BIG C CATHOLICS

In De Trinitate , Hilary writes: Jesus "has commanded us to baptize in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit (cf. Mt 28:19), that is, in the confession of the Author, of the Only-Begotten One and of the Gift. The Author of all things is one alone, for one alone is God the Father, from whom all things proceed. And one alone is Our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom all things exist (cf. 1 Cor 8:6), and one alone is the Spirit (cf. Eph 4:4), a gift in all…. In nothing can be found to be lacking so great a fullness, in which the immensity in the Eternal One, the revelation in the Image, joy in the Gift, converge in the Father, in the Son and in the Holy Spirit". — Pope Benedict XVI, General Audience, October 10, 2007

January 13th, is the optional memorial of Saint Hilary of Poitiers (c. 310 – 367), the 4th century philosopher, bishop and Doctor of the Church, whose staunch defense of orthodox Trinitarian theology protected the deposit of faith against heretical attacks in a period of discord. His spiritual formation and extensive education included the classic literature of Latin and Greek as well as Sacred Scripture. Much of St. Hilary's life before his episcopacy is a mystery. What is known comes almost entirely from details contained in his theological writings. He was born in present-day France to a pagan family, three years before the Roman Empire ceased its persecution of Christians and officially recognized Christianity. Although he came of age without any significant Christian influence, his comprehensive study of Greek philosophy and the Bible enabled him to acknowledge the truths of the Faith. This acceptance occurred gradually. At age 35, Hilary was baptized together with his da

Nativity, Giotto, Basilica of Saint Francis of Assisi, c. 1316. When we celebrate Christmas we are commemorating the three nativities of Our Lord Jesus Christ. This is the reason for the three Masses celebrated on this day. The first is the eternal begetting of God the Son from all eternity within the mystery of the Blessed Trinity by the Father, “You are My Son. Today I have begotten You.” This first nativity was before the seven days of Creation, when everything was darkness. This is why the first Mass is at midnight to recall the darkness that prevailed during that first eternal birth of the Second Person of the Blessed Trinity. The second nativity, or birth of the Second Person of the Trinity is commemorated on Christmas day when He became man, born of the Virgin Mary, in Bethlehem. For the world, the darkness was beginning to be dispelled. This is why the second Mass is celebrated at dawn when the dawn is beginning to dispel the darkness. The third nativity of Christ is w

Editor's note: Each Tuesday we will feature posts discussing Saint John Paul the Great's Theology of the Body; his reflection on our nature and life as persons made in the image and likeness of God, conjugal love, the meaning of celibacy, and the eternal beatitude to which every human being is called.  ________________________ Men were made to love women just as women were made to love men. We were all made to love as God loves. To love the way God loves is to love completely, holding nothing back. Adam and Eve knew this immediately upon seeing each other for the first time. It is inscribed in our bodies; their very physicality speaks this truth. Sex is sacred. It must be protected and revered as a holy and mysterious union. Women express the unrepeatable feminine incarnations of the human person that they are when they love their husbands. In so doing they honor and love God. Men express the unrepeatable masculine incarnations of the human person that they are when t

Collect Prayer for Trinity Sunday Heavenly Father, You sent your Word to bring us truth and your Spirit to make us holy. Through them we come to know the mystery of your life. Help us to worship You, one God in three Persons, by proclaiming and living our faith in You. We ask You this, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, one God, true and living, for ever and ever. Amen.

Fr. Thomas J. Lane S.T.D. Associate Professor of Sacred Scripture Mt. St. Mary's Seminary Emmitsburg, MD ( Click here for today’s readings ) "O Father who sought me O Son who bought me O Holy Spirit who taught me." That beautiful prayer to the Trinity is quoted in a book on Celtic prayer ( The Celtic Way of Prayer: The Recovery of the Religious Imagination page 43 by Esther de Waal). It expresses beautifully the different qualities of the three persons of the Holy Trinity. The Father sought us. That reminds me of Psalm 139, a beautiful Psalm about God seeking us and being present with us at all times. O Lord you search me and you know me, You know my resting and my rising, You discern my purpose from afar. You mark when I walk or lie down, All my ways lie open to you. Before ever a word is on my tongue You know it, O Lord through and through. Behind and before you besiege me, Your hand ever laid upon me. Too wonderful for me, this knowledge, To

