Homily- Solemnity of the Pentecost (year B)-Sunday 19 May 2024 –Rev. Dr. Fr. Patrick Mathias SDB

 

Sunday 19 May 2024 –Solemnity of the Pentecost (year B)

Mass Readings: Acts 2:1-11   Ps 103   Gal 5:16-25   Jn 15:26-27; 16:12-15

Key Verse to Meditate: "When the Advocate comes, whom I will send to you from the Father, the Spirit of truth who comes from the Father, he will testify on my behalf (Jn 15:26).

Dear Brothers and Sisters in the Lord,

Today, the Church solemnizes the feast of Pentecost, also known as the outpouring of the Spirit. The Holy Spirit represents God’s love, and is the life and love within the Church and humanity. The Holy Spirit is the Spirit of Christ and the divine Person who spreads the possibility of imitating Christ in the world, giving Christ to the world, and making Him live in us. This Sunday's feast reminds us of another way in which God is with us and sustains our life and mission: the gift of the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit, bestowed by the Father and the risen Jesus, guides us to the truth. The Easter season concludes today with the solemnity of Pentecost, a period of fifty days during which the risen Jesus assisted the disciples in understanding and living their mission among the people. They were sent to "tell" everyone about what they had seen and heard from their Master.

In last Sunday's gospel, Jesus, before ascending to heaven, sent his disciples into the world, assuring them of his perpetual presence. On this day of Pentecost, we witness the fulfilment of this promise as the Helper arrives upon the apostles.

The First Reading: Today's first reading is from the Acts of the Apostles, which narrates the events of the first Pentecost. As Jesus commanded the disciples to wait for the outpouring of the Spirit, all of them were in Jerusalem, united with Mother Mary in prayer, awaiting the Spirit's arrival (Acts 1:13-14). On the day of Pentecost, they were all filled with the power of the Holy Spirit: Divided tongues, as of fire, appeared among them, and a tongue rested on each of them. All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other languages, as the Spirit gave them ability (Acts 2:3-4).

The Apostles were Filled with the Holy Spirit: What does it mean that they were "filled with the Holy Spirit"? (Acts 2:4). How did the apostles feel at that time? They had an overwhelming experience of God's love at the outpouring of the Spirit, and they felt flooded with love, like an ocean. The uneducated apostles speaking in the elite languages of the people was unbelievable for the Jews who had gathered in Jerusalem from various parts of the world to hear them speak different languages.

The Spirit Transforms: St. Paul assures us of this when he says that "the love of God has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us" (cf. Rom 5:5). The first effect that the Holy Spirit produces when it comes upon a person is to make them feel loved by God with a very tender love. Everything else, such as the forgiveness of sins, grace, and the theological virtues, is contained in this love. Therefore, in the presence of the Holy Spirit, communication between God and man reopens, sounding like a new beginning of everything.

The Story of Babel: The descent of the Spirit upon the apostles and their ability to speak different languages brings to mind the story of Babel in the Old Testament (Gen 11:4). At Babel, everyone spoke the same language, but eventually, a point was reached where no one understood each other anymore, leading to the confusion of languages. At Pentecost, however, everyone spoke different languages, yet they all understood each other. Babel and Pentecost are two ongoing construction sites in history. According to St. Augustine, the former builds Babylon, the "city of Satan," while the latter builds Jerusalem, the "city of God." Each of our civil or religious initiatives, whether private or public, faces a choice: to be like Babel or like Pentecost. It becomes Babel if our intention is to make a name for ourselves, to assert ourselves; it becomes Pentecost if, through it, we also affirm others and, above all, God. Where there is selfishness and manipulation of others, it is Babel; whereas, where there is love and respect, it is Pentecost.

Speaking in Tongues: This was the gift of the Holy Spirit, the gift of speaking in languages: "And at this sound the crowd gathered and was bewildered, because each one heard them speaking in the native language of each. Amazed and astonished, they asked, 'Are not all these who are speaking Galileans?'" (Act 2:6-7). Thus began the bold preaching of the Word of God by the apostles. But why were the people of Jerusalem so amazed at the knowledge of the uneducated apostles? Firstly, they perceived that the apostles were different, and their proclamation centered on the mighty works of God completed in Jesus, the crucified and risen. At Pentecost, the apostles proclaimed, "the great works of God." They did not seek to make a name for themselves, but to glorify God. That is why everyone understood them. God had returned to being at the center of the disciples' lives. The desire for power had been replaced by the desire to serve; the law of selfishness had given way to the law of love.

The descent of the Spirit of God occurred because of the promise of Jesus, who said that once he ascended into heaven, he would send the Holy Spirit, the Spirit of wisdom and truth. Wherever the Spirit of God descended, people received power and grace to accept the word of Christ and embrace new life in the Spirit. Filled with the power of the Holy Spirit, they were given the gift of invoking the outpouring of the Spirit upon others.

The Holy Spirit in the Acts: In the Acts, we see that when Peter and John laid hands on the people of Samaria, they received the Holy Spirit: "Now when the apostles in Jerusalem heard that Samaria had accepted the word of God (from Philip), they sent Peter and John to them. The two went down and prayed for them that they might receive the Holy Spirit (for as yet the Spirit had not come upon any of them; they had only been baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus). Then Peter and John laid their hands on them, and they received the Holy Spirit" (Act 8:14-17).

