Ignatius concludes the contemplation on
the Holy Trinity with a colloquy, a conversation.
Again, bring to mind the Trinity. Remember how they have
observed the world, decided to save and become a part of it. Talk to them about what you have seen, heard, thought and felt.
God created us because he loves us, and his love sustains us. Therefore, the greatest fulfilment we can have in life is to be closely united with God. Sometimes we think that our salvation is up to us. But the incarnation teaches us that the initiative is primarily with God.
This is the meaning of grace - God sharing God’s self with each of us. Our job is to be open to this grace, to open our eyes to the work of the Trinity in our lives, and to be thankful for God’s presence. Even though God’s salvation
is offered to us freely, we are responsible for what we make of this gift.
God brings this grace and salvation in
many ways, well beyond our imagination. Jesus teaches us how to spot God’s presence in the world and our lives. We do not always recognise this, and sometimes we think it has to come about in familiar signs and symbols of our culture and religion. Let us pray today for the grace not to be blind to God’s presence.
Let me conclude my colloquy with a verse from Gerard Manly Hopkins:
I say móre: the just man justices;
Keeps grace: thát keeps all his goings graces;
Acts in God's eye what in God's eye he is
—
Chríst — for Christ plays in ten thousand places,
Lovely in limbs, and lovely in eyes not his
To the Father through the features of men's faces.
After this week’s reflection on the Holy Trinity, what do you want to say to the Holy Trinity? Offer them your thoughts and feelings. Then, pray for the grace to see God present in your life.
Reflections by Sean van Staden SJ
