St James Catholic Church

Our fifty-day season of Easter concludes with the celebration of the coming of the Holy Spirit. On Pentecost, we celebrate God’s constant presence in all who believe, for we trust that the Holy Spirit remains with us always, guiding our lives, animating our souls, and flowing through us to bear fruit in the world. Indeed, today and every weekend the Holy Spirit draws us together to give thanks and praise to God for the wonderous gifts we have been given.

It’s impossible to see the wind. What we see is the movement of things it blows, like the trees or flags, and feel the movement of air on our skin. It’s equally impossible to see the movement of the Holy Spirit. But we can sense that movement by the effect on those through whom the Spirit is flowing. Interestingly, in the Acts, Luke twice uses the word glossa, meaning “tongue,” to describe the movement of the Holy Spirit on that first Pentecost. He writes that “tongues as of fire” appeared on each of the twelve. There he writes that the Holy Spirit enabled them to proclaim God’s mighty acts in different tongues. All of Jerusalem sensed something special, for they realized that no matter their tongue, they could understand the apostles’ words. Here in this place, we can see the movement of the Holy Spirit no more than we can see the wind, but we can perceive it through the ways the Spirit acts upon us.

We sing in today’s psalm, “Lord, send out your Spirit, and renew the face of the earth.” How does the Spirit renew the face of the earth?     St. Paul tells the Corinthians that the Holy Spirit can forge unity from the deepest divisions: Jews and Gentiles, between free persons and slaves. Surely, we can identify sharply divided groups today who would be better off finding unity. Paul tells the Romans that the Spirit brings the One who raised Jesus from the dead to dwell in us, while bearing witness that we are children of God. The Holy Spirit dwells not only in me but also my neighbor making us sisters and brothers, again, finding unity among diverse people. Through this ongoing process the Holy Spirit continues to renew the face of the earth.

Love, Peace, Joy,

Fr. Bob