Pentecost (C)
Pentecost. The outpouring of the Holy Spirit upon the infant Church. The proclamation of the Gospel to devout Jews gathered for the first major Jewish feast after Passover. Some people scoff and sneer at the proclamation. Others, cut to the heart, ask what they must do, and come to believe and are baptized.
Pentecost is presented to us as not only a beginning, but also as a summary of what the Apostles would do – and the responses they would get – throughout the Acts of the Apostles. Pentecost is also a template for us. It reveals to us the foundations of our own vocations, whatever they may be, and shows us how we are to live out our vocations in union with the Lord and His Church. It shows us what the Holy Spirit does for us, the responses we are likely to get in living out our vocations, and also how the Spirit helps our faithfulness to Him bear great fruit.
We begin by noting that this great outpouring of the Holy Spirit, which results in thousands being baptized, is not the result of some carefully-laid plan by the Apostles. It is the fruit of waiting in prayer for the coming of the Holy Spirit. The task given to the infant Church was enormous: to announce the Good News of what God has done in Christ to all Israel and then to the entire Gentile world. Yet, these first Christians were also told to wait in faith and hope for the gift of the Holy Spirit, promised by Christ.
They wait in faith. The task they have been given is beyond their own abilities. They realize that the Church is the Lord’s. It is ultimately the Lord who builds His Church. They look to Him for guidance, wisdom and strength. They look to His Holy Spirit for the love and joy , inspiration and boldness they will need to be faithful to the task ahead.
Throughout the Acts of the Apostles, the Holy Spirit leads the way. The Spirit works through the martyrdom of Stephen and the subsequent persecution of the Church to spread the word to others. Philip is led to the Ethiopian eunuch. Peter is led to the Gentile Cornelius and his household. Even Saul of Tarsus, that notorious persecutor of Christians, is chosen by the Holy Spirit to bring the Gospel to many lands. The Holy Spirit often steers Saul, soon known as Paul, in this direction or that, so that he might preach here or there.
At the same time, the Holy Spirit works with the gifts and talents of the people He chooses. We find a fascinating choreography in the Scriptures between God’s initiative and human efforts. As an example in the Old testament, look at the story of Gideon in the Book of Judges. Gideon is called by God to free Israel from the power of the Midianites. Gideon puts out a call, and large numbers of Israelite men join him. God then tells Gideon that there are too many men! Gideon must thin the ranks, once and then again, so that there can be no question that God will win the victory for them. This Gideon does. But see that God does not then tell Gideon what to do, nor does God act in some spectacular way to defeat the Midianites. No, God waits to see what Gideon will do. Gideon devises a clever ruse. He and his men approach the Midianites at night, under cover of darkness, and make a great racket, to give the impression that there are many more of them than there are. Seized with terror, the Midianites begin to fight one another. The Midianite army destroys itself. God wins the victory for Gideon and for Israel, but not in a way anyone would have guessed. We see how there is an intricate connection between God’s initiative and the genius of Gideon which Gideon places at God’s disposal.
We look now to Paul and his missionary work in the New Testament. As scholars have pointed out, Paul was himself a scholar by training and not one accustomed to manual labor. Yet he chooses the craft of tentmaking as the means of supporting himself in his missionary travels. This was a clever move on Paul’s part. As a tentmaker, Paul’s customers would be mainly travelers who could give him valuable information about other cities he would visit, and be first contacts for him in those cities. Again, we see the intricate interplay between the Holy Spirit’s initiative and the genius of Paul. Both would be in play in Paul’s ministry.
We also note the wide scope of this outpouring of the Holy Spirit on Pentecost. The people gathered for the feast are all Jews – no pagans or Gentiles yet – but they are described as “devout Jews from every nation under heaven”. Moreover, those who hear the Apostles’ preaching hear them speak in their native language. The Good News is announced to all, and all can understand it. Throughout the Acts of the Apostles, we see Peter and Paul and the other Apostles striving to do just this: to announce the Good News of Christ to everyone in a way that all can best understand it.
How does all this impact how we live our lives as faithful Catholic Christians?
First of all, we remind ourselves that the Holy Spirit leads the way. It is the Lord who builds His Church. He knows our challenges and needs. He knows what gifts the Church needs in order to be faithful to its mission. And He provides. However, He does not always provide what WE think the Church needs, but He always provides what HE knows that the Church needs. There is a difference. If someone has a genuine vocation from the Holy Spirit that does not fit into our diocesan pastoral plan in any obvious way, is the person wrong? Is the Holy Spirit wrong? Or is it our diocesan vision that is too narrow and that needs to be broadened by the Holy Spirit? Who really is in charge, anyway? Are we merely giving lip service to the Holy Spirit, or are we truly ready to do His will?
Secondly, there is this interplay, this dance, between the Holy Spirit and the gifts and talents of the people He chooses. Like Gideon, we may believe ourselves called upon by the Lord to do a certain ministry. But what then? Do we keep on waiting for God to somehow spell it out for us in total clarity before we do anything? Do we wait for some obviously miraculous action by God? Or do we begin in faithful love, offering Him the best of what He has given us, asking for His guidance, but then doing our best based on what we see and know? We begin, offering God our best, always ready if He should steer us in some other way, but trusting that if our intention is to do His will, He will not fail to help us.
Thirdly, we remember that the Good News is meant for everyone, and is meant to be proclaimed in a way that each can understand. Do we strive to announce the Good News today to everyone? Are there those among us who have never heard the Good News, because no one has told it to them in a way they can understand? We meet people who are young and old; men and women; scholars and manual laborers; people with various psychological and physical conditions; people who have suffered various kinds of abuse; people of every ethnic background. Are we striving to tell all of them the Gospel message in ways each can understand? Do we use all the tools at our disposal to do this? Is anyone being forgotten or left out? If so, what can we do to correct this?
Pentecost. The outpouring of the Holy Spirit. This day is not meant to be only the commemoration of an event that happened nearly two millennia ago. No, this is meant to be a template for us as well. The same Holy Spirit is just as ready to rush upon us and through us as He was ready to act in and through those first Christians. Do we trust that He will lead the way? Do we offer our gifts and talents in His service? Do we do our best to proclaim the Gospel to everyone in ways that all can understand? If we are committed to this, then we will see Pentecost happen, again and again, as the Holy Spirit pours through us to give love and hope and salvation to all who will believe through our ministry!