Catholic Caucus: Sunday Mass Readings, 05-15-05, Solemnity of Pentecost

May 15, 2005
Pentecost Sunday
Mass During the Day

Psalm: Sunday 23

Reading I
Acts 2:1-11

When the time for Pentecost was fulfilled,
they were all in one place together.
And suddenly there came from the sky
a noise like a strong driving wind,
and it filled the entire house in which they were.
Then there appeared to them tongues as of fire,
which parted and came to rest on each one of them.
And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit
and began to speak in different tongues,
as the Spirit enabled them to proclaim.

Now there were devout Jews from every nation under heaven staying in Jerusalem.
At this sound, they gathered in a large crowd,
but they were confused
because each one heard them speaking in his own language.
They were astounded, and in amazement they asked,
"Are not all these people who are speaking Galileans?
Then how does each of us hear them in his native language?
We are Parthians, Medes, and Elamites,
inhabitants of Mesopotamia, Judea and Cappadocia,
Pontus and Asia, Phrygia and Pamphylia,
Egypt and the districts of Libya near Cyrene,
as well as travelers from Rome,
both Jews and converts to Judaism, Cretans and Arabs,
yet we hear them speaking in our own tongues
of the mighty acts of God."

Responsorial Psalm
Ps 104:1, 24, 29-30, 31, 34

R. (cf. 30) Lord, send out your Spirit, and renew the face of the earth.
or:
R. Alleluia.
Bless the LORD, O my soul!
O LORD, my God, you are great indeed!
How manifold are your works, O LORD!
the earth is full of your creatures;
R. Lord, send out your Spirit, and renew the face of the earth.
or:
R. Alleluia.
May the glory of the LORD endure forever;
may the LORD be glad in his works!
Pleasing to him be my theme;
I will be glad in the LORD.
R. Lord, send out your Spirit, and renew the face of the earth.
or:
R. Alleluia.
If you take away their breath, they perish
and return to their dust.
When you send forth your spirit, they are created,
and you renew the face of the earth.
R. Lord, send out your Spirit, and renew the face of the earth.
or:
R. Alleluia.

Reading II
1 Cor 12:3b-7, 12-13

Brothers and sisters:
No one can say, "Jesus is Lord," except by the Holy Spirit.
There are different kinds of spiritual gifts but the same Spirit;
there are different forms of service but the same Lord;
there are different workings but the same God
who produces all of them in everyone.
To each individual the manifestation of the Spirit
is given for some benefit.

As a body is one though it has many parts,
and all the parts of the body, though many, are one body,
so also Christ.
For in one Spirit we were all baptized into one body,
whether Jews or Greeks, slaves or free persons,
and we were all given to drink of one Spirit.

Gospel
Jn 20:19-23

On the evening of that first day of the week,
when the doors were locked, where the disciples were,
for fear of the Jews,
Jesus came and stood in their midst
and said to them, "Peace be with you."
When he had said this, he showed them his hands and his side.
The disciples rejoiced when they saw the Lord.
Jesus said to them again, "Peace be with you.
As the Father has sent me, so I send you."
And when he had said this, he breathed on them and said to them,
"Receive the Holy Spirit.
Whose sins you forgive are forgiven them,
and whose sins you retain are retained."

On Pentecost, the infant Church, born from the side of Christ on the Cross (see Jn 19:34), took its first pre-ordained step outward in mission. Indeed, this story (Acts 2:1-13) shows that the Church was, and remains, a "Church of the Nations." Not without reason is the "Constitution on the Church" of the Council aptly named Lumen Gentium, "Light of the Nations" (CCC831). As Jesus urged us, the Church, we are to be light to unbelievers (Mt 5:14); or in the poetry of the Divine Liturgy (Sedro of the Sunday of the Consecration of the Church):

Arise and shine forth, O Holy Church,
for the wise Architect who laid your foundations
has also constructed the bars of your gates.

Arise and shine forth,
because God who is mighty for evermore
chose you as a dwelling place for himself.

Arise and shine forth,
because he who chooses the living
chose life for you until the end of time.

Arise and shine forth,
because he established your borders in peace,
O Hope of the ends of the earth.

