Homily for Pentecost Sunday, May 28, 2023. Reading: Acts 2:1-11. Theme: Pentecost: It’s Never Too Late!
The first Pentecost Sunday was such a significant turning point in the story of Jesus and His disciples. It brought the Good News of Christianity out of the confines of Jerusalem and began its expansion throughout the known world. This is why it is celebrated as the birthday of the Catholic Church. Up to that day the Church existed of course, but in a kind of hidden way, very much like a child growing quietly in the womb. But with the Outpouring of the Holy Spirit as we just heard about in the first reading from the Book of Acts, this Church-in-the-womb burst forth into the world kicking and screaming like a newborn baby! The apostles and disciples of the Lord made a lot of noise in Jerusalem on that first Christian Pentecost, boldly proclaiming the truth about the Risen Christ and baptizing 3,000 people!
But this Pentecost experience was never intended to remain just a one-day event. It has been spiritually repeated all over the world in every generation through the Sacrament of Confirmation. And during the first few centuries of Christianity, the Spirit’s presence was made known among the newly confirmed by tangible outward signs similar to Pentecost. But once Christianity became widely known and accepted much of these visible manifestations of the Spirit seemed to stop. How come? What happened? Well, quite often the Faith was forced upon nations by their rulers. At other times people embraced Catholicism due to cultural and family expectations. In other words, the essential elements of a personal faith in Christ and a heartfelt desire to embrace the Faith were missing. And as we all know, the Sacraments are not magic. Their effectiveness in our lives depends upon how much we have opened our hearts to the action of God’s grace.
And so I would venture to guess that for many of us there was no post-Confirmation Pentecost experience like those early Christians. If you were like me when I was confirmed, there was no real interest in being set on fire for Jesus nor enthusiasm in wanting to give witness to Him. Instead, the Fire of the Holy Spirit placed within me by that Sacrament was more like a dim pilot light in the back burner of my life. And quite honestly, there were many years in which I just blew the flame out completely. But it wasn't because of any ineffectiveness on the part of the Holy Spirit. No, it was because of my own lack of faith and my own inattention as to Who I was really receiving. However, the good news is that with God it’s never too late to do the right thing. It's still very possible for us to spiritually revisit our Confirmation and reignite the spark of the Spirit. Because no matter how long it’s been that tiny flame of grace is still there and just needs something to stoke it into a blazing fire!
And that is precisely the special mission or job of the Holy Spirit: to reignite the faith that is within us and make our love for God and neighbor both grow and glow. How this might happen differs for each one of us but in one way or another the Spirit Himself will bring it about if we have hearts open to His action. Quite often this comes about when we experience some serious life-event that, be it amazing or devastating, grabs our attention and makes us realize how much we need real faith in our lives. Or we might have a self-revelation that is so honest that we ask God to remove all the spiritual trash that we have accumulated within ourselves over the years. Some call this personal spiritual awakening being “baptized with the Holy Spirit”, others call it being “born again”, and still others name it a “conversion experience”. But whatever we want to call it, the common factor is that the Pentecost fire within us has been relit and the Sacrament has been activated!
But where do we go from there? How do we grow in our relationship with the Holy Spirit, which admittedly seems more tricky than it is with the other two Persons of the Blessed Trinity? I mean, it’s rather easy for us to relate to God the Father because we all know what a father is, or at least is supposed to be. And when it comes to Jesus it’s even easier because he became human and so we can relate to Him very well in that regard. But quite often we come up blank when it comes to the Holy Spirit and often mistakenly think of Him much like the Force in Star Wars. But He is not some sort of mystical energy. He’s a Divine Person who loves us and wants to be in a relationship with us.
The Bible tells us that the Spirit makes Himself known through symbols that describe how He acts in our lives. For example, He came down upon Jesus at his baptism in the form of a Dove as a sign of gentleness and peace. Christ describes Him as Living Water that flows out from within us and as the Breath of God that gives life through the forgiveness of sins. He is our Paraclete who stands beside us in times of difficulty and the Spirit of Truth who enables us to recognize and reject the lies that our culture often embraces. He comes as a Mighty Wind which speaks of invisible power and as Fiery Flames that purify and energize. His miracle of Tongues shows us that He is a unifier of people no matter who they are or where they come from.
So, with all this in mind, how might the Spirit be manifested in our own lives today? Well, it seems to me that the Dove of peace comes to rest upon us whenever we strive to live in respect and unity with others. The Fire of the Spirit burns within us when we become enthusiastic and committed to doing what is right and just in God’s sight. The powerful Wind of the Spirit pushes us out of our comfort zones so that we can think of others and be of service to them. His Living Water refreshes us spiritually through prayer and meditation and we pass on the Life-giving Breath of the Spirit by forgiving those who have hurt us. Finally, I think that we can participate in His gift of Tongues whenever we use our speech to say the good things that people need to hear, things that will really help them.
These are just some examples of what I think it can mean to live life in the Spirit. But if we cultivate and nurture a personal relationship with and an intentional devotion to the Holy Spirit, He will show each one of us how we can best tap into His Presence and Power in our own particular needs and situations. And if we practice this devotion on a regular basis then Pentecost can become an ever-present reality in our daily lives. It will no longer remain for us just a story in the Bible or be frozen in history as a one-time event that happened a very long time ago in the city of Jerusalem.
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