John 20:19-23
Jesus said: "Receive the Holy Spirit."
In the first reading, the book of Acts tells the story of Pentecost. In the gospel of John, there is no Pentecost story, but there is reference to the Holy Spirit given by the Risen Christ, when He "breathed" the Spirit on the disciples and said: "Receive the Holy Spirit". Common to both the Pentecost story in Acts, and the gospel passage in John, is the image of life-giving air, in the form of wind or breath. Both these images, especially "Breath of God", is ascribed to the person of the Holy Spirit. Integrating both the image of wind and breath, from the gospel of John and the passage in Acts of the Apostles, gives us a sense of "life in motion" - one with a powerful presence in the form of a "strong, driving wind", and the other with a gentle presence in the form of the breath of the Risen Jesus".
The presence of God is not only felt in the reading of the Scriptures, but in the other prayers of the Sunday Eucharist. The Eucharistic celebration for the Solemnity of Pentecost also contains the Sequence on the Holy Spirit. It is a prayer recited, chanted, or sang in prose or poetic text - depending on local cultural traditions. This Sequence tells us who the Holy Spirit is for us through the titles given to Him: "Father of the poor", "Giver of God's gifts", "Light of men's hearts", and "Solace in the midst of woe". Not only does the Sequence tell us who the Spirit is but also tells us what He can do for us who place our faith and trust in Him. He can "heal wounds", "renew strength", "wash the stains of guilt", "bend the stubborn heart and will", and "guide steps that go astray".
The Solemnity of Pentecost every year reminds us of the birth of the Church. The Holy Spirit dwells in the Church as a whole, and individually through His members - all given different gifts and charisms to make the gospel known throughout the world. This gospel is made effective by real human or supernatural experiences of healing, strength, forgiveness of sins, guidance and direction. Beginning from the apostles, until all baptized of our present generation, the Holy Spirit continues the mission of Jesus. The ordained ministers, religious of various orders or congregations, and the lay faithful make Jesus come alive today in the Word and in the Sacraments. It is by faith, hope and love that we know that the Holy Spirit will continue to make effective the saving ministry of Christ until the end of time.
Sunday, May 27, 2012
Sunday, May 20, 2012
Sunday, May 13, 2012
"It was Christ who chose you to go forth."
John 15:9-17
"It was Christ who chose you to go forth."
The vine-branches imagery points to our relationship with Jesus. And one that will bear fruit only in Him. That relationship leads us to charity - one that thinks of the other as oneself. This is the charity that bears good fruit by obedience to God's commandments, listening to His counsel and doing good works from the Holy Spirit's inspirations. "Love one another as I have loved you" is that inspiration that speaks to us in God's Word and the celebration of the Eucharist. As we meditate on what Christ did in His public ministry, we are also to do as we live out the Eucharist in our lives. The Eucharist sends us forth in the name of Christ to bring the spirit of charity in the very secular spheres of life and work.
The concept of love in Christianity is different from how the secular world understands it. In one of his sermons, St. Augustine of Hippo says that since we are brought up in this secular notion of love, we do not usually love others in the way God wills of us. To love the right way, we are called to conquer first the spiritual illnesses (bad habits and vices) within us: pride, despair, and earthly attachments. Spiritual health thus means to refocus and re-center our lives on God and our eternal destiny, so that this purified love may flow also to others. It means that we attend to our our daily concerns in the right way that we may not forget the one thing necessary (cf. Donald Burt's "Augustine's Search for God").
To balance our lives in a fast-paced world filled with the speed of technology is not easy, but with God's help in a context of family, co-workers and friends, we can work at it and succeed.. We only need the courage to begin each day to be faithful, and soon we can pass through from pride to humility, from despair to hope, and from earthly attachments to spiritual concerns. It is possible; prayer and moments of silence helps us be open to the Holy Spirit. Openness to God will help us take stock of where we are and where we are headed: lives lived well for the building of God's kingdom in our midst.
"It was Christ who chose you to go forth."
The vine-branches imagery points to our relationship with Jesus. And one that will bear fruit only in Him. That relationship leads us to charity - one that thinks of the other as oneself. This is the charity that bears good fruit by obedience to God's commandments, listening to His counsel and doing good works from the Holy Spirit's inspirations. "Love one another as I have loved you" is that inspiration that speaks to us in God's Word and the celebration of the Eucharist. As we meditate on what Christ did in His public ministry, we are also to do as we live out the Eucharist in our lives. The Eucharist sends us forth in the name of Christ to bring the spirit of charity in the very secular spheres of life and work.
The concept of love in Christianity is different from how the secular world understands it. In one of his sermons, St. Augustine of Hippo says that since we are brought up in this secular notion of love, we do not usually love others in the way God wills of us. To love the right way, we are called to conquer first the spiritual illnesses (bad habits and vices) within us: pride, despair, and earthly attachments. Spiritual health thus means to refocus and re-center our lives on God and our eternal destiny, so that this purified love may flow also to others. It means that we attend to our our daily concerns in the right way that we may not forget the one thing necessary (cf. Donald Burt's "Augustine's Search for God").
To balance our lives in a fast-paced world filled with the speed of technology is not easy, but with God's help in a context of family, co-workers and friends, we can work at it and succeed.. We only need the courage to begin each day to be faithful, and soon we can pass through from pride to humility, from despair to hope, and from earthly attachments to spiritual concerns. It is possible; prayer and moments of silence helps us be open to the Holy Spirit. Openness to God will help us take stock of where we are and where we are headed: lives lived well for the building of God's kingdom in our midst.
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