The Most Holy Trinity
May 30, 2026 Bulletin Column Father De Celles
SOLEMNITY OF THE MOST HOLY TRINITY. The most fundamental dogma of our Christian faith is the Trinity. It is reflected in the first prayer every Catholic child learns (“In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit”) and in the way we are baptized (“I baptize you in the name of the Father…”). And is it expressed in our most important summaries of our faith: the Apostles’ Creed and the Nicene Creed which we pray at every Sunday Mass. As the Catechism (CCC 253-255) teaches:
“The Trinity is One. We do not confess three Gods, but one God in three persons, the “consubstantial Trinity”. The divine persons do not share the one divinity among themselves but each of them is God whole and entire….
“The divine persons are really distinct from one another. …”Father”, “Son”, “Holy Spirit” are not simply names designating modalities of the divine being, for they are really distinct from one another: “He is not the Father who is the Son, nor is the Son he who is the Father, nor is the Holy Spirit he who is the Father or the Son” …
“The divine persons are relative to one another. Because it does not divide the divine unity, the real distinction of the persons from one another resides solely in the relationships which relate them to one another: “In the relational names of the persons the Father is related to the Son, the Son to the Father, and the Holy Spirit to both. While they are called three persons in view of their relations, we believe in one nature or substance.” Indeed “everything (in them) is one where there is no opposition of relationship”…”
It is extremely hard to fathom this mystery, and yet the Church has insisted on it since the earliest days as the sine qua non of being a Christian. And what would we expect of something that essentially reveals the inner life of the infinite and eternal God? How could we ever understand it completely, but isn’t it wonderful that God has revealed this to us so that we can understand something of the great mystery of His Life? A life of perfect love and absolute unity of the three divine persons. And in this mystery we begin to understand what it means to be a Christian: to be invited to live life in unity and love with them, sharing in their unity, or communion, and love.
Corpus Christi Procession Next Sunday. Next week we will celebrate the Solemnity of the Most Holy Body and Blood of Christ, and we will once again have our indoor procession and Benediction with the Blessed Sacrament. All are invited to join us, as a few minutes after the 1pm Mass (allowing time for some to leave and some to arrive) we will process throughout the interior of the church with the Blessed Sacrament, and then have a short period of Adoration, followed by Benediction. Afterwards we gather in the Parish Hall to celebrate with ice cream.
MAGNIFICA HUMANITAS. Pope Leo XIV has released his first encyclical, Magnifica Humanitas, subtitled, “On Safeguarding the Human Person in the Time of Artificial Intelligence,” and it has received generally excellent reviews from Catholic, Protestant and secular sources. Unfortunately I have not been able to read it yet, as my “free time” is currently dedicated to preparing talks for the Women’s Apostolate to Youth annual retreat this weekend. But in the next few weeks I will attempt to carefully study it, and I hope to share some of my thoughts with you soon.
End of the School Year and Graduations. Well, the school year is finally coming to an end. Congratulations to all those who are graduating from High School or University. This is a great accomplishment and the beginning of exciting new stage in life for all of you.
As summer begins, I hope you have some time to relax a bit. In that regard, let me remind you of three things. First, school is over, not your faith. So keep coming to Mass on Sundays and praying every day. And don’t forget to go to Confession. Second, enjoy yourself, but don’t squander your time sitting around doing nothing or playing on the computer. Play sports, and games with your friends, especially outdoors; for those graduating from High School, get a summer job and earn some money and good experience; take part in our activities at the parish; visit relatives and friends. Enjoy, but don’t waste or abuse. Third, be safe. Don’t do stupid things or take foolish risks. Have fun, but don’t hurt yourself or others. We love you and want to watch you grow and fulfill your potential for years to come.
For those of you continuing in school next year (moving on to college, trade school or graduate studies) always remember to keep Jesus at the center of everything you do. Remember to work hard, and not squander the gift you are given in education. But don’t work too hard, pray and rest also.
For those of you moving on to careers I remind you that work is a gift, a sharing in divine creativity. So work hard, and give a full day’s work for a full day’s pay; treat co-workers, bosses and customers/clients/patients/etc. with respect and charity. And always remember that your work is part of your life with Christ. Never forget you are a Catholic. Keep the commandments, love your neighbor, and never compromise your Faith. Be a person of integrity: integrate your Christian beliefs and values into everything you do. You don’t have to beat people over the head with your Catholicism, but they should recognize that it is important to you.
God bless you all!
Our Lady of Ransom Scholarships. You all know my deep concerns about sending our children to the government-run, radical leftist-controlled Fairfax County Schools. Which is why the parish offers scholarships to all qualified parishioners who attend Catholic schools (k-12): $1,000 for grade school and $2000 for high school, subject only to minimal qualification terms.
We also offer to double those amounts for each child (a parishioner) who switches from public school to Catholic school (this is a one-time first-year amount). Additional scholarships are also available to families in particular need.
And for this coming year we are offering a $4000 for qualified parishioners who attend Chesterton Academy of Christ the King, located at St. Lawrence Catholic Church in Alexandria,just 14 minutes away from St. Raymond’s. Tuition is $13,900, so our scholarship brings that down to just a little more than you would pay at a Catholic grade school. Visit chesterton-christtheking.org or contact me to learn more.
Funding Scholarships. To fund the above scholarships, which usually amount to about $200,000 annually, I am once again asking all parishioners to consider donating whatever they can to the cause. You can do this by using the monthly envelope provided to you with your other offertory envelopes. Or by mailing a check to the parish, and writing on the “memo” line something like “Scholarship Fund Donation.” Or you can also give online through PushPay.
Oremus pro invicem. Fr. De Celles