All those Christians who have been baptized, who have received the Holy Spirit in Chrismation, who share in the life of Christ through Holy Communion, make up the Body that is to be the instrument of Christ's work on earth. The early Church used the Greek word koinonia (fellowship) to describe this reality.

Insofar as God calls believers together, we recognize the Greek origin of the word for Church - eklesia, or "convocation".

It was the 2nd century Syrian Christian bishop, Ignatius, from the great city of Antioch, who first referred to the Church as Catholic:

Where there is Christ Jesus, there is the Catholic Church
"Captivated By Your Teachings", Fr. Anthony J. Salim

May the Holy Spirit richly bless and reward you with his gifts on this beautiful feast of Pentecost!

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Proper chants for the Solemnity of Pentecost: in mp3 and gif format

Introit: Wisdom 1. 7. The Spirit of the Lord hath filled the whole world, alleluia; and that which containeth all things hath knowledge of the voice, alleluia, alleluia, alleluia. -- (Ps. 67. 1). Let God arise, and let His enemies be scattered: and let them that hate Him flee from before His face. V.: Glory be to the Father . . . -- The Spirit of the Lord hath filled the whole world . . .

Gradual: Psalm 103, 30. Alleluia, alleluia. V.: Send forth Thy Spirit, and they shall be created, and Thou shalt renew the face of the earth. Alleluia.

Alleluia: Alleluia, alleluia. V.: Come, O Holy Spirit, fill the hearts of Thy faithful: and kindle in them the fire of Thy love. Alleluia

Sequence:
Come, Thou Holy Spirit, come,
And from Thy celestial home
Shed a ray of light divine

Come, Thou Father of the poor,
Come, Thou source of all our store,
Come, within our bosoms shine.

Thou of Conforters the best,
Thou the soul's delightful guest,
Sweet refreshment here below.

In our labor rest most sweet,
Pleasant coolness in the heat,
Solace in the midst of woe.

O most blessed Light divine,
Shine within these hearts of Thine,
And our inmost being fill.

Where Thou art not, man hath nought
Nothing good in deed or thought,
Nothing free from taint of ill.

Heal our wounds, our strength renew,
On our dryness pour Thy dew,
Wash the stains of guilt away.

Bend the stubborn heart and will,
Melt the frozen, warm the chill,
Guide the steps that go astray.

On Thy faithful who adore,
And confess Thee evermore,
In Thy sevenfold gifts descend.

Give them virtue's sure reward,
Give them Thy salvation, Lord,
Give them joys that never end.
Amen. Alleluia.

Offertory: Ps. 67. 29, 30. Confirm, O God, what Thou hast wrought in us; from Thy temple, which is in Jerusalem, kings shall offer presents to Thee, alleluia.

Communion: Acts 2. 2, 4 Suddenly there came a sound from heaven, as of a mighty wind coming where they were sitting, alleluia: and they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, speaking the wonderful works of God, alleluia, alleluia.

From: Acts 2:1-11

The Coming of the Holy Spirit

[1] When the day of Pentecost had come, they were all together in one
place. [2] And suddenly a sound came from heaven like the rush of a
mighty wind, and it filled all the house where they were sitting.
[3] And there appeared to them tongues as of fire, distributed and
resting on each one of them. [4] And they were all filled with the
Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues, as the Spirit gave
them utterance.

[5] Now there were dwelling in Jerusalem Jews, devout men from every
nation under heaven. [6] And at this sound the multitude came together,
and they were bewildered, because each one heard them speaking in his
own language. [7] And they were amazed and wondered, saying, "Are not
all these who are speaking Galileans? [8] And how is it that we hear,
each of us in his own native language? [9] Parthians and Medes and
Elamites and residents of Mesopotamia, Judea and Cappadocia, Pontus
and Asia, [10] Phrygia and Pamphylia, Egypt and the parts of Libya
belonging to Cyrene, and visitors from Rome, both Jews and proselytes,
[11] Cretans and Arabians, we hear them telling in our own tongues the
mighty works of God."

Commentary:

1-13. This account of the Holy Spirit visibly coming down on the
disciples who, in keeping with Jesus' instructions, had stayed together
in Jerusalem, gives limited information as to the time and place of the
event, yet it is full of content. Pentecost was one of the three great
Jewish feasts for which many Israelites went on pilgrimage to the Holy
City to worship God in the temple. It originated as a harvest
thanksgiving, with an offering of first-fruits. Later it was given the
additional dimension of commemorating the promulgation of the Law given
by God to Moses on Sinai. The Pentecost celebration was held fifty days
after the Passover, that is, after seven weeks had passed. The material
harvest which the Jews celebrated so joyously became, through God's
providence, the symbol of the spiritual harvest which the Apostles
began to reap on this day.

2-3. Wind and fire were elements which typically accompanied
manifestations of God in the Old Testament (cf. Ex 3:2; l 3 :21-22; 2
Kings 5:24; Ps 104:3). In this instance, as Chrysostom explains, it
would seem that separate tongues of fire came down on each of them:
they were "separated, which means they came from one and the same
source, to show that the Power all comes from the Paraclete" ("Hom. on
Acts", 4). The wind and the noise must have been so intense that they
caused people to flock to the place. The fire symbolizes the action of
the Holy Spirit who, by enlightening the minds of the disciples,
enables them to understand Jesus' teachings--as Jesus promised at the
Last Supper (cf. Jn 16:4-14); by inflaming their hearts with love he
dispels their fear and moves them to preach boldly. Fire also has a
purifying effect, God's action cleansing the soul of all trace of sin.

4. Pentecost was not an isolated event in the life of the Church,
something over and done with. "We have the right, the duty and the joy
to tell you that Pentecost is still happening. We can legitimately
speak of the 'lasting value' of Pentecost. We know that fifty days
after Easter, the Apostles, gathered together in the same Cenacle as
had been used for the first Eucharist and from which they had gone out
to meet the Risen One for the first time, "discover" in themselves the
power of the Holy Spirit who descended upon them, the strength of Him
whom the Lord had promised so often as the outcome of his suffering on
the Cross; and strengthened in this way, they began to act, that is, to
perform their role. [. . .] Thus is born the "apostolic Church". But
even today--and herein the continuity lies--the Basilica of St Peter in
Rome and every Temple, every Oratory, every place where the disciples
of the Lord gather, is an extension of that original Cenacle" (John
Paul II, "Homily", 25 May 1980).

Vatican II (cf. Ad gentes, 4) quotes St Augustine's description of the
Holy Spirit as the soul, the source of life, of the Church, which was
born on the Cross on Good Friday and whose birth was announced publicly
on the day of Pentecost: "Today, as you know, the Church was fully
born, through the breath of Christ, the Holy Spirit; and in the Church
was born the Word, the witness to and promulgation of salvation in the
risen Jesus; and in him who listens to this promulgation is born faith,
and with faith a new life, an awareness of the Christian vocation and
the ability to hear that calling and to follow it by living a genuinely
human life, indeed a life which is not only human but holy. And to make
this divine intervention effective, today was born the apostolate, the
priesthood, the ministry of the Spirit, the calling to unity,
fraternity and peace" (Paul VI, "Address", 25 May 1969).

"Mary, who conceived Christ by the work of the Holy Spirit, the Love of
the living God, presides over the birth of the Church, on the day of
Pentecost, when the same Holy Spirit comes down on the disciples and
gives life to the mystical body of Christians in unity and charity"
(Paul VI, "Address", 25 October 1969).

5-11. In his account of the events of Pentecost St Luke distinguishes
"devout men" (v. 5), Jews and proselytes (v. 11). The first-mentioned
were people who were residing in Jerusalem for reasons of study or
piety, to be near the only temple the Jews had. They were Jews--not to
be confused with "God-fearing men", that is, pagans sympathetic to
Judaism, who worshipped the God of the Bible and who, if they became
converts and members of the Jewish religion by being circumcised and
by observing the Mosaic Law, were what were called "proselytes", whom
Luke distinguishes from the "Jews", that is, those of Jewish race.

People of different races and tongues understand Peter, each in his or
her own language. They can do so thanks to a special grace from the
Holy Spirit given them for the occasion; this is not the same as the
gift of "speaking with tongues" which some of the early Christians had
(cf. 1 Cor 14), which allowed them to praise God and speak to him in a
language which they themselves did not understand.

