Letter from the Pastor
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May 26, 2024We have just lived out the drama of Christ's earthly life. We celebrated His birth at Christmas, His revelation as God at Epiphany, His time in the desert during Lent, His Passion and Resurrection in Holy Week and Easter. We recalled His glorious Ascension, and at last week's Pentecost, the Holy Spirit has descended upon the Church, sent by the Father and the Son. God's Triune Nature has been fully revealed, and now we celebrate the Most Holy Trinity.
The Solemnity of the Most Holy Trinity is always the first Sunday after Pentecost. Today and next week (Corpus Christi) are two of the few celebrations of the Church’s Year that does not commemorate an event or person.
Trinity Sunday is a solemn celebration of the belief in the revelation of one God, yet three Divine Persons. The doctrine of the Trinity means that there is one God who eternally exists as three distinct Persons — the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.
Are these just three different modes or ways of looking at God, or three different roles that God plays? The answer must be No! The Father sent the Son into the world; He cannot be the same person as the Son. Likewise, the Father and the Son sent the Holy Spirit into the world. Therefore, the Holy Spirit must be distinct from the Father and the Son. In other words, the Father is not the Son, the Son is not the Holy Spirit, and the Holy Spirit is not the Father. Jesus is God, but He is not the Father or the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit is God, but He is not the Son or the Father. They are different Persons, not three different ways of looking at God. So, when the Lord prayed, He didn’t pray to Himself, He prayed to God His Father. They relate to each other personally — the Father regards Himself as an “I,” while He regards the Son and Holy Spirit as “You.” Likewise, the Son regards Himself as “I,” but the Father and the Holy Spirit as “You.” The personhood of each member of the Trinity means that each Divine Person is a distinct individual of awareness and consciousness. The Trinity is a relationship of love and community among three Divine Persons.
It was Pope John XXII (1244-1334) who instituted the celebration as a feast for the entire Church; the celebration became a solemnity after the liturgical reforms of Vatican II.
Because the Father, Son, and Spirit were perfectly unified before the creation of the world: loving, serving, and glorifying one another, God did not need to create the world or us. God was perfectly fulfilled without us. Yet He lovingly chose to create, inviting us in to enjoy and be fulfilled through sharing in God’s life and love. Today is a feast of God’s great love for us and His world.
Monday is Memorial Day. It is the national holiday that honors our military members who died in service of our country. The holiday has its roots during our Civil War years and it was declared a national holiday in 1971. Memorial Day is a day of respect and remembrance for those who sacrificed their young lives for our country. Our Flags are flown at half-mast until noon, as a remembrance of the dead, and then becomes full mast, in celebration of the glory of America.
Here in Pearl River the John H. Secor American Legion Post 329 will host the Annual Memorial Day Parade. The Parade will start at 10:15 A.M. from Key Bank, across from Retro Fitness on North Middletown Road. The parade then heads down Central Avenue to Braunsdorf Park where ceremonies are held in remembrance.
This year’s guest speaker, Mr. Danny Davin, the Commander of Post 329, will pay tribute to the past and fallen Post Members as well as highlight the meaning of Memorial Day. Danny is an Army Veteran where he served honorably in the Military Intelligence Corps. After his military service he served in the New York Police Department for 27 Years retiring as a Lieutenant Detective.
If you are in town and not down at LBI, please make an effort to attend the parade and ceremonies. It is important to bring the children so that they know what this day is really about. It is not the beginning of the summer season, or a day just for a family BBQ. We all have a serious obligation to teach our children well and to show gratitude for those who sacrificed their lives for a higher and noble cause!