God in his deepest mystery is not a solitude but a family, since he has in himself fatherhood, sonship and the essence of the family which is love . — St. John Paul II

[ This prayer may be recited individually or as a family .] *** V/ The true God, One in Three and Three in One, come, let us adore. R/ The true God, One in Three and Three in One, come, let us adore. V/ Let us pray. Almighty and everlasting God, Thou hast given to Thy servants grace for professing the true faith and acknowledging the glory of the eternal Trinity and in the power of Thy majesty to worship the Unity; grant that by steadfastness in the same faith we may evermore be defended from all adversities. Through Christ our Lord. R/ Amen. V/ Be with us, O God, one and omnipotent, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. R/ You are our hope, our salvation, our glory, O Blessed Trinity. V/ Blessed are you, O Lord, in the firmament of heaven. R/ Praiseworthy and glorious forever. Amen. V/ Glory be to the Father and to Son and to the Holy Ghost. R/ As it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.

By Matthew Coffin The Solemnity of the Most Holy Trinity is May 22nd. The Divine Family that is God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit is the central mystery of Christian faith and life . The mystery of the Trinity is the life that dwells in us and sustains us . ___________ "God in his deepest mystery is not a solitude but a family, since he has in himself fatherhood, sonship and the essence of the family which is love." — St. John Paul II The Exchange of Persons in the Trinity The three-leaf clover used in religion classes to explain the mystery of three Divine Persons in one God does not begin to penetrate the incomparable majesty, boundless love, and total communion, which the Church in her Tradition and creeds ascribes to the Trinity. To the early Church Fathers the idea of perichoresis (the exchange of Persons in the Trinity), was indispensable to understanding God. This sublime, metaphysical concept is central to John Paul’s Theology of the

The month of April is dedicated to the Third Person in the Trinity, the Holy Spirit. Every time we recite the Nicene Creed we worship the Holy Spirit as God. The love of the Father for the Son is total. God the Father empties Himself completely, holding nothing back from the Son. The love of the Son for the Father is total. God the Son empties Himself completely, holding nothing back from the Father. The love of the Father for the Son and the Son for the Father is the Holy Spirit. The love that is the exchange of Persons between Father and Son is the Life that is the Spirit, with no beginning and no end. The Creed affirms that the Third Person of the Trinity is coequal with and proceeds from the Father and the Son: We believe in the Holy Spirit, the Lord, the giver of life, Who proceeds from the Father and the Son. With the Father and the Son He is worshiped and glorified. He has spoken through the prophets. The Holy Spirit is the Person of Love in the life of God. He is als

Matthew Coffin In his Theology of the Body, Saint John Paul II seeks to establish an adequate anthropology in which the human person, in both his spiritual and physical dimensions, reveals truths about God. George Weigel has called it, "one of the boldest reconfigurations of Catholic theology in centuries." Part 1 examines the philosophical developments that preceded it. Major schools of thought have been greatly oversimplified in order to show how John Paul II’s contribution is necessary, transformative, and faithful. Augustinianism Prior to the thirteenth century, the dominant school of thought in Catholic theology was that of St. Augustine. Early in the fifth century, Augustine refuted the heresy of Pelagianism. Pelagius taught that Adam’s original sin did not taint human nature. For that reason, Christ’s sacrifice on the cross was neither necessary nor redemptive. A neo-Platonist, Augustine uses the philosophy of Plato, together with the deposit of faith, to op

Men were made to love women just as women were made to love men. We were all made to love as God loves. To love the way God loves is to love completely, holding nothing back. Adam and Eve knew this immediately upon seeing each other for the first time. It is inscribed in our bodies; their very physicality speaks this truth. Sex is sacred. It must be protected and revered as a holy and mysterious union. Women express the unrepeatable feminine incarnations of the human person that they are when they love their husbands. In so doing they honor and love God. Men express the unrepeatable masculine incarnations of the human person that they are when they love their wives. In so doing they also love God. The celibate is called to love by offering up their masculinity or femininity to God and by serving others. Nuns live a beautiful vocation by being spouses to Christ. This is not a sexual union but a profound spiritual union. Likewise, priests and religious brothers offer up their mas