Love Multiplied By Three

The Most Holy Trinity
19 June 2011


Come, let us worship God, one in Trinity and a Trinity in One.


First reading Exodus 34:4-6,8-93
With the two tablets of stone in his hands, Moses went up the mountain of Sinai in the early morning as the Lord had commanded him. And the Lord descended in the form of a cloud, and Moses stood with him there.
He called on the name of the Lord. The Lord passed before him and proclaimed, ‘The Lord, a God of tenderness and compassion, slow to anger rich in kindness and faithfulness.’ And Moses bowed down to the ground at once and worshipped. ‘If I have indeed won your favour, Lord,’ he said ‘let my Lord come with us, I beg. True, they are a headstrong people, but forgive us our faults and our sins, and adopt us as your heritage.’

Psalm or canticle: Psalm 103:1,24,29-31,34
You are blest, Lord God of our fathers.
To you glory and praise for evermore.
Blest your glorious holy name.
To you glory and praise for evermore.
You are blest in the temple of your glory.
To you glory and praise for evermore.
You are blest on the throne of your kingdom.
To you glory and praise for evermore.
You are blest who gaze into the depths.
To you glory and praise for evermore.
You are blest in the firmament of heaven.
To you glory and praise for evermore.

Second reading 2 Corinthians 13:11-13
Brothers, we wish you happiness; try to grow perfect; help one another. Be united; live in peace, and the God of love and peace will be with you.
Greet one another with the holy kiss. All the saints send you greetings.
The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, the love of God and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all.

Gospel John 3:16-18
Jesus said to Nicodemus:
‘God loved the world so much that he gave his only Son,
so that everyone who believes in him may not be lost
but may have eternal life.
For God sent his Son into the world
not to condemn the world,
but so that through him the world might be saved.
No one who believes in him will be condemned;
but whoever refuses to believe is condemned already,
because he has refused to believe in the name of God’s only Son.’

Reflection
By Benj Santiago

“God sends His only begotten Son”

The love of the Lord has always manifested in my life on very concrete ways. The love of my parents, my brothers and sisters, my wife and my kids are all demonstrations of how our Almighty God loves me. Even before I learned about Him, even before I served Him, and loved Him, He has loved me first. So the real question is how did I return this love? How do I let others also feel His love, most especially by the people close to my heart? Our God the Father manifested His love even to those whom Moses described as sinful and stiff necked people (Ex 34: 9). He sent His beloved son our Lord Jesus Christ to the Jewish people and did not condemn them but forgave them their sins. He then continues to be present among us through the Holy Spirit! Not because we are sinless and loveable people, nor because we love Him and our fellowmen. It is simply because He truly loves us as love is His nature and His love is not just eternal but immeasurable.

Dear Father God, thank You for giving us Your Son to redeem us from our sinfulness and for sending Your Holy Spirit to console and inspire us to be more loving to one another. In Jesus' name with the Holy Spirit, we pray. Amen.

Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit!