Catholic Caucus: Sunday Mass Readings, 06-12-11, Solemnity, Feast of Pentecost at the Vigil

USCCB.org/New American Bible ^ | 06-12-11 | New American Bible

[Salvation]

June 12, 2011

 

Pentecost Sunday
At the Vigil Mass

 

Reading 1
Responsorial Psalm
Reading 2
Gospel

Reading 1

Gn 11:1-9
The whole world spoke the same language, using the same words.
While the people were migrating in the east,
they came upon a valley in the land of Shinar and settled there.
They said to one another,
“Come, let us mold bricks and harden them with fire.”
They used bricks for stone, and bitumen for mortar.
Then they said, “Come, let us build ourselves a city
and a tower with its top in the sky,
and so make a name for ourselves;
otherwise we shall be scattered all over the earth.”

The LORD came down to see the city and the tower
that the people had built.
Then the LORD said: “If now, while they are one people,
all speaking the same language,
they have started to do this,
nothing will later stop them from doing whatever they presume to do.
Let us then go down there and confuse their language,
so that one will not understand what another says.”
Thus the LORD scattered them from there all over the earth,
and they stopped building the city.
That is why it was called Babel,
because there the LORD confused the speech of all the world.
It was from that place that he scattered them all over the earth.

or

Ex 19:3-8a, 16-20b

Moses went up the mountain to God.
Then the LORD called to him and said,
“Thus shall you say to the house of Jacob;
tell the Israelites:
You have seen for yourselves how I treated the Egyptians
and how I bore you up on eagle wings
and brought you here to myself.
Therefore, if you hearken to my voice and keep my covenant,
you shall be my special possession,
dearer to me than all other people,
though all the earth is mine.
You shall be to me a kingdom of priests, a holy nation.
That is what you must tell the Israelites.”
So Moses went and summoned the elders of the people.
When he set before them
all that the LORD had ordered him to tell them,
the people all answered together,
“Everything the LORD has said, we will do.”

On the morning of the third day
there were peals of thunder and lightning,
and a heavy cloud over the mountain,
and a very loud trumpet blast,
so that all the people in the camp trembled.
But Moses led the people out of the camp to meet God,
and they stationed themselves at the foot of the mountain.
Mount Sinai was all wrapped in smoke,
for the LORD came down upon it in fire.
The smoke rose from it as though from a furnace,
and the whole mountain trembled violently.
The trumpet blast grew louder and louder, while Moses was speaking,
and God answering him with thunder.

When the LORD came down to the top of Mount Sinai,
he summoned Moses to the top of the mountain.

or

Ez 37:1-14

The hand of the LORD came upon me,
and he led me out in the spirit of the LORD
and set me in the center of the plain,
which was now filled with bones.
He made me walk among the bones in every direction
so that I saw how many they were on the surface of the plain.
How dry they were!
He asked me:
Son of man, can these bones come to life?
I answered, “Lord GOD, you alone know that.”
Then he said to me:
Prophesy over these bones, and say to them:
Dry bones, hear the word of the LORD!
Thus says the Lord GOD to these bones:
See!  I will bring spirit into you, that you may come to life.
I will put sinews upon you, make flesh grow over you,
cover you with skin, and put spirit in you
so that you may come to life and know that I am the LORD.
I, Ezekiel, prophesied as I had been told,
and even as I was prophesying I heard a noise;
it was a rattling as the bones came together, bone joining bone.
I saw the sinews and the flesh come upon them,
and the skin cover them, but there was no spirit in them.
Then the LORD said to me:
Prophesy to the spirit, prophesy, son of man,
and say to the spirit:  Thus says the Lord GOD:
From the four winds come, O spirit,
and breathe into these slain that they may come to life.
I prophesied as he told me, and the spirit came into them;
they came alive and stood upright, a vast army.
Then he said to me:
Son of man, these bones are the whole house of Israel.
They have been saying,
“Our bones are dried up,
our hope is lost, and we are cut off.”
Therefore, prophesy and say to them: Thus says the Lord GOD:
O my people, I will open your graves
and have you rise from them,
and bring you back to the land of Israel.
Then you shall know that I am the LORD,
when I open your graves and have you rise from them,
O my people!
I will put my spirit in you that you may live,
and I will settle you upon your land;
thus you shall know that I am the LORD.
I have promised, and I will do it, says the LORD.

or                                                                      

Jl 3:1-5

Thus says the LORD:
I will pour out my spirit upon all flesh.
Your sons and daughters shall prophesy,
your old men shall dream dreams,
your young men shall see visions;
even upon the servants and the handmaids,
in those days, I will pour out my spirit.
And I will work wonders in the heavens and on the earth,
blood, fire, and columns of smoke;
the sun will be turned to darkness,
and the moon to blood,
at the coming of the day of the LORD,
the great and terrible day.
Then everyone shall be rescued
who calls on the name of the LORD;
for on Mount Zion there shall be a remnant,
as the LORD has said,
and in Jerusalem survivors
whom the LORD shall call.

 

---

Ps 104:1-2, 24, 35, 27-28, 29, 30

Responsorial Psalm

R. (cf. 30) Lord, send out your Spirit, and renew the face of the earth.
or:
R. Alleluia.
Bless the LORD, O my soul!
O LORD, my God, you are great indeed!
You are clothed with majesty and glory,
robed in light as with a cloak.
R. Lord, send out your Spirit, and renew the face of the earth.
or:
R. Alleluia.
How manifold are your works, O LORD!
In wisdom you have wrought them allC
the earth is full of your creatures;
bless the LORD, O my soul!  Alleluia.
R. Lord, send out your Spirit, and renew the face of the earth.
or:
R. Alleluia.
Creatures all look to you
to give them food in due time.
When you give it to them, they gather it;
when you open your hand, they are filled with good things.
R. Lord, send out your Spirit, and renew the face of the earth.
or:
R. Alleluia.
If you take away their breath, they perish
and return to their dust.
When you send forth your spirit, they are created,
and you renew the face of the earth.
R. Lord, send out your Spirit, and renew the face of the earth.
or:
R. Alleluia.

 

---

Rom 8:22-27

Reading II

Brothers and sisters:
We know that all creation is groaning in labor pains even until now;
and not only that, but we ourselves,
who have the firstfruits of the Spirit,
we also groan within ourselves
as we wait for adoption, the redemption of our bodies.
For in hope we were saved.
Now hope that sees is not hope.
For who hopes for what one sees?
But if we hope for what we do not see, we wait with endurance.

