Sunday, May 11, 2008

Pentecost Sunday, cycle A

JOHN 20:19-23
I REMEMBER MY TWIN GRANDSON'S FOURTH BIRTHDAY. THERE WERE TONGUES OF FLAME ON THE BIRTHDAY CAKE AND A MIGHTY WIND WHEN THEY BLEW THE CANDLES OUT. AND TODAY IS THE BIRTHDAY OF THE CHURCH. OF COURSE WE MIGHT HAVE DECIDED THAT THE BIRTHDAY WAS WHEN JESUS WAS BORN, OR PERHAPS ON HOLY THURSDAY WHEN HE ORDAINED THE FIRST PRIESTS AND CELEBRATED THE FIRST EUCHARIST, OR MAYBE GOOD FRIDAY, BECAUSE THE CHURCH WAS IN A SENSE, BORN FROM HIS SIDE IN THE WATER AND THE BLOOD THAT SPILLED FORTH WHEN HE WAS PIERCED WITH A SPEAR. OR MAYBE EASTER SUNDAY, WHEN HE ROSE FROM THE DEAD. THOSE ARE ALL LOGICAL CHOICES, BUT REALLY, WE CELEBRATE THE BEGINNING OF THE CHURCH ON PENTECOST.
IN THE GOSPEL TODAY, JESUS BLOWS HIS BREATH ON THE APOSTLES AND TELLS THEM TO RECEIVE THE HOLY SPIRIT. IF YOU LOOK IN YOUR BIBLE, YOU WOULD SEE THAT THIS EVENT TAKES PLACE WHEN JESUS FIRST APPEARS TO HIS APOSTLES, NAMELY, EASTER SUNDAY. BUT WHAT DO THE APOSTLES DO WHEN THEY HAVE RECEIVED THE HOLY SPIRIT? WELL, WE FIND THEM HUDDLED IN THE UPPER ROOM EIGHT DAYS LATER, STILL FRIGHTENED. WE FIND THEM GOING BACK TO GALILEE AND SOME OF THEM TAKING UP THEIR OLD TRADE. AND EVEN THOUGH JESUS MOVES AMONG THEM AND APPEARS TO ABOUT 500 PEOPLE AFTER HE DIES, EVEN AFTER THE ASCENSION, THE BOOK OF ACTS TELLS US THAT THERE ARE ABOUT 120 FOLLOWERS WHO ARE GATHERED THERE, NOT A VERY PROMISING BEGINNING. AND THEN THE HOLY SPIRIT COMES UPON THEM AGAIN, THIS TIME WITH WIND AND TONGUES OF FIRE, AND SOMETHING AMAZING HAPPENS; THEY BEGIN TO PREACH IN DIFFERENT LANGUAGES, AND ACCORDING TO THE ACTS OF THE APOSTLES, 3000 WERE ADDED TO THEIR NUMBER THAT DAY. AND THE BOOK OF ACTS DESCRIBES MIRACLES – PETER RAISING A DEAD WOMAN, CURING A LAME MAN, PAUL WORKING MIRACLES AS WELL, AND MIRACLES ARE WORKED ON THEM AS WELL. THEY ARE BROKEN OUT OF PRISON THROUGH SUPERNATURAL MEANS, PHILIP IS TRANSPORTED BY AN ANGEL, PAUL IS GUIDED BY THE HOLY SPIRIT ON HIS JOURNEYS – THIS TIME THE COMING OF THE SPIRIT CHANGED THINGS IN A BIG WAY.
SO WE MIGHT ASK, DOES THE SPIRIT COME MORE THAN ONCE? AND IF HE DOES, WHY WAS THE SECOND TIME FOLLOWED BY ALL THE POWER, ALL THE MIRACLES, ALL THE GROWTH, AND THE FIRST, BY HARDLY ANYTHING AT ALL? AND WHAT DOES THIS MEAN TO US, HERE AND NOW?
OUR FAITH TELLS US THAT WE ALL RECEIVE THE SPIRIT – WE RECEIVE HIM AT BAPTISM, WE RECEIVE HIM THROUGH ALL THE SACRAMENTS, BUT ESPECIALLY IN THE SACRAMENT OF CONFIRMATION. HIS CONCERN IN THIS COMING IS THAT WE KEEP OUR EYES FOCUSED ON JESUS, OUR EXAMPLE, OUR TEACHER, THE HEAD OF OUR BODY. AND HE DOES THIS BECAUSE HE WANTS TO MAKE US ONE, TO GATHER US TOGETHER, AND OFFER US TO THE FATHER. HE DWELLS IN US, WE ARE HIS TEMPLE, AND ALTHOUGH WE ALL RECEIVE THAT SAME SPIRIT, HE GIVES EACH OF US WHAT WE NEED IN THE WAY OF GUIDANCE AND PROTECTION FROM WHAT MIGHT TURN US AWAY FROM OUR DESTINY.
