All Glory To God!

This is a reminder of why the first Pentecost is so important to the Church.  It was a witness of divine power and absolute truth, and a safeguard against the darkness of the world.  It was the birth of the Church, and an opportunity for mankind to be empowered by the gifts of the Holy Spirit. 

The word Pentecost comes from the Greek pentekostos, which means 50.   It is the day we remember the descent of the Holy Spirit upon the disciples of Jesus after His Ascension into heaven. It is celebrated on the seventh Sunday after Easter, which is 50 days after the Resurrection of Christ. 

In the New Testament Book of Acts, we read that the first followers of Jesus obediently gathered together in one place. Suddenly, a sound like a strong wind filled the room with tongues of fire, which rested on their heads.“And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other languages as the Spirit gave them the ability to speak” (Acts 2:4).

Peter preached his first sermon to a congregation of believers in that room. He shared with them that the incident of that morning was like the prophecy of the Hebrew prophet Joel.  God promised to pour out his Spirit on all flesh, giving diverse people the ability to exercise divine power.  It was to be a sign of the coming day of the Lord.  Acts tells us that 3,000 people were added to the church that day, as Peter encouraged them to turn their lives around, and be baptized in the name of Jesus. 

Are you filled with the Holy Spirit?  In the Catechism of the Catholic Church we read: “683 : No one can say ‘Jesus is Lord’ except by the Holy Spirit.” “God has sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, crying, ‘Abba! Father!’ ” This knowledge of faith is possible only in the Holy Spirit: to be in touch with Christ; we must first have been touched by the Holy Spirit. He comes to meet us and kindles faith in us. By virtue of our Baptism, the first sacrament of the faith, the Holy Spirit in the Church communicates to us, intimately and personally, the life that originates in the Father and is offered to us in the Son (424, 2670, 152, 249)”

What great news!   This information should bring 3,000 people into the Church every day. To believe in the Holy Spirit is to acknowledge that there is a Triune God – Father, Son and Holy Spirit.  They are at work together from the beginning to the completion of the plan for our salvation.  This is why our souls yearn for God.

Our culture is somewhat of a relativistic society where traditional values are challenged.  It is important to be open- minded and tolerant, but we must hold on to what is absolute and true.  The story of the forming of the Early Church gives us great Truth….there is power in the Holy Spirit.  Obedience plays a big part in our own journey to live a life of Christian values.  What if the Apostles had not followed the instruction of Jesus and waited in the upper room on that Pentecost morning?

C.S. Lewis wrote in “The Abolition of Man,” “Conform your soul to reality or conform reality to the wishes of men.”  When reality is contradictory to religion and ethics, we begin to experience the existence of evil challenging good. 

The power of the Holy Spirit built up the Church and continues to empower each of us because we are the Church.  Pray for the gifts of the Spirit – wisdom, understanding, knowledge, counsel, fortitude, piety, and fear (awe) of the Lord.  Exercise your ability to use divine power, and it will bear great fruit! Come Holy Spirit!  Amen!