homily on Trinity Sunday

Trinity Sunday

Mathew 28:16- 20

Today the first reading tells about the marvelous deeds of the God that God has done for his people. Moses reminds Israelites that there is no God like God Israel in the history of the world who revealed himself to the beloved people. These words of boost are the most suitable to the new Israel [Church] who enjoys the revealed knowledge of God. In the Fullness of time God revealed himself fully to us. This is what we read in the letter to the Hebrews[1:1]   

 We must have heard many times that accruing knowledge about Trinity is Herculean task. We heard that once St Augustine was reminded by boy in the sea shore who was drying the sea by foolish act. These story emphases, that it is very hard to understand the Trinitarian God. Catholic Church teaches that the One God with three person but one in essence. Most of us might have watched the Tamil movie Annyan. In the movie the hero is possessed with multiple personality disorder. He posses three personality but he is one person. It is better we understand God is opposite to this disorder, Three person but one personality.  

 We can understand this Trinitarian God as Love. In the gospel of John 3:16, Father manifest his love. He sent his only son to the world to save it. His Son practiced his love that he gave his love and life for the world. In the letter of St John chapter 3 says that God’s love is within us we are empowered by the Holy Spirit. So we realize that the Trinitarian God father, son and spirit, is Love.  

This Trinitarian God entrusts certain duties to all the Christians. In the Gospel Jesus says his disciples go Galilee which was there homeland. So in their place he asked them to go to the nations and make disciples, he commanded them to baptize them in the name of the trinity, and ask them to teach them to practice what he has commanded.

Trinitarian God gives us three duties; make disciple, baptize and teach.

Make disciple [matheateo] the Greek word has a special meaning. His concept of discipleship is different from that time. The Jewish Rabbis had disciples but they were mere students who followed his utterance. Hereby Jesus wants us to be different disciples. Therefore he says that anybody wants to be my disciple much forgo his life and follow me. So the duty he gave us is to make them good disciples who can follow him forgoing everything.

 

Baptize [ Baptizmo] it is the real practice of the time. But he was thinking of baptism of new birth. In the Jewish history there was a practice of baptizing disciples but Jesus was teaching of new baptism. Jewish baptism was content of circumcision, bathing and sacrifice. But his command is different from the Jewish baptism. They baptize themselves before meeting anybody. But Jesus was totally against this system of baptism which traditionally practiced. We can see that in the Gospel of John chapter 5, there was a man who wished to take bath in the pool of Bethesda, he told Jesus there is nobody to help me to take bath in the pool. But Jesus gave new baptism which was essential for him. He gave him confidence. So he asked him take his bed and go. So he is asking us to give baptism of self confidence. God says that you have to be baptized with water and spirit.

Teaching the commandments of Jesus, Jesus commanded his disciples to love everybody. He says I give a new commandment which is to love everybody. He has introduced method of teaching. Do it rather than teaching through words. Therefore he said do as I did in the time of last supper.