An Eternal Exchange of Love

Dear Parishioners,

On this Trinity Sunday, I share some reflections on the Holy Trinity—a most profound mystery of our faith.

First, we should realize that Jesus opened up for us the inner life of God. He revealed that God was a Trinity of Persons. Recall, the Jewish people are strict monotheists—Hear O Israel!  The Lord is our God, the Lord alone! (Dt. 6: 4)—and they held on to this belief despite being surrounded, invaded and conquered by various polytheistic cultures (e.g., Rome). However, Jesus began to teach his disciples God is Father—His Father—and this must have caused significant concern for those around Him. He equated Himself with God, His Father:  The Father and I are one. (Jn. 10:30) What exactly does He mean? He also promised to send the Holy Spirit to His disciples once He was gone: But I tell you the truth, it is better for you that I go. For if I do not go, the Advocate will not come to you. But if I go, I will send him to you (Jn. 16: 7). There is no natural way that we could figure out on our own that God was a Trinity of Persons without Jesus revealing this mystery to us.

Next, we are told that God is love (1 Jn. 4:8) Therefore, the experience of love itself seems to indicate that there should be a lover and a beloved. Within the Trinity, the Father loves the Son from all eternity and the Son loves the Father from all eternity. The love between the two is also a Person: the Holy Spirit. 

God's very being is love. By sending his only Son and the Spirit of Love in the fullness of time, God has revealed his innermost secret: God himself is an eternal exchange of love, Father, Son and Holy Spirit, and he has destined us to share in that exchange.  (Catechism of the Catholic Church, CCC # 221)

I contend that things in this world reflect and model for us certain eternal truths—albeit imperfectly—and help us to understand some mysteries of our faith better. Take the example of a family. A husband loves his wife and the wife loves her husband. Their love for each other can be manifest in a child who is the result of their love for each other. In essence, there is a type of a Trinitarian love involved here: the love between husband, wife and child. Again, the example is not perfect as God is uncreated, but it does shed some light on an otherwise complicated topic.

Another example from our life experience helps us with our understanding the Trinity. Take H₂O which can appear in nature as water, steam or ice. All three have the same chemical composition but can appear in different forms depending on temperature. This helps us to see how something can be three and one at the very same time. Our belief in the Holy Trinity teaches that there are Three Divine Persons in the One True God.

Every time you make the Sign of the Cross, think about how we acknowledge our belief in the Holy Trinity. By God’s immense love for us, we are invited to share in the life of the Trinity and to dwell one day within that eternal exchange of love. 

The whole idea can indeed be mind-boggling.

Fr. Ed Namiotka

Pastor

Homily for Pentecost Sunday 2025 - Fr. Edward Namiotka

 

O Sacred Heart of Jesus, I Place my Trust in Thee

Dear Parishioners,

In the Catholic Church, the month of June is traditionally dedicated to the Sacred Heart of Jesus. I think it is no mere coincidence that the secular world puts an emphasis on something contrary to Christ and the teaching of His Church. Rebellious human beings would rather act defiant to God’s design and try to tell God how they should be allowed to live and act. The first deadly sin—pride—once again rears its ugly head.   

For fourteen years of my life I had worked at a high school named for Our Lord’s Sacred Heart. The motto of the school was: Fac Cor Nostrum Secundum Cor Tuum. (The translation of the Latin:  Make our hearts like unto Thine or Make our hearts like Your Heart.)

The image of the Sacred Heart centers on a devotion to Jesus’ physical heart as representing His Divine Love for all humanity. The Sacred Heart is often depicted in Christian art as a flaming heart shining with divine light. It is bleeding, pierced by the lance-wound, surrounded by a crown of thorns, and surmounted by a cross. The wounds and crown of thorns allude to the manner of Jesus' death, while the fire represents the transformative power of Christ’s love.

St. Margaret Mary Alacoque is associated with the devotion to the Sacred Heart. She entered the Visitation Convent in 1671 and six years later Christ appeared to her in a vision in which she said: "I could plainly see His heart, pierced and bleeding, yet there were flames, too, coming from it and a crown of thorns around it. He told me to behold His heart which so loved humanity. Then He seemed to take my very heart from me and place it there in His heart. In return He gave me back part of His flaming heart."

In all, there were four revelations, during which the now-familiar Twelve Promises of the Sacred Heart were made:

1.       I will give them all the graces necessary in their state of life.

2.       I will establish peace in their homes.

3.       I will comfort them in all their afflictions.

4.       I will be their secure refuge during life, and above all, in death.

5.       I will bestow abundant blessings upon all their undertakings.

6.       Sinners will find in my Heart the source and an infinite ocean of mercy.

7.       Lukewarm souls shall become fervent.

8.       Fervent souls shall quickly mount to high perfection.

9.       I will bless every place in which an image of my Heart is exposed and honored.

10.   I will give to priests the gift of touching the most hardened hearts.

11.   Those who shall promote this devotion shall have their names written in my Heart.

12.   I promise you in the excessive mercy of my Heart that my all-powerful love will grant to all those who receive Holy Communion on the First Fridays in nine consecutive months the grace of final perseverance; they shall not die in my disgrace, nor without receiving their sacraments. My divine Heart shall be their safe refuge in this last moment. 

The last of these promises is responsible for the nine First Fridays’ devotion. Also requested by Jesus was the establishment of a feast in honor of His Sacred Heart. We now celebrate this Solemnity of the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus on the first Friday after the octave of the Solemnity of the Body and Blood of Christ. This year it falls on June 27, 2025. Additionally, we honor the Sacred Heart every first Friday of the month. It is also a Catholic tradition to have an image of the Sacred Heart of Jesus enthroned in the family home.

Now that you have a brief history, what truly matters is whether or not we are becoming more Christ-like and whether our hearts reflect Christ’s love for us.

The simple prayer said — Make my heart like Your Heart — should remind us of the task in front of each of us.

Fr. Ed Namiotka

Pastor

Homily for the Ascension of Our Lord "C" - Fr. Edward Namiotka