Working with the Word

Focusing the Gospel

Key words and phrases: God so loved, gave his only Son, have eternal life, Whoever believes

To the point: God’s desire is that we share in divine Life eternally. To this end, God is very near—near to Moses on Mount Sinai (first reading) and near to us in the divine Son who came to dwell among us. Even more: for those who believe, our triune God dwells within us by grace and communion, drawing us into the inner Life of the Trinity. The unceasing Life of the Trinity is this: to love us into eternal Life. It is God’s gracious gift, and ours to choose.

Connecting the Gospel …

… to First Reading: The Second Reading describes the life of those who choose to believe in the triune God’s gift of divine Presence: “rejoice,” “mend your ways,” “encourage one another,” “agree with one another,” “live in peace,” “greet one another with a holy kiss.”

… to experience: Contemporary society values individualism, personal rights, and self-gratification. This solemnity invites us to live not for ourselves but in communion with one another as does the Holy Trinity.
 

**From Saint Louis University