Pastor's Letter 20230528 - 28 May 2023 - The Holy Spirit: Gift of the Father

Father Michael · May 28, 2023

May 28^th, 2023

Feast of Pentecost

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A Message from Father ^†Michael

Today’s Theme: “Holy Spirit: Gift of the Father”

Reflections on Today’s Scripture

(Acts 2: 1-11) Ushering in the new age of salvation and giving new meaning to human existence, the Holy Spirit reinforced the fearful disciples and made them bold in their preaching of the Gospel.

The gift of the Holy Spirit, in Messianic times, was foretold by the prophets. The sending of the Holy Spirit upon the apostles is the beginning of a new era, in which the Church was founded, and Christ’s Holy Spirit was given to “renew the face of the earth.” The Holy Spirit inspired and directed the disciples in their mission to preach the Gospel to the ends of the earth, and was a more intimate and personal “presence” for them. The disciples were made “new men,”—transformed to their very being.

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(1 Corinthians 12: 3-13) Endowing each disciple with specific and necessary talents, the Holy Spirit helped make the community of believers cohesive and charismatic. When these gifts are offered for the service of all, the result is mutually advantageous.

The analogy of ^†Paul’s “mystical body of Christ” is a unique and distinctive contribution to the character and community of the Church. In an effort to initiate members into the Church,^†Paul endeavored to temper their emotionalism and energies into a sincere and powerful, unified force for Christ. For ^†Paul, the union of the Lord with the faithful, and the faithful with one another, was possible only with the help of the Holy Spirit.

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(John 20:19-20) Filled with Jesus’ Spirit, His followers went forth on a universal mission, preaching peace and forgiveness. The fruits of the Spirit— love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control—were alive within them.

Today’s Gospel underscores the aspect of fulfillment in Jesus’ death and resurrection. His double salutation—“Peace be with you,” and His breathing on His followers—was a sign that a new era was dawning upon the human community. As promised by the Old Testament prophets Joel and Ezekiel, the new age of God’s saving intervention was associated with an outpouring of the gifts of the Spirit. This new age of salvation was realized through the mission of Jesus, Who suffered, died and rose to glory, in complete acceptance and obedience of the Father’s will.

Empowerment

^†Luke exploits the Jewish tradition that saw Pentecost as the feast of the giving of the Law on Mount Sanai (Exodus 19-20.) According to Scripture, a mighty wind turned to fire and a voice proclaimed the Law. In a further refinement, the fire split into seventy tongues of fire, corresponding to the seventy nations of the world—thus proclaiming the law, not only to Israel, but to all of humankind. Similarly, ^†Luke, has the mighty wind and tongues of fire coming upon the group of 120 disciples, hiding in the “upper room.” But for him, the universal announcement was not the law, but the Good News—a proclamation that reprieved the sentence of Babel and reunited the scattered nations.

^†John has the giving of the Spirit happening on Easter Day. However, (in spite of their date differences,) both ^†John and ^†Luke said the same thing: the risen Lord Jesus gave the gift of the Spirit to the new Church, and inaugurated its mission.

^†Luke writes that it was about nine O’clock in the morning of Pentecost, (50 days after Passover, in the Jewish calendar,) when suddenly, a sound like a mighty wind filled the Cenacle, (the “gathering” of the disciples.) They saw “tongues of fire” descend on them, and felt themselves filled with wondrous power and confidence. We are told they also were able to speak in diverse languages, beyond any ability any of them had possessed before.

The key word, here, is “power.” Power was exactly what they needed. Prior to the coming of the Spirit, the disciples had been crippled with fear and inadequacy. A great task had been entrusted to them by our Blessed Lord, but they had neither the strength nor the will to begin it. After all, they had witnessed what horror befell Jesus. But after the coming of the Holy Spirit, they were “empowered.” They left their hiding place, and set out to complete their unceasing task—courageously preaching the Gospel to all everyone on earth, welcoming them into the Mystical Body of Christ.

Pius XII wrote: “…[Jesus] was made known by His Eternal Father through the Holy Spirit descending and remaining on Him; likewise, as the apostles were about to enter upon their office of preaching, Christ, Our Lord, sent the Holy Spirit down from heaven, to touch them with tongues of fire and point out, as by the finger of God, the supernatural mission and supernatural office of the Church.

“If the Savior, by His death, became, in the full and compete sense of the word, ‘Head of the Church,’ it was likewise through His Blood that the Church was endowed with the full communication of the Holy Spirit, through which, from the time when the Son of Man was lifted up and glorified on the gibbet by His sufferings, She is divinely illumined” (Mystici Corporis, 1943.)

For then, as ^†Augustine notes: “With the rending of the veil of the Temple, the dew of the Paraclete’s gifts fell copiously and abundantly on the whole earth—that is, on the Catholic Church—which is confined by no boundaries of race or territory” (Confessions, ca. 400 a.d.)

Pentecost is among the truly great feasts of the year. We mark it by honoring the Third Person of the Blessed Trinity, and thanking Him for His grace—which remits sins; makes effective the Sacraments; and bestows supernatural life upon all the humble children of the human race, who answer the promptings of the Holy Spirit in their hearts.

We have witnessed individuals or groups of people, who, having felt powerless to change their situations, suddenly became able to do so when they felt “enabled.” We know what a good motivator can do for sports teams—when players, who had been consumed by self-doubt, begin to believe in themselves, going on to play far beyond their norm.

When people are empowered, they become able and willing to take charge of their situation. They no longer wait for someone else to do it for them. They accept that they, and they alone, have to do something about it.

For most people, this occurs over time, with a “growth process.” The development may be slow and painful for some (we don’t easily let go of old habits and old attitudes.) People begin to change when they are given love, and “come out of their shells,” releasing hidden energy from within. But when we are willing to change what needs to change, then we can find energy and hidden strength working within our souls, through the power of the Holy Spirit. The power that changed the apostles is also available to us.

May God Richly Bless You!