THE TRINITY SUNDAY

Today we celebrate the feast of the Most Holy Trinity. We, Christians, believe in one God. We also believe that this one God has three persons- God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit. This is, however, a difficult notion to understand. As we do today, people in the past had difficulties in understanding the mystery of the Trinity. People always ask: “How is it possible to have three persons in one God? or How does one God become three persons?” Our traditional answer is that it is a mystery. Of course, it is a mystery but a reality as well.

The notion of Trinity was developed on the basis of human experience and divine revelation. In the past people experienced God as a Creator, someone who is beyond human reach. In the New Testament period, people had a different experience of the one and the same God, namely, God as Emmanuel, as someone with them. Today we experience God as Spirit, someone who is within us. The Father, Son and Holy Spirit are different forms or expressions of the one God. They are different levels of God’s Existence and they are different expressions of God’s Love. At least one place in the Bible the whole trinity made an appearance. This was at the time of Jesus’ Baptism.

What helps us today is not the ontological discussion of the nature of the Trinity, but the message of the Trinity. The message of the Trinity is love and Relationship. The notion of relationship is important for two reasons.

IMPORTANCE OF RELATIONSHIP

Relationship: the basic sacrament
God is a communion of three persons. God is a relationship. Therefore relationship is the medium through which God operates so He formed the community of Israel. Jesus himself made it amply clear when he said’ “When two or three are gathered together in my name I will be in their midst.” Consequently, to have a God experience we must be in community. Thomas missed seeing Jesus when he made his appearance after the resurrection because he was not in the community. The importance of community is evident from the working style of Jesus. The very first act Jesus did after his baptism was to form a group of disciples. The last thing Jesus did before the crucifixion was the institution of the Eucharist, the perfect symbol of fellowship. The first thing Jesus did after his resurrection was to gather together the scattered disciples. Similarly when Jesus sent them on a mission he sent them in twos.

Relationship: the basic environment for growth
The story of ‘The Cave Girls’ is very popular among the psychologists. I believe that this incident happened in the 1960’s. These two girls, seven and nine years old respectively, were found in a cave with wolves. The wolves were taking care of these girls. These girls themselves behaved like wolves. They walked on all fours and talked by making sounds just like wolves do. It took several years to rehabilitate them and to teach them to act like human beings.

Only a human environment can develop human personalities. All of us are social beings. We are born from a community into a community. Our identity, our existence, our growth and development, everything takes place in communities. My name is Sebastian because you call me by that name. If you would call me Subash, I would become Subash.

The nature and quality of a community determine the nature of a person. A healthy community is prone to beget a healthy person. A wounded community most likely creates reactionaries. Therefore we have a tremendous responsibility to form our community as a loving entity.

The Community Dynamics!

Community is a dynamic reality. It grows through different stages. There are four stages in the development of a community. They are:

The Forming Level
This is the ‘halo’ or the ‘honeymoon stage’. All the members are new with their initial inspiration and enthusiasm. It is a stage devoid of any real problems. The reason for this is rather simple. In this stage the relationship and interactions are peripheral. There is no ego conflict. The attempt here is to impress each other.

The Storming Level
This is the most critical, but a most necessary stage in the growth of a community. Gradually the members start to interact and each one tries to dominate. This is especially noticeable when the group is confronted with important issues. Everyone tries to impose his or her views and ideas. The result is an ego conflict. If this situation continues, it destroys the cohesiveness of the group and its members now become reactors or dissenters. But this stage is necessary not only because it shows the sincerity and authenticity of one’s commitment, but it also shows his or her maturity.

The Norming Level
The saddest situation is that many communities and organizations remain at the storming level. The only way out is rekindling an awareness of the original goal, asking ‘why did we form this group in the first place?’ The original goal and inspiration must be the guiding principle of the community and not those of any one individual. As Christians, Christ is our norm and principle. Always abide by Him…transcending our petty ego interests. This awareness and new awakening take us to the new level.

The Performing Level
The ideal status of a community is this level. In this stage all are people of good actions … all are performers… and all are contributors. They live and work as one body. There are no reactors, only actors (performers). Here our model is the Trinity. There are three persons in the Trinity. Without losing their identity and individuality, and without submission or domination, they live together as a unity. How is this possible? The reason is simple. They have a common goal (unity of purpose), the salvation of humanity. The common goal unites them together.

In our family life or community life, unity and relationship is possible, if we transcend our individual goals and live for the common cause.