Living Liturgically in June

Solemnity of the Most Holy Trinity - May 31
The Church celebrates the Solemnity of the Most Holy Trinity on the Sunday following Pentecost – this year May 31. It is one of the few feasts in the liturgical year dedicated not to a saint or an event in salvation history, but to the mystery of God himself: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. 

This solemnity was first celebrated in Northern Europe during the 9th century. In 1334, Pope John XXII added the solemnity to the universal liturgical calendar, the calendar of all the Church’s celebrations. Until then, it was not on the calendar because every prayer, every sacrament, every Mass begins and ends in the name of the Father, and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. The Trinity is the heart of the Christian faith. 

Throughout history, saints and theologians have tried to explain this mystery using examples from nature and human experience. Saint Patrick famously used the shamrock with its three leaves and one stem, but even this analogy fails because it only presents one aspect of the Trinity. The Trinity is a mystery that helps us understand that God is a communion of love. Because we are created in the image and likeness of God, we are also made for relationship, communion and love. We are meant to be united to God, and through God, to one another. 

Although certain roles are associated with specific Persons of the Trinity, for example creation with the Father, redemption with the Son and sanctification with the Holy Spirit, whenever one person of the Trinity does something, it is really a work of all three together. 

Each time we make the Sign of the Cross, we profess our faith in the Trinity. These familiar words are more than a ritual gesture; they profess our faith in the Trinity. These familiar words are more than a ritual gesture; they remind us of who God is and that through Baptism, Confirmation and Eucharist, we are drawn into the life of God himself. 

The Solemnity of the Holy Trinity invites us to enter more deeply into wonder. Some mysteries are not meant to be conquered but contemplated. As Saint Augustine once reflected, if we could fully comprehend God, then God would not be God. 

So, on this great Solemnity, the Church invites us to stand in awe before the mystery of divine love. One God in three Persons: Father, Son and Holy Spirit and to allow his divine love to shape our families, our parishes and our world. 
Come Holy Spirit! 

Solemnity of the Body and Blood of Christ – June 7

Some of the most beautiful texts in our liturgical celebrations were written for the Solemnity of the Most Holy Body and Blood of Christ. Traditionally known as Corpus Christi, this day is a profound celebration of the Real Presence of Jesus Christ in the Holy Eucharist. The placement of this solemnity after the Ascension and Pentecost reminds us that when Jesus ascended into heaven, he did not leave us or abandon his people. He sent us the Holy Spirit and remains with us in the Blessed Sacrament, nourishing, healing and drawing us into communion with himself and with one another. 

The roots of this solemnity reach back to the 13th century, when Eucharistic adoration became a common practice in France and soon spread throughout the Church. Inspired by the visions of Saint Juliana of Liège and affirmed by Pope Urban IV, the feast was established to give the faithful a special day to adore and reflect upon the gift of the Eucharist. Over the centuries, Eucharistic processions and adoration have become cherished expressions of this feast. 

The celebrations of this solemnity teach us how we are to live as Eucharistic people. We are called to recognize the centrality of the Mass and the reception of Holy Communion. Through the Mass, the one sacrifice of Christ on Calvary is made present on the altar. We are invited not only to receive Christ but to unite 

our sufferings, joys, and sacrifices with his so that like Simon of Cyrene who carried the Cross of Christ, we also might participate in Christ’s saving work. 

At the same time, the solemnity reminds us that Holy Communion unites us to one another. Saint Paul writes, “Because the loaf of bread is one, we, though many, are one body” (1 Corinthians 10:17). The Eucharist challenges us to live as one family in Christ, overcoming prejudice, resentment and indifference. We cannot truly receive the Bread of Heaven while ignoring the needs of the poor, the lonely and the suffering. 

The Christ we adore in the monstrance is the same Christ present in the wounded and forgotten. The procession through city streets proclaims that Christ walks with his people and desires to enter every corner of human life. Adoration and Eucharistic processions teach us that we must spend time with Christ in prayer and bring his life into the world through our words and actions. 

In recent years, the Church has renewed its call to Eucharistic revival. Corpus Christi offers an opportunity for rediscovery of wonder and amazement before the Blessed Sacrament. It invites us to pray at Mass with deeper reverence, to spend time in Eucharistic adoration and to learn to live as Christ taught. The saints understood this well. Saint Thomas 

Aquinas, who composed many of the Church’s Eucharistic hymns, described the Eucharist as the “bread of angels.” Saint Teresa of Kolkata drew strength for her service to the poor through daily adoration. Saint Carlo Acutis called the Eucharist his “highway to heaven.” 

Together let us unite our hearts as one reflecting on the words of Saint Thomas Aquinas composed for this day in the hymn “Adoro te Devote.” 

Godhead here in hiding whom I do adore 

Masked by these bare shadows, shape and nothing more. 

See, Lord, at thy service low lies here a heart 

Lost, all lost in wonder at the God thou art. 

Seeing, touching, tasting
 are in thee deceived; 

How says trusty hearing?
 that shall be believed; 

What God's Son has told me, take for truth I do; 

Truth himself speaks truly or there's nothing true.