DENVER, CO (Catholic Online) -- Jesus Christ revealed to humankind what man could never know by the power of the human intellect alone: the mysterious and wondrous secret of the inner life of God: the Most Holy Trinity. Through the revelation of the Holy Trinity a new dimension of understanding is presented to man, which throws a divine and revealing light upon the reality of who the human person is, the purpose of his existence, and the life to which he is called. The Catechism of the Catholic Church(CCC)  teaches: 

"The mystery of the Most Holy Trinity is the central mystery of Christian faith and life. It is the mystery of God in himself. It is therefore the source of all the other mysteries of faith, the light that enlightens them. It is the most fundamental and essential teaching in the hierarchy of the truths of faith" (CCC No. 234).

Over the past twenty-centuries, under the guidance of the Holy Spirit, the Catholic Church has carefully reflected on the mystery of the Most Holy Trinity. From this, our understanding of the relationship between the Holy Trinity and the human person has unfolded by the light of the Holy Spirit working through the Church. This relationship, a bond of life-giving love, is of such depth and magnitude as to be indescribable. It is our Triune God whose life-giving power and love sustains us from moment to moment. It is the Holy Trinity who allows us each breath, provides us with the energy of life, and graces us with that seed of faith deep within our hearts. Yet Christ's revelation of the inner life of God illumines not only our dependence on God, but who we are as persons, how we should relate to others, and how society should function and exist in relation to God. Therefore the Most Holy Trinity is the Light that enlightens every aspect of the human person.

The Compendium of The Social Doctrine of The Church (CSDC) states: "The revelation in Christ of the mystery of God as Trinitarian love is at the same time the revelation of the vocation of the human person to love. This revelation sheds light on every aspect of the personal dignity and freedom of men and women, and on the depths of their social nature" (CSDC, No. 34).

Errors of Our Age

Pope John Paul II stated in his apostolic letter Mulieris Dignitatem (On the Dignity and Vocation of Women) that "Man - whether man or woman - is the only being among the creatures of the visible world that God the Creator has willed for its own sake; that creature is thus a person. Being a person means striving towards self-realization, which can only be achieved through a sincere gift of self. The model for this interpretation of the person is God himself as Trinity, as a communion of Persons."

Since the model for interpreting ourselves "is God as Trinity, as a communion of Persons," we can easily extend this principle to include marriage and family. Thus we can understand why the errors of our age concerning the meaning and purpose of marriage are so completely at odds with  what the reality of a true and correct interpretation is. For instance, since self-realization "can only be achieved through a sincere gift of self," what occurs through an insincere gift of self, such as in unmarried couples living together?

Secularist "wisdom" posits that it is "prudent" to first "try out" one's intended spouse before committing to marriage, thus it is assumed that couples should live together for a time. There is a long list of faulty "reasons" proponents of such a situation cite, which range from "checking compatibility" to "insuring there won't be any surprises" when and if a couple should decide to get married in the future. Yet in such an incomplete relationship there is no true and sincere gift of self; on the contrary, it is a forgery of a true gift, and often a selfish position in which one person uses another for his or her own advantage. Unmarried couples who live together yet engage in relations reserved only for marriage are not modeling their relationship on the inseparable unity of the Most Holy Trinity. Therefore such circumstances are set against the ultimate reality which Christ so lovingly revealed about his inner life, which is a complete and total gift of self.

John Paul II's apostolic exhortation Familiaris Consortio (On the Role of the Christian Family in the Modern World) reminds the faithful that "marriage and family constitute one of the most precious of human values." For this reason, the errors of moral relativism so prevalent in our age which labor against the family structure ...