In the same way, the Spirit too comes to the aid of our weakness;
for we do not know how to pray as we ought,
but the Spirit himself intercedes with inexpressible groanings.
And the one who searches hearts
knows what is the intention of the Spirit,
because he intercedes for the holy ones
according to God’s will.

 

---

Jn 7:37-39

Gospel

On the last and greatest day of the feast,
Jesus stood up and exclaimed,
“Let anyone who thirsts come to me and drink.
As Scripture says:
Rivers of living water will flow from within him who believes in me.”

He said this in reference to the Spirit
that those who came to believe in him were to receive.
There was, of course, no Spirit yet,
because Jesus had not yet been glorified.

[Salvation]

Lauds -- Morning Prayer

Morning Prayer (Lauds)

If this is the first Hour that you are reciting today, you should precede it with the Invitatory Psalm.

---

Introduction

O God, come to my aid.

  O Lord, make haste to help me.

Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit,

  as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be,

  world without end.

Amen. Alleluia.

---

Hymn

Come, Holy Ghost, who ever one

Art with the Father and the Son,

Come, Holy Ghost, our souls possess

With thy full flood of holiness.

In will and deed, by heart and tongue,

With all our powers, thy praise be sung;

And love light up our mortal frame,

Till others catch the living flame.

Almighty Father, hear our cry

Through Jesus Christ our Lord most high,

Who with the Holy Ghost and thee

Doth live and reign eternally.

---

Psalm 62 (63)
Thirsting for God

How good and how kind, O Lord, is your Spirit in us! Alleluia.

O God, you are my God, I watch for you from the dawn.

My soul thirsts for you, my body longs for you.

I came to your sanctuary,

  as one in a parched and waterless land,

  so that I could see your might and your glory.

My lips will praise you, for your mercy is better than life itself.

Thus I will bless you throughout my life,

  and raise my hands in prayer to your name;

my soul will be filled as if by rich food,

  and my mouth will sing your praises and rejoice.

I will remember you as I lie in bed,

  I will think of you in the morning,

for you have been my helper,

  and I will take joy in the protection of your wings.

My soul clings to you; your right hand raises me up.

Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit,

  as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be,

  world without end.

Amen.

How good and how kind, O Lord, is your Spirit in us! Alleluia.

---

Canticle	Daniel 3

All creatures, bless the Lord

Let every spring of water bless the Lord; let everything that lives in water sing a hymn to God. Alleluia.

Bless the Lord, all his works,

  praise and exalt him for ever.

Bless the Lord, you heavens;

  all his angels, bless the Lord.

Bless the Lord, you waters above the heavens;

  all his powers, bless the Lord.

Bless the Lord, sun and moon;

  all stars of the sky, bless the Lord.

Bless the Lord, rain and dew;

  all you winds, bless the Lord.

Bless the Lord, fire and heat;

  cold and warmth, bless the Lord.

Bless the Lord, dew and frost;

  ice and cold, bless the Lord.

Bless the Lord, ice and snow;

  day and night, bless the Lord.

Bless the Lord, light and darkness;

  lightning and storm-clouds, bless the Lord.

Bless the Lord, all the earth,

  praise and exalt him for ever.

Bless the Lord, mountains and hills;

  all growing things, bless the Lord.

Bless the Lord, seas and rivers;

  springs and fountains, bless the Lord.

Bless the Lord, whales and fish;

  birds of the air, bless the Lord.

Bless the Lord, wild beasts and tame;

  sons of men, bless the Lord.

Bless the Lord, O Israel,

  praise and exalt him for ever.

Bless the Lord, his priests;

  all his servants, bless the Lord.

Bless the Lord, spirits and souls of the just;

  all who are holy and humble, bless the Lord.

Ananias, Azarias, Mishael, bless the Lord,

  praise and exalt him for ever.

Let us bless Father, Son and Holy Spirit,

  praise and exalt them for ever.

Bless the Lord in the firmament of heaven,

  praise and glorify him for ever.

Let every spring of water bless the Lord; let everything that lives in water sing a hymn to God. Alleluia.

---

Psalm 149
The saints rejoice

The apostles spoke in different tongues and proclaimed the wonderful deeds of God. Alleluia.

Sing a new song to the Lord,

  his praise in the assembly of the faithful.

Let Israel rejoice in its maker,

  and the sons of Zion delight in their king.

Let them praise his name with dancing,

  sing to him with timbrel and lyre,

for the Lord’s favour is upon his people,

  and he will honour the humble with victory.

Let the faithful celebrate his glory,

  rejoice even in their beds,

the praise of God in their throats;

  and swords ready in their hands,

to exact vengeance upon the nations,

  impose punishment on the peoples,

to bind their kings in fetters

  and their nobles in manacles of iron,

to carry out the sentence that has been passed:

  this is the glory prepared for all his faithful.

Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit,

  as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be,

  world without end.

Amen.

The apostles spoke in different tongues and proclaimed the wonderful deeds of God. Alleluia.

---

Short reading	Acts 5:30-32 ©

It was the God of our ancestors who raised up Jesus, but it was you who had him executed by hanging on a tree. By his own right hand God has now raised him up to be leader and saviour, to give repentance and forgiveness of sins through him to Israel. We are witnesses to all this, we and the Holy Spirit whom God has given to those who obey him.

---

Short Responsory

They were all filled with the Holy Spirit, alleluia, alleluia.

– They were all filled with the Holy Spirit, alleluia, alleluia.

And they started to speak.

– They were all filled with the Holy Spirit, alleluia, alleluia.

Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit.

– They were all filled with the Holy Spirit, alleluia, alleluia.

---

Canticle	Benedictus

The Messiah and his forerunner

Receive the Holy Spirit. Those whose sins you forgive, they are forgiven. Alleluia.

Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel,

  for he has come to his people and brought about their redemption.

He has raised up the sign of salvation

  in the house of his servant David,

as he promised through the mouth of the holy ones,

  his prophets through the ages:

to rescue us from our enemies

  and all who hate us,

to take pity on our fathers,

  to remember his holy covenant

and the oath he swore to Abraham our father,

  that he would give himself to us,

that we could serve him without fear

 – freed from the hands of our enemies –

in uprightness and holiness before him,

  for all of our days.

And you, child, will be called the prophet of the Most High:

  for you will go before the face of the Lord to prepare his path,

to let his people know their salvation,

  so that their sins may be forgiven.

Through the bottomless mercy of our God,

  one born on high will visit us

to give light to those who walk in darkness,

  who live in the shadow of death;

  to lead our feet in the path of peace.

Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit,

  as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be,

  world without end.

Amen.

Receive the Holy Spirit. Those whose sins you forgive, they are forgiven. Alleluia.

---

Prayers and Intercessions

With firm faith let us pray to Christ the Lord, who has gathered his Church together by the Holy Spirit:

– Lord, renew the face of the earth.

Lord Jesus, when you were raised on the cross you poured rivers of living water from your side:

  pour out the Spirit upon us and make us live.

– Lord, renew the face of the earth.

Lord Jesus, when you were raised to God’s right hand in glory, you bestowed the Father’s gift on your disciples:

  send forth the Spirit to make this world new.

– Lord, renew the face of the earth.

Lord Jesus, you gave the Apostles the power, in the Spirit, to forgive sins:

  wipe out sin from the world.

– Lord, renew the face of the earth.

You promised that the Holy Spirit would teach us everything and make us understand everything you had said:

  send forth your Spirit to illuminate our faith.

– Lord, renew the face of the earth.

You promised to send the Spirit of truth to bear witness to you:

  send forth your Spirit to make us faithful witnesses.

– Lord, renew the face of the earth.

---

Our Father, who art in heaven,

  hallowed be thy name.

Thy kingdom come.

  Thy will be done on earth, as it is in heaven.

Give us this day our daily bread,

  and forgive us our trespasses,

  as we forgive those who trespass against us,

and lead us not into temptation,

  but deliver us from evil.

---

Lord God,

  you sanctify your Church in every race and nation

  by the mystery we celebrate on this day.

Pour out the gifts of the Holy Spirit on all mankind,

  and fulfil now in the hearts of your faithful

  what you accomplished when the Gospel was first preached on earth.

[We make our prayer] through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,

  who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit,

  God for ever and ever.

Amen.

---

May the Lord bless us and keep us from all harm; and may he lead us to eternal life.

AMEN

[Salvation]

The Word Among Us

Meditation: Acts 2:1-11

Pentecost

They were all filled with the Holy Spirit. (Acts 2:4)

Happy Pentecost! Today we celebrate the coming of the Holy Spirit, and Luke gives us a dramatic picture of the event: The Spirit came upon the apostles with a “strong driving wind” and with “tongues as of fire” (Acts 2:2,3).

It is clear, as you read Chapter 2 of Acts, that something radical happened in the lives of the apostles when they were filled with the Spirit. They were filled with excitement and began speaking all about Jesus and his resurrection. Their hearts were burning with love for the Lord and with a desire to share his good news with everyone. They were so excited, in fact, that many of the people who saw them assumed that they were drunk!

But then Peter took the lead. He told the people how Jesus was nailed to a cross, “But God raised him up, releasing him from the throes of death, because it was impossible for him to be held by it” (Acts 2:24). Peter’s words cut the people to the heart, and they asked what they should do. Peter’s answer was simple and direct: “Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins; and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit” (2:38). Many of the people took his words to heart and were filled with the Spirit that day. And so the church was born!

This story tells us that Pentecost is meant to be experienced. The Spirit wants to burn the knowledge of God’s love and mercy into our hearts. He wants to fill us with the same joy that the apostles knew— the joy of our salvation and the joy of knowing Jesus. As we feel this joy, we will yearn for God’s presence every day, and we will want to avoid everything—every sin—that would separate us from him and his love.

“Lord, fill us all anew with your Holy Spirit. Melt us with your fire, and refresh us with your wind. May our lives be changed today— forever!”

---

Questions for Reflection or Group Discussion

(Acts 2:1-11; Psalm 104:1,24,29-31,34; 1 Corinthians 12:3-7,12-13; John 20:19-23)

1. The first reading describes the moment when the Holy Spirit “came to rest” on each one of the disciples. Witnesses are described as “confused”, “astounded” and “in amazement.” Each of us, as baptized Catholics, has also received the Holy Spirit. Do you believe there is enough evidence in your life to “convict” you of being a Christian with the Holy Spirit indwelling you? Do you believe that the Lord wants to give you a deeper infilling of his Spirit? How can this happen?

2. The responsorial psalm says the Holy Spirit will “renew the face of the earth”. What in your life would you like the Holy Spirit to renew?

3. The second reading says that spiritual gifts are given to each of us for the benefit of others. What spiritual gifts have you received from the Holy Spirit that can benefit your family, your parish, and others? How are you using them?

4. The second reading also uses the metaphor of a body to describe our Church, “and all parts of the body, though many, are one body.” In Christ, all differences are united. How tolerant are you of other members of the body of Christ who are different than you? What steps can you take, individually or with a group, to bring more unity to your parish? Are you also willing to reach out to non-Catholics Christians as well? Why or why not?

5. In the Gospel, Jesus’ first words to the disciples after his resurrection were words of consolation and reassurance: “peace be with you.” Following his example, what practical steps can you take this week to bring the Lord’s love, comfort, and peace to others? What are the obstacles in you that keep you from witnessing God’s love to others? How can you overcome them?

6. The meditation tells us that “Pentecost is meant to be experienced.” What do these words mean to you? In what specific ways would you have the Holy Spirit manifest himself more powerfully in your life?

7. Take some time now to pray for a deeper infilling of the Holy Spirit. Use the prayer at the end of the meditation as the starting point.

[Salvation]

A Christian Pilgrim

WITH THE COMING OF THE HOLY SPIRIT, EVERYTHING CHANGES

(A biblical reflection on the DAY OF PENTECOST, Sunday June 12, 2011) 

First Reading: Acts 2:1-11 

Psalms: Ps 104:1,24,29-31,34, Second Reading: 1Cor 12:3-7,12-13; Gospel Reading: Jn 20:19-23 

The Scripture Text

When the day of Pentecost had come, they were all together in one place. And suddenly a sound came from heaven like the rush of a mighty wind, and it filled all the house where they were sitting. And there appeared to them tongues as of fire, distributed and resting on each one of them. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance.

