The Catechism in a Year (with Fr. Mike Schmitz) - Day 32: The Most Holy Trinity (2024)

Episode Date: February 1, 2024

Christians are baptized “in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,” not the “names” of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. The Catechism explains this distinction by introducing us to the “central mystery of Christian faith and life”: the Trinity. Fr. Mike slows us down to meditate on what God reveals to us concerning his inner life, the very thing that “many prophets and righteous people longed to see… [and] hear.” Today’s readings are Catechism paragraphs 232-237. This episode has been found to be in conformity with the Catechism by the Institute on the Catechism, under the Subcommittee on the Catechism, USCCB. For the complete reading plan, visit ascensionpress.com/ciy Please note: The Catechism of the Catholic Church contains adult themes that may not be suitable for children - parental discretion is advised.

Hi, my name is Father Mike Schmitz and you're listening to the Catechism in a Year podcast, where we encounter God's plan of sheer goodness for us, revealed in Scripture and passed down through the tradition of the Catholic faith. The Catechism in a Year is brought to you by Ascension. In 365 days, we will read through the Catechism of the Catholic Church, discovering our identity in God's family as we journey together toward our heavenly home. It is day 32. We're reading paragraphs 232 to 237 as always. I'm using the Ascension Edition of the Catechism, which includes the foundations of faith approach

you can follow along with any recent version of the Catechism with the Catholic Church. Also, if you want to download your own Catechism in your reading plan, you can visit ascensionpress.com slash C-I-Y. That stands for Catechism in a year. I don't know if you knew that. And also you can click follow or subscribe in your podcast app for daily notifications. As I said, it is day 32. We're reading paragraphs 232 to 237. We're starting kind of a new section,

the new paragraph called the Father. And the sub point of that is the quote in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. We're reading a couple of paragraphs. What we're gonna look at is the core, right? The core of Christian beliefs. The core of everything we believe as Christians is the Trinity. The God's deepest identity, remember, his innermost secret is that he's a communion of persons, that he is an eternal exchange of love, Father, Son, and Holy

Spirit. And so we're going to talk about that, how that is the central mystery of the Christian faith. We're also going to talk about these two terms, theology and economy. So you're gonna hear this in paragraph 236, well the technical definition of, or what the word theology means is, you know, theos logea, right? So the study of God, logos or logea, study of and theos, God, study of God.

But also this word economy, and you're like, I know what economy means, father it's ridiculous, it's all about money. No, in fact, Oikonomia is another Greek word that basically means the management of the house. So, Oikos is house and Nomia is the management of. So basically what it kind of breaks down to

is that the Oikonomia or the economy of salvation is the way in which God has acted in the world, right? That the way in which God has revealed himself through his actions. And so in paragraph 236, we're going to be using those words, Oconomia and Theologiae, Theology and Economy, to highlight these two things. One is, Theology refers to the mystery of God's inmost life, that basically this is the who he is. Economy, all the works by which God reveals himself

and communicates his life. So it's really important because later on, I mean, we're gonna hear that word economy a lot or the economy of salvation, the recognition that here is the works through which God has revealed himself and these are the works through which God has communicated himself and communicated his life to us.

And it's powerful, it's beautiful, it's really incredible, but it's one of those glossary terms, right, that sometimes gets us hung up. We're going to hear economy. You hear or hear the word, oikonomia, and it might not help. It's kind of like if you've ever recited the Nicene Creed, which I think you might have. And we say, conceptual with the father. And you're thinking, what the heck? I mean, can we be?stantial. I think the old translation was one in being with the father, which yes, that is essentially what consubstantial means, but we never stop to ask the question, what does one in being mean? When you hear the word consubstantial,

hopefully you stop and ask the question, what does consubstantial refer to? And it means of the same substance or of one substance, meaning that they're one in being, but we never ask the question unless we use the big words And so today we're gonna use the big words theologia and economia also We're just gonna talk once again We're gonna keep talking about this the mystery the fact that God is a mystery that that his identity

That his works. Yes, I revealed to us in time and in locations and space, but ultimately God is an infinite mystery that we can only hope to plumb the depths. So let's pray because God is known more fully through prayer than he is through study. Although study definitely helps us to get to know him and to pray to him, right? So here, let's pray with each other to our Father.

