Pentecost Sunday
Pentecost (50 days after Easter) is referred to as the birth of the Church. Pentecost fulfills two promises from Scripture: “I will pour out my spirit on all people; and when Jesus promised to send the Advocate, the Spirit of Truth. After their experience in the Upper Room and being filled with the Holy Spirit, the apostles went about boldly baptizing and bringing the multitude to follow the way of the Lord.
Let’s return to the Upper Room: Can we possibly fathom the astonishment of those who witnessed the coming of the Holy Spirit as they experienced the violent wind and the tongues of fire hovering over their heads! Compound this with hearing voices spoken in other than their native tongues! Can we imagine their relief at the appearance of Jesus, greeting them with His familiar words, “Peace be with you!”
The symbolism within that upper room is so powerful! Beginning with the violent wind, we identify the loving, life-giving breath of God given to all who believe in Him. Tongues of fire separately appeared over each disciple. Yet another message tells each of us that the Spirit of God, the very light of Christ, is given to us, empowering us to spread His light to the world.
When we are told the disciples spoke in various tongues, we may hear today’s underlying message speaking to us about the barriers between people of different cultures/nationalities/ideologies that must be broken down, enabling us to speak the one true language of Christ’s love, saying to one another, “Peace be with you.”
Today we celebrate the Sister Servants of the Congregation of the Blessed Sacrament, founded by Saint Peter Julian Eymard, when they were received in the first public chapel, professed public vows, received religious habit, and were received in the Diocese of Angers by Msgr. Angebault.
Prayer:
Lord, send out your Spirit upon me this day. Cleanse me of anything within me that is not of you. Breathe your Spirit into my heart and my mind. Open my eyes, my ears, my hands, that I may be directed by your Spirit and be dedicated to spreading your perfect message of truth, hope, love, and peace to all I meet this day. Amen.
