SETTING THE WORLD ON FIRE

Happy birthday to one and all!

It’s the anniversary of the Church’s birth and we celebrate the power of the wind and fire that breathed life into the first fathers of our Christian faith.

In one sudden, dramatic breath Pentecost transformed fearful followers into a multilingual force of evangelists. Doors were flung open, the apostles marched out, the Good News was passionately proclaimed and thousands were set ablaze with a new faith in God.

Jesus’ Church on Earth was born; glory be to God!

Thirty-plus years before that, a baby boy in a tiny town was born, destined to be King of all people’s hearts. It was a quiet birth, unmarked by anyone except a few people from two opposite stations of life: the shepherds and the Magi. His Gospel spread as He went around Galilee, teaching the locals.

Thirty-plus years on, after His death and resurrection, the King was born anew in the hearts of people everywhere, of all stations of life, this time as the evangelical Word was transmitted throughout the whole world.

That’s what we thank the Holy Spirit for today: making it possible for us, far away from Galilee, to be as close to Jesus as the apostles were as we live and breathe the same faith. The same force of God that descended on us, too, at our Sacrament of Confirmation, giving us the full outpouring of the Holy Spirit as once granted to the apostles on the day of Pentecost (CCC 1302).

Each year our birthdays roll around, we take stock of how we’ve grown over the past year. This Pentecost Sunday is no different. As it’s our spiritual birthday, we should be considering whether we’ve grown a little more in the past year, and how. And if we don’t have much to show in the way of progress, well, today’s a perfect day to resolve to act like the apostles and change our world!

Definitely, we all can say, ‘Jesus is Lord’, so we know we’re already under the influence of the Holy Spirit, as St Paul tells the Corinthians. But acclaiming it isn’t enough. Lots of people do, then go out and make something else their lord.

The Holy Spirit, like any good birthday guest, didn’t come empty-handed to the party. He gave out gifts, and each of us got something different. Personalised. With our name on it. Doesn’t that show the particular care and attention of a loving Father to His individual children?

On top of that, He didn’t leave us with no idea how to use that gift. He made Himself a home right within our own spirit, to show us what to do with that gift to make ourselves and His world a better place.

We just have to ask Him for help. And then take right action, also with His help.

That’s a reassuring thought. Sometimes we want to do the right thing but we get in our own way and we fail to act with courage, or with the right language. We use what God has given us in the wrong way. Maybe we even abuse it, with devastating consequences. There are people seemingly blessed by the Lord with skills of communication or leadership or intelligence leading others down a path of destruction or damnation. Just like there are those today applying their God-given gifts with fortitude, patience, kindness, to shine a light on His path so people can find it through the darkness of the world.

We have to be that light for others. The Holy Spirit came in a rush of wind and fire, setting the hearts of the apostles on fire. Maybe we won’t have as dramatic an effect. But working hand-in-hand with the Holy Spirit in daily prayer, constant checking in to see if we’re doing the right thing, asking for courage, strength, and patience, we can learn to apply His gifts in the right way to continue the work of Jesus, the Son. 

That first birthday, Jesus gave personal gifts to His disciples, too: His own peace, and the Holy Spirit, which He breathed out on them. Individually they were so different, but they all accepted the Great Mission and successfully accomplished it, because they stayed in the Holy Spirit and carried Jesus’ peace with them.

To build our parish and our Church, we have to do the same.

Pentecost reverses the picture at Babel. At Pentecost, the unity in diversity spread God’s kingdom outwards, not upwards. Hubris didn’t reign among the disciples; humility did, as well as a passion to obey God’s Word. Anyone and everyone who believed in Jesus Christ was accepted into the faith. It was a level playing field, no tower of exclusivity in sight. The difference between the two events was that one focused on selfish, self-centred living, and the other on selflessness and service to others.

Maybe we’ve been shying away from taking on this mission, flagging in perseverance in tough times, letting the world overcome our spirit. Or maybe we’re lacking the courage to live as Jesus’ disciples, staying quietly behind our own locked doors, or wanting a foot both on the secular road and on the path of salvation.

Today gives us a chance to reignite the flames of our faith. Since it’s our collective birthday, today we could ask God for one more gift: that He will rouse us from apathy or fill us with courage; that He will support the small steps we take each day to live like Jesus; and that He will help us to willingly allow His Spirit to act in us, especially when we’re tempted not to listen or follow.

Whether or not our earthly parents have given us reason to celebrate every year, we can thank God for this birthday and for having us in this one family. And as part of this family, we want to do our part to fill His world with believers. This week, we can act on that by first asking ourselves:

1. How can I use my specific gift to serve someone?

2. Who do I need the Holy Spirit's help with to forgive, or to ask forgiveness from?

3. What locked room in my life is Jesus trying to enter today?

4. How can I speak or act with the language of love towards someone I have an issue with?

5. How can I communicate differently to different people so that they all hear and see God’s love for them in me?

6. How can I bring Jesus’ peace to someone?

And as you walk into the new week, make this prayer to the Spirit of God:

Holy Spirit, Advocate and Comforter,

When the disciples were afraid, You did not wait but entered their locked room.

Enter the places in my heart where I am stuck or fearful today.

Breathe strength into my weariness and kindle the fire of my faith.

Grant me the courage to forgive and the wisdom to speak words of peace.

Renew me, so that I may help renew the world.

Amen.

May the Pentecostal fire of the Holy Spirit fan the flame in your hearts, so that you go forth and set the world on fire with love for God!

Article by Joyce Norma, HFC Blog Contributor