Pentecost 2015
Dear Parishioners,
Today the Church celebrates the Feast of Pentecost. The disciples were all gathered together in the upper room. They gathered out of their need to be together. They gathered more in mourning than in celebration. They were still suffering from the loss of their beloved leader. And then Pentecost happened! They had an amazing spiritual awakening. First there was a movement, then a sound, then a visible sign of the presence of the Holy Spirit among them. The experience so filled them with the presence of God, that they began to speak in other languages. They did not have to grope for words to express themselves. The words simply flowed out of them. It was not babble; it was clear and effective communication. The Spirit proclaimed a marvelous, inclusive vision without barriers of language, race, nationality, sex, age or class. People not only heard, but they understood what God was speaking to the Church.
If we’re not careful, we can so easily dismiss the significance of Pentecost. It is the birthday of the Church. It celebrates not just the coming of the Holy Spirit that has always been God’s gift to the Church, but also a fresh outpouring of the Spirit set loose in the world. For the early Christians it became a time of festivity and joy, reminding them that the promise of the Resurrected Christ had been fulfilled in them.
Pentecost was not a one-time event. The Holy Spirit is poured out on the Church every day. That is where our Christian energy and purpose comes from. Whatever speaks to us of the genuine things of Jesus Christ is the Holy Spirit at work in us. How does it come to us? Perhaps it comes as a realization that God is speaking to us through another person. Perhaps it is as we witness to the power of the Holy Spirit at work in our life. It may be a moment of realization at the power of God working a miracle of healing in our life as we let go of the hurts of the past and offer forgiveness to someone. Maybe it happens for us when we accept God’s power to forgive, and let it work in our life. It may be in the sharing of the peace, or a time when we were able to go beyond our limitations in speaking to others about our faith. Perhaps it is a time when we felt overwhelmed by life, and then found the power to do something that we felt was totally beyond our capabilities. It may be finding that life is taking us in new directions when we thought all the doors had been slammed in our face. Can we look back on those moments of grace scattered throughout our lives and see the Spirit of God working in and through us?
The Church needs that kind of renewable energy. Church institutions can be brought back to life again as their members who once confessed only with their mouths begin confessing with their hearts. It can change as we return to the covenant we made with God at our baptism. God breathes on us restoring us to life and truth, to joy and purposefulness, as the Spirit takes control of our very being. It is about reconciliation, assurance, peace, joy, and purpose. It is a resurrection experience that gives us that sense of new birth. We need to pray for the Spirit of God to be upon the Church and its people so that we can stand on our feet and take responsibility.
Pentecost is about life coming together for the common good. Pentecost happens when people of faith share their faith with one another. It happens when we find ourselves moved to say to one another, “I believe.” It happens when we grow up and begin to say “yes” to God instead of saying “no.” Then love blossoms. We become on fire.
May God continue to breathe the fire of the Holy Spirit on us, and may we continue to embrace the Spirit within us. Amen.
Fr. Leonard+