THE MOST HOLY TRINITY
22 MAY 2016
For
ninety days, we had been reflecting on the mystery of our Salvation. We spent forty days in Lent focusing on the
work of Jesus Christ, sent by the Father to become the Suffering Servant,
embracing his passion and death out of love for us. We spent fifty days in the Easter Season
celebrating his triumph over death, his ascension, and finally his sending of
the Holy Spirit at Pentecost. Back in
Ordinary Time, we focus our attention today on the Mystery of one God and three
distinct persons. Our Scripture readings
assigned to this Feast provide the foundation for the Doctrine of the
Trinity. But it took the Church four
centuries to describe this Mystery in words.
We pray this Creed, written at the Council of Nicaea in 325, at every
Mass.
There is
always the temptation to presume that discussing the Trinity is reserved for
academics and scholars. Of course, we
will never understand how God can be both one and three. But we express this Mystery when we pray to
the Father and through the Son and in the Holy Spirit. Because of the Paschal Mystery, every one of
us is being drawn into eternal life with the Trinity. Baptized in the name of the Father and of the
Son and of the Holy Spirit, we are sent to show forth God’s unity on this
earth.
Our parish
is composed of many different people with many different gifts and
talents. But we are one Body in
Christ. If we are willing to invest our
individual personalities and put our many different gifts in humble service of
the parish, the Triune God will be much more visible in our local
community. Knowing the peace that comes
from our faith in Jesus Christ, we can provide real hope to those who come to
us in need.
You would
expect FB2 and me to speak about the importance of giving yourself in some kind
of humble service to the parish. But,
please listen to Melissa Pac, who has responded to the promptings of the Holy
Spirit and has gotten involved in the life of this parish.
My name is Melissa Pac.
I would like to share with you today the importance of growing and
nurturing my personal relationship with God through service of my community
here at St Pius. In 1
Corinthians 4:1it says:“Let them regard us in this manner, as servants of Christ
and stewards of the mysteries of God.”
My husband, Brian and I have
been members here at St Pius X for almost 3 years. We have 5 children ranging
in ages from 4-11 who all attend St Pius X School. We were relocated here from
Georgia in the fall of 2013. If you remember, that was the year it started
snowing in November and thanks to the winter vortex it never melted and
continued piling up through April. The kids and I had never seen that much
snow! To help you understand how foreign this winter life was to me I remember
asking Brian the first time I saw a snow mobile “What the heck happened to that
jet ski?” I had never seen one. We had
gone from running through sprinklers on Thanksgiving one year to digging out of
a foot of snow the next! This move was a rough adjustment for me. The cold, snow
and grey skies had gotten to me. I felt lost and lonely. I remember calling my
parents and saying “What have we done?” “I’m so unhappy here.” To which my
father replied, “So what have you done about your unhappiness?”
Throughout my life, my dad was known for having a way of stopping
you in your tracks with his questions and one-liners. He would often say to us,
“kids remember”…“JOY! JOY! JOY!
J for
Jesus, O for Others, Y for You.”Jesus, Others,
You, its a motto and a way to approach life. My dad was teaching us (even when we didn’t
realize it) to always work to build Christian Community and to do so with a
servant’s heart.
I had lost sight of what is important. I
decided my dad was right. I needed to look outside myself for ways to reconnect
with God and grow my own happiness. The first step, I opened the bulletin and
signed up for the next Christ Renews His Parish retreat.My efforts were
rewarded greatly. I met some truly wonderful and faith-filled women. I renewed
my own faith and found courage to reach out and get involved in school and
parish life. I began again to build a Christian Community here in our new home
through service. In addition to my
involvement with Christ Renews, I am a classroom volunteer at the school, and I
serve on HASA board. I volunteer through the parish with the Vacation Bible
School and most recently was privileged to serve as a RCIA sponsor. A sacrifice
and service that I had no idea would be so rewarding. I was nervous and concerned
after making the commitment to this new challenge. “I’m still growing in my faith and have many questions myself, how can I sponsor and
support someone in their journey to becoming Catholic?” Not only that but how I
could fulfill such a lengthy commitment with 5 kids, all their many sports and
activities, and husband who works out of town. It is thanks in part to my
husband for helping to make this sacrifice of time beyond worth it. Being
Nancy’s sponsor was the most amazing experience and my service in that role
only strengthenedmy own faith.How did we do it? Proverbs 3:5-6 “Trust in the Lord with all your heart and
lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge Him and He
shall direct your paths.”
The Lord is so gracious to me. I look
forward to continuing on this journey and trusting that God will provide as
long as I am willing to do something, to put in the work. Building Christian
Community to me, means having a servant’s heart and sharing in communion with
others. It is in this that we are rewarded. I pray that I continue in my life
to remain focused on the Lord and to teach my children the way I was taught not
so very long ago. Put your life in this order…Jesus, Others, You…JOY JOY JOY! I
invite you to stop by the gym after Mass and learn of the many opportunities
our wonderful parish offers for us to give back. After all who of us here
couldn’t use a little more J.O.Y. in our lives?
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