We pray Father in heaven. You have revealed yourself to us. You have revealed yourself to us through your actions. You revealed yourself to us through the way in which you have communicated your very life to us. When we ask that you please, in this moment, continue to reveal yourself to us. Continue to pour out your divine life into our lives because, God, we're coming to this moment from all these different places. And we ask that you this moment from all these different places. And we ask that you please just meet us where we are. And we know that you can because you are everywhere.

You are goodness, you are truth, you are love. And you're here, you're right here. So be here with us now. In Jesus' name we pray, amen. In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen. As I said, it's day 32. We're reading paragraphs 232 to 237. Paragraph 2.

The Father. In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Christians are baptized in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Before receiving the sacrament, they respond to a three-part question when asked to confess the Father, the Son, and the Spirit. I do. As Saint Caesarius of Orals said, the faith of all Christians rests on the Trinity. Christians are baptized in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, not in their names. For there is only one God, the Almighty Father, His only Son, and the Holy Spirit, the Most Holy Trinity.

The mystery of the Most Holy Trinity is the central mystery of the Christian faith and life. It is the mystery of God in himself. It is therefore the source of all the other mysteries of faith, the light that enlightens them. It is the most fundamental and essential teaching in the hierarchy of the truths of faith. The whole history of salvation is identical with the history of the way and the means by which the one true God, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, reveals himself to men and reconciles and unites with himself those who turn away from sin. This paragraph expounds briefly, 1. how the mystery of the Blessed Trinity was revealed. 2. how the Church has articulated the doctrine of the faith regarding this mystery.

And 3. how, by the divine missions of the Son and the Holy Spirit, God the Father fulfills the plan of His loving goodness of creation, redemption, and sanctification. The Fathers of the Church distinguish between theology, theologia, and economy, oikonomia. Theology refers to the mystery of God's inmost life within the Blessed Trinity and economy, to all the works by which God reveals Himself and communicates His life. Through the oikonomia, the theologia is revealed to us. But conversely, the Theologia illuminates the whole Oconomia. God's works reveal who He is in Himself, the mystery of

His inmost being enlightens our understanding of all His works. So it is, analogously, among human persons. A person discloses himself in His actions, and the better we know a person, the better we understand His actions, and the better we know a person, the better we understand His actions. The Trinity is a mystery of faith in the strict sense, one of the mysteries that are hidden in God which can never be known unless they are revealed by God. To be sure, God has left traces of His Trinitarian being in His work of creation and in His revelation throughout the Old Testament. But His inmost being as Holy Trinity is a mystery that is inaccessible

to reason alone or even to Israel's faith before the incarnation of God's Son and the sending of the Holy Spirit. Okay, so here we go. Again, a couple short paragraphs, 232 to 237, and we recognize this. Even the very first statement here in paragraph 232 that we realize we're baptized in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. It goes on in 233 to highlight that we don't say names of the Father, Son, and the Holy Spirit, but the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.

Why? Because there's only one God. I don't know if you've ever noticed that. Every time you and I pray, we make the sign of the cross and we say in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, but not their names, because there's only one God. So yes, every time we make the sign of the cross, we are highlighting obviously the Trinity

in the sense that the three divine persons, Father, Son and Holy Spirit, but we're also highlighting when we say in the name of singular, in the name of we're highlighting the unity of God, right? We're highlighting the fact that God is one divine being in three divine persons. And I don't know if you've ever got that before, but it is, it is incredible.

So that's paragraph 233 into 32. It highlights this, that the faith of all Christians rests on the Trinity. If you were ever asked, what is the, what's the primary doctrine? What's the primary belief in the Christian faith? Some people might say, well, you know, the belief in that Jesus is God and you would not be wrong. I'm telling you that right now. You would not be wrong. But the fullest expression of that truth would be that not only is Jesus God the second person of the Trinity, but that there is first person, father, second person, son, and third person, the Holy Spirit in one divine being.

That's the actual center of our faith. Again, of course, it's revealed to us that that second person of the Trinity took on flesh and dwelt among us, of course, but the heart, the faith of all Christians rests on the Trinity. And that's so important. Why? Well, for a thousand reasons. Well, because this is the central belief. Every other belief we have flows from this. In fact, that's what it says in paragraph 234 It's the central mystery of the Christian faith Because it's the mystery of God in himself. It's not the mystery of God doing anything It's not the mystery of God accomplishing anything

It's not even the mystery of creation redemption or sanctification although those things happened by God It's God in himself before creation. It's God in himself outside of redemption. It's God in himself even if he never sanctified. It's God in himself. And that's the remarkable thing is that, we get he reveals himself to us, right? Through those actions, through redemption, creation, sanctification.

