Images of God: A Starter Pack of 24
by Fr. Rich Andre, C.S.P.
June 1, 2026

Paulist Fr. Rich Andre preached this homily for Trinity Sunday on May 31, 2026 at Old St. Mary’s Catholic Church in Chicago, IL. The homily is based on the day’s readings: Exodus 32:4b-6, 8-9; Daniel 3:52-56; 2 Corinthians 13:11-13; and John 3:16-18.

I don’t know about you, but over the years, I’ve heard some lousy homilies on Trinity Sunday. They’re all variations on this idea: the preacher says that the Holy Trinity is impossible to comprehend, and then he tries to explain it for 10 minutes.

We’re going to strike out in a different direction today: I’ll be inviting us to reflect on how we each experience God as Father, as Son, and as Holy Spirit. And to get us started, I’ll offer four images of God that many people have, even though they aren’t greatest for establishing a deep, personal, life-long relationship with God. The first image is the Norse God, Thor; he’s up in the clouds, watching us, waiting for us to mess up so he can zap us with a lightning bolt. The second is old man with a flowing white beard, radiating light, who knows the answer to everything. Our third image is the guy at the back of this photo: the colonial judge. He impartial and fair, but rather disinterested in your welfare. And finally, a fourth image of God that’s common to Gen-Xers like me who grew up in a time when CCD classes focused on making collages rather than learning the Creed: Poppin’ Fresh, the Pillsbury Doughboy. If you push him, he still loves you, but at the end of the day, he’s isn’t very substantial. 

Our readings today abound with the words “LORD” and “God.” As we enter into this Mass, let us be present to the LORD God of all grace and all mercy.

Lord Jesus, you are the one sent by the Father to teach us your message of love. Lord, have mercy.

Lord Jesus, you feed us with your Body and Blood. Christ, have mercy.

Lord Jesus, you have sent us your Spirit to guide us until the end of the age. Lord, have mercy.

May almighty God have mercy on us, forgive us our sins, and lead us into everlasting life. Amen.

I’m about to ask you to do one of those things that makes people really uncomfortable at church. I’m going to ask you to move so that you’re sitting in pairs. I’m going to guide us through a discussion, so please find someone to sit and talk with. 

Here’s how it’s going to work. In rapid-fire succession, I’m going to present five images of God as Father and Creator from the Bible, the saints, and contemporary theology. Then, each pair of people will have 90 seconds to discuss both your image of God as Father and Creator, and which of the images I presented is most challenging to you. You’ll each have 45 seconds, so talk fast! I’ll ring this prayer bell to indicate when it’s time to switch. Then, we’ll repeat the same pattern with each of the other aspects of God that I like to call “the four dimensions of the Trinity.”

Ready? Here goes. Five images of God as Father and Creator:

  1. Jesus describes God as a merchant who sells everything to purchase a pearl of great price.
  2. God appears to Moses as a bush that burns but is not consumed by the fire.
  3. Sr. Doris Klein has created a sculpture of God as an old woman tenderly holding Adam in the moment of creation. It’s kind of similar to our stained glass here at Old St. Mary’s, showing a woman at the foot of the Tree of Life.
  4. In the novel and the movie The Shack, William Young depicts God as Elousia, a large, African-American cook who says that she is “especially fond” of any person you mention to her.
  5. Fr. Dick Sparks reports that if you ask people who could take God’s place if he needed a day off, most people will respond their grandma. You know that she loves you unconditionally, but she’ll enforce her rules.

OK, talk with your neighbor. What’s your image of God as Father/Creator? Which of the images I mentioned is most challenging to you?

Ready for another round? Here goes. Five images of God as Son and Redeemer:

  1. Jesus is the Good Shepherd who cares for the lost sheep.
  2. In several books of the Old Testament, our Jewish ancestors present a character named “Lady Wisdom.” She says that she was present at the creation, that she walked with the Israelites through the Red Sea. We believe that that Lady Wisdom is also Christ, the totality of the second person of God.
  3. I often think of Jesus as my brother. Sometimes in prayer, I will ask him to walk beside me as I talk with him.
  4. The Gospel of John calls Christ the LOGOS, the Word of God. In the beginning was the Word, and in Jesus, the Word became flesh.
  5. St. Irenaeus says that God the Father has a plan for how all the universe will come together in peace and harmony at the end of time. And he says that the name of that plan is “Christ.”

OK, talk with your neighbor. What’s your image of God as Son/Redeemer? Which of the images I mentioned is most challenging to you?

Third round. Five images of God as Holy Spirit and Sanctifier:

  1. A traditional depiction of the Holy Spirit is as a dove, messenger of peace.
  2. I sometimes think of the Holy Spirit as my internal compass. If I quiet myself in prayer, the Holy Spirit directs me which way to go.
  3. St. Paul says that the Holy Spirit intercedes for us when we can’t find the words. I often think of the Holy Spirit as when we trust our “gut” or intuition.
  4. Our Eastern Christian brothers and sisters talk about the Holy Spirit as the one who “divinizes” us humans so that we are ready for heaven.
  5. The Holy Spirit isn’t just a guide to us as individuals. The Holy Spirit guides all of us within the Body of Christ, together.

OK, talk with your neighbor. What’s your image of God as Holy Spirit / Sanctifier? Which of the images I mentioned is most challenging to you?

Finally, the Christian concept of God as Holy Trinity has embedded in itself the idea of community of love, three persons in relationship with one another. Here are five ways to think about that:

  1. As the First Letter of John succinctly says: “God is love.”
  2. In modern times, people have suggested that God is like an incandescent light bulb. The Father is the power, the Son is the light, and the Holy Spirit is the heat.
  3. At the Baptism of the Lord, we see the Trinity together: as Jesus comes up out of the water, the Holy Spirit descends and the Father’s voice is heard.
  4. At the creation, the Father created the world through the Word (Christ), as the Spirit blew upon the waters.
  5. St. Andrei Rublev painted a famous icon of the three angels visiting Abraham, but it is intended to also be interpreted as the Trinity – three equal persons, looking towards one another.

OK, last chance to talk with your neighbor. What’s your image of God as community? Which of the images I mentioned is most challenging to you?

Thanks for being game to participating in a homily that was pretty far outside of the box! Here are some questions I’d like to leave you with as we sit in silence before we recite the Creed:

  • What surprised you about this homily/exercise/conversation?
  • Some things to try this coming week:
      • Pray to a different person of God.
      • If you have had a difficult relationship with your parents, give the Father permission to be something or someone more than your parents were to you.
      • Pray to God as the opposite gender from what you usually envision God.