Come Holy Spirit

 When we go into a pick-and-mix store we can often be presented with many attractive lollies. The desire is to fill our bags with goodies and then return home to consume them in our own time. Yet Pentecost is more than just seeking out the gifts that are attractive to us but rather seeing how the Spirit guides us to proclaim the Good News in our own time. It allows us to discover that the Spirit advocates for us to become witnesses.

This enables us to discover the charisms that draw us closer to God and closer to each other. They help us to acknowledge that God does not abandon us or leave us as orphans. God adopts us as children who are formed in God's image and likeness. We become stewards of the graces entrusted to us for the good of all.

Come Holy Spirit, fill the hearts of your faithful and kindle in us the fire of your love. Send forth your spirit and they shall be created and you shall renew the face of the earth. O God who by the light of the Holy Spirit did instruct the hearts of the faithful, grant that by that same Holy Spirit we may be truly wise and ever rejoice in his consolations, through Christ our Lord.

The prelude to mission

 In encountering Jesus along the way the disciple's hearts burned within them and allowed them to experience him at the breaking of bread. This encounter lives on as we prepare to experience Pentecost next Sunday. This is not just a once-in-a-lifetime experience but rather an embodiment of how the early Church experienced the reality of the Holy Spirit. 

He walked alongside them on a road that drew them away from an incident that was full of sorrow and disappointment. They had sought to follow Jesus and had believed that in him all things were possible. Yet their sight was clouded by a vision that had been formed in their own minds and hearts about what God should be doing to proclaim the kingdom. This can be an all too familiar experience in our own lives when we wonder why God seems to be slow to act against injustice and oppression. 

Jesus takes these encounters seriously as he listens to the disciples and their real-life concerns. Yet He also seeks to draw them into a deeper encounter with who he is and invites them to recognize him as he breaks open the Word for them. This is not just reading from a text but a reading of the heart. This is how we can meet Jesus in the Word proclaimed. Their excitement is not just momentary but seeks out a longing deep in their hearts. 

They bring this anticipation of a richer and more fulfilled life to the altar of life where he breaks bread with them. In this moment he shares not only himself but a deeper understanding of themselves as people called to share that life with others. This is the proclamation that Jesus makes at the Ascension and is realized in the outpouring of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost. Jesus emboldens the disciples to become people alive with his vision of proclaiming the Good News to every nation. This is not just a personal gift but a mission for every nation and every generation. We are called to follow Him and proclaim his life to all people and to the whole of creation.

Whom do we preach

Easter is about encountering the Risen Christ. Too often we can settle for an interpretation of who he is rather than discovering how we become one with God  At the heart of the pilgrimage of life we are called to be at one with God. This is the challenge and art of surrendering all that is to God.

On whom do we build our foundations?

 There has been much attention on the coronation of King Charles III in the last few days. In the midst of the pomp and ceremony the question of who we pledge allegiance to has come to the fore. This is a question for all of us and is at the heart of the Gospel reading for this Sunday. Thomas wants to know where they are called to follow in the future and what plans need to be put in place. I have great respect for the questions that Thomas asks because they are often ones that arise from our own hearts. Yet, Jesus responds by pointing to himself by saying that he is the Way, the Truth, and the Life. This can raise fresh questions that come from Philip seeking to see what this looks like and Jesus reassures him that if he has seen him, he has seen the Father.

However, it is this seeking after the person of Jesus that moves us to question on whom we build our foundations. This is not just about reliance on allegiance to an institution but rather on the person who gives substance to our lives. This internal sense that each of our lives finds a calling to discover who guides us and becomes our light to illumine our path. This personal encounter allows us to acknowledge who we listen to and how they shape our own responses to the way we live. Too often we can be drawn by the image that we are real if we are successful, influential, and wealthy. Yet these can be ephemeral and quickly taken from us. To base our lives on these shifting sands can cause us to be swept away by the tide of history. On what will we build our foundations?

I believe it is the simplicity of the Christian life that calls us to become people of prayer, reflection, and action. This model is how we encounter the person who is the Way, the Truth, and the Life. We are called to be people who enter into a relationship with God who seeks to reach out to us and we seek to reach out to God. We are called to ponder where the truth lies in the daily life of seeking God at the heart of all things. This is not just an intellectual assent that can be proclaimed with our lips but rather what captures our hearts with joy and gratitude. From this heartful assent our lives become shaped by who we seek to become.

This is the living stone that allows us to grow in our daily response to God. To become the person that God intends us to be. A daily reflection on our way, our truth, and our life allow us to meet Jesus who is the Way, the Truth, and the Life.