“Lord, send out your Spirit and renew the face of the earth” we sing on this the Solemnity of Pentecost. This feast celebrating the coming of the Holy Spirit is often called the birthday of the Church. Our Lord ascended to the Father and instituted the Church to carry on his mission guided by the Holy Spirit until he comes again.
The presence of the Holy Spirit permeates all the sacraments. Friday I had the privilege of ordaining six men to the priesthood for our diocese, a great blessing for us all. Those seeking to be ordained must declare before God that they really desire ordination by responding to a series of questions. The very first one is: “do you resolve with the help of the Holy Spirit to discharge without fail the office of the priesthood”. It is an admission that we are not solo performers but that we need the guidance and the help of the Holy Spirit whatever our vocation.
We are unable to adequately envision the Holy Spirit. The dove, wind and bursts of fire have been used to reflect the presence of the Holy Spirit. There is a tradition at the famous Pantheon in Rome which was a pagan Greek temple that became a church dedicated to Mary. Rose petals are dropped through the roof into the church to symbolize the coming of the Holy Spirit upon Mary and the Apostles. The petals are then gathered and thrown into the air in celebration of the enveloping of the Church by the Holy Spirit. My guess is that those who experience this tradition with greater joy go out for a wonderful Italian meal.
In the Mothers Garden just outside this Cathedral the peonies are blooming. Peonies have been called the Pentecost rose. They blossom but soon their petals blow off with a strong South Dakota wind. It is another intriguing symbol but there is no adequate way to describe the Holy Spirit. However like the wind we know its presence by the impact He makes.
The Gospel reading details that special moment in the Upper Room when the resurrected Lord appeared and breathed the Spirit on those gathered there. This moment has practical meaning for us today. First it declares the fulfillment of the promise of the Messiah as the prophets had foretold to come to save us from our sins and to give us new life. Secondly by showing his wounds, the marks of the cross, Our Lord makes clear that his passion and death were necessary for the Father’s plan to allow His love to come and remain in the Spirit. And finally by the commissioning of the Apostles with power through the Holy Spirit the possibility of our sins being forgiven today through the Church is made certain.
Clearly the Apostles who had cowered in fear and wonderment in the Upper Room were changed when the Spirit was breathed upon them. As a result they accepted their new mission to share the Good News of the risen Lord with joy and courage even to martyrdom.
St. Paul in the reading from the Corinthians reminds us that we are one in the Spirit. He was writing to reassure and encourage unity to a community, not unlike our own, arguing among itself as to who was the most gifted, who was the most wise who was the most faithful, who was number one. In response he compared the church to the human body with its many parts. The body would not be whole without each unique part, and each part would not be effective without all the rest. And so it is with the Church. We all have a role to play.
Our gifts are different, so our task in Christ’s Church will differ as well. Some are called to a vocation of holy orders. Others are called to the equally meaningful vocations of married life, single life and religious life. Within each of these there are differing ways of living for Christ when empowered by the Holy Spirit.
The story is told that the artist Whistler while a cadet at West Point was assigned in engineering class to draw a bridge. He drew a river with grassy banks and a beautiful stone bridge with two small children fishing from it. “Get those children off that bridge,” he was told. “This is an engineering project.” Whistler redrew the bridge, this time with the children fishing from the bank of the river. “I told you to get rid of those children, completely out. That’s an order.” The creative urge was too strong for the artist. His next version did have the children completely out of the picture. There on the river bank were two small tombstones. A military career was not his but he discovered his unique gift as an artist, and created the famous icon to motherhood called Whistler’s mother.
We each receive the Holy Spirit in baptism which is deepened in the sacrament of confirmation. I have the privilege of ministering the sacrament of confirmation to several thousand young people each year. I remind them that the Holy Spirit dwells within them for the rest of their lives, to be called upon as guide and counselor, or to be ignored. The choice is theirs, and ours.
Some of you may recall the great football player for Michigan named Tommy Harmon, whose son is the actor Mark Harmon. He was piloting a bomber over a jungle in Brazil during World War II. He and three companions were forced to bail out. Protected by his parachute he landed safely in a tree but did not know where he was. With the help of a compass he struggled eastward in the direction of the sea through a jungle filled with twisted vines, snakes and swamps. Finally he spotted a path and followed it to a hut where a native showed him the way out. When asked how he survived when others had not, he said, “The Holy Spirit dwells in my soul. He was given to me when the bishop confirmed me. I kept praying to the Holy Spirit to lead me. I also prayed the rosary. I must have said a million Hail Mary’s. I was sure that the Holy Spirit and the Blessed Mother would lead me back to safety.” In this day of difficult challenges, dangers and doubts, direct and subtle, we can pray to the Holy Spirit and the Blessed Mother to lead us to safety.
On this Pentecost, this birthday of the Church, let we pray for unity in the Church and for the peace Our Lord offered the Apostles. May we pray: Lord send out your Spirit and renew the face of the earth. Lord send out your Spirit and renew me.