. A God who wants to invite us into becoming a similar community of love among ourselves. Our God, then, is a model for how we are to be, in relationship with one another.

The whole history of God loving us, wanting to save us from the worst of our own selves and bringing us into his Trinitarian family of love, is best highlighted by one word that is, communication.

In order to communicate, you and I speak. We use words. And more than ever, we come to realize that words mean something. God says in the Hebrew Scriptures, "I will be your God, and you will be my people." Then God comes to us in a new way in the New Testament, He speaks to us in a most definitive way possible: "The Word became flesh and dwelt among us." Finally, then, he spoke to us through the Holy Spirit. After the resurrection, Jesus promised to send a Paraclete, Who will "lead you into the complete truth," as the gospel we heard today told us.

He will do that through the Church, through the Sacraments, through the Scriptures, through the love we show one another in our common pursuit of justice and compassion, through the Eucharist we are celebrating today as a family at this very Holy Sacrifice of the Mass.

God is calling us as a church community, a family of faith, to be like him -- to be like the family that is the Trinity.

That's why we began every Mass and most of our prayer time, "In the name of the father, and of the son, and of the Holy Spirit."

This weekend too: we call to mind all those who have gone before us with the hope that peace may be ours. Of course we know that the work of Christ is to bring peace for he laid down his life to reconcile us to one another and to the Father. He is the bridge, as C.S. Lewis's words remind us that Christ crosses the chasm between who we are and who God wants us to be. "Winston Churchill was honoring members of the Royal Air Force, guarded England during the Second World War. He recounted their brave service and he declared, "Never in the History of mankind have so many owed so much to so few."

A similar sentiment appears on a memorial plaque in Bastogne, Belgium. That is the location of the famous Battle of the Bulge, one of the bloodiest conflicts of World War II. The inscription, in honor of the US 101st Airborne Division, reads: "Seldom has so much American blood been shed in the course of a single action." "Oh, Lord, help us to remember!"

We need to remember the sacrifices of the soldiers, especially on this Memorial Day weekend, but even more important that we remember the Sacrifice that Christ made to earn permanent peace with ourselves with our neighbors and with our God. Paul writes, "Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have gained access by Faith into His Grace in which we now stand."

In closing: a brief story about a man named Kurtis. He worked as a stock boy in the grocery store and fell in love with the young woman named Brenda he was 22 she was 26. He finally asked her for a date, she refused, so he asked her again. Coming to her home, once again, she says we cannot go out because I do not have a babysitter, but she lets him in and finds her with her little daughter and a son in a wheelchair, a paraplegic and with down Syndrome. He said, 'Well can't the four of us go out?'

He learned how to help care for the little boy, even how to take him to the bathroom. Time will not permit to tell the whole story but Kurt is better known as Kurt Warner who became the star quarter-back for many years for the St. Louis Rams. Kurt was declared most valuable player awarded by the NFL, as well as the MVP awarded by Super Bowl XXXIV. He is now retired but he is not retired from being a follower of Jesus Christ. If you ask Kurt Warner where he learned to love his family like this, he would unabashedly tell you that it is the Holy Spirit working in his life! Can we too, respond with, AMEN.

So you too, be Good, be Holy, preached the Gospel always and if necessary use words.
'Thank you' to Deacon Kaas, for letting me post his reflection here.
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Wednesday, January 9, 2013

Jesus: Human; Really Human

Jesus is human. He's also the Son of God, one of the Trinity.

For several weeks now, I've been posting about the Incarnation, when God "made his dwelling among us." (John 1:14)

Faith, Understanding, and a Lack of Omniscience

Folks have been having trouble believing that for two thousand years now. I suspect it's partly because we can't figure out exactly how God manages to be three persons and one God; and how one of those persons could be human and divine: at the same time.

Every now and then someone decides that Jesus isn't human, isn't God, or was one first, and then became the other. Recently, some folks have decided that Jesus either didn't exist, or was merely human.

I enjoy understanding things, but realize that I've got limits. As I've said before, God's God, I'm not. One of the ways that I'm not like God is my lack of omniscience.

"Omniscience?" Dictionaries tend to make you hunt a bit for the definition of that word:
  • Omniscience
    • The quality or state of being omniscient
      (Merriam-Webster)
    • Omniscient
      • Having infinite
        • Awareness
        • Understanding
        • Insight
      • Possessed of universal or complete knowledge
        (Merriam-Webster)
I've decided that I'll believe that Jesus is human and divine, without knowing as much as God does.

