Thirsty for the Holy Spirit

Feast of Pentecost
Today’s Readings: [Click here]

Today we celebrate Pentecost, the last day of the Easter season. Pentecost is the feast day of the Holy Spirit—the day that God’s Spirit came down upon the apostles and the birthday of the church on earth.

The Holy Spirit, of course, is one of the three persons of the Trinity. I think he’s the most mysterious of the three.

God the Father is the person that most people think of as God. I vividly remember having a children’s bible or picture book when I was very young. It showed God with flowing white hair and a beard to match. He sat on a throne and looked very majestic… both intimidating and grandfatherly at the same time. I could relate to that, and that mental image remains with me to this day.

And Jesus, of course—the Second Person of the Trinity—is easy for us to visualize, because besides being divine, he’s human like us. He has a face like us, talks like us, has emotions and feelings like us… except that he’s perfect in every way. The times that I get upset about things in the Church, I try to remember that the human beings who lead and serve the Church—and the human beings who occupy the pews in our churches… none of us are perfect. That perfection is reserved to Jesus Christ. Maybe that’s why even the popes, who can at times exercise their papal office with infallibility, have used that power so few times in 2000 years that you can count them on the fingers of one hand… and only for things that are so well established and widely believed and undisputed, that they’re for all intents and purposes self-evident. Just about everything else always has nuance.

But the Holy Spirit—the Third Person of the Trinity! Now there’s a mystery beyond all mysteries!

The Holy Spirit is the embodiment of God who dwells in our soul. No disrespect, but it’s not like we have to fix up our heart with a tiny La-Z-Boy recliner or a high-definition TV…or stock the fridge with his favorite snacks and drinks! No, the Holy Spirit is a perfect guest—and God’s absolutely free gift to us—and what a gift he is!

Some of us might find it disconcerting, maybe even creepy, to think about, but the fact of the matter is, we live in a world that is more spiritual than physical. As impossible as it is to gauge, if I were pressed, I would say that our world is 90% spiritual and just 10% physical. We focus so predominantly on the physical, because as earthbound creatures, we are tied to the physical: we’ve got to eat, and stay warm, and look out for our health, and earn a living, and have a place to live, and so on and so forth. But when we pass out of this life into eternal life, those physical things won’t matter any more and we’ll see reality as it really is.

Before man’s fall in the Garden of Eden, Adam and Eve didn’t worry about the physical things either. God took care of everything. And that’s how it will be again.

Yet now, in our present state, God continues to take care of everything—just, we may not always realize it. In the spiritual realm, we are constantly being barraged by dangers and temptations and yes, evil spirits. But the Holy Spirit watches out for us by strengthening us against these onslaughts. Remember, the devil’s program to take down the human race is an ongoing effort. He won’t quit until the end of the world. The Holy Spirit is our protector. And frankly, we can’t begin to get enough of his help!

I was reading a spiritual reflection the other morning, and the author said that we should graciously accept God’s gift of the Holy Spirit because (quote) “we have no right to selfishly refuse God and his gift.”

I thought about that and shook my head. No. Don’t “guilt” me into accepting a gift from anybody, including God. Maybe it’s my old advertising training, but sell me the benefits rather than try to ram something down my throat!

Last week in my homily, I said that Jesus wanted the apostles to go out all over the world and preach the good news to all creation. I also said that the Lord realized that it wouldn’t be easy to sell salvation, because people can be afraid or stubborn or skeptical. Well, here it is again!

Do you want the Holy Spirit? You see, that’s the first question you must ask yourself. In St. John’s gospel, Jesus says, “If anyone is thirsty, let him come to me and drink. Whoever believes in me, as the Scripture has said, streams of living water will flow from within him. By this he meant the Spirit…” (Jn 7: 37-39).

So, I ask again: are you thirsty? Do you wish you could have a closer friendship and more intimate relationship with God? Is your life partially or totally a mess, and you know it’s going take more than dumb luck or human power to fix things? These are signs that God the Holy Spirit is knocking softly at your door, asking if you’ll let him in.

The beauty of the Holy Spirit is that you don’t have to tell him how to solve the issues in your life. He doesn’t need your specs or blueprint… or even your ideas and suggestions. I love Paul’s words in his letter to the Romans: “The Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groans that words cannot express. And he who searches our hearts knows the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for the saints in accordance with God’s will (Rom 8: 26-27).

In other words, all you need to do—ALL you need to do—is pray: God, come into my life. God, help me.

May that be our joyful, hopeful prayer—for ourselves and for the whole world—on this, the great feast of Pentecost. Or in the beautiful, mystical and beloved words of the Church:

Come, Holy Spirit. Fill the hearts of your faithful and enkindle in them the fire of your love. Amen! Alleluia!

Go Out and Proclaim the Good News

The Feast of the Ascension
Today’s Readings: [Click here]

You’ve probably heard of Eton College, one of the most famous prep schools in England. It’s the high school that Prince William and Prince Harry both attended, as did quite a few of the future British Prime Ministers of the past several centuries. Needless to say, Eton is steeped in aristocracy and many rich traditions.

One interesting custom is celebrated every Ascension Day—the feast we commemorate today. For more than 500 years on this day, at dawn, the school choir climbs onto the roof of the college chapel and has a special service of hymns and prayers. The boys of Eton College think it’s great fun to run up the long flights of stairs and then get to stand so high up and gaze out across the surrounding countryside, especially at that hour of the day when most people are still asleep.

In case you’re wondering what the significance is of the rooftop service, the original intent was to try to get as close as possible to heaven—the place that Jesus ascended to. In those days, heaven was thought of as a physical place high up in the sky, where God sits on a mighty throne, surrounded by angels with big wings and haloes and dressed in white from head to toe.

While that description of heaven may be beautiful, it’s probably more Hollywood than reality. The Church’s modern interpretation is that heaven is more of a state of being, or a dimension of existence, than a physical place. For example, the Catechism of the Catholic Church explains: “Heaven is the ultimate end and fulfillment of the deepest human longings, the state of supreme, definite happiness. To live in heaven is ‘to be with Christ’” (Cat. 1024-25).

What this all means is that the real importance of the feast of the Ascension is not so much how or where Jesus returned to his Father, but in the fact that before he did so, he commanded the eleven disciples—the original twelve less Judas, of course—to go out on a lifelong mission to evangelize. Jesus said to his disciples: “Go into all the world and proclaim the good news to all creation.”

The gospel, or the good news, is the core and foundation of our faith: that God created the entire world… people sinned and corrupted it… so in his profound love and compassion, God sent his Son into the world to redeem us by taking our sins upon himself and paying the penalty for our transgressions. The resurrection of Christ at Easter is proof of our forgiveness. And what makes the news so good—and the reason why Jesus insisted that his disciples spread the gospel far and wide—is that through our belief and our baptism, each and every one of us can participate first hand in this wonderful gift from God… and ultimately be admitted to the joys of heaven for ever with God… so Christ wanted as many people as possible to hear about it from people they knew and trusted.

You’d think that giving people news of such a wonderful offer would be an easy sell… but guess what? Human nature being what it is, people can be skeptical… and stubborn… and even feel threatened. Jesus anticipated that, too. That’s why he promised the disciples that they would receive power from the Holy Spirit. This came to pass on Pentecost, the feast we’ll celebrate next Sunday… and most of us tap into this divine power when we receive the sacrament of Confirmation.

Jesus’ command on the feast of the Ascension—to go out into all the whole world and preach the good news—is meant for all of us, too. By “us” I mean all people who have been baptized. Christ wants us all to be part of a faith bucket brigade. It is our responsibility and duty to impact other people so they will be drawn to God, too.

Now think about what that means in terms of how we should do this.

A lot of people, unfortunately, think that evangelizing means fire and brimstone. They like to dwell on the negative aspects of our faith. The things that make us better than other people… the reasons why someone shouldn’t dare to take communion… all the ways one can get sent to hell… the terrible judgments we make on other people (in the name of Christ, of course)…

I don’t know about you, but those are not things that come across as “good news”! Those are not things that would make me want to find out more about your God.

Instead, let me recommend the famous approach attributed to St. Francis of Assisi. He said, “Preach the gospel at all times. If necessary, use words.”

In other words, live your life in such a way that it witnesses the power, the goodness and most of all the love of God. Be kind. Be tolerant. Be humble. Be gentle. Be forgiving. Be patient. Be accepting and understanding.

That’s how you plant God’s seeds. That’s what makes people say, “Wow. If that’s what it is to have Jesus Christ in your life, then I want it, too.” That’s what it means to go out into the whole world and proclaim the good news. The saints understood this. That’s how another St. Francis—St. Francis de Sales—made another often-quoted remark: “You can catch more flies with a teaspoon of sugar than a whole barrel of vinegar.”

On this wonderful feast day, let our prayer be that the Lord will give us the grace and courage and wisdom to live and preach the good news in our daily lives wherever we may be—at home, at work, in school, in our free time—by our words, by the example of our lives, and especially by the kind and loving way we behave towards others.

Mother's Day 2007

The 6th Sunday of Easter
Today’s Readings: [Click here]

All across our land, people are celebrating Mother’s Day today. It’s a joy to welcome so many mothers from our parish; it’s especially nice that you can be surrounded today by your family. We bless you all and pray for you!

And for those of us whose mothers have gone home to God, we lovingly remember them and pray for them on this special day.

If your Mom lives far away and you can’t be together, at least call on the phone. You’ll really love the excitement in her voice when she accepts the charges.

I think my favorite Mother’s Day story comes from Erma Bombeck. She once wrote how she had to stay in bed while her husband and kids fixed breakfast for her. She said she heard the dog bark, and then one of the older children shouted, “Hey! Get his paws out of there. Mom has to eat that!”

Yeah: you mothers have to put up with a lot. But hopefully all the grief and frustrations are worth it when your children give you a hug and tell you they love you… or when they grow up to be pretty darn nice people and make you proud.

You may remember that one of the really nice descriptions of the family is the “domestic church”—in other words, the church at home. This is the “church church”; you’ve got the “domestic church.” And in this little church of yours, you mothers are right up there—top management. In my house, Maggie is the highest ranking woman; she’s a cardinal.

During this Easter season, we’ve been hearing a lot of readings from the Acts of the Apostles—that book of the bible that talks about the beginnings of the church. I thought that these texts, including today’s reading, are actually pretty insightful for mothers trying to steer their domestic churches.

We’ve been hearing how Paul and Barnabas brought the good news of Jesus Christ to people who never heard it before and were instructing them in the faith. You mothers do exactly the same when you teach your children about God! You teach them how to pray, how to celebrate many wonderful religious customs, how to love God and please him… and sometimes, you even get to share some of this with your children’s friends who may not learn it in their own homes.

Acts goes on to explain how the apostles strengthened the spirits of the disciples and encouraged them to persevere in the faith—reminding them that sometimes people have to endure troubles and trials in this life on the way to heaven. Don’t mothers have to do the same thing—constantly? How many times do you have to encourage your family and comfort them when things go wrong? You dry tears and turn a lot of frowns upside down. What a beautiful ministry of God, to bring joy and the courage to go on, to those you love!

And I love it how today’s text says: “It is the decision of the Holy Spirit and of us not to place on you any burden beyond” the most necessary things. Isn’t that just like a loving mother to do everything she can to lift up her children and make life as sweet as possible? In fact, last week, we read that Paul and Barnabas prayed and fasted for the people. Another wonderful parallel! What mother is there who doesn’t pray for her children—that God may protect them, watch over them, heal them, bless them and help them in so many different ways? What mother doesn’t make sacrifices for her kids—from staying up all night with a sick child to taking the food out of her own mouth to feed her hungry ones?

And then, of course, Acts continues by telling how Paul and his companions traveled all over the Mediterranean—from city to city, port to port—sometimes under the most difficult and exhausting conditions—to further their mission. You mothers hardly do less! Many of you rush all over God’s green earth running errands, taking the kids shopping, driving them to sports meets and games, dance recitals, 4H shows—you name it—all in the name of love.

Yes, your domestic church is every bit as much work—and maybe even more—than this church.

I think it’s a beautiful thing to remember, especially on Mother’s Day, that God is with you. Just the way the Lord is the “big boss” of our church, he’s also the big boss of the domestic church. He’s Our Father in heaven who loves us so much… created us in all in love just the way he wanted us… and will keep his loving eyes on us and his angels with us every moment of every day as long as we live.

In a special way, he has also given us the Blessed Virgin Mary to watch over us and help us from heaven. You’ve heard her exquisite titles in the church’s beloved litanies. Think about some of them today, on Mother’s Day—and especially when you could use a little heavenly aid: Mother of divine grace… Mother most pure… Dearest of mothers… Model of motherhood… Mother of good counsel… Virgin most wise… Virgin most powerful… Virgin gentle in mercy… Comfort of the troubled… Cause of our joy… Queen of peace…

God did not make his apostles or his popes or his bishops or his cardinals or any of his church leaders perfect. He didn’t give any of them an easy road. And it’s exactly the same with mothers.

Don’t beat yourself up for your weaknesses, but put your problems and yourself in God’s hands to draw strength and power from him. You be the glove; let him be the hand that slips inside to make everything work.

That is his plan—his perfect plan… a plan that takes you to carry out.

May God bless you always and fill all our mothers with his abundant grace. Amen.

Blessed Imelda and First Holy Communion

The 5th Sunday of Easter
Today’s Readings: [Click here]
We are very blessed this weekend to celebrate First Holy Communion at St. Lawrence Parish. Soon, two precious children will come before God’s holy altar and receive the Lord for the very first time. This is a day they will remember and lovingly think back on for the rest of their lives.

But First Communion is not so much a once-in-a-lifetime occasion as it is a beginning: the start of wonderful journey through life with Jesus Christ. We will love him, and he will love us back. It’s a lot like a wedding. Sure, the wedding celebration is a great thing—a moving ceremony, a festive party, lots of fun and laughter with so many friends and relatives—but much more importantly, it’s the very beginning of the new couple’s life together… their journey through life with their best friend and beloved partner at their side.

Our children have been preparing for a long time to receive Jesus Christ. We pray that the Holy Spirit has truly touched their hearts.

One of the patron saints of fervent first communions is Blessed Imelda, who came out of one of the oldest families of Bologna, Italy. Her father was a count and her mother a contessa. She lived in the early 1300s.

Even as a very young girl, Imelda loved to pray. Her parents let her make a little chapel for herself in their house, which she decorated with holy pictures and flowers. She spent many happy hours there.

When she was 9 years old, she begged her parents to let her enter a Dominican convent so she could live with the nuns and be trained by them. Her mother and father permitted it, and Imelda was overjoyed. She loved spending time adoring the Blessed Sacrament at mass and in the tabernacle. She had a wonderful, sunny disposition, and everyone loved her.

Imelda’s life of prayer and adoration made her long to receive holy communion… but she was still too young. In those days, the rule of the Church was that a child had to be 12 years old to take communion.

When Imelda was 11, in the year 1333, she went with the nuns to the Ascension Day Mass. All the others had received their communion; only Imelda was left unsatisfied. When mass and thanksgiving were over, the nuns were starting to leave the chapel when lo and behold, something very amazing happened.

The sisters were startled to see a sacred communion host floating in the air above Imelda’s head, while the girl was kneeling in prayer in front of the closed tabernacle. Quickly, the nuns ran for the priest. Father came with a paten to receive this mysterious host. The priest was so moved by this miracle, that he could do no less than give it to Imelda then and there as her First Holy Communion.

As it turned out, Imelda’s first communion was also her last. Her heart was so enraptured with love, that she sank unconscious to the ground, and when loving hands pulled her up, they found that she was dead.

The lesson of Blessed Imelda is a beautiful one for all of us. Wouldn’t it be incredible and magnificent if each of us could be that devoted to Jesus Christ and to our own communions!

I’m sure you all know the famous golfer, Tiger Woods. Did you ever notice that he’s a head-to-toe Nike man? He wears Nike shoes, clothing, gloves, hats—and he even uses the Nike Precision Tour Accuracy golf ball when he plays.

St. Paul wrote in his letter to the Colossians that we, as God’s chosen people, must dress “head-to-toe” in Christ’s wardrobe. Paul wrote: “Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly beloved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience” (Col. 3: 12).

What a great way to celebrate and commemorate First Holy Communion—or any holy communion, for that matter!—with a firm resolution to be Christ-like… to dress head-to-toe in Jesus’ virtues.

Yes, First Communion is much more than a milestone or a great celebration day. It is a special day to pledge your love to Jesus for ever and ever—and promise to love God and your neighbor as much as you can. Whether you’re 8 or 88, you should be trying to do that every day.

This is exactly what Christ tells us in the gospel today: “I give you a new commandment: love one another. As I have loved you, so you also should love one another.”

Let us bless God for giving us his Son to be our model, our savior and our spiritual food. May every communion—from your first to your last—strengthen you, fill you with joy and peace, and help you clothe yourself head-to-toe in Jesus Christ. Blessed Imelda, pray for us! Amen!