The Red Zinger and the Smoke of Mystery: Entering the Trinity

Holiness for the Working Day

Holy Trinity Sunday 2025

What do a baffling university quote, swirling incense, and the mystery of the Trinity have in common? More than you think.

In this episode, we begin with Fr. Robert McGuire’s infamous “Red Zinger”—a cryptic saying meant to puzzle and provoke—and follow its thread into the deepest mystery of the Christian faith: the Trinity. Drawing from ancient philosophy, modern skepticism, and a splash of incense smoke, we reflect on why mystery isn’t something to solve, but something to enter.

God is one, and God is three—and that paradox isn’t a bug, it’s the feature. The Christian claim isn’t merely that God loves, but that God is love. In the Trinity, we discover not just a doctrine, but an invitation: to imitate the divine rhythm of love, self-gift, and communion.

We also confront our modern allergy to mystery. What can’t be measured, predicted, or tested is often rejected. Yet the deepest truths—love, meaning, beauty, even God—can’t be placed under a microscope. They must be lived. They must be received.

So pour a cup of coffee, breathe in the mystery, and let’s step into the rhythm of reality—one that can’t be seen with the eyes, but is revealed in the smoke, the symbols, and the stillness.