Over the past few weeks, our bulletin reflections have focused on the “why” and the “how” of the Church. We have reflected on the missionary command of Jesus: “Go, therefore, and make disciples.” We have remembered that the Church does not exist for herself. She exists for mission. We have also reflected on the practical “how” of evangelization: how we serve, how we organize ourselves, how we use our gifts, and how we work together as one parish so that the Gospel may be proclaimed more clearly and fruitfully.

This Sunday, the Solemnity of the Most Holy Trinity, takes us even deeper. Before we ask what the Church should do, or how the parish should be organized, we must ask: who is God? Because the Church’s mission flows from the very life of God.

The Catechism teaches that the mystery of the Holy Trinity is the central mystery of Christian faith and life. We believe in one God in three divine Persons: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. The Father is God, the Son is God, and the Holy Spirit is God. Yet there are not three gods, but one God. The three Persons are distinct, but never divided. God is not loneliness. God is eternal communion. God is love.

The readings this weekend highlight this. In the first reading, the Lord reveals himself to Moses as “a merciful and gracious God, slow to anger and rich in kindness and fidelity.” God’s greatness is not raw cold power. His glory is mercy. In the Gospel, Jesus tells us, “God so loved the world that he gave his only Son.” The Father sends the Son, not to condemn the world, but to save it. In the second reading, Saint Paul blesses the Church with the grace of Jesus Christ, the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit. The readings this weekend highlight that the Church’s mission begins in the Trinity: the Father sends the Son, the Father and Son send the Spirit, and the Spirit gathers us into communion with God.

That means the goal of the Church is not simply to run programs, maintain buildings, or manage an institution. As important as these things are, they are not the deepest goal. Our mission is to bring people into communion with the Trinity, to share in God’s own life. We are not trying to build a religious business. We are being formed into the family of God.

For us as St. Michael Parish, with our six church communities, a school, many ministries, staff, councils, volunteers, and many moving parts, it can sometimes be tempting to think of the parish mainly as an organization. Of course, we do need good organization. We need clear communication, responsible leadership, careful planning, and wise stewardship. But the parish is more than its structure. It is a family gathered by the Father, redeemed by the Son, and enlivened by the Holy Spirit.

A family is not less demanding than a business. In some ways, it is more demanding. A family requires patience, sacrifice, forgiveness, shared responsibility, and love. Saint Paul tells the Corinthians, “Mend your ways, encourage one another, agree with one another, live in peace.” That is not simply good advice for avoiding conflict. It is Trinitarian advice. A parish modeled on the Trinity must learn to live in communion.

I’m also struck that throughout the liturgical year, we celebrate many feasts of the Son: Christmas, Easter, Corpus Christi, the Sacred Heart, Christ the King. We celebrate the Holy Spirit at Pentecost. But there is no feast that isolates the Father by himself. Trinity Sunday may be the closest we come, and even here the Father is known in relation to the Son and the Spirit. That is significant. The Father does not stand apart from the mission. He sends, gives, confirms, and gathers.

That also teaches us something about pastoral leadership. A pastor is not a CEO, any more than the Father is the CEO of the Trinity. The role of fatherhood, in the family and in the Church, is not control for its own sake. It is to confirm, strengthen, bless, guide, and send forth. The pastor works with the members of the parish family so that the gifts of the whole Body may serve the common mission.

So on this Trinity Sunday, let us ask the Lord to make St. Michael Parish more fully what we are called to be: not simply six communities sharing a name, but one parish family sharing divine life. May the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with us all.