Holy Trinity Sunday

 May 31, 2026

Rev. Neli Miranda

 

            Every Sunday, Christians gather to celebrate the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus. Centering our worship on Jesus is not just an option; it is the very source from which all our celebrations are born. Today, however, we pause to celebrate not a specific historical biblical event, but a central belief: the Holy Trinity. This celebration reflects how the early Christians perceived the mystery of God's unfolding revelation in the world.

            The celebration of Trinity Sunday was instituted for the Western Church by Pope John XXII in the fourteenth century, and it is celebrated across the Anglican Communion on the first Sunday after Pentecost.  This feast gathers together the Trinitarian theology developed over centuries of Christian tradition. In the Bible, we do not find the exact phrase “One God in Three Persons,” or the word “Trinity”. These terms emerged from later theological reflections, specifically from the creeds of the Councils of Nicaea and Constantinople held in the fourth century. Those statements were composed to counter specific opposing opinions, known as heresies, and naturally drew upon the linguistic and philosophical resources available to Greek-speaking Christian communities at the time. Consequently, Trinitarian vocabulary can sometimes feel complex. Yet, the Hebrew and Christian understanding of God’s plenitude is fundamentally simple and beautiful.

            Today, our lessons open with the first chapter of Genesis—a beautiful poem about the God who in the beginning creates the heavens, the earth, and all that exists. The sacred writer poetically tells us that, in the midst of chaos and darkness, the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters (Gen 1,2). In Hebrew, the word used for “the Spirit of God” is Ruah, which means breath, wind, or spirit; it describes the living, animating presence of God in the world. This image is a human concept used by the ancient Hebrews to understand God as the vital breath and force that energizes life. Therefore, terms like Ruah and Holy Spirit are human attempts to formulate a language for the divine. They do not speak of a separate divine being, but of the one true God dynamically present and active in creation.

            In the New Testament, among the earliest Christian communities, the formal term “Trinity” did not yet exist, but there was a profound understanding of God’s revelation in the person of Jesus. Paul blesses the Corinthian community with these beautiful words: “The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, the love of God, and the communion of the Holy Spirit be with all of you” (2 Corinthians 13,13). Through this blessing, Paul directs his audience to recognize Jesus as the ultimate revelation of God—God incarnate, living and human in the world. Paul calls the Corinthians to receive the grace of Jesus Christ, the one sent by God. This grace is an unmerited gift, born of Jesus’ voluntary sacrifice and commitment to open the way for humans to God. Paul then blesses the people with the love of God the Creator, the source of all blessings. Finally, Paul reminds the Corinthians of the Holy Spirit, the Divine Presence, the Ruah—the animating presence of God in the world who binds the community together in fellowship. These beautiful words depict God—revealed in fullness—actively present among the new community of believers.

            Thus, while the formal concept of the Holy Trinity is not explicitly named in Scripture, we continuously read of this threefold divine reality: God, whom Jesus tenderly calls Father; Jesus, whom we confess as the Son of God and our brother; and the Holy Spirit, the Divine Presence, the Ruah, who empowers Jesus’ disciples to be a living community. Centuries later, early Christian theologians articulated this experience of God into the doctrine of “The Holy Trinity” to express the great mystery of the divine nature.

            Sisters and brothers, the Church’s theological reflection has taught over the centuries that “Trinity” does not mean three distinct gods, but refers to the relational richness of the one divine nature. Through the concept of the Trinity—which implies “unity in triunity”—Christian theologians sought to capture the essence of a loving God who acts as Creator, Redeemer, and Sustainer. Thus, the Holy Trinity is a Holy Communion of love in which we are invited to dwell and receive the divine plenitude.

            This celebration reminds us that we were created by and received the Divine Breath, making us participants in the great community of life that is God’s creation. This feast also reminds us that God so loved us that God became incarnate in Jesus to live among us and gather us into one great family. Today, we celebrate that we live in a community of life, love, and hope. We remember that through the Holy Trinity, we are all bound to one another in the divine fellowship of our Creator, our Savior, and our Sustainer. Amen.