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2023The Solemnity of the Most Holy Trinity, Homily by Fr. Francis Zhang 「Holy Trinity」

Today all the Roman Catholic Church worldwide celebrate the ineffable mystery of God, which is the Three Persons in One God, and One God in Three Persons. Ontologically or metaphysically speaking, actions belong to the person. For example, I am giving homily, it is not my substance giving this homily. So, we are celebrating three persons in one God, one God in three persons. Analogically, we say God is not the Father, God is not the Son and God is not the Holy Spirit; but the Father is God, the Son is God, and the Holy Spirit is God. Because God is Love, so, the Father is Love, the Son is Love and the Holy Spirit is Love. Our celebration today is about the internal relations among three persons in one God. This marvellous ineffable mystery of God shows us the beautiful creature of the Father in time, space, church, family, and society. All things are created by the Father, time, space, stars, trees, flowers etc. So, whenever we see the beautiful skies, the beautiful cosmos, the beautiful trees and flowers, we say may Glory be to the Father, the Creator of the Universe. Secondly, whenever we see the crucifix, where Jesus is nailed on the cross, it demonstrates His abundant love for mankind. It is for His sake that we are all here, therefore we must love Jesus Christ, who was nailed to the cross for our sake. Not for others but for all of us. Therefore, we should be grateful to the Son Jesus Christ, who died for us. So, we give thanks to the Son, the second person of God. Thirdly, when we celebrate the eucharist every Sunday, sometimes we are suddenly touched by the Holy Spirit, which gives us the inspiration to understand the teachings. So, we give thanks to the Holy Spirit who gives us such inspiration. The inspiration from the Holy Spirit sanctifies our conscience, family members, work, and everything about us. So, let us always give thanks to the third person of God, the Holy Spirit. We have about 24 visitors from Beijing National Seminary, including Priests, Sisters, major Seminarians, Rectors, and Vice Rectors. They came to Shenzhen since yesterday, for their graduation ceremony from the Church. When I was in Beijing diocese, at the Sacred Heart of Jesus Parish, every year, the Rector, Father Li organizes for the graduate students from the National Seminary, to see practically, the formation of priesthood. To see how to manage the parish in their future, to observe what it means to be a priest especially in the management of a parish, like setting up different ministry groups to follow the Holy Spirit, in unity with the Holy Church worldwide. They were present for the children’s mass last night, which usually holds every Saturday evening. The priests, sisters, and seminarians were touched by mass. They saw the future of the Church in China and in the world. Last night’s children’s mass showed them in reality, every theoretical thing they know about how to be a priest and church management, as many children served in the mass, they were moved, and they cried. They told me they saw the reality of the trinity through the activities of the mass. During the 9AM mass today, many Chinese people were present, and they were all touched by the Holy Spirit as each priest gave a short speech. All their speeches have something to do with the inspiration they from the Holy Spirit about the future of the Catholic Church in China. So, in all our realities, we give glory and thanks to the Father, to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit. Everything came from the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. When we get up in the morning, we say, I give thanks to the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Before and after every meal, before our work, before we play the musical instruments, before we sing in the choir or read the word of God, we say thank you to the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, for it is in your name that we do all things; quickly, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit will come to us, and we are in union with the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. So, the beauty of the church is the taste of the phenomenon of the essence of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. So marvellous is the ineffable mystery of God. Now we can see and be touched by the essence of God, it is such an amazing grace given by God. Yes, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit is in you and among you. So, my dear brothers and sisters in Christ, in everything we do, let us do it in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, particularly when we teach our children. The Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit is among us. Glory be to the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, it is now and so shall be world without end amen. Three persons in one God, one God in three persons. May God bless you.

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