"Not only that, but we even boast of our afflictions, knowing that affliction produces endurance, and endurance, proven character, and proven character, hope, and hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out into our hearts
through the Holy Spirit that has been given to us." - Romans 5:3-5
Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, these are the words that we heard in the second reading from St. Paul's letter to the Romans, and it gives me so much joy, so much happiness to be with you and your beautifully decorated church this evening, to celebrate the vigil of the Feast of the Most Holy Trinity here in the Parish of the Most Holy Trinity, in Balic-balic here in Manila, in the Archdiocese of Manila. I am deeply grateful to Father Eric Martin Adoviso, your parish priest, who invited me to come and celebrate this mass with you this evening as part of your parish fiesta. The church is beautifully prepared for the fiesta, and I was so impressed by the amazingly wonderful dancing that welcomed me when I arrived here in your parish in Balic-balic. Thank you. You should be very proud of your parish because it's really wonderful.
We celebrate the vigil of your parish feast, the Feast of the Most Holy Trinity. This is a feast that kind of, in a certain sense, is part of the afterglow. We can say the glow of Easter, which finished really with the Feast of Pentecost, has a few afterglows, little after celebrations, and one of them is today when we celebrate the Feast of the Holy Trinity - the fact that God is one God in three persons: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit; that God is this communion of love; that love which is St. Paul says, is poured into our hearts by the Holy Spirit. So we rejoice in the Holy Trinity. We look forward to next Sunday, which will be Corpus Christi, Corpus Domini, the feast, another feast of the afterglow of Easter, the Feast of the Holy Eucharist next Sunday.
Brothers and sisters, St. Paul tells us that we boast even in our afflictions. What are afflictions? Afflictions are problems, difficulties, sufferings, tribulations. And St. Paul says we boast of these because we know that suffering or affliction produces endurance and hope. And the love of God has been poured into our