The texts from the Roman Catholic Lectionary today, The Solemnity of the Most Holy Trinity, invite us to ponder the Wisdom, Faith, Hope and Love that we experience as gifts that Jesus declared we receive through our experience of the Spirit of God on our journey.
The reading from the Book of Proverbs presents The Discourse on Wisdom.
* [8:22–31] Wisdom is of divine origin. She is represented as existing before all things (vv. 22–26), when God planned and created the universe, adorning it with beauty and variety, and establishing its wonderful order (vv. 27–30). The purpose of the two cosmogonies (vv. 22–26 and 27–31) is to ground Wisdom’s claims. The first cosmogony emphasizes that she was born before all else (and so deserving of honor) and the second underscores that she was with the Lord during the creation of the universe. The pre-existence of Woman Wisdom with God is developed in Sir 24 and in New Testament hymns to Christ, especially in Jn 1 and Col 1:15–20.
* [8:23] Formed: since the other verbs of the origin of Wisdom in these verses describe birth, it is likely that the somewhat uncertain verb is to be understood of birth as in Ps 139:13.
* [8:24–26] Perhaps the formless mass from which God created the heavens and the earth; cf. Gn 1:1–2; 2:4–6.
* [8:30] Artisan: the translation of the Hebrew word ’āmôn has been controverted since antiquity. There have been three main opinions: (1) artisan; (2) trustworthy (friend); (3) ward, nursling. The most likely explanation is that ’āmôn is artisan, related to Akkadian ummānu, legendary sages and heroes who brought divine gifts and culture to the human race. I was his delight: the chiastic or ABBA structure of vv. 30–31 unifies the four lines and underscores the analogy between Woman Wisdom’s intimate relation to the Lord and her intimate relation to human beings, i.e., “delight” + “playing” parallels “playing” + “delight.” She is God’s friend and intimate and invites human beings to a similar relationship to God through her. (Proverbs, CHAPTER 8 | USCCB, n.d.)
Psalm 8 marvells at the limitless grandeur of God.
* [Psalm 8] While marvelling at the limitless grandeur of God (Ps 8:2–3), the psalmist is struck first by the smallness of human beings in creation (Ps 8:4–5), and then by the royal dignity and power that God has graciously bestowed upon them (Ps 8:6–9). (Psalms, PSALM 8, n.d.)
The reading from the Letter of Paul to the Romans proclaims Faith, Hope, and Love.
* [5:1–11] Popular piety frequently construed reverses and troubles as punishment for sin; cf. Jn 9:2. Paul therefore assures believers that God’s justifying action in Jesus Christ is a declaration of peace. The crucifixion of Jesus Christ displays God’s initiative in certifying humanity for unimpeded access into the divine presence. Reconciliation is God’s gift of pardon to the entire human race. Through faith one benefits personally from this pardon or, in Paul’s term, is justified. The ultimate aim of God is to liberate believers from the pre-Christian self as described in Rom 1–3. Since this liberation will first find completion in the believer’s resurrection, salvation is described as future in Rom 5:10. Because this fullness of salvation belongs to the future it is called the Christian hope. Paul’s Greek term for hope does not, however, suggest a note of uncertainty, to the effect: “I wonder whether God really means it.” Rather, God’s promise in the gospel fills believers with expectation and anticipation for the climactic gift of unalloyed commitment in the holy Spirit to the performance of the will of God. The persecutions that attend Christian commitment are to teach believers patience and to strengthen this hope, which will not disappoint them because the holy Spirit dwells in their hearts and imbues them with God’s love (Rom 5:5). (Romans, CHAPTER 5, n.d.)
In the Gospel of John, Jesus proclaims the Coming of the Advocate.
* [16:13] Declare to you the things that are coming: not a reference to new predictions about the future, but interpretation of what has already occurred or been said. (John, CHAPTER 16, n.d.)
Gladyce Janky cites “The Slow Work of God,” Pierre Teilhard de Chardin (1881−1955) prayer of Teilhard de Chardin - Ignatian Spirituality as she comments:
Jesus tells us his ministry does not end with his death as he will send the Spirit of Truth. He assures us we can trust the advocate’s voice by saying everything that the Father has is mine; for this reason, I told you that he (Spirit of Truth) will take from what is mine and declare it to you. Said a little differently, God’s life-giving and self-revelation happen daily within the concrete circumstances of our lives. The invitation is to sit quietly so we can hear the voice of the Holy Spirit, who lives in us, and, as Ignatius teaches, seek to Find God in All Things.
As with the disciples, Jesus knows life in this century includes challenges. He hopes I will rely on my faith to navigate through each day, not expecting certainty of what is to come. Amid the world’s chaos, Jesus assures me that I am not an orphan, as the Holy Spirit constantly invites and supports me (and all of creation) to live in a relationship with God. (Janky, 2025)
Don Schwager quotes “The Mystery of the Holy Spirit,” by Hilary of Poitiers (315-367 AD).
"John tells us that all things came into being through the Son who is God the Word abiding with you, Father, from the beginning. Paul in his turn enumerates the things created in the Son, both visible and invisible, in heaven and on earth. And while he is specific about all that was created in and through Christ, of the Holy Spirit he considers it enough simply to say that he is your Spirit.Therefore I concur with those chosen men in thinking that just as it is not expedient for me to venture beyond my mental limitation and predicate anything of your only-begotten Son except that, as those witnesses have assured us, he was born of you, so it is not fitting for me to go beyond the power of human thought and the teaching of those same witnesses by declaring anything regarding the Holy Spirit other than that he is your Spirit. Rather than waste time in a fruitless war of words, I would prefer to spend it in the firm profession of an unhesitating faith.