11. When the Fathers of the Church comment on this passage they
frequently point to the contrast between the confusion of languages
that came about at Babel (cf. Gen 11:1-9)--God's punishment for man's
pride and infidelity--and the reversal of this confusion on the day of
Pentecost, thanks to the grace of the Holy Spirit. The Second Vatican
Council stresses the same idea: "Without doubt, the Holy Spirit was at
work in the world before Christ was glorified. On the day of Pentecost,
however, he came down on the disciples that he might remain with them
forever (cf. Jn 14;16); on that day the Church was openly displayed to
the crowds and the spread of the Gospel among the nations, through
preaching, was begun. Finally, on that day was foreshadowed the union
of all peoples in the catholicity of the faith by means of the Church
of the New Alliance, a Church which speaks every language, understands
and embraces all tongues in charity, and thus overcomes the dispersion
of Babel" ("Ad Gentes", 4).

Christians need this gift for their apostolic activity and should ask
the Holy Spirit to give it to them to help them express themselves in
such a way that others can understand their message; to be able so to
adapt what they say to suit the outlook and capacity of their hearers,
that they pass Christ's truth on: "Every generation of Christians needs
to redeem, to sanctify, its own time. To do this, it must understand
and share the desires of other men--their equals--in order to make
known to them, with a 'gift of tongues', how they are to respond to the
action of the Holy Spirit, to that permanent outflow of rich treasures
that comes from our Lord's heart. We Christians are called upon to
announce, in our own time, to this world to which we belong and in
which we live, the message--old and at the same time new--of the
Gospel" ([St] J. Escriva, "Christ Is Passing By", 132).

Source: "The Navarre Bible: Text and Commentaries". Biblical text
taken from the Revised Standard Version and New Vulgate. Commentaries
made by members of the Faculty of Theology of the University of
Navarre, Spain. Published by Four Courts Press, Kill Lane, Blackrock,
Co. Dublin, Ireland.

Kinds of Spiritual Gifts

[3b] No one can say "Jesus is Lord" except by the Holy Spirit.

[4] Now there are varieties of gifts, but the same Spirit; [5] and
there are varieties of service, but the same Lord; [6] and there are
varieties of working, but it is the same God who inspires them all in
every one. [7] To each is given the manifestation of the Spirit for the
common good.

Unity and Variety in the Mystical Body of Christ

[12] For just as the body is one and has many member, and all the
members of the body, though many, are one body, so it is with Christ.
[13] For by one Spirit we were all baptized into one body Jews or
Greeks, slaves or free and all were made to drink of one Spirit.

Commentary:

3. This provides a general principle for discerning signs of the Holy
Spirit--recognition of Christ as Lord. It follows that the gifts of
the Holy Spirit can never go against the teaching of the Church. "Those
who have charge over the Church should judge the genuineness and proper
use of these gifts [...], not indeed to extinguish the Spirit, but to
test all things and hold fast to what is good (cf. Thess 5:12 and
19-21)" ("Lumen Gentium", 12).

4-7. God is the origin of spiritual gifts. Probably when St Paul speaks
of gifts, service (ministries), "varieties of working", he is not
referring to graces which are essentially distinct from one another,
but to different perspectives from which these gifts can be viewed, and
to their attribution to the Three Divine Persons. Insofar as they are
gratuitously bestowed they are attributed to the Holy Spirit, as he
confirms in v. 11; insofar as they are granted for the benefit and
service of the other members of the Church, they are attributed to
Christ the Lord, who came "not to be served but to serve" (Mk 10:45);
and insofar as they are operative and produce a good effect, they are
attributed to God the Father. In this way the various graces which the
members of the Church receive are a living reflection of God who, being
essentially one, in so is a trinity of persons. "The whole Church has
the appearance of a people gathered together by virtue of the unity of
the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit" (St Cyprian, "De
Dominica Oratione", 23). Therefore, diversity of gifts and graces is as
important as their basic unity, because all have the same divine origin
and the same purpose--the common good (v. 7): "It is the Holy Spirit,
dwelling in those who believe and pervading and ruling over the entire
Church, who brings about that wonderful communion of the faithful and
joins them together so intimately in Christ that he is the principle of
the Church's unity. By distributing various kinds of spiritual gifts
and ministries he enriches the Church of Jesus Christ with different
functions 'in order to equip the saints for the work of service, so as
to build up the body of Christ' (Eph 4:12)" (Vatican II, Unitatis
Redintegratio", 2).

