Exodus 34:4-6, 8-9 / 2 Cor 13:11-13 / John 3:16-18
There are many things in life that we think we know and understand quite well.
But it is only when we encounter difficulty that we begin to think deeper about it.
Then we may realize that there is so much more to discover and to learn.
For example, the English language is something that we use daily.
We use it to converse, to read and to write. We use it to express ourselves and to communicate with others.
So, we know how to use the English language and may even know how to use it effectively.
But can we say that we understand it well, or that we are an expert on it?
For example, how do we explain eggplant which has no egg in it, or pineapple that does not have any apples, or hamburgers that don't have any ham?
Or, why is it said that the nose runs, and the feet smell? It should be the other way around, isn't it?
When it comes to singular and plural, if more than one tooth is teeth then why is more than one booth not beeth? Or if more than one mouse is mice, then why is more than one house not hice?
So, we speak, read and write English everyday, but we may not really understand the language that well.
Today the Church celebrates Holy Trinity Sunday. We know that God is Father, Son and Holy Spirit.
But we may not really understand why God is Father, Son and Holy Spirit.
In fact, it would be easier to understand and believe that God is just One.
Of course, there are many ways to explain that God is Trinity – Father, Son and Holy Spirit.
But the mystery of the Holy Trinity cannot be understood just logically or rationally.
What we need to believe is that God loves us, He wants to save us and to bring us back home to heaven.
So, God the Father loves us, He sent His only beloved Son to save us, and Jesus sent the Holy Spirit to unite us in faith, hope and love.
So, as much as the Bible did not explicitly mention that God is Trinity, yet in the same Bible, God also revealed the intimate relationship between the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit.
The key to the understanding of the mystery of the Holy Trinity is in the intimate relationship between the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit.
To believe in God the Holy Trinity is to believe that God wants to have an intimate love relationship with us.
And just as the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit are intimately connected with each other in love, we too are called to love like God, and to be united with each other in love.
To be like God is like how the 1st reading puts it: to be tender and compassionate, slow to anger, rich in kindness and faithfulness.
To be like God is also to be like Moses, who pleaded with the Lord God to forgive the people for their faults and sins.
And in the 2nd reading, St. Paul urged us to be united in love and live in peace with each other so that God of love and peace will be with us.
So, when we are united in love and peace, we are also reflecting the intimate relationship of love and peace between the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit.
To refuse to believe in God is to refuse to accept love from others and also refuse to love others.
But, when we, who believe in God, strive to live in love and peace with each other, we are already professing our belief in God who is Father, Son and Holy spirit.
By our unity in love and peace, we will witness to others that God also loves them, and wants to give them the peace and joy of salvation.