The Second Reading: In today's second letter, St. Paul contrasts the fruits of the Holy Spirit (love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control - Gal 5:22-23) with the works of the flesh (fornication, impurity, licentiousness, idolatry, sorcery, enmities, strife, jealousy, anger, quarrels, dissensions, factions, envy, drunkenness, carousing - Gal 5:19-21). By highlighting these differences, he exhorts Christians to be led by the Spirit and not to gratify the desires of the flesh (Gal 5:16). He insists that we should be led and guided by the Spirit: "If we live by the Spirit, let us also be guided by the Spirit" (Gal 5:25).

Jesus was Led by the Spirit:  Jesus' life was filled and guided by the Spirit of God. Jesus was filled with the Holy Spirit right from the beginning of His life and active ministry in Galilee: "Jesus, full of the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan and was led by the Spirit in the wilderness" (Lk 4:1). After the temptation in the desert, we see Jesus coming out of the desert filled with the Holy Spirit: "Then Jesus, filled with the power of the Spirit, returned to Galilee, and a report about Him spread through all the surrounding country" (Lk 4:14). In the Nazareth proclamation, He said, "The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because He has anointed me to bring good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim release to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to let the oppressed go free, to proclaim the year of the Lord's favor" (Lk 4:18-19). At the beginning of Jesus' ministry, at His baptism, St. John the Baptist testified to the presence of the Holy Spirit in Jesus: "And John testified, 'I saw the Spirit descending from heaven like a dove, and it remained on Him. I myself did not know Him, but the one who sent me to baptize with water said to me, "He on whom you see the Spirit descend and remain is the one who baptizes with the Holy Spirit" (Jn 1:32-33). Yes, Jesus was anointed by the Spirit at the beginning of His ministry.

Breathing into the Nostrils: In the creation account, we read that when God breathed into the nostrils of Adam, he became a living being (Gen 2:7). Similarly, in the vision of the valley of dry bones (cf. Ezek 37:1-10), the prophet Ezekiel was told to inform the bones that God would make breath enter them and that they would come to life. Putting "breath" by God’s Spirit into the bones showed that God would not only restore them physically but also spiritually. The vision of the valley of dry bones emphasizes the spiritual lesson that Israel’s new life depended on God’s power and not the circumstances of the people.

Jesus "Breathed" on Them: One of the greatest gifts of the Holy Spirit is to receive the forgiveness of sins. After greeting the fear-stricken Apostles with peace, Jesus imparted to them the ministry of forgiving people's sins with the power of the Holy Spirit: "He breathed on them and said to them, 'Receive the Holy Spirit. If you forgive the sins of any, their sins have been forgiven them; if you retain the sins of any, they have been retained.'" (Jn 20:22-23). Firstly, the act of Jesus breathing on them and imparting the Spirit stands as a symbol of empowerment for ministry. It is the Spirit of God that empowers the Apostles for the ministry of forgiveness. In Acts, Luke assigns the experience of receiving the Spirit to Pentecost or fifty days after the Passover (Acts 2:1-3), while John in this verse (20:22) links the gift of the Holy Spirit to the Easter events. When Jesus breathed the Spirit on the apostles, He gave them the authority to forgive the sins of the people. This act of breathing the Spirit onto the Apostles not only marked a new birth of the apostles into the Ministry of preaching and reconciling people to God but also served as preparation for the event of Pentecost.

The Unconditional Forgiveness of Jesus: In the teaching and work of Christ, nothing is more essential than forgiveness. The unconditional forgiveness of God, offered by Jesus towards sinners, brought with it great resistance and condemnation from the educated elite of Jewish society. Jesus portrayed the merciful face of the Father. He proclaimed the future kingdom of the Father as the kingdom of merciful love. On the cross, with his perfect sacrifice, he atoned for our sins, thus making mercy and love triumph through - and not against - justice and order. In his paschal victory, Jesus brought everything to completion. For this reason, the Father is pleased to pour out, through the Son, the Spirit of forgiveness. In the Church of the Apostles, forgiveness is offered through the sacraments of baptism and reconciliation and in the gestures of Christian life.

Points for Personal Reflection: Today, we celebrate Pentecost, a feast that changed the lives of the disciples and invites us to pray to the Holy Spirit, who is like the wind. We don't see Him, but it is this Spirit that moves all things. Even when we pray to Him, it is possible because He has aroused in us the desire to pray. The Holy Spirit is our help and prompter, who comes to enlighten us. As disciples of the Lord, we are to rejoice because Jesus rejoiced in the Holy Spirit (Lk 10:21). It is the Spirit of God that brings spiritual renewal and new life through the life-giving death and resurrection of Jesus. The act of “breathing” holds great significance for our spiritual renewal. May God breathe His sanctifying Spirit upon us so that we too may be spiritually renewed.

Have I experienced the power of the Holy Spirit in my life? Just like the disciples of Jesus, do I also feel the need for the Spirit in my life? We all need power from on high to renew ourselves, for every renewal flowers as the result of the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit fills our hearts with the love of God (Rom 5:7). Do I ask Him to fill my life with the love of God? The Lord Jesus offers each one of us the gift and the power of His Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit gives us the power to live a new life and strengthens our faith. Do I desire and seek to live a holy life, as the Spirit of God is the giver of all holiness?

Let us always invoke the Spirit of God because He is the one who enlightens and sustains our faith. As Jesus promises in today’s gospel, may the Spirit of truth always guide and strengthen us in our spiritual journey (Jn 15:26).

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