Now there were dwelling in Jerusalem Jews, devout men from every nation under heaven. And at this sound the multitude came together, and they were bewildered, because each one heard them speaking in his own language. And they were amazed and wondered, saying, “Are not all these who are speaking Galileans? And how is it that we hear, each of us in his own native language? Parthians and Medes and Elamites and residents of Mesopotamia, Judea and Cappadocia, Pontus and Asia, Phrygia and Pamphylia, Egypt and the parts of Libya belonging to Cyrene, and visitors from Rome, both Jews and proselytes, Cretans and Arabians, we hear them telling in our own tongues the mighty works of God.” (Acts 2:1-11 RSV)  

Fifty days ago we celebrated Jesus’ resurrection from the dead. But what difference would His resurrection have made had He not also poured out His Spirit? It is the Holy Spirit who reveals Jesus to us and makes our redemption a living reality in our hearts. It is the Holy Spirit who makes us shares in the life of God and empowers us to live as His children. Today, we celebrate Pentecost. This is perhaps the Church’s most exciting feast day of the year, for the Holy Spirit animates and makes real everything we believe. How wonderful are the fulfilments that took place on that day! How faithful God is to His promise to save His people. 

With the coming of the Holy Spirit, everything changes. We are refreshed and filled with love. Dwelling in us, the Holy Spirit bears witness to our hearts that we are children of God (Rom 8:15-16). The Spirit of God prays in us (Rom 8:26). He guides us in the truth (Jn 14:26). He empowers us to serve the Lord in love (Rom 7:6). He transforms us, developing His wonderful fruits in our lives (Gal 5:22-23). 

This feast is also connected to Jewish worship in the Old Testament. For ancientIsrael, Pentecost – fifty days after Passover – was a feast during which the whole community thanked God for the first fruits of the early harvest (Deut 16:9-12). Over time, it came to be observed also as a feast of thanksgiving for the Torah, the Law received by Moses onMount Sinai. 

Jesus has fulfilled the words of the Old Testament. He alone was able to please God the Father. Now, the Holy Spirit has come. He has inaugurated the harvest of all God’s people. Now, the covenant, written so long ago on tablets of stone, can be written deep in our hearts. We have a wonderful hope! All that is impossible for us according to our natural ability is made possible by the Holy Spirit’s power and grace. Let us open our hearts to the Holy Spirit today and welcome Him more deeply in our lives. 

Short Prayer: Lord Jesus, send Your Spirit upon us, and renew the whole world. Lord, we pray, by the power of the Holy Spirit, that You would come and save us and that You would come again in glory!” Amen. 

[Salvation]

 

Marriage = One Man and One Woman

Daily Marriage Tip for June 12, 2011:

“There are different forms of service but the same Lord” (1 Cor. 12:5). Equality doesn’t mean sameness. As males and females we are differently made. As human beings we have unique talents and personalities. How does your spouse “serve” your family and the community?

[Salvation]

Sunday Scripture Study

Pentecost Sunday

June 12, 2011

Click here for USCCB readings

Opening Prayer  

First Reading: Acts 2:1-11

Psalm: 104:1,24,29-31,34

Second Reading: Romans 8:22-27

Gospel Reading: John 20:19-23

• This Sunday’s Gospel is a reading that we just heard on the 2^nd Sunday of Easter. For this Pentecost Sunday, therefore, we will instead be looking at the First Reading for this Sunday, taken from the Acts of the Apostles.

• The setting is at Jerusalem in the upper room where the Last Supper had been held. It is10 days after the Ascension, at which time Jesus had left them specific instructions (Acts 1:45). About 120 people, including Mary, were present. It is the time of the Jewish feast of Pentecost.

• Pentecost, or the Feast of Weeks (in Hebrew, Shavout), was one of three major Jewish pilgrim feasts, celebrated seven weeks after Passover (Deuteronomy 16:16). Devout Jews from all over the known world would be in Jerusalem for these two feasts (verses 9-11). Originally a harvest festival where God’s people would offer him the first fruits (best part) of the harvest, it came to be also a commemoration of the giving of the Law to Moses on Mt. Sinai on the fiftieth day after the Exodus from Egypt (from the Greek Petekoste, meaning “fiftieth”).

• Christians now celebrate Pentecost as the “birthday” of the Church, and a celebration of the giving of the New Law of the Spirit written on the hearts of believers (Jeremiah 31:31-34; 2 Corinthians 3:4-6) as was promised to the Apostles by Our Lord (John 15:26;16:13; 20:22, Luke 24:49).

 

QUESTIONS:

• Even though as Christians, we have “the first fruits of the Spirit” (2^nd Reading, verse 23). How is it, then, that we are “groaning within ourselves as we are awaiting adoption” [by God]? How do verses 24 through 26 help to answer this?

• What was the original meaning of the Feast of Pentecost for Jews (Deuteronomy 16:9-10)? What theological significance did they add to this feast? Why do you think God chose the Jewish Feast of Pentecost to give the Holy Spirit to the Church? What is the meaning of Pentecost for Christians (Acts 2:32-33; CCC 715)?

• How far have these pilgrims come (verses 9-11)? What attracts them to the disciples? Would you respond more like those in verse 12 or those in verse 13? Why?

• When have you experienced an empowering from God to witness about Christ?  How does being filled with the Spirit relate to bearing witness about Christ?

• Have you ever had a strong religious conversion experience? If so, how did your behavior change, and what did your family and friends think about it? What did you think about it?

Closing Prayer

Catechism of the Catholic Church: §§ 2623, 696, 1287, 715

 

Those who are led by the Holy Spirit have true ideas; that is why so many ignorant people are wiser than the learned. The Holy Spirit is light and strength.

–St. John Vianney

[Salvation]

A Glass of Water on the Altar

Pastor’s Column

Pentecost Sunday

June 12, 2011

 

          Let’s suppose for a moment that I have placed a glass of water on our altar.  What might your first reaction to this glass sitting there be? That it should not be there!  As a matter of fact, the altar is a holy place.  It is the place where the Holy Spirit comes down like a dove during the Eucharistic prayer and changes ordinary bread and wine into the Body and Blood of Christ. This same Spirit flows out like water to you, the body of Christ, when you look on him or adore him, believe in him, and then consume him, and he becomes like fire within you. 

          All of what I have just described that God is doing is invisible.  This is why not everyone on earth believes what we believe!  But still we are left with a glass of water on the altar.  Actually, this glass of water tells us a lot about why God chooses to remain invisible to our bodily eyes (this analogy is taken from the words of Pope Benedict XVI).  There is no doubt that there is a glass of water on the altar.  It is a simple fact.  So what’s the point?

          God is not going to plop himself down -- on the altar – or in this world –- or in our lives – like this glass of water, because this would completely take away our freedom to choose, and that is exactly what we are here to do.  Life is just one little choice after the other, ending in that final choice for or against God at the end of our lives.  But if God made his actions so obvious that we could not avoid knowing he really exists, like you could not help but see the glass is a reality, then we would no longer be free to say no to God either.

