2024

May 19, 2024

Study | Preach | Teach

ᐊHOMILIESCONNECTIONSHOLY SEEFR TONYᐅ

In the feast of Pentecost, the Holy Spirit invades all of the texts of today’s liturgy with his presence. The Gospel speaks about the Spirit of Truth, which will enlighten and lead the disciples to complete truth. In the first reading, what was promised is fulfilled, and the Holy Spirit descends with his power upon the Apostles and other disciples of Jesus, gathered with Mary in the Upper Room. When the Holy Spirit enters and invades the heart of a disciple of Jesus, his whole Christian existence and behavior change and bear the fruit of the Spirit, which are synthesized in love (second reading).

DOCTRINAL MESSAGES

The Spirit is imperceptible to the senses. God reveals him to us in human ways: by his action in man and by means of symbols. In Acts, Saint Luke uses two symbols. The first is the violent and creative wind, like the breath of God on the first man (Gn 2), which shakes the human being, strips him of himself, penetrates the secret recess of his soul, and brings life and holiness. The second is fire, which in the form of tongues comes down upon the disciples, purifies and transforms them. This fire of the Spirit must always burn; this is why Saint Paul urges us not to stifle the Spirit (cf 1 Th 5:19).

n today’s texts, we are told about the different ways in which the Spirit is at work in men, and thus, the different ways in which he reveals himself to us. 1) The Spirit of truth, who enlightens man so that he may understand complete truth. As Jesus Christ is the fullness of truth and revelation, the Spirit will enlighten us so that we may understand the mystery of Christ. This is how the disciples, on the day of Pentecost, received the light that opened their mind and gave them a higher and fuller understanding of Christ’s entire life, of his origin, and especially of the mystery of his passion, death and resurrection. 2) The spirit bears witness to Christ, in other words, he does not only teach but accredits the mystery of Christ with authority. He will first of all bear witness in the heart of the disciples gathered in the Upper Room, such a convincing testimony that it is transmitted, converting such disciples into witnesses. Throughout time, he will bear witness in the soul of each Christian, using the word and the life of human witnesses. Yes, the Spirit is the testimony of Christ in the heart of history. 3) The Spirit glorifies Christ, because he does not have a message of his own, but will only tell what he has heard. The glory with which Christ appears, in his splendor and greatness, to the eyes of men is the work of the Holy Spirit: his wonderful power of working miracles, the brightness of his gaze, the fascination of his word, the power and generosity of his infinite love, his moving tenderness towards children and towards the sick and needy …

Inside each man, antagonistic forces are at work: on the one hand, the flesh (man with his chaotic passions, with his tendency towards evil), and on the other the spirit (the noble yearnings that man harbors inside himself, his aspiration to do good, thanks to the Holy Spirit). In this battlefield, which is man, evil tries to win by means of its works in the different spheres of life: in the religious sphere with idolatry and magic; in the social sphere with enmities and discord, rivalry, anger, selfishness, dissent, division and envy; in the personal sphere with intemperance, drinking sprees and binges; in the sexual sphere by means of fornication, impurity and wanton behavior. In this same battlefield, the good, and the Holy Spirit who encourages and fosters it, tries to vanquish evil by means of genuine love, founded on Christ and on his witness; a love which concretely manifests itself through tolerance, kindness, goodness, faith, gentleness and self-control; a love which is enjoyed in true happiness and peace, which is a summary of all forms of good. The battle is real and constant. The victory depends on man, on whether he lets himself be dragged off by evil or whether he prefers to be guided and to let himself be guided by good,

PASTORAL SUGGESTIONS

The image of the heart refers us to and conjures up in our mind love, and the Holy Spirit is the personal Love within the Trinitarian mystery. This is why he is the heart of Christian life. In essence, being a Christian means knowing how to love. And who teaches us the art of loving in a Christian way? Not the books by Ovid, Erick Fromm, or by the latest thinker that has expounded his theories on human love. The art of Christian love is taught to each one of us personally by the Holy Spirit, by placing Christ before our eyes, especially the crucified Christ. The Holy Spirit teaches us the art of loving Christian truth, essentially contained in the Creed and developed with great beauty and authority in the Catechism of the Catholic Church. The Spirit teaches us the art of loving the liturgy of the Church and its sacraments, the source of grace and holiness for each Christian and for all of the Church. The Spirit teaches us the art of loving Christian morality which, with its sometimes difficult demands, pours nobility and dignity, elevation and moral excellence out into all who love and live by it. The Spirit teaches the art of loving prayer and spiritual life, as a safe and effective path to become united with Christ and live the same divine life in the joy of love. If we let the Spirit act freely, he will turn us into genuine and holy men in the Church and at the service of the Church.

The exhortation of Saint Paul embraces the entire life of the Christian, whatever his age and whatever his condition or profession, every day of the week and every hour of the day. Whether you are at home with your parents, in geography class at school, playing basketball, in Church participating in the Eucharistic celebration… behave according to the Spirit. Whether you are involved in difficult work at the office, whether you are happy because you have met a friend that you had not seen for some time, whether you are having fun, whether you have gone to visit your in-laws, whether you have gone out with your family for a walk in the country… let your actions be moved by the Spirit. Whether you are indifferent or sad because you have received some bad news, whether you are overflowing with joy because you have passed an exam with flying colors, whether you have a problem with your husband or wife or your children… invoke the Holy Spirit, ask him for his light and power, let yourself be guided by what he inspires in you. This is what being a Christian is all about! Is it so difficult? If you try with simplicity and confidence, you will know that it is possible. What’s more, it is the source of peace and happiness.

Go to top

CALENDAR | PHOTOS | BIO

HOME PAGE

Pope Francis
Homilies

Pentecost

13 May 2018 | Saint Peter’s Square

The Time of Easter culminates in today’s celebration of Pentecost, centred on the death and Resurrection of Jesus. This Solemnity inspires us to remember and relive the outpouring of the Holy Spirit upon the Apostles and the other disciples gathered in prayer with the Virgin Mary in the Upper Room (cf. Acts 2:1-11). On that day the history of holy Christianity began, because the Holy Spirit is the source of holiness, which is not the privilege of the few, but the vocation of all.

Indeed, through Baptism, we are all called to participate in the same divine life of Christ and, with Confirmation, to become his witnesses in the world. “The Holy Spirit bestows holiness in abundance among God’s holy and faithful people” (Apostolic Exhortation Gaudete et Exsultate, n. 6). God “does not make men holy and save them merely as individuals, without bond or link between one another. Rather has it pleased Him to bring men together as one people, a people which acknowledges Him in truth and serves Him in holiness” (Dogmatic Constitution Lumen Gentium, n. 9).

READ MORE