12-13. In Greek and Latin literature, society is often compared to a
body; even today we talk of "corporations", a term which conveys the
idea that all the citizens of a particular city are responsible for the
common good. St Paul, starting with this metaphor, adds two important
features: 1) he identifies the Church with Christ: "so it is with
Christ" (v. 12); and 2) he says that the Holy Spirit is its
life-principle: "by one Spirit we were all baptized..., and all made to
drink of the Spirit" (v. 13). The Magisterium summarizes this teaching
by defining the Church as the "mystical body of Christ", an _expression
which "is derived from and is, as it were, the fair flower of the
repeated teaching of Sacred Scripture and the holy Fathers" (Pius XII,
"Mystici Corporis").

"So it is with Christ": "One would have expected him to say, so it is
with the Church, but he does not say that [...]. For, just as the body
and the head are one man, so too Christ and the Church are one, and
therefore instead of 'the Church' he says 'Christ"' (Chrysostom, "Hom.
on 1 Cor", 30, "ad loc".). This identifiction of the Church with Christ
is much more then a mere metaphor; it makes the Church a society which
is radically different from any other society: "The complete Christ is
made up of the head and the body, as I am sure you know well. The head
is our Savior himself, who suffered under Pontius Pilate and now, after
rising from the dead, is seated at the right hand of the Father. And
his body is the Church. Not this or that church, but the Church which
is to be found all over the world. Nor is it only that which exists
among us today, for also belonging to it are those who lived before us
and those who will live in the future, right up to the end of the
world. All this Church, made up of the assembly of the faithful--for
all the faithful are members of Christ--has Christ as its head,
governing his body from heaven. And although this head is located out
of sight of the body, he is, however, joined to it by love" (St
Augustine, "Enarrationes in Psalmos", 56, 1).

The Church's remarkable unity derives from the Holy Spirit who not only
assembles the faithful into a society but also imbues and vivifies its
members, exercising the same function as the soul does in a physical
body: "In order that we might be unceasingly renewed in him (cf. Eph
4:23), he has shared with us his Spirit who, being one and the same in
head and members, gives life to, unifies and moves the whole body.
Consequently, his work could be compared by the Fathers to the function
that the principle of life, the soul, fulfils in the human body"
(Vatican II, "Lumen Gentium", 7).

"All were made to drink of one Spirit": given that the Apostle says
this immediately after mentioning Baptism, he seems to be referring to
a further outpouring of the Holy Spirit, possibly in the sacrament of
Confirmation. It is not uncommon for Sacred Scripture to compare the
outpouring of the Spirit to drink, indicating that the effects of his
presence are to revive the parched soul; in the Old Testament the
coming of the Holy Spirit is already compared to dew, rain, etc.; and
St. John repeats what our Lord said about "living water" (Jn 7:38; cf.
4:13-14).

Together with the sacraments of Christian initiation, the Eucharist
plays a special role in building up the unity of the body of Christ.
"Really sharing in the body of the Lord in the breaking of the
eucharistic bread, we are taken up into communion with him and with one
another. 'Because the bread is one, we, who are many, are one body,
for we all partake of one bread' (1 Cor 10:17). In this way all of us
are made members of his body (cf. 1 Cor 12;27), 'and individual members
of one another' (Rom 12:5)" ("Lumen Gentium", 7).

From: John 20:19-23

Jesus Appears to the Disciples

[19] On the evening of that day, the first day of the week, the doors
shut where the disciples were, for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and
stood among them and said to them, "Peace be with you." [20] When He
had said this, He showed them His hands and His side. Then the
disciples were glad when they saw the Lord. [21] Jesus said to them
again, "Peace be with you. As the Father has sent Me, even so I send
you." [22] And when He had said this, He breathed on them, and said to
them, "Receive the Holy Spirit. [23] If you forgive the sins of any,
they are forgiven; if you retain the sins of any, they are retained."

Commentary:

19-20. Jesus appears to the Apostles on the evening of the day of which
He rose. He presents Himself in their midst without any need for the
doors to be opened, by using the qualities of His glorified body; but
in order to dispel any impression that He is only a spirit He shows
them His hands and His side: there is no longer any doubt about its
being Jesus Himself, about His being truly risen from the dead. He
greets them twice using the words of greeting customary among the Jews,
with the same tenderness as He previously used put into this
salutation. These friendly words dispel the fear and shame the
Apostles must have been feeling at behaving so disloyally during His
passion: He has created the normal atmosphere of intimacy, and now He
will endow them with transcendental powers.

21. Pope Leo XIII explained how Christ transferred His own mission to
the Apostles: "What did He wish in regard to the Church founded, or
about to be founded? This: to transmit to it the same mission and the
same mandate which He had received from the Father, that they should be
perpetuated. This He clearly resolved to do: this He actually did.
`As the Father hath sent Me, even so I send you' (John 20:21). `As
Thou didst send Me into the world, so I have sent them into the world'
(John 17:18). [...] When about to ascend into Heaven, He sends His
Apostles in virtue of the same power by which He had been sent from the
Father; and He charges them to spread abroad and propagate His
teachings (cf. Matthew 28:18), so that those obeying the Apostles might
be saved, and those disobeying should perish (cf. Mark 16:16). [...]
Hence He commands that the teaching of the Apostles should be
religiously accepted and piously kept as if it were His own: `He who
hears you hears Me, and he who rejects you rejects Me' (Luke 10:16).
Wherefore the Apostles are ambassadors of Christ as He is the
ambassador of the Father" ([Pope] Leo XIII, "Satis Cognitum"). In this
mission the bishops are the successors of the Apostles: "Christ sent
the Apostles as He Himself had been sent by the Father, and then
through the Apostles made their successors, the bishops, sharers in His
consecration and mission. The function of the bishops' ministry was
handed over in a subordinate degree to priests so that they might be
appointed in the order of the priesthood and be co-workers of the
episcopal order for the proper fulfillment of the apostolic mission
that had been entrusted to it by Christ" (Vatican II, "Presbyterorum
Ordinis", 2).

22-23. The Church has always understood--and has in fact defined--that
Jesus Christ here conferred on the Apostles authority to forgive sins,
a power which is exercised in the Sacrament of Penance. "The Lord then
especially instituted the Sacrament of Penance when, after being risen
from the dead, He breathed upon His disciples and said: "Receive the
Holy Spirit...' The consensus of all the Fathers has always
acknowledged that by this action so sublime and words so clear the
power of forgiving and retaining sins was given to the Apostles and
their lawful successors for reconciling the faithful who have fallen
after Baptism" (Council of Trent, "De Paenitentia", Chapter 1).

The Sacrament of Penance is the most sublime _expression of God's love
and mercy towards men, described so vividly in Jesus' parable of the
prodigal son (cf. Luke 15:11-32). The Lord always awaits us, with His
arms wide open, waiting for us to repent--and then He will forgive us
and restore us to the dignity of being His sons.

The Popes have consistently recommended Christians to have regular
recourse to this Sacrament: "For a constant and speedy advancement in
the path of virtue we highly recommend the pious practice of frequent
Confession, introduced by the Church under the guidance of the Holy
Spirit; for by this means we grow in a true knowledge of ourselves and
in Christian humility, bad habits are uprooted, spiritual negligence
and apathy are prevented, the conscience is purified and the will
strengthened, salutary spiritual direction is obtained, and grace is
increased by the efficacy of the Sacrament itself" ([Pope] Pius XII,
"Mystici Corporis").

Catholic Culture

Collect:
Almighty and ever-living God, you fulfilled the Easter promise by sending us your Holy Spirit. May that Spirit unite the races and nations on earth to proclaim your glory. Grant this through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever.

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May 15, 2005

Pentecost Sunday

"And when the days of Pentecost were drawing to a close, they were all together in one place. And suddenly there came a sound from heaven, as of a violent wind coming, and it filled the whole house where they were sitting. And there appeared to them parted tongues as of fire, which settled upon each of them. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in foreign tongues, even as the Holy Spirit prompted them to speak" (Acts 2, 1-4).