          This explains why the Lord, at present, appears to be hidden, though he is in fact very real.  His Holy Spirit really will descend like a dove on this altar; he really will flow like water out from here into your hearts; he really will blow like the wind in the words of scripture; he wishes to put a fire in your heart.  But we must want this; we must ask for the gift of faith; we are free to reject these gifts.  He will almost never make himself so obvious in YOUR life or OUR church or THIS world that we have NO CHOICE but to accept him!

          You and I are like a glass of water on the altar.  You are the glass and the Holy Spirit is the water.  We are a vessel that God keeps trying to mold and expand and shape all our lives.  He does this through suffering; through experiences; through the scriptures; through the church; through our service to each other, and in many other ways.   At the moment of death, the size of this glass -- your soul -- will be set forever.  Then God will perfect the glass and fill it in heaven.  But we will not all have the same size of glass (though we will all be as full as we are able to be), and that is why it is so important to try to cooperate with the Holy Spirit now during this brief life, once we understand what he is trying to do.  The level of spiritual maturity that we have reached at the moment of death is the level that we shall be perfected at for all eternity.  The Holy Spirit may not be as obvious as this glass of water is on the altar, but he is no less real.  

                                                                                Father Gary

[Salvation]

Pentecost: Our Exposive God

Nasa: suface of the Sun

Acts 2: 1-11
1 Cor 12: 3b-7,12-13  http://www.usccb.org/nab/061211b.shtml
John 20: 19-23

Now and then we see pictures of large hotels, old hospitals, many storied parking garages, or tall unsightly smoke stacks rigged with explosive charges top to bottom. At the count of “3-2-1” the structure explodes in a deafening boom and crashes to the ground in a cloud of dust and debris. What was formerly a grand edifice is now a pile of rubble so that something new and more imposing or efficient can be built in its place. At one time it might have been difficult to imagine that this hotel or tall tower or freeway bridge could be replaced. But through the skills of engineers and more intricate building plans something better, sturdier, more beautiful and useful now takes its place.

This weekend we celebrate an explosion of sorts; a release of divine power that enters with great fanfare. The old has been replaced by a new birth; a fresh but ever present power of God is released on the world. We hear in the first reading, “Suddenly there came from the sky a noise like a strong driving wind . . . then there appeared to them tongues as of fire, which parted and came to rest on each one of them . . .” (Acts 2: 2-3). The Apostles are filled with this blast of power from heaven as the Holy Spirit is made present to them in wind and fire. This Spirit, whose breath was present at the creation of the world, now takes a specific role as the guide and protector of the Church universal.

Like the sometime gawkers at the destruction of a building, the crowds outside the room where the Apostles were gathered, heard the sound of the wind and they were “astounded and in amazement . . .” This show of divine power is only to be made more wondrous as the Apostles speak in “different tongues” and the international crowd outside hears them, “in his native language . . .” God powerfully expands his presence in the world so the new Church may be built upon the foundation of ancient faith. Jesus’ mission expands outward and the age of the Spirit is inaugurated.

By contrast this show of divine fire from above takes a more gentle form in the Gospel. Jesus appears to his Apostles through locked doors of the room where the disciples were barred shut in fear. Here, there is no wind, fire or ecstatic speech. There is only the gentle word of the risen Christ, “’Peace . . . As the Father has sent me, so I send you’ . . . he breathed on them and said to them, ‘Receive the Holy Spirit. Whose sins you forgive are forgiven . . . whose sins you retain are retained.” (Jn 20: 19-23).

Here the presence of the Spirit is shown not through impressive special effects but rather through the warm breath of the living Christ. Through the presence of Peace which takes away the fear of the disciples and offers the healing power of forgiveness. The command to forgive, to reconcile and to heal is given to these men as the core of the message of Christ. That mission, that Spirit of hope is to be taken beyond the confines of their hide-out to “the ends of the earth.”

So, Pentecost is the beginning of a new perspective – from a small point to an expansive vision for all humankind in Christ. It is a truly “Catholic” moment for the Christian Church because of its universal and inclusive implications. From Jerusalem Jesus sent his missionaries out to the larger world and since that moment, the sending has never stopped. Each generation carries the torch like Olympic runners who pass off the fire to the next runner. Today's challenge to Christian morality and threats to life, marriage, and the dignity of the human person are formidable forces which call for a new flame of the Spirit's truth. A broken world surely needs to be reconciled to God.

In the Sacrament of Reconciliation we celebrate not our sinfulness but the breath of the Spirit through the forgiveness of sin as Jesus offers to his Apostles today. Forgiveness heals isolation and in a true sense brings us home within the family of the Church where we find Christ present in Word and Sacrament. Here we share in the mission of Christ as we make him present in the world through the love and service of our daily lives.

In the end it is God’s work, of course, that we do. Baptized in the name of the Trinity, Father, Son and Holy Spirit, we are called to be signs of reconciliation and hope. God has energized his presence in explosive ways and each one of us can be a flame giving warmth to a cold world.

As we hear in Confirmation, may we be "sealed with the gift of the Holy Spirit." This is one flame we pray will burn us.

 

Fr. Tim

[Salvation]

Gifts of the Holy Spirit

Wisdom - desire for the things of God, and to direct our whole life and all our actions to His honor and glory
Understanding - enable us to know more clearly the mysteries of faith
Counsel - warn us of the deceits of the devil, and of the dangers to salvation
Fortitude - strengthen us to do the will of God in all things
Knowledge - enable us to discover the will of God in all things
Piety - love God as a Father, and obey Him because we love Him
Fear of the Lord - have a dread of sin and fear of offending God

(www. our lady's warriors.org)

[Salvation]

Insight Scoop

A Scriptural Reflection on the Readings for Pentecost Sunday, June 12, 2011 | Carl E. Olson

Readings:
• Acts 2:1-11
• Psa. 104:1, 24, 29-30, 31, 34
• 1 Cor. 12:3b-7, 12-13
• Jn. 20:19-23

After many years of leading a weekly Bible study at my parish I am more convinced than ever of a simple fact: if you do not appreciate the Old Testament, you will fail to understand nearly anything and everything in the New Testament. The New Testament is like a treasure chest of priceless jewels, but without the map of the Old Testament, it is very difficult to find and open that chest. Saint Augustine put it this way: “The New lies hidden in the Old and the Old is unveiled in the New.”

