The Solemnity of the Most Holy Trinity
The unity and trinity of God is one of the principal mysteries of our Faith: three distinct Persons – the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit – in one God. This doctrine was revealed by Our Lord Jesus and the sacred writers of the New Testament, the Old Testament having provided only indirect indications of it.
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Mass Readings
First Reading – Dt 4:32-34, 39-40
Moses said to the people: “Ask now of the days of old, before your time, ever since God created man upon the earth; ask from one end of the sky to the other: Did anything so great ever happen before? Was it ever heard of? Did a people ever hear the voice of God speaking from the midst of fire, as you did, and live? Or did any god venture to go and take a nation for himself from the midst of another nation, by testings, by signs and wonders, by war, with strong hand and outstretched arm, and by great terrors, all of which the LORD, your God, did for you in Egypt before your very eyes? This is why you must now know, and fix in your heart, that the LORD is God in the heavens above and on earth below, and that there is no other. You must keep his statutes and commandments that I enjoin on you today, that you and your children after you may prosper, and that you may have long life on the land which the LORD, your God, is giving you forever.”
Responsorial Psalm – Ps 33:4-5, 6, 9, 18-19, 20, 22 (R.12b)
R. Blessed the people the Lord has chosen to be his own.
Upright is the word of the LORD,
and all his works are trustworthy.
He loves justice and right;
of the kindness of the Lord the earth is full. R.
By the word of the LORD the heavens were made;
by the breath of his mouth all their host.
For he spoke, and it was made;
he commanded, and it stood forth. R.
See, the eyes of the LORD are upon those who fear him,
upon those who hope for his kindness,
To deliver them from death
and preserve them in spite of famine. R.
Our soul waits for the LORD,
who is our help and our shield.
May your kindness, O LORD, be upon us
who have put our hope in you. R.
Second Reading – Rom 8:14-17
Brothers and sisters: For those who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God. For you did not receive a spirit of slavery to fall back into fear, but you received a Spirit of adoption, through whom we cry, “Abba, Father!” The Spirit himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, and if children, then heirs, heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ, if only we suffer with him so that we may also be glorified with him.
Gospel – Mt 28:16-20
The eleven disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain to which Jesus had ordered them. When they all saw him, they worshiped, but they doubted. Then Jesus approached and said to them, “All power in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go, therefore, and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, until the end of the age.”
Featured Saints
St. Philip Neri, priest (†1595). Great apostle of abandoned youth, he founded the Work of the Oratory in Italy. Known for his joy, he used art and culture as important elements in his apostolate.
St. Eleutherius, Pope (†189). He governed the Church during a time of peace afforded by the Emperor Commodus’ tolerance of Christians. He opposed the Gnostics and the Montanists.
St. Joseph Chang Song-jib, martyr (†1839). Korean pharmacist who converted to the Christian Faith. He was imprisoned and died in Seoul after suffering cruel torture.
St. Andrew Kaggwa, martyr (†1886). Executed in Uganda, during the persecutions unleashed by King Mwanga, for having preached the Gospel to the pagans and catechumens.
St. Pontian Ngondwe, martyr (†1886). Minister of the King of Uganda (Africa), he was pierced through by a lance during the persecution in that country.
St. Mariana de Jesús Paredes, virgin (†1645). Laywoman of the Franciscan Third Order in Quito, Ecuador, she lived as a religious in her home, serving the needy and giving spiritual assistance to the inhabitants of Quito.
Blessed Andrew Franchi, bishop (†1401). Dominican friar elected Bishop of Pistoia, Italy; he favoured peace and dedicated himself to restoring religious life in the convents of the Order after the Black Death.
Blessed Francisco Patrizi, priest (†1328). Fervent devotee of Our Lady, he entered the Servite Order, in Siena, Italy; eminent confessor and spiritual director
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