Pentecost Sunday, June 5, 2022
(Acts
2:1-11; Romans 8:8-17; John 14:15-16.23b-26)
A novel
tries to re-imagine the Holy Trinity. The three persons have different
characteristics. The Son is a Jewish carpenter. There is nothing new here. The
Father is an incredible invention, not worth saying much about Him here. The
most curious of the three is the Holy Spirit. He is described as a young girl
who moves with the impetuosity of a butterfly. She's here one second and there
the next. Yes, it can be said that the Holy Spirit is everywhere at the same
time. Now at Pentecost, the feast of the Holy Spirit, it behooves us to try to
describe more of the Spirit. As the basis of our study we can use the readings
from yesterday, the vigil, and today.
It can be
said with confidence that the Holy Spirit is a gift. In the vigil’s gospel this
gift is described as water that refreshes a thirsting people. It is as if we
were dried up plants on which water is poured. Soon we straighten up to
continue with our daily tasks. A Catholic poet had the Holy Spirit as his muse.
As he felt unable to express his feelings, he prayed to the Spirit. He said:
"O Lord of life, send my roots rain."
The Holy
Spirit is also the gift that brings the hope of eternal life. Yesterday's
second reading from the Letter to the Romans says: "...we
ourselves, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, we also groan
within ourselves as we wait for adoption, the redemption of our bodies." It is the agonized cry of the families who have lost their children in the
massacre in Texas. They pray with all their hearts that they see their children
again in eternal life.
The first
reading yesterday also contains a glimpse of the Holy Spirit. The prophet Joel
says that the Lord will pour out his spirit on everyone. Then the “old men will
dream dreams” and the “young men will see visions”. What will the old dream of?
and what will the young see? If they have experienced the trauma of war like
the Ukrainian people, surely it will be peace and friendship between nations
and people.
The first
reading today describes the Spirit as tongues of fire resting on the disciples.
The tongues are a dynamism to proclaim God's love to the world. A week ago, one
of the most respected journalists in the country did exactly this. She ended
her column with a testimony of faith. She said: "I have been alive for some years and this is the only true
thing, that there is a God and he is good and you are here to know him, love
him and show your feeling through your work and how you live."
The second
reading from First Corinthians describes how the Spirit brings us together into
one body. We are united despite different cultures and languages. This truth
has been shown in the issue of abortion. Catholics have joined with the pope
and bishops against abortion. Thanks to the Catholic Church the pro-life
movement has not diminished despite strong opposition.
Finally,
the Holy Spirit brings help in our trials. Our translation says an “Advocate,” in
the sense of a lawyer. The Spirit stands
with us in temptations. Whether we struggle with pornography, or it is laziness
that bothers us, the Spirit comes to our aid. It reminds us of the lessons of
our teachers and of the fact that it is God that we offend by sin.
A good
image for the Holy Spirit is a spring. In different places there are springs
sprouting endless streams of pure water. The water refreshes, helps, and gratifies so
that children playing in it shout for joy. Thus it is with the gift of the Holy
Spirit. It refreshes, helps, and gratifies us so that we want to sing praises
to God.