Pentecost Sunday marks the end of the first novena. See The Novena to the Holy Spirit to prepare for this great feast.

Pentecost (Whitsunday), with Christmas and Easter, ranks among the great feasts of Christianity. It commemorates not only the descent of the Holy Spirit upon the Apostles and Disciples, but also the fruits and effects of that event: the completion of the work of redemption, the fullness of grace for the Church and its children, and the gift of faith for all nations.

Pentecost
After Jesus had ascended to heaven from Mt. Olivet, the apostles and disciples returned to the Holy City. They remained together in the Upper Room or Cenacle, the place where Jesus had appeared to them and which may well be called the first Christian church. About a hundred and twenty persons were assembled there. They chose Matthias as an apostle in place of the unhappy Judas; they prayed and waited for the Paraclete.

Ten days had passed, it was Sunday, the seventh Sunday after the resurrection. At about nine o'clock in the morning, as they were together praying fervently, the Holy Spirit descended upon them. Note how all the great theophanies in Christ's life occurred during the course of prayer. After His baptism, for instance, when Jesus was praying the heavens opened and the Holy Spirit descended in the form of a dove; likewise, it was during prayer at night that the transfiguration took place on Tabor. Surely too it was while Mary was praying that Gabriel delivered his message, and the Holy Spirit overshadowed her. Pentecost followed precedent. The small community of Christians had prepared themselves through prayer for the coming of the Paraclete. The same is true at Mass today, every day; through prayer we ready our souls for the advent of the Spirit.

The descent upon the apostles was internal and invisible in nature although accompanied by certain visible phenomena. There came a mighty roar, like the onrush of a violent wind. It came suddenly, from heaven; but unlike storms that strike a structure from without, this one penetrated and filled the room where the disciples were gathered. Therefore it was not a natural wind, it was a miracle peculiar to the occasion. A second visible sign consisted in tongues of fire that descended upon each one present. These fiery tongues gave visible evidence that the Holy Spirit had descended upon them.

Today at Mass, particularly at holy Communion, the power of the Holy Spirit will come down upon us; fiery tongues will not be seen, but invisible tongues of fire will not be absent. There was still another external manifestation of the Holy Spirit; the apostles and disciples were enabled to speak various languages.

After the roar of the wind many of Jerusalem's pilgrims hurried to the Cenacle. Pentecost was one of the three festivals which obliged all Jews to be present in Jerusalem. Jews from distant lands, and Jewish converts from paganism too, attended these feasts. As a result, a colorful crowd speaking a variety of languages surrounded the house. Now the apostles, who so shortly before had hid in fear behind locked doors, came forth and courageously walked among the multitude speaking to each in his native tongue. It was indeed amazing! Galileans, and multilingual?

But the malicious too were present; they had the answer. Nothing marvelous at all! Those Galileans were simply drunk, and their drunken babble sounded like a foreign language! Peter showed no hesitation in answering the charge. None of their number, he said, were intoxicated; it was but nine o'clock in the morning, and at that hour men usually are sober. What the multitude saw was, in fact, the fulfillment of Joel's prophecy: In those days (of the Messiah), God will pour forth His Spirit upon men and they will prophesy. . . . Then the apostle pointed his words more directly against the accusers: they had killed Jesus, had nailed Him to the Cross; but God had awakened Him and after His departure to heaven, He sent the Holy Spirit.

The pilgrims who had heard Peter give this first pentecostal sermon "were pierced to the heart and said: Brethren, what shall we do? But Peter said to them: Repent and be baptized; and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit." Three thousand responded.

One final question: why the miracle of tongues? In answer, recall the story regarding the tower of Babel. Puffed up by pride, men attempted to build a tower that would touch the heavens. To punish their sin, God confused their speech. Sin causes confusion and division. Now Christ came to gather all men into His Church and thereby to unite them to Himself. This should result in creating but one family of nations again. To this blessed state the miracle of tongues points.

Yes, even we as individuals have a gift of tongues which all men can understand. It is the gift of love infused into us by the Holy Spirit. Love unites, love is a common language, by means of love we can speak to all nations. — The Church's Year of Grace, Pius Parsch

Things to Do:

Meditate on Fr. Roger Landry's homily for Pentecost Sunday.

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