Heavy Reading, Lists, and Me

"...Everything that Christ is and does in this nature derives from 'one of the Trinity.' The Son of God therefore communicates to his humanity his own personal mode of existence in the Trinity. In his soul as in his body, Christ thus expresses humanly the divine ways of the Trinity:98...."
(Catechism of the Catholic Church, 470)
My oldest daughter noted that I like to make hierarchical lists. She's right, of course. Besides helping me learn what I'm reading, I think it's a good way to show what I've found in posts like this one.

Besides, although the Catechism of the Catholic Church is a good resource, it's slightly heavy reading. There's a lot of information in each paragraph. For instance, here's all of 470, with that excerpt in bold:
"Because 'human nature was assumed, not absorbed,'97 in the mysterious union of the Incarnation, the Church was led over the course of centuries to confess the full reality of Christ's human soul, with its operations of intellect and will, and of his human body. In parallel fashion, she had to recall on each occasion that Christ's human nature belongs, as his own, to the divine person of the Son of God, who assumed it. Everything that Christ is and does in this nature derives from 'one of the Trinity.' The Son of God therefore communicates to his humanity his own personal mode of existence in the Trinity. In his soul as in his body, Christ thus expresses humanly the divine ways of the Trinity:98

"The Son of God . . . worked with human hands; he thought with a human mind. He acted with a human will, and with a human heart he loved. Born of the Virgin Mary, he has truly been made one of us, like to us in all things except sin.99"
(Catechism, 470)
As I've done before, I broke out some of the main points out as a list: for my own enjoyment, and because I wanted to share what I found.

Jesus: Human and Divine

Jesus the Christ, Son of God:
  • Is one of the Trinity
  • Took on human nature
  • Is human
    • And so
      • Worked with human hands
      • Thought with a human mind
      • Acted with a human will
      • Loved with a human heart
    • Was born
      • His mother is Mary
    • Really has been made
      • One of us
      • Like us in everything
        • Except sin
    (Catechism, 470)
Jesus wasn't pretending to be one of us. He was, and is, human. He's also God. Like I said, folks have had a hard time believing that.

"...Believe me ... or ... believe because of the works..."

Jesus said, in effect, 'you want to know what God looks like? Take a good look:'
"Jesus said to him, 'Have I been with you for so long a time and you still do not know me, Philip? Whoever has seen me has seen the Father. How can you say, "Show us the Father"?

"Do you not believe that I am in the Father and the Father is in me? The words that I speak to you I do not speak on my own. The Father who dwells in me is doing his works.

"Believe me that I am in the Father and the Father is in me, or else, believe because of the works themselves....' "
(John 14:9-11)
Two millennia later, it's a bit easier to "believe because of the works themselves," and that's another topic. Topics.

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Saturday, July 2, 2011

How Could God Floss His Teeth?

I've never been challenged with this question: If God exists, how does He floss His teeth?

My response, or that of any other Christian, would 'prove' that God is:
  • A figment of our imagination
  • A crutch for the feeble-minded
  • Pretty much not something 'intelligent' people take seriously

Holy Dental Hygiene, Batman!

For what it's worth, here's my response to that penetrating, if hypothetical, intellectual inquiry.1

The question assumes
  1. A very limited span of time and space
    • Dental floss was invented recently
    • It's unlikely that people in all cultures use dental floss
  2. That God follows the customs of contemporary American/western culture
    • Which seems highly parochial, at best
  3. That God has teeth
    • Which He
      • Does
      • Doesn't
Explaining item #3 involves the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. And no, Catholics do not worship three gods.

God, Teeth, and a Little Serious Theology

Briefly, both God the Father and God the Holy Spirit are pure spirit - God the Son, he's fully human. And fully divine.2 And no, I can't explain that: it's a mystery. Literally.

Everybody isn't American?

Speaking of "literally," someone could take expressions like "at God's right hand" as proof that Catholics do so believe that God the Father looks like Charlton Heston.

To most Americans, I suspect, documents of the Catholic Church sound - odd. Even after being translated into our language.

What can I say? For the last two millennia, the vast majority of Catholics haven't been Americans: and that goes up to 100 percent for folks who wrote the Bible. (January 25, 2010)

God Can't be Real Because - - -

If I thought that something can't be real because someone has figured out a way to make money from it - I couldn't believe that God, Saints, or the Statue of Liberty3 really exist.

Over the decades, I've run into quite a few reasons people give for not believing that God exists. Besides the basic 'because I don't want to,' that is. Some probably aren't in fashion at the moment, and one person probably wouldn't believe everything in this list.

I think you'll find some familiar assertions, though:
  • God
    • Won't do what I say
    • Doesn't validate my self-esteem
    • Hasn't changed to fit the latest intellectual fashions
    • Has followers who are
      • Ugly
      • Stupid
      • Make more money that I do
        • Or less
      • Earned fewer degrees than I did
        • Or more
  • The universe has laws which are
    • Knowable
    • Predictable

'Everybody Knows' About Those Catholics?

Saying that the Catholic Church is icky has been a perennial favorite among determinedly 'sophisticated' folks, at least during my lifetime. Again, some of these points may be out of fashion at the moment:
  • The Catholic Church
    • Isn't
      • A new idea
      • American
    • Is literally "universal"4
    • Won't let me vote about
      • Changing the Decalogue
      • Who the next local bishop will be
    • Doesn't let parishioners hire and fire priests
    • Won't say it's okay to marry
      • Someone of the same sex
      • More than one person at a time
      • My
        • Dog
        • Cat
        • Pillow5
Then, of course, there are 'well-known facts' about the Catholic Church that simply aren't true. Like variations on the theme of 'the Catholic Church preaches hate.'6

Galileo Died For Your Sins?

Then there's the deeply-rooted conviction that science and religion, faith and reason, get along about as well as mongoose and cobra, hippie and Archie Bunker.

I've written about science, religion, and being Catholic before. Fairly often.

Bottom line? Some very religious folks seem to think with their endocrine systems, and earnestly believe that Bishop Ussher was right. Me? I know about Copernicus and Mendel: and converted to Catholicism largely because I couldn't find flaws in the Holy See's logic.

At the time, I wanted to find a loophole. And that's another topic. (March 17, 2009)

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1 That sentence has three words with more than three syllables each - which might be a meaningful factoid for someone who's into numerology, or is of the 'I use big words, therefore I am brilliant' school of thought.

2 Here's a sort of start on what the Catechism of the Catholic Church has to say about God:
"In no way is God in man's image. He is neither man nor woman. God is pure spirit in which there is no place for the difference between the sexes. But the respective 'perfections' of man and woman reflect something of the infinite perfection of God: those of a mother and those of a father and husband.241"
(Catechism of the Catholic Church, 370)

" 'So then the Lord Jesus, after he had spoken to them, was taken up into heaven, and sat down at the right hand of God.'532 Christ's body was glorified at the moment of his Resurrection, as proved by the new and supernatural properties it subsequently and permanently enjoys.533 But during the forty days when he eats and drinks familiarly with his disciples and teaches them about the kingdom, his glory remains veiled under the appearance of ordinary humanity.534 Jesus' final apparition ends with the irreversible entry of his humanity into divine glory, symbolized by the cloud and by heaven, where he is seated from that time forward at God's right hand.535 Only in a wholly exceptional and unique way would Jesus show himself to Paul 'as to one untimely born,' in a last apparition that established him as an apostle.536"
(Catechism, 659)

"The One whom the Father has sent into our hearts, the Spirit of his Son, is truly God.10 Consubstantial with the Father and the Son, the Spirit is inseparable from them, in both the inner life of the Trinity and his gift of love for the world. In adoring the Holy Trinity, life-giving, consubstantial, and indivisible, the Church's faith also professes the distinction of persons. When the Father sends his Word, he always sends his Breath. In their joint mission, the Son and the Holy Spirit are distinct but inseparable. To be sure, it is Christ who is seen, the visible image of the invisible God, but it is the Spirit who reveals him."
(Catechism, 689)
  • God
  • Trinity
    • As the central mystery of the faith, 232, 234, 237, 261
    • Divine economy as the common work of the three divine persons, 257-260
    • Family as image of the Trinitarian communion, 2205
    • Filioque, 246-248, 264
    • God one and three, 202
    • "Hypostasis" or person, 252
    • Liturgy as the work of, 1077-1109
    • Definition of substance, 252
    • Prayer as communion with, 2655
    • Presence of Trinity in man, 260
    • "Theology" and "economy," 236
    • Unity of the Trinity and the unity of the Church, 813
    • Divine persons in the Trinity, 252
    • Expression of the Trinity
    • Revelation of God as Trinity
3 More-or-less kitschy Statue of Liberty merchandise isn't limited to Mattel's Barbie accessories.

See:
4 See:
5 Some of the 'do not' parts of what Catholic Church has to say about sex and ethics are known, if not understood. See:
6 Some preachers make a career out of slogans like "Antichrist Obama."