BUT THE SPIRIT COMES TO US ANOTHER WAY SOMETIMES. HE TAKES POSSESSION OF US, SO THAT THE GIFTS WE HAVE BEEN GIVEN WILL BE USED FOR THE GOOD OF THE CHURCH, FOR THE GOOD OF OUR FELLOW MAN. AND THIS MAY BE SPECTACULAR OR VERY PEDESTRIAN OR SOMEWHERE IN BETWEEN. THE BOOK OF ACTS REPORTS THE SPIRIT-LED ACTIVITIES OF THE EARLY CHURCH, BUT THERE WERE ABOUT 120 WHO RECEIVED THE SPIRIT THAT DAY, INCLUDING MARY, THE MOTHER OF JESUS. WE DON'T HEAR ABOUT HER PREACHING, OR WORKING MIRACLES, AND IT MAY BE THAT HER CONTRIBUTION TO THE EARLY CHURCH WAS TO MAKE SURE THE APOSTLE JOHN GOT HIS LAUNDRY DONE AND DINNER ON THE TABLE; PERHAPS HER CONTRIBUTION WAS TO SIT WITH LUKE AND RECALL THE EVENTS SURROUNDING JESUS' BIRTH. AND WE DON'T NEED TO EVEN BE CONSCIOUS THAT THE SPIRIT IS WORKING IN US FOR THE GOOD OF THE CHURCH. WHEN THE KNIGHTS OF COLUMBUS GIVE UP THEIR TIME TO PROVIDE A MOTHER'S DAY BREAKFAST, THE HOLY SPIRIT IS MOVING THEM. WHEN OUR SAINT MARY'S GUILD BRINGS SO MANY GIFTS TO THE PARISH, THE HOLY SPIRIT IS POSSESSING THEM. VOLUNTEERS FOR THE SOUP KITCHEN, FAITH FORMATION, EUCHARISTIC MINISTERS, LECTORS, USHERS, THE CHOIR, THE HOLY SPIRIT IS THERE BUILDING UP THE CHURCH – AND THAT'S JUST THE TIP OF THE ICEBERG.
SAINT PAUL TELLS US THAT THE SPIRIT GIVES EACH ONE OF US GIFTS FOR BUILDING UP THE CHURCH.
SO THE SPIRIT WAS CONFERRED UPON THE APOSTLES BY JESUS, TO BE THEIR ADVOCATE AND GUIDE, TO BEGIN THE WORK OF MAKING THEM OVER FOR THE FATHER. AND THE SPIRIT RUSHED UPON THE APOSTLES AND THE INFANT CHURCH AND THE BLESSED MOTHER TO GIVE THEM ALL GIFTS -- OF POWER, OF MIRACLES, OF WISDOM, OF STRENGTH, AND MAYBE SOME GIFTS THAT WE HARDLY WOULD CONSIDER GIFTS, BUT JUST AS IMPORTANT FOR CREATING AND BUILDING UP THE CHURCH.
AND THE SPIRIT MOVES AMONG US EVEN TODAY. AND WHEN YOU READ THE ACTS OF THE APOSTLES, YOU CAN SEE A THEME. AS THE APOSTLES EXERCISE THEIR GIFTS, THE CHURCH GROWS. AS THEY BOLDLY PROCLAIM, AS THEY FAITHFULLY ENDURE PUNISHMENT AND RIDICULE AND PERSECUTION, AS THEY KEEP GETTING UP AFTER BEING KNOCKED DOWN AND KEEP ON EXERCISING THEIR GIFTS, THE GIFTS GET STRONGER, WHAT THEY DO BECOMES MORE EFFECTIVE, AND HERE WE ARE TODAY, A CHURCH ONE BILLION STRONG, A PEOPLE BUILT UP BY 2000 YEARS OF SAINTS WHO EXERCISED THEIR GIFTS AND COOPERATED WITH THE SPIRIT – 2000 YEARS OF MISSIONARIES, OF INSTITUTIONS OF EDUCATION, OF HOSPITALS, OF GREAT PREACHERS AND THEOLOGIANS, OF FAITHFUL MARRIED COUPLES AND HOLY FAMILIES, OF DEVOTED PRIESTS AND BISHOPS AND DEACONS AND RELIGIOUS AND LAY PEOPLE –WE ARE ALL PROOF THAT WHAT THE SPIRIT STARTED ON PENTECOST SUNDAY SO LONG AGO, HE CONTINUES TO THIS DAY.
HOLY SPIRIT, CHANGE US, MAKE US MORE LIKE JESUS, MAKE US MORE WORTHY OF BEING HIS GIFT TO THE FATHER, AND POUR OUT YOUR GIFTS TO US, SO THAT WE CAN STRENGTHEN EACH OTHER, SO THAT WE CAN REACH OUT TO ALL YOUR CHILDREN. AND FINALLY, HOLY SPIRIT, GIVE US THE GIFT OF HOLY BOLDNESS, SO THAT WE WILL NEVER HOLD BACK WHEN YOU INSPIRE US TO USE OUR GIFTS.