joy of nine9

As Christians, the single most important thing that we know about God is that God is Father, Son, and Holy Spirit—the Trinity.

Our contemporary understanding of a mystery is very different than the biblical understanding of mystery. Today, we think of a mystery as something to solve. In the Bible, a mystery is not something to be solved, but something to enter into. We may not fully understand a mystery, but we can know a mystery.

.

Questions for Reflection and Discussion on  www.CatholicMom.com/LawnChairCatechism.

.

1. How would you describe the concept of the Trinity to a non- Christian? To a Christian child?

The Trinity defined simply:

1. Well of course the most traditional  and popular explanation of the Trinity is –

St. Patrick’s description of the clover leaf with three separate sections yet part of the same leaf.

.

2. I like this analogy , which I read about decades ago and never forgot

The Father is the light  bulb on the ceiling; the source of all light

the Holy Spirit is the wiring which connects the Almighty with us on earth and

Jesus is the light switch; the way we activate our connection to God.

3. Someone left a comment on my blog a year or so ago and this is my favorite analogy of the Trinity.

Picture a glass table with a three-legged stool sitting on top.

Taking in the scene we can see the entire stool and understand that it is one piece of furniture with three legs.

However what if a young child was blindfolded and then guided to sit under the table. This child has never seen a stool.

When asked what he can see when the blind fold is removed and without moving his head or his eyes, he would describe three flat, separate circles.

Now try explaining to him that a three-dimensional object rested on his ceiling.

We are that toddler who cannot grasp what we cannot see with our naked eyes.