The Solemnity of the Pentecost

Today is a red letter day for the Catholic Church as it is Pentecost Sunday or, officially, the Solemnity of the Pentecost, which traditionally comes 50 days after Easter Sunday, which comes 40 days after Ash Wednesday. The Feast of the Pentecost is one of the oldest feasts in Christianity for it was the fulfillment of the promise of our Lord Jesus Christ that when he returns to the Father, he will send the Advocate or the Holy Ghost to always be with us throughout the end of time. You can read this Gospel in John 29:19-23.

“19 On the evening of that first day of the week, when the doors were locked, where the disciples were, for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood in their midst and said to them, “Peace be with you.” 20 When he had said this, he showed them his hands and his side. The disciples rejoiced when they saw the Lord. 21 [Jesus] said to them again, “Peace be with you.” 22 And when he had said this, he breathed on them and said to them, “Receive the Holy Spirit.23 Whose sins who forgive are forgiven them, and whose sins you retain are retained.”

As my readers already know, I’ve never been schooled in Theology nor was I ever in the Seminary, hence I really don’t know why the reading today is about our Lord Jesus Christ breathing the Holy Spirit, when in fact the reading for Pentecost Sunday should be in Acts 2: 1-11. Because the Lord said that the Holy Spirit could only come after he returned to the Father. But in fairness to our Magisterium, Acts 2:1-11 is being read in the 1st reading during today’s Holy Mass. So allow me to reprint that passage.

“1 When the time for Pentecost was fulfilled [the disciples] were all I one place together. 2 And suddenly there came from the sky a noise like a strong driving wind, and it filled the entire house in which they were. 3 Then there appeared to them tongues of fire, which parted and came to rest on each one of them. 4 And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in different tongues, as the Spirit enabled them to proclaim.

5 Now there were devout Jews from every nation under heaven staying in Jerusalem. 6 At this sound, they gathered in a large crowd, but they were confused because each one heard them speaking in his own language. 7 They were astounded, and in amazement they asked, “Are not all these people who are speaking Galileans? 8 Then how does each of us hear them in his own native language?

9 We are Parthian, Medes, and Elamites, inhabitants of Mesopotamia, Judea and Cappadocia, Pontus and Asia. 10 Phrygia and Pamphylia, Egypt and the districts of Libya near Cyrene, as well as travelers from Rome, 11 both Jews and converts to Judaism, Cretans and Arabs, yet we hear them speaking in our own tongues of the mighty acts of God.”

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Perhaps the disciples did not give any importance when our Lord Jesus Christ breathed the Holy Spirit to them in the Upper Room. They were perhaps too amazed that their Master, Jesus Christ had returned back from the darkness of death standing before them complete with the scars on his body and on his side. Also, they probably remembered that the Holy Spirit would only come when our Lord returned to the Father.

But 10 days after our Lord Ascended into Heaven, the disciples were again in the Upper Room with the doors locked and the Holy Spirit came to them in a driving wind and on top of their heads, appeared as tongues of fire. The greater miracle for them was that they could now understand each other’s languages, which was a great gift of the Holy Spirit so that they could preach the gospel to every nation and people.

As Catholics, we’ve heard many priests talk about the coming of the Holy Spirit so many times before and we’ve read about this in the Bible. But I never thought that the Holy Spirit was truly with us or around us until I took a Life of the Spirit Seminar (LSS) back in 1998 and what I just reprinted here from Acts 2:1-11 is exactly the description of the coming of the Holy Spirit into my soul. Thus, you can say that it was during my LSS when I had my “Damascus experience.” How I wished that you too could experience an encounter with the Holy Spirit.

Pentecost Sunday is also considered the birthday of the Catholic Church because on Pentecost Sunday, our Blessed Virgin Mary was there and St. Peter already took on his role as the first Pope. With Pentecost Sunday, our Lord’s mission on earth is fulfilled and the Holy Spirit took over to guide us and give us wondrous seven gifts, Wisdom, Counsel, Fortitude, Understanding, Knowledge, Piety and Fear of the Lord. Each one of us has one or more of these gifts, it is up to us to use it to benefit the poor.

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