"I beg you therefore, Father, to preserve in me that pure and reverent faith and to grant that to my last breath I may testify to my conviction. May I always hold fast to what I publicly professed in the creed when I was baptized in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. May I worship you, the Father of us all, and your Son together with you, and may I be counted worthy to receive your Holy Spirit who through your only Son proceeds from you. For me there is sufficient evidence for this faith in the words 'Father, all that I have is yours, and all that is yours is mine,' spoken by Jesus Christ my Lord who remains, in and from and with you, the God who is blessed for endless ages. Amen." (excerpt from ON THE TRINITY 12.55-57) (Schwager, n.d.)
The Word Among Us Meditation on John 16:12-15 comments that we know intellectually that God is love (1 John 4:8), but the Spirit helps us experience the immensity of that love. He shows us that we are the apple of God’s eye, beloved from before time began. He shows us the love that moved the Father to give us his Son, so that we might live with him forever.
Jesus reassured his disciples that the Spirit “will speak what he hears” (John 16:13). On this special feast, let the Spirit speak a word of reassurance to you about our mysterious, awe-inspiring God. You will never fully grasp the mystery of the Trinity, but you can be grasped by it. You can know God and the love he is pouring out into your heart—today!
“Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, I will praise you forever!” (Meditation on John 16:12-15, n.d.)
Friar Jude Winkler comments on the hymn to Wisdom in Proverbs from a time when God was understood to be at the other end of the universe. Wisdom presents a model of how things should be done based on being a crafts person at Creation. The Chapter from Romans begins with the declaration of our justification by faith, Justification is understood to be peace with God by having trust in the Love of God witnessed on the Cross. The passage from Romans reminds us that even afflictions and difficulties can strengthen faith. Friar Jude notes that the Gospel John in Jesus' Last Supper Discourse speaks of the Paraclete, the Spirit of truth, who glorifies the Truth of Jesus and is the Love between Father and Son.
Fr. Richard Rohr, OFM, shares coming to appreciate Walter Burghardt’s definition of contemplation as “a long loving look at the real” that became transformative for him. The world, Fr. Richard’s own issues and hurts, all his goals and desires gradually dissolved and fell into proper perspective. God became obvious and ever present. He understood what Thomas Merton meant when he said, “The gate of heaven is everywhere.”
I tried to keep a journal of what was happening to me. Back then, I found it particularly hard to cry. But one evening I laid my finger on my cheek and found to my surprise that it was wet. I wondered what those tears meant. What was I crying for? I wasn’t consciously sad or consciously happy. I noticed at that moment that behind it all there was a joy, deeper than any private joy. It was a joy in the face of the beauty of being, a joy at all the wonderful and lovable people I had already met in my life. Cosmic or spiritual joy is something we participate in; it comes from elsewhere and flows through us. It has little or nothing to do with things going well in our own life at that moment. I remember thinking that this must be why the saints could rejoice in the midst of suffering.
At the same moment, I experienced exactly the opposite emotion. The tears were at the same time tears of an immense sadness—a sadness at what we’re doing to the earth, sadness about the people whom I had hurt in my life, and sadness too at my own mixed motives and selfishness. I hadn’t known that two such contrary feelings could coexist. I was truly experiencing the nondual mind of contemplation. (Rohr, n.d.)
We are grateful for the inspiration of the Spirit that invites us to contemplate our experiences of closeness to the Divine as we encounter Love through our faith and hope in Jesus Way.
References
Janky, G. (2025, June 14). Daily Reflection June 15, 2025 | Creighton Online Ministries. Creighton Online Ministries. Retrieved June 15, 2025, from https://onlineministries.creighton.edu/daily-reflections/daily-reflection-june-15-2025
John, CHAPTER 16. (n.d.). USCCB. Retrieved June 15, 2025, from https://bible.usccb.org/bible/john/16?12
Meditation on John 16:12-15. (n.d.). The Word Among Us: Homepage. Retrieved June 15, 2025, from https://wau.org/meditations/2025/06/15/1306456/
Proverbs, CHAPTER 8 | USCCB. (n.d.). Daily Readings. Retrieved June 15, 2025, from https://bible.usccb.org/bible/proverbs/8?22
Psalms, PSALM 8. (n.d.). USCCB. Retrieved June 15, 2025, from https://bible.usccb.org/bible/psalms/8?4
Rohr, R. (n.d.). Tears of Joy and Sadness. Center for Action and Contemplation. Retrieved June 15, 2025, from https://cac.org/daily-meditations/tears-of-joy-and-sadness/
Romans, CHAPTER 5. (n.d.). USCCB. Retrieved June 15, 2025, from https://bible.usccb.org/bible/romans/5?1
Schwager, D. (n.d.). The Spirit Will Guide You into All the Truth. Daily Scripture Readings and Meditations – Daily Scripture Readings and Meditations. Retrieved June 15, 2025, from https://www.dailyscripture.net/daily-meditation/?ds_year=2025&date=jun15
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