Today’s reading from The Acts of the Apostles, which describes a pivotal, transforming event in the early Church, is a perfect case in point. Even though The Acts of the Apostles and the third Gospel were written by a Gentile, Saint Luke, they are deeply rooted in the history and beliefs of the Jewish people. And Luke assumed that his readers would know and appreciate the key events, beliefs, and practices of the Jews.

First, there is the feast of Pentecost, which the Israelites called “the feast of weeks”, a reference to the seven weeks from the Passover to the celebration of Pentecost (cf., Lev 23:9-21; Deut 16:9-12). The number seven signified completion and fullness. Originally, the feast focused on giving thanks for the harvest; it later was associated with the giving of the Law on Mount Sinai, traditionally believed to have occurred fifty days after the first Passover in Egypt. The description of the coming of the Holy Spirit upon those in the Upper Room is concise, but is clearly meant to invoke a connection to the great theophanies, or appearances by God, that took place on Mount Sinai (also known as Mount Herob), which were accompanied by noises from heaven, strong winds, and fire (Ex 19:16-19; 1 Kngs 19:11-12; cf., CCC 696).

In addition, the breath or voice of God is closely associated with fire: “The voice of the Lord flashes forth flames of fire” (Ps 28:7). Following the Resurrection, as recounted in today’s Gospel reading, Jesus, the Word made flesh, came to the apostles, breathed on them, and said, “Receive the Holy Spirit.” He thus gave them the authority to forgive and absolve sins. On Pentecost, God sent the Holy Spirit—marked by the appearance of “tongues as of fire”—so that the disciples could speak in different languages and proclaim the Gospel to all men. This gift of tongues was not so much about spiritual ecstasy as it was about spiritual transformation, which led to the bold, public communication of person, death, and Resurrection of Jesus Christ (Acts 2:14-47).

Jesus had promised the disciples that the Holy Spirit would teach them “all things” and help them remember his words (Jn 14:26). Likewise, Paul told the Christians at Corinth—a difficult and unruly bunch!—that no one can proclaim, “Jesus is Lord,” unless he is led by the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit is sent by the Father and the Son so as to give witness to the Son and to draw men to the Father. “The gift of the Spirit,” states the Catechism, “ushers in a new era in the ‘dispensation of the mystery’ the age of the Church, during which Christ manifests, makes present, and communicates his work of salvation through the liturgy of his Church, ‘until he comes.’” (CCC 1076). Thus Paul wrote, “For in one Spirit we were all baptized into one body…” The Holy Spirit preserves the unity of the Church, and he is described as the soul of the Mystical Body of Christ (CCC 809).

The feast of Pentecost, then, is a celebration of the harvest—the spiritual fruits given by God—and the recognition of New Law of Christ, which is established in divine love and through the Holy Spirit. As Saint Leo the Great observed, we “may easily perceive that the beginnings of the Old Covenant were at the service of the beginnings of the gospel and that the same Spirit who established the first established the Second.”

(This "Opening the Word" column originally in a slightly different form in the May 11, 2008, issue of Our Sunday Visitor newspaper.)

[Salvation]

Insight Scoop

"Faith is a tongue of fire that burns us and melts us..."

An excerpt from Joseph Ratzinger's  Images of Hope: Meditations on Major Feasts (Ignatius Press, 2006):

The Holy Spirit points to the Trinity, and thereby he points to us. For the trinitarian God is the archetype of the new united humanity, the archetype of the Church, as the prayer of Jesus may be seen as its word of institution: "that they may be one, even as we are one" (Jn 17:11b, cf. 21f.). The Trinity is measure and foundation of the Church. The Trinity brings the word of creation day to its goal, "Let us make man in our image, after our likeness" (Gen 1:26). In the Trinity, mankind, which in its disunity became a counter image of God, should become once again the one Adam, whose image, as the Fathers say, was defaced by sin and now lies about in pieces. The divine measure of man should again come to prominence, unity, in it, "as we are one". So the Trinity, God himself, is the archetype of the Church. Church does not mean another idea in addition to man, but rather man on the way to himself. If the Holy Spirit expresses and is the unity of God, then he is the real vital element of the Church in which distinction is reconciled in togetherness and the dispersed pieces of Adam are fit together again. ...

A tongue of fire has been added to being human. We must now correct this expression. Fire is never something that is simply due to another and therefore exists beside him. Fire burns and transforms. Faith is a tongue of fire that burns us and melts us so that ever more it is true: I and no longer I. Whoever, of course, meets the average Christian of today must ask himself: Where is the tongue of fire? That which comes from Christian tongues is unfortunately frequently anything but fire. It tastes therefore like stale, barely lukewarm water, not warm and not cold. We do not want to burn ourselves or others, but in this way we keep distant from the Holy Spirit, and Christian faith deteriorates into a self-made world-view that as far as possible does not want to infringe on any of our comforts and saves the sharpness of protest for where it can hardly disturb us in our way of life. When we yield to the burning fire of the Holy Spirit, being Christian becomes comfortable only at first glance. The comfort of the individual is the discomfort of the whole. When we no longer expose ourselves to the fire of God, the frictions with one another become unbearable and the Church is, as Basil expressed it, torn by the shouts of factions. Only when we do not fear the tongue of fire and the storm it brings with it does the Church become the icon of the Holy Spirit. And only then does she open the world to the light of God. Church began as the disciples assembled and prayed together in the room of the Last Supper. Thus she begins again and again. In prayer to the Holy Spirit we must call for this anew each day. 

Here is more information about Images of Hope.

[Salvation]

Secret Harbor ~ Portus Secretioris

11 June 2011

Vigil of Pentecost

When Jesus says: I will ask the Father, and He shall give you another Paraclete, He intimates that He Himself is also a Paraclete. For Paraclete is in Latin called advocatus; and it is said of Christ: We have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous. But He said that the world could not receive the Holy Spirit, in much the same sense as it is also said: The minding of the flesh is enmity against God: for it is not subject to the law of God; neither indeed can be; just as if we were to say: Unrighteousness cannot be righteous. For in speaking in this passage of the world, He refers to those who love the world; and such a love is not of the Father. And thus the love of this world, which gives us enough to do to weaken and destroy its power within us, is in direct opposition to the love of God, which is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Spirit Who is given unto us.

The world, therefore, cannot receive Him, cause it sees Him not, neither knows Him. For worldly love possesses not those invisible eyes, whereby, save in an invisible way, the Holy Spirit cannot be seen. But you, He adds, shall know Him; for He shall dwell with you, and be in you. He will be in them, that He may dwell with them; He will not dwell with them to the end that He may be in them: for the being anywhere is prior to the dwelling there. But to prevent us from imagining that His words, He shall dwell with you, were spoken in the same sense as that in which a guest usually dwells with a man in a visible way, He explained what He shall dwell with you meant, when He added the words, He shall be in you. He is seen, therefore, in an invisible way: nor can we have any knowledge of Him unless He be in us. For it is in a similar way that we come to see our conscience within us: for we see the face of another.

