THE MOST HOLY TRINITY
‘Glóir don Athair agus don Mhac
agus don Spiorad Naomh’
Here we are at the heart of the mystery of our
God. The human tongue can never speak the
final word about God; the human mind can never
fully understand the mystery of the Trinity. ‘The
man who tries to understand it fully will lose his
mind, but the one who would deny the Trinity
will lose her soul’. Many people have used images
through the ages to help us to ponder the mystery.
St. Ignatius of Loyola spoke of three distinct notes
being played together to form one harmonious
chord. Theologian Frank Sheed used the image
of water, which can manifest itself as rain, ice or
steam. St. Patrick pointed to the shamrock with its’
three shoots emerging from a single stem. We will
never fully understand the arithmetic of heaven,
but suffice it to say the following: the Father is
the Creator and source of all being; the Son is the
face of the Creator; the Spirit is the breath of the
Creator. The Father works for us; the Son works
among us; the Spirit works within us. When we
make the Sign of the Cross, we cut through the
doctrine and make real our relationship with the
Three Persons. Through that profound gesture, we
place ourselves in their gaze. We touch the forehead
as we ask the Father to make our thoughts noble;
we touch the breast as we ask the Son to make our
hearts pure; we touch both shoulders as we ask the
Holy Spirit to make the work of our hands fruitful
and worthwhile. Is leor é sin.