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The Community at Prayer
Reflection by Father Paul M. Baca
May 18, 2008,Trinity Sunday
Click to see the readings
 The
Feast of the Most Holy Trinity challenges us
to reflect on that doctrine and try to glean
the practical application to all of us who
are people of faith. That dogma states that
there is but one God, and three persons in
that one God: the Father, the Son and the
Holy Spirit. I remember trying to teach
children about the Trinity. It was a real
challenge and I don't know how much they
understood. I told them there is only
one God but there are three persons in this
one God, and these three persons are equal,
yet distinct; but they are in such harmony
that there is only one God. I tried to
impress on them that everyone in the eyes of
God is equal and important, each one with
many gifts. This is reflected in the
Responsorial Psalm for today:
"When
I behold your heavens, the work of your fingers,
the moon and the stars which you set in place --
What is man that you should be mindful of him,
or the son of man that you should care for him?
You
have made him little less than the angels, and
crowned him with glory and honor.
You
have given him rule over the works of your
hands, putting all things under his feet:
All
sheep and oxen, yes, and the beasts of the
field,
The
birds of the air, the fishes of the sea, and
whatever swims the paths of the seas."
I
have often wondered if all the statements
made in scripture to dignify the human being
have given rise to the concept of rugged
individualism, which in my estimation, is so
often misunderstood. So many of the
proponents of that concept like to say that
one can go at it alone, and they point out
the success of many individuals. My take on
it is that no one as an individual can do it
all; it takes many who are not even
recognized to make it possible for any one
person to accomplish a lot.
I
admire
Mohamed Yunus for the tremendous success
 he
has had in micro lending and banking. Millions
of people have benefited from his efforts and
many are still benefiting. This success would
never have happened if there weren't so many
poor people, especially women, that society
excludes from any kind of progress. Then too,
there was a need for money and those who
provided it are an important part of the
enterprise.
In
the
First Reading from Proverbs, the Wisdom of God
says,
"When
he made firm the skies above, when he fixed fast
the foundations of the earth; when he set for
the sea its limits, so that the water should not
transgress his command; then was I beside him as
his craftsman, and I was his delight day by day,
playing before him all the while, playing on the
surface of his earth and I found delight in the
human race."
This
reminds us that every one of us has a potential
to bring about change for the better. But when
we are really serious about our efforts, we
realize that we must depend on each other and
the potential that others bring to the effort.
In
the
Responsorial Psalm, we read,
"You have made him a
little less than the angels and crowned him with
glory and honor. You have given him rule over
the work of your hands, putting all things under
his feet."
This
is a good reminder of God's love for each human
being and the responsibility of the potential he
has given us in bringing about change for the
better. It is not our work, but God's work when
done in response to God's love for all people.
It is only when we exclude God and do our own
thing that we fail to accept each other and to
work with each other to bring about God's
kingdom, a kingdom of justice and peace.
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