St. Blase, Bishop and Martyr

In the Catechism, we learn that before his Passover Jesus promised to send the Holy Spirit, the “another Paraclete” or Advocate. The Spirit, already at work since creation and speaking through the prophets, would be with and in the disciples, teaching them and guiding them into all truth (CCC 243). Sent to the apostles and the Church by the Father and by the Son after Jesus returned to the Father, the Spirit’s mission reveals the mystery of the Holy Trinity more fully (CCC 244). The Church confesses that the Holy Spirit is the Lord and giver of life, equal with the Father and the Son, and worshipped and glorified with them (CCC 245). Eastern and Western traditions express the Spirit’s eternal origin in complementary ways: from the Father through the Son, and from the Father and the Son, while confessing the same mystery of faith (CCC 246-248).

The revealed truth of the Holy Trinity stands at the root of the Church’s living faith and is expressed especially in Baptism, as well as in the Church’s preaching, catechesis, and prayer. In the early centuries, the Church worked to clarify this faith and defend it from errors, through the early councils, the theological work of the Church Fathers, and the Christian people’s sense of faith. To speak about the Trinity, the Church developed terms such as “substance,” “person” or “hypostasis,” and “relation.” These words express the unity of the one divine being, the real distinction of Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, and their relationships with one another, while reminding us that this mystery is infinitely beyond human understanding. As families pray and learn the faith together, they can join the Church’s confession: the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit.

The Catechism teaches that the Trinity is one God in three really distinct persons: the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. These are not merely different names for God; each person is wholly and entirely God, sharing the one divine nature. The persons are distinct in their relations of origin: the Father generates the Son, the Son is begotten, and the Holy Spirit proceeds. Yet this distinction never divides God’s unity, for the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit are one in divine substance and power. As we pray and grow in faith together, we can treasure this profession of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit as a companion for our whole lives, in both hardships and joys.