First Reading
Deuteronomy 4:32-34, 39-40
Moses said to the people: “Ask now of the days of old, before your time, ever since God created man upon the earth; ask from one end of the sky to the other: Did anything so great ever happen before? Was it ever heard of? Did a people ever hear the voice of God speaking from the midst of fire, as you did, and live? Or did any god venture to go and take a nation for himself from the midst of another nation, by testings, by signs and wonders, by war, with strong hand and outstretched arm, and by great terrors, all of which the LORD, your God, did for you in Egypt before your very eyes? This is why you must now know, and fix in your heart, that the LORD is God in the heavens above and on earth below, and that there is no other. You must keep his statutes and commandments that I enjoin on you today, that you and your children after you may prosper, and that you may have long life on the land which the LORD, your God, is giving you forever.”
Second Reading
Romans 8:14-17
Brothers and sisters: For those who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God. For you did not receive a spirit of slavery to fall back into fear, but you received a Spirit of adoption, through whom we cry, “Abba, Father!” The Spirit himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, and if children, then heirs, heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ, if only we suffer with him so that we may also be glorified with him.
Gospel Cycle Cycle B
Matthew 28:16-20
The eleven disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain to which Jesus had ordered them. When they all saw him, they worshiped, but they doubted. Then 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.”
Even the great theologians of the Church never claim to understand the mystery of the Trinity. For us who are not great theologians, it is possible to understand a small bit of this enormous mystery simply by listening to the readings that are given to us.
The first reading is from the Book of Deuteronomy and simply reminds us that God is God and way beyond anything that we can imagine. This God is also a God who chooses to reveal Himself to us. This is the glory of the Jewish people, our ancestors in the faith. God chose them to carry His mystery to the peoples and among the peoples. God is God and this God has chosen to love His people and us, who are also His people.
The second reading is from the Letter to the Romans and clear speaks of Father, Son and Holy Spirit. We only know about this mystery because Jesus, in His life, speaks always of His Father and at a certain point in his ministry begins to speak of sending His Spirit. If we listen attentively to the texts of the Gospels, it is clear that Jesus claims that He is the Messiah and that He and the Father are One. Jesus claims that He is God. So if we accept His claim to be God, then we begin to accept His word. It is His word that tells us about the Father and about the Spirit.
The Gospel today, from Matthew, give us the command of Jesus to go and baptize in the Name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Matthew does not minimize the fact that all of the eleven apostles at that time still doubted. Nevertheless they heard His words.
Today as we celebrate the Trinity and rejoice in God’s saving power, we are also told to go and proclaim the word of Jesus. That word is simple: God loves us and wants us to be with Him; God is Triune and can only be truly understood as Father, Son and Holy Spirit; God is love.
We might take some time today to be still in the presence of the Lord and hear His voice inviting us to share His life.