Message from the Pastor

“As the Father has sent me, so I send you.” And then He breathed on them and said, “Receive the Holy Spirit.” (John 20:21-22)

Today ends the holy and life-giving season of Easter. A season that has continued to be filled with both joy and challenges. Today we come to the Solemnity of Pentecost. The feasts of Christmas and Easter so often overshadow the great and wondrous Solemnity of Pentecost. This is not to remove the importance of those two solemnities but rather to see them in connection with the entire message of salvation history God has revealed in Jesus. 

Jesus has risen from the dead and ascended to the Father, and today we mark the fulfillment of Jesus’ promise in sending the Holy Spirit upon the believers.

We hear in the Scriptures the marvelous works that were accomplished in the power of the Holy Spirit. People could hear the Apostles’ message in their own tongues and speak in different languages; the sick were healed, the dead raised, and sins forgiven. WOW, how amazing and great is our God that He gives us the ability to act and to do miraculous things in His name! And that is what we MUST realize…we DO HAVE THAT POWER.

At our baptism, we had the Holy Spirit breathed upon us. And because of that, we can do wondrous things in the name of Jesus. St. Paul tells us today that there are many parts to the Body of Christ; different gifts; various forms of service, BUT one Spirit. These gifts are from God and are called to be used for the glory of His name and for the good of all. What can stymie us, at times, is thinking that our gifts are not important or, even worse, comparing them to the gifts others have received. That is certainly the Evil One attempting to chip away at our confidence so that our gifts will be hidden away instead of being shared. How sad is that! Sad for ourselves and certainly sad for the Church.

In Jesus, the Father has gifted each of us, and in being gifted, we are called to share those gifts with the community. To be able to do so, we must BELIEVE that the Holy Spirit received at that First Pentecost is the same Spirit, in all His power, that we received at Baptism and Confirmation.

When we embrace the Holy Spirit, wonderful things can be accomplished through us. But it takes faith, faith that we do have the Holy Spirit. It takes prayer to open us up to the voice of Jesus, and, most importantly, we must believe that we are called and graced by God. A tall order for sure, but so freeing and empowering when it happens. Do not let this Pentecost pass without reflecting on the awesome power of the Holy Spirit that was “breathed on us.” What is the Holy Spirit asking of you today?

As our Elementary School eighth graders and High School seniors prepare for graduation, my prayer for them is that the Lord Jesus may fill them with the Holy Spirit so that, in all they do, they profess the Lordship of Jesus.  

In Jesus, our Risen Lord,
Fr. Bob