May 30: Solemnity of the Most Holy Trinity

Posted by Campus Ministry on Sunday, May 30, 2021 at 12:09 PM PDT

On this important national holiday, Memorial Day, we reverently remember those who served our country in times of war and paid the ultimate price for that service – they paid with their very lives. It is heartbreaking to think about the sacrifice of those individuals as well as the unending sacrifice of their families. Mine is one of these families as we still mourn the loss of our cousin who died in Vietnam. It is our call as Christians to remember those who have died in military service to America, keep their families in prayer, and serve our veterans with compassion.

Strangely, the solemnity of this national holiday is juxtaposed with the joyful nature of the liturgical holiday that we are observing – Trinity Sunday. Trinity Sunday celebrates the triune God we worship, God the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit; in more contemporary and inclusive language, we might refer to the three persons of the Trinity as Creator, Redeemer, and Sustainer. In Seattle University Ignatian Silent Retreats, we oftentimes describe the Trinity as perfect mutuality of divine belovedness, which spilled over into creation. This belovedness is what created you and me, so it is our very essence! We are meant to work as co-creators with God, also pouring this divine love into the world – a world that is clearly deeply troubled and in need of healing. The fact that we are currently observing Memorial Day brings this unfortunate reality into high relief.

How do we recognize the “spirit of slavery,” as St. Paul describes it – both as individuals and as a global community – which causes us to live as communities of fear? It is this same spirit within us that allows us to forget our interconnectedness with one another and the planet, which makes war and violence possible. However, St. Paul says that we are all siblings, children of this living, loving God and as such, we are “joint heirs with Christ,” rejoicing in the glory of God’s reign and our freedom from fear! This is the great Christian paradox, that we are living in God’s reign, which is both present in the here and now and which is also still woefully incomplete. Particularly on solemn days like this one, we must live as God’s adopted children, bringing peace, love, and compassion into this world that still aches with conflict and division. It is my prayer that Jesus’s words reassure us today as they must have reassured his disciples. Christ is with us until the end, always summoning us to be creative belovedness in this world and working with us to bring the Trinitarian reality of love and peace to fruition.

On this day and every day may the souls of all our departed soldiers rest in peace and may their families experience the peace of God, the love of their communities, and the support of all Americans.

~ Words by Erin Beary Andersen, Associate Director of Campus Ministry