But we cannot see and know Him in the only way in which He may be seen and known, unless He be in us. After the promise of the Holy Spirit, lest any should suppose that the Lord was to give Him, as it were, in place of Himself, in any such way as that He Himself would not likewise be with them, He added the words: I will not leave you orphans; I will come to you. Accordingly, although it was not the Son of God that adopted sons to His Father, or willed that we should have by grace that same Father, Who is His Father by nature, yet in a sense it is paternal feelings toward us that He Himself displays, when He declares: I will not leave you orphans.

~ Saint Augustine ~

 

Posted by Jeffrey S. J. Allan at 09:05

[Salvation]

Vultus Christi

Abandoment and the Grace of Pentecost

By

Father Mark

 on June 12, 2011 3:48 AM |

 

I dedicate this, my translation of a conference for Pentecost by the Benedictine Mother Mectilde de Bar to my beloved brothers and friends of the Diocese of Tulsa who, today, are being ordained to the Order of the Holy Diaconate by His Excellency, Bishop Edward J. Slattery.

The Holy Spirit is the fruit of the coming of the Son of God into the world,
the fruit of His sufferings and of His labours.
In order for us to receive Him,
it was necessary that the Son of God suffer all His great sorrows;
moreover, had He not asked the Holy Spirit for us,
we would not have received Him.
The Holy Spirit is, therefore, God's Gift to us.
Like a powerful King who seeks among the good things of His kingdom,
what is most precious
to make of it a gift to the person dearest to him,
even so does the Eternal Father.
Possessing nothing greater than His Holy Spirit,
He gives Him to men in recompense for the suffering of His Son.
This festival is, then, most important,
and so the entire Church disposes herself for it
with a very particular devotion.

What then must one do in so as to to receive Him well
and partake of His fruits?
Two things are needed
to know how great a gift is the Holy Spirit
and what is needed to keep Him.
These will be the two points of my instruction
and the subject of your reflection.

The Holy Spirit is, first of all, the light that illumines us in our darkness;
strength in our weakness;
fire in our coldness.

We know by experience how much we have need of all these things,
since we are so immersed in shadows
that we see not even a single ray of light,
and nearly always we know not
what we are doing and where we are going.

So weak are we
that we are unable to carry out
even those things that we know God expects of us.

So cold are we towards God,
so little fervour do we have
and so low are our feelings.
that we are ashamed of ourselves.
See then how great is our need to receive the Holy Spirit.

But what must we do to keep the Holy Spirit?
Listen to what the Apostle Saint Paul says:
"My brothers, above all else I pray you and recommend
that you be very attentive not to grieve the Holy Spirit." (Eph 4:30)
And how can we grieve Him?
Let us listen to what He Himself says to the Spouse:
"Open to me, my sister,"
"Open to me my sister, my spouse." (Ct 5:2)
The Holy Spirit is always at the door of our heart:
let us be very careful not to shut Him out,
because this grieves Him.

In the little time that remains
we must train ourselves
to have a great will
and ardent desires to receive Him;
this will be how we open the door to Him.

But this is not enough.
It is necessary also to remove the obstacles
that may keep Him for entering.
And how?
By emptying ourselves of the spirit of the world
and of ourselves,
because two things opposed to each other
cannot subsist together;
that is that black can never become so white
as to have nothing of blackness left.

So it is with us.
Our soul will never be so bright
that all the blackness of sin will have gone out of it.
But we must empty ourselves
if we would be filled with the Holy Spirit;
in fact, he who would fill a vessel must empty it first.

And finally,
what must we do to receive the fruits of the Holy Spirit
and have Him abide in us?
Three things.
The first is humility.
Our Lord, in fact, when He was asked on whom
He would make His Spirit rest,
answered, upon one who is humble.

Let us therefore abandon all the thoughts that turn to our own interests,
to our self-love, and to our own judgment;
this is necessary if the we want the Spirit to live in us.

The second thing is a perfect submission to all that He wants of us.

And the third; the one that is highest,
the most excellent, and unfailing,
is abandonment.
If He wills that we be in health or in sickness,
we must will it;
in joy or in sorrow,
in labour or in rest,
in suffering or in enjoyment,
we must will it.

In the end, we must necessarily burn with this fire of the Spirit
in this world here below,
so as not to burn eternally in the fire of hell.

Make your choice: It is God who has said it.
Let us not cease from asking Him [for the Holy Spirit]
also because God says that if a child asks his father for something,
this will never be refused him.

And therefore, it is assured that we will be heard:
and it is this that I wish for you with all my heart.
In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.

Mother Mectilde du Saint-Sacrement (1614-1698)

[Salvation]

Vespers -- Evening Prayer

Vespers (Evening Prayer)

---

Introduction

O God, come to my aid.

  O Lord, make haste to help me.

Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit,

  as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be,

  world without end.

Amen. Alleluia.

---

Hymn

Come, O Creator Spirit, come,

And make within our hearts thy home;

To us thy grace celestial give,

Who of thy breathing move and live.

O Comforter, that name is thine,

Of God most high the gift divine;

The well of life, the fire of love,

Our souls’ anointing from above.

Our senses with thy light inflame,

Our hearts to heavenly love reclaim;

Our bodies’ poor infirmity

With strength perpetual fortify.

May we by thee the Father learn,

And know the Son, and thee discern,

Who art of both; and thus adore

In perfect faith for evermore.

All laud to God the Father be;

All praise, O risen Son, to thee;

All glory, as is ever meet,

To God the Holy Paraclete.

---

Psalm 109 (110)
The Messiah, king and priest

The Spirit of the Lord has filled the whole world. Alleluia.

The Lord has said to my lord:

  “Sit at my right hand

  while I make your enemies your footstool.”

From Zion the Lord will give you a sceptre,

  and you will rule in the midst of your foes.

Royal power is yours in the day of your strength,

  among the sacred splendours.

  Before the dawn, I begot you from the womb.

The Lord has sworn, and he will not repent:

  “You are a priest for ever,

  a priest of the priesthood of Melchisedech.”

The Lord is at your right hand,

  and on the day of his anger he will shatter kings.

He will drink from the stream as he goes –

  he will hold his head high.

Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit,

  as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be,

  world without end.

Amen.

The Spirit of the Lord has filled the whole world. Alleluia.

---

Psalm 113A (114)
Israel set free from Egypt

Send forth your power, Lord, from your holy temple in Jerusalem, and bring to perfection your work among us. Alleluia.

When Israel came out of Egypt,

  Jacob’s people from a land of strangers,

Judah became his sanctuary

  and Israel his domain.

The sea saw it, and fled;

  the Jordan flowed backwards at the sight;

the mountains leapt like rams;

  the hills, like yearling sheep.

Sea, what was it, what made you flee?

  And you, Jordan, why did you flow uphill?

Mountains, why did you leap like rams?

  Hills, like yearling sheep?

Tremble, Earth, at the presence of the Lord,

  the presence of the Lord of Jacob,

who has turned the rock into a pool of water

  and made a fountain out of the flint.

Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit,

  as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be,

  world without end.

Amen.

Send forth your power, Lord, from your holy temple in Jerusalem, and bring to perfection your work among us. Alleluia.

---

Canticle	(Apocalypse 19)

The wedding of the Lamb

They were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak. Alleluia.

Alleluia.

Salvation and glory and power belong to our God,

  because his judgements are true and just.

Alleluia.

Alleluia.

Praise our God, all his servants,

  and you who fear him, small and great.

Alleluia.

Alleluia.

For the Lord reigns, our God, the Almighty:

  let us rejoice and exult and give him glory.

Alleluia.

Alleluia.

The marriage of the Lamb has come,

  and his spouse has made herself ready.

Alleluia.

Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit,

  as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be,

  world without end.

Amen.

They were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak. Alleluia.

---

Short reading	Ephesians 4:3-6 ©

Do all you can to preserve the unity of the Spirit by the peace that binds you together. There is one Body, one Spirit, just as you were all called into one and the same hope when you were called. There is one Lord, one faith, one baptism, and one God who is Father of all, over all, through all and within all.

---

Short Responsory

The Spirit of the Lord has filled the whole world. Alleluia, alleluia.

– The Spirit of the Lord has filled the whole world. Alleluia, alleluia.

He keeps all things in being and understands all that is said.

– The Spirit of the Lord has filled the whole world. Alleluia, alleluia.

Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit.

– The Spirit of the Lord has filled the whole world. Alleluia, alleluia.

---

Canticle	Magnificat

My soul rejoices in the Lord

Today the days of Pentecost are completed, alleluia. Today the Holy Spirit appeared to the disciples in the fire and bestowed gifts of grace on them and sent them to preach and testify across the world. Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved. Alleluia.

My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord,

  and my spirit rejoices in God, my salvation.

For he has shown me such favour –

  me, his lowly handmaiden.

Now all generations will call me blessed,

  because the mighty one has done great things for me.

His name is holy,

  his mercy lasts for generation after generation

  for those who revere him.

He has put forth his strength:

  he has scattered the proud and conceited,

  torn princes from their thrones;

  but lifted up the lowly.

He has filled the hungry with good things;

  the rich he has sent away empty.

He has come to the help of his servant Israel,

  he has remembered his mercy as he promised to our fathers,

  to Abraham and his children for ever.

Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit,

  as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be,

  world without end.

Amen.

Today the days of Pentecost are completed, alleluia. Today the Holy Spirit appeared to the disciples in the fire and bestowed gifts of grace on them and sent them to preach and testify across the world. Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved. Alleluia.

---

Prayers and Intercessions

Let us pray with devotion to God the Father, who through Christ has gathered together his Church:

– Send your Holy Spirit into the Church.

It is your will that all who bear the name of Christians should be united by one baptism in the Spirit:

  give all believers one heart and one soul.

– Send your Holy Spirit into the Church.

You sent the Spirit to fill the whole world:

  may all men build up our society in justice and peace.

– Send your Holy Spirit into the Church.

Lord, God, Father of all, it is your will that your scattered children should be brought back together in one faith:

  enlighten the whole world with the grace of the Holy Spirit.

– Send your Holy Spirit into the Church.

Through the Spirit you renew all ages:

  heal the sick, comfort the afflicted, bestow salvation on all.

– Send your Holy Spirit into the Church.

Through the Spirit you raised your Son from the dead:

  give our mortal bodies eternal life.

– Send your Holy Spirit into the Church.

---

Our Father, who art in heaven,

  hallowed be thy name.

Thy kingdom come.

  Thy will be done on earth, as it is in heaven.

Give us this day our daily bread,

  and forgive us our trespasses,

  as we forgive those who trespass against us,

and lead us not into temptation,

  but deliver us from evil.

---

Lord God,

  you sanctify your Church in every race and nation

  by the mystery we celebrate on this day.

Pour out the gifts of the Holy Spirit on all mankind,

  and fulfil now in the hearts of your faithful

  what you accomplished when the Gospel was first preached on earth.

[We make our prayer] through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,

  who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit,

  God for ever and ever.

Amen.

---

May the Lord bless us and keep us from all harm; and may he lead us to eternal life.

AMEN

[Salvation]

Regnum Christi

The Power of the Spirit

INTERNATIONAL | SPIRITUAL LIFE | SPIRITUALITY

Pentecost Sunday (June 12, 2011)

John 20: 19-23

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." When he had said this, he showed them his hands and his side. The disciples rejoiced when they saw the Lord. Jesus said to them again, "Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, so I send you." And when he had said this, he breathed on them and said to them, "Receive the Holy Spirit. Whose sins you forgive are forgiven them, and whose sins you retain are retained."

Introductory Prayer: Today, Lord, we celebrate the gift of your Holy Spirit to the Church, which you won for us through your patient suffering on the cross. I believe and trust in his power to make me a better apostle of your Kingdom, to bring fervor where I have grown tepid, to instill detachment where I have become too indulgent, and to perfect the innocence of my baptism, which leaves my soul more pure and worthy to serve and honor you each day.

Petition: Come Holy Spirit, fill my heart with your grace and enkindle in me the fire of your love.

1. The Doors Were Locked What is it that makes a disciple of Christ stop cold in the path of conversion and commitment? Cloaked underneath our spiritual inertia and lack of zeal are not so much our personal defects or our lack of human virtue as blindness to the dynamic power of the Crucified and Risen Lord. We can leave our self-made prisons only by opening our hearts to a faith in Christ that is total: total trust (in spite of the confusion of the present and uncertainty of the future), total hope (by breaking away from having to see the ideal in ourