Homily for Pentecost - Back to the Future

[InThePew]

Pentecost takes us back, back to the future; back to the original creation but unlike that creation Pentecost isn’t about creating something out of nothing, it is instead about us being recreated, being transformed into something new, something far greater than we were before .

In the original creation, as we hear at the beginning of the book of Genesis, God’s spirit hovers over the deep; end, in the original Hebrew, the words for spirit and breath are the same ruah. Next, God speaks creation into being. God’s word is act; God speaks, and things happen. God says. “let there be light”, and there was. So, God speaks the word (the Son) in the spirit, the breath of God goes out from them, bringing forth new life.

It’s the same in the gospel; Jesus, the word, speaks to his disciples not just wishing them peace but giving them peace, making them peaceful. Then, just as the Father breathed life into Adam, so too Jesus breathes the Spirit into his disciples; inspiring them, giving them the breath of God, giving them new life enabling them to become a new creation.

This is powerful stuff; before, the disciples were walled off from the world, fearful and afraid, but now they become emboldened believers, proclaiming the gospel freely and forcefully. More than this, the Good News they proclaim, resonates in the hearts of those who hear it without being limited by language. In this symbolic undoing of Babel, divisions are overcome, and the foundations laid for the upbuilding of the Kingdom; far greater than any tower, to give glory to God and not to man.

This is what it means to be Church. It’s not about buildings but about people; a people called out by God and assembled together as one; inspired by the Spirit with different gifts to equip them for the mission entrusted to us all, the mission we heard in last week’s gospel, to make disciples of all nations that they all may be one.

As we begin to emerge from lock down, this message means more now than before, because in coming back together we understand more the importance of communion and community; our relationship with Christ and with one another - many parts of one body.

Taking up our tools and returning to the task of building up the Kingdom, we have an opportunity to leave behind divisions and struggles and look forward with hope and faith to the future, strengthened by the spirit. We also know our failure to love and need for forgiveness both now and in the future; a forgiveness we find always in the sacrament of reconciliation, where our sins are not simply forgiven but wiped away by the Holy Spirit sent among us for the forgiveness of sins by God, the Father of Mercies.

On this day, we celebrate the simple fact that the love of God has been poured into our hearts through the Spirit of God dwelling within us. This Spirit, given to us in baptism, and strengthened in confirmation, brings us back together to become one body, one spirit in Christ; never forgotten, always forgiven, and eternally loved.

 

[stpurl]

I really liked that; it resonates with us, a Christian people.

If I may offer one thought, probably something that more of your older parishioners would feel; it is true that we are part of The Church (some of us tend to wince a bit at “we are Church” from the English grammar point of view) and it is true that the Church is not limited to a building, I.e. St. Mary Church or whatever.

But many people tend to think that precisely because we are not limited to ‘building’ that the building itself is superfluous or unnecessary. And there is an idea that a consecrated, “sacred space” in a physical Church building is no ‘more’ than the general universe itself, “I can worship God anyway, I don’t need a physical building” which has led to so many Catholics thinking their Sunday obligation no longer requires them to attend a Catholic Church.

So rather than saying “it’s not about buildings’ perhaps one could say, “it is not simply about the church building of a parish, but also. . .”

I hope you don’t mind my sharing this thought with you. Thank you again for sharing your homily!

 

[OurLadyofSorrows]

Thankyou for posting this homily, I really enjoyed it.

 

[CRV]

Thank you Father for sharing your homily with us. I appreciated your linking various biblical events together showing the connections. Gods’ plan is Masterful indeed.

 

[InThePew]

So rather than saying “it’s not about buildings’ perhaps one could say, “it is not simply about the church building of a parish, but also. . .”

I hope you don’t mind my sharing this thought with you. Thank you again for sharing your homily!

Not at all - all contributions gratefully accepted! Tbh, the idea of “we can worship God anywhere” wasn’t really in my thoughts when I was preparing this homily, although the idea of people being more important than anything else in the sense of over-emphasized equality (if that makes sense) did. Certainly, it’s true that the idea of a sacred space, set apart and dedicated for worship is important - far too few churches are consecrated any more, instead they’re just “blessed” or “opened”. At the same time, what I wanted to emphasise is the whole notion of the Church as an assembly (ekklēsia) of those called out by God to come together in his name. In this way, the church, as a building is simply a starting off point for our mission (or, alternatively, perhaps, a place together for the purpose of “retooling” and “regrouping” before resuming the mission). Certainly though, the idea of "we can worship God anywhere’ runs counter to this since it places the emphasis on us as individuals ("my worship’ and “your worship”) instead of as members of a community which goes back to the whole idea of unity versus division - though many, we are together; though diverse, we share the same mission and are parts of the one body.