Pentecost Sunday - May 31, 2009

It's Pentecost Sunday - the Birthday of the Church.
I recently read an old meditation from a book that was quite popular when I was in the seminary (1963-1973) coming from the Year of Grace by Father Pius Parsch.

We all know that the disciples gathered with Mary in the cenacle or the upper room. It was there that Christ celebrated the Last Supper with his apostles. Father Parsch refers to the cenacle as the first Christian church. How appropriately described! The first church where the first followers of Jesus gathered together in prayer awaiting the Holy Spirit! I wonder if they broke bread and poured wine, i.e., celebrated the Eucharist. Generally we remember this time as the first novena - the nine days of prayer between the Ascension and Pentecost Sunday.

The older I get the more attached I become to this Feast Day and the more I come to appreciate the third person of the Blessed Trinity. Maybe such an awareness comes with the maturity of years, the wisdom of experience, the gradual deepening of the spiritual life - maybe I was just too dumb in my youth to understand the importance of the Spirit of God in our lives and in the life of the Church.

Something happened to those gathered in that upper room that day. That same thing continues to happen in all the upper rooms of all the hearts which are open to Sanctifying Grace, the life of the Lord within us. Think for a moment about the last time you practiced a corporal or spiritual work of mercy. In doing so, you responded to the Holy Spirit by moving out of your personal upper room with the message of Pentecost. The act of mercy could not have taken place without the "Divine push" that comes from the Triune God. Be strong in the faith. Be comfortable with who you are. Be open to the Holy Ghost and you won't go wrong.

If anybody actually is reading this today, reflect on the works of mercy. I will list them in the next blog. In the meantime, try to remember them and when you do, it is my assumption that you will find that some you may be actually practicing.