(Reuters photo, via FoxNews.com, used w/o permission)

These are not, in my considered opinion, typical Christians.
(June 14, 2011)

As a practicing Catholic, I'm not allowed to hate anybody. See:
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Sunday, June 19, 2011

Trinity Sunday, 2011

Readings for June 19, 2011, Trinity Sunday:

Trinity Sunday 2011

By Deacon Lawrence N. Kaas
June 19, 2011

If Father feels inadequate to explain some of the doctrines of the Church how about me trying to come to an understanding of The Most Holy Trinity?

We may remember St. Thomas asserting the goodness and Presence of God by pure intellect. Meaning that we can argue that the human mind, through its powers of observation and deduction, is capable of concluding that God exists. But Thomas would also conclude that our knowledge of God is incomplete.

Through Divine Revelation, God discloses His Life to us. The fundamental truth about God is that He is One---there is only one God---but that He is not solitary---He exists in an altogether mysterious communion of Three Divine Person, Father, Son and Spirit. Each of the Divine Persons is distinct, yet each fully possess the One Divine Nature. "The mystery of the Most Holy Trinity is the central mystery of Christian faith and life. It is the mystery of God in Himself. It is therefore the source of all the other mysteries of faith. The light that enlighten them." From our Catechism article #234.

Isn't it simply enough to know that God Is? Why confuse us with mysteries that are beyond our capacity to fully comprehend? The short answer to that question is that it is in God's nature to share His Life and Love. For God is Love, as the Scriptures tell us, and Love, if it is genuine, cannot keep to itself; it is naturally directed to another. Since God is Love, and Loved must be directed outward, there must be someone to whom God extends this Love, not just in time, but also for all Eternity. That Person is the Son. And because the Love of the Father and the Son is so complete, intense and eternal, it is itself a living Divine Person, the Holy Spirit.

This Truth is essential to our own self-understanding, since we are created in God's image and likeness. Our faith in the doctrine of the Trinity is a tangible sign of our trust in God who has reveled Himself to us. In addition this truth about God illuminates our self-understanding, since we are created in God's image and likeness. Like God, we are not meant to be radically isolated: "It is not good for man to be alone," (Gen 2:18). The doctrine of the Trinity teaches us that our relationship with God, while personal, is also ecclesial, meaning being part of the community of the Church. Apart from the Church, one's relationship with God is incomplete.

How fitting, then, that we commemorate this Divine Mystery today, in the celebration of the Holy Eucharist in which the Church offers Christ to the Father through the power of the Holy Spirit. The Mass is the ultimate expression of the Trinitarian Love of God. We are drawn into that Love as a foretaste and promise of Eternal Life. May God--Father, Son and Spirit intensify within us the desire to share in His Divine Life.

Our Sunday Visitor printed a pamphlet a couple years ago by Cory Busse on 10 ways to be a great Catholic Dad. I thought to share that with you, really as an examination of Conscience for Fathers.

1. Keep Holy the Lord's Day - and All Those Other days, Do our children know that Mass is the center of our lives?

2. Teach Your Children Faith. Do they not only hear us talk about faith, but also model prayerful and confident trust in God?

3. Don't Forget Forgiveness. Forgiveness is at the heart of Christianity; do we practice it. and model for our kids the importance of the Sacrament of Reconciliation?

4. Give and Let Give. Do we teach and show them the importance of generosity and service?

5. Play and Have Fun. Joy is the hallmark of a Christian; do our kids see that in us?

6. Get Caught Praying. Without daily prayer and conversation with God, we are dead. Do our kids see us pray, and do we initiate family prayer?

7. Be "Mr. Doesn't-Know-It-All". Do we foster an attitude of curiosity and search for truth?

8. Might for Right. Do we model integrity?

9. Let It Shine, Let It Shine, Let it Shine. Do we help our kids find their talents and do we encourage them to develop them?

10. Tradition! Tradition! Do we take our Catholic identity seriously and pass on to our children important rituals and "language" of their faith?

And I would like to add; Do your children see you modeling toward your wife patient love, forgiveness, service and initiative? For the greatest gift you can give to your children is that they know you love their mother!
'Thank you' to Deacon Kaas, for letting me post his reflection here.
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Marian Apparition: Champion, Wisconsin

Background:Posts in this blog: In the news:

What's That Doing in a Nice Catholic Blog?

From time to time, a service that I use will display links to - odd - services and retailers.

I block a few of the more obvious dubious advertisers.

For example: psychic anything, numerology, mediums, and related practices are on the no-no list for Catholics. It has to do with the Church's stand on divination. I try to block those ads.

Sometime regrettable advertisements get through, anyway.

Bottom line? What that service displays reflects the local culture's norms, - not Catholic teaching.