This coming weekend the Church celebrates Trinity Sunday. The Catechism tells us that the mystery of the Most Holy Trinity is “the central mystery of Christian faith and life. It is the mystery of God in himself.” It’s also a mystery that should have practical consequences in the life of every true believer. One of those consequences concerns racism — something which has been the subject of much debate in our nation during the past year, especially since the tragic death of George Floyd. Simply stated, our belief in the Blessed Trinity should prevent us from ever approving of or embracing racism in any form.
This is because the Blessed Trinity reminds us that those who share the same nature enjoy the same dignity. In the Blessed Trinity, the Father, Son and Holy Spirit are three distinct divine Persons. However, the Father is not “more divine” than the Son; the Son is not “more divine” than the Holy Spirit; and the Holy Spirit is not “more divine” than the Father or the Son. Each Person of the Blessed Trinity shares the divine nature; consequently each is to be worshipped as God.
Those who share the same nature enjoy the same dignity.
In a similar way, every human person — regardless of their skin color or age or sexual orientation or other personal characteristics — has a human nature; thus they deserve to be respected and treated with a certain dignity from the moment of their conception in the womb to the moment of their natural death. As the three Persons of the Blessed Trinity share the divine nature and are to be treated accordingly, so every human person has a human nature and is to be treated accordingly.
It’s both sad and tragic that far too many Americans who claim to believe in the Blessed Trinity have failed to understand this basic and foundational truth.