But the who he is is so much more important than what he does at the same time. But the who he is is so much more important than what he does at the same time. What he does reveals to us who he is. And that's why I love that paragraph that we hit in talking about theologiae and eukonomia in 236, because eukonomia, right, is God's works. And that's the works by which he's revealed himself and communicates himself communicates his life to us. That's Oconomia

but Oconomia reveals his Theologia right reveals his very deepest identity the theology that very who he is and I love how they phrase this because it's just They give us an analogy and the analogy just completely fits so well is it says analogy and the analogy just completely fits so well is it says, analogously among human persons, a person discloses himself in his actions and the better we know a person, the better we understand his actions. And that's exactly what is happening to God's self-revelation and his communication of his life and communication of himself to us,

his sharing his life with us is those actions revealed to us, his identity. And the more we know his identity, the more we pray, the more we study this, like do this kind of thing, but going through the Catechism, going through sacred scripture. Again, as I said, entering into prayer, engaging in the sacraments, the more we understand his actions in the world, and it's just remarkable, it is a virtuous cycle, you know, there's sometimes they're vicious cycles, this is not a vicious cycle, this is a virtuous cycle, this is a virtuous cycle. You know, there's sometimes their vicious cycles. This is not a vicious cycle. This is a virtuous cycle. This is a cycle of intimacy. The more we know God, the more we understand his actions,

the more we understand his actions, the better we are able to know him. Lastly, lastly in paragraph 237, it says that, God, yes, has left traces of his Trinitarian being in his work of creation and in the revelation of the Old Testament. We might have mentioned this before, but you have even the very first words in the very first chapter of the very first book of the entire Bible, Genesis chapter one, where you have in the beginning, when God created, there was the Spirit hovering over the waters and then God spoke, right? So in that moment, you have God the Father, here he is, you have the Spirit of God and you have the Word of God. So yes, it's traces of his Trinitarian self, his Trinitarian being in the Old Testament

and also in creation, but this is so important for us to realize. His inmost being as Holy Trinity is a mystery that is inaccessible to reason alone, or even to Israel's faith before the incarnation and the sending of the Holy Spirit. And so that's just remarkable. Because of that, what do we do? We have to give God thanks and praise. That He's revealed His deepest identity to us, which we talked about a couple days ago. Is something...

Is something... I just... Let's pause on that. You know, Jesus says something very similar when He says, Kings and prophets long to see what you see but they didn't see it. Think of all the Jewish people that God had brought into the covenant and that he had continued to promise to them what he was going to do what he was going to do someday and they never saw it they never saw that come to fulfillment and then here's Jesus looking his apostles his disciples in the eyes and saying, all of those people, all of those generations, you guys, those of us who have gone through the Bible any year we realize, man, that's a long time.

Two thousand years of God showing up, but also promising, listen, I'm going to show up in a new way. Those people trusting in the Lord. And those people, you know, who failed to trust in the Lord. But then here's Jesus. Here's the apostles, here are the disciples, and they got to see the fruit of that promise. They got to see the reality of that promise. They got to see the promise fulfilled.

And here we are. I mean, think about this. Think of how many people around the world who have ever lived and looked up at the sky and said, God, what do you like? God, who are you? God, can I trust you? Are you good?

Do you love me? Do you care about me? And here we are now knowing that at the very core of God's identity, he is love. Not only he is love in and of himself, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, that Trinity, but he also has made you in his image and likeness. You're made for love and that he loves you, that he knows your name and he cares about you.

That's remarkable. Think of all the people who have never realized that, have never known that. And then think about the fact that we can sometimes be so quick to take that for granted. So I'm not gonna take it for granted. Let's just let's just let's pray for each other that we never take it for granted. Let's pray for each other that we always draw closer and closer to the Lord because without him we're toast with him we can do anything. So please know I'm praying for you and please please pray for me My name is Father Mike. I cannot wait to see you tomorrow. God bless