Our Father’s Embrace

“The Son and the Spirit are the two hands of the Father through which He takes care of us.” (Fr. Jacques Philippe, My father’s Father, ep. 1, 31:42 mark)

In prayer, we bring our whole self to God: body, soul, and spirit. Depending upon our understanding of God and our own woundedness, this can be difficult. Images help us to picture Him in our mind and settle our body to relax with Him. Yet we might still wonder, to whom am I praying?

Family members and friends may be praying to a god but unaware of the nature of the Christian God. The benchmark for a religion to be Christian is the belief in the Godhead, that is three distinct, co-equal, and co-eternal Persons of one God. Each Person is fully God, referred to as consubstantial in our Nicene Creed which we pray in the mass. In the unity of God, all three Persons are always present in any act, which was seen and heard by John the Baptist when Jesus was baptized in the Jordan river (Matthew 3:16-17). Jesus Himself later commanded the disciples to “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” (Matthew 28:19).  He specifically says name (singular), not names (plural), indicating one God. Yet by stating it to be done “in the name of” the three Persons denotes each Person as equal in Divine power. Examples of sects who may appear Christian but do not believe in the Triune God include Jehovah Witnesses and Mormons. Most Messianic Jews/Jews for Jesus accept to varying degrees that Jesus is the Messiah but not a Divine Person of the Triune God.

Our beautiful faith teaches us that the Father eternally begets the Son, and the Holy Spirit eternally proceeds from the Father and the Son; the life in God is a never-ending act of eternal love. It is our Heavenly Father who sends His Son and Spirit to us in Divine Missions so as to bring us into that love. This, however, can leave us with an image of God the Father being distant in the background while He sends His Son and Spirit to us. We also are often given the image of Jesus, the Son of God, as the ladder or bridge between us and God, with the Spirit bringing us up along that bridge. This is because no one can go to the Father except through the Son (John 14:6). While both of these images are accurate in the sense intended, they remain somewhat mechanical. In these images, God’s love is demonstrated by act rather than relationship.

“[T]hat person in the state of grace has A CLAIM on God’s love and the promise of His extraordinary care in their regard.” (Servant of God Fr. John Hardon)

The image given to us by Fr. Jacque Philippe and others expresses the relationship God desires with us. The purpose of His covenant with us is so that we allow ourselves to be brought into His arms and held for eternity. By the Spirit through the Son we are scooped up into the arms of the Father.

Don’t fret if you are unable to understand (let alone explain) the nature of the Trinity! Allow yourself to be scooped up into your Father’s embrace and share that love with others. 😊

Ad Majorem Dei Gloriam.

(Image of God overlooking the world Attributed to Giovanni Battista Cima da Conegliano, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons)