Tongues, as of fire
It moves around so much, it has no fixed position in our lives. It invariably comes at a busy time of our year and of our lives, when the seasons are changing and our schedules are changing. Pentecost is hard to lay holt of.
But Pentecost, the fiery, windy, wordy work of the Holy Spirit unleashed and poured out as promised is both reminder and renewal. The moment the Apostles went from cowering in their chambers and in their fear, to confronting and converting the same populace that had crucified the Lord is a historical moment of beginning. It is also an initiation and indication of the work He will do through, with, and in us by the same power He displayed then.
The Spirit of God is poured into His Church and into us to animate us. Anima is the same word as spirit and soul. Our Spirit is filled with and conformed to the Spirit of God, immortal, eternal, and active in the world. No wonder our cup overflows!
The Spirit inspires (you see it in that word? In-spire?) the Church to be the Church, that is the presence of Christ Jesus on earth, and the activity of that same Jesus on earth and in our time. What the Apostles did that day – speak to the crowds of Jesus and bring about repentance and belief – is exactly what Jesus by the agency of His Church will do thenceforth and for all time. They who were afraid have no more fear. They will cure the sick, give sight to the blind, and raise the dead as signs of the Divine life that they both enjoy and offer. By this does Christ reach and change the world.
This is what we commemorate, and this is also what we anticipate. This is the alternative to fear, the remedy for both inaction and activism, and the confidence that comes of acting in concert with One who never fails. Veni sancte spiritus!
This divine action that informs and inflames our identity as the Holy Church of God is named and claimed as a mystery commemorated in the Most Holy Rosary of the Blessed Virgin Mary. The third of the Glorious Mysteries, it is scheduled at least every Wednesday and Sunday and comes whenever that triumphant cycle from Resurrection to Coronation is invoked.
Since the weather has improved, and the daylit hours lengthened, I have been taking more walks, and longer. The burble of the creek by the path is enhanced by the rhythmic rumble of the rosary prayed as aerobic and spiritual exercise. Why stop after just one cycle, when the path winds on ahead and the earbuds offer only enclosure?
Some of the decades go to occasional dedications, to needs of the moment or the day. Some others are recurring, frequent flyers if you will: the Pope, my mother, priests in difficulty. One of these invariable offerings is the Third Glorious, the Descent of the Holy Spirit upon the Apostles at Pentecost, and without deviation I offer that for the intentions of you, this parish. You didn’t think I thought it all depended on me, did you?
Fire, wind, and even sometimes rain from heaven are all similes for the same saving Spirit not only falling but also landing, not only being poured but also filling, not just being given but being welcomed and received. All could bring destruction, but instead bring life, help, and strength. This is my prayer for you, for us in this place where we huddle together, not for fear but for nourishment.
Not only the festival, but also the Spirit Himself is always moving. This day and every day may the same Spirit of God be the heat and light in our lives, and the refreshment we both require and offer. Come Holy Ghost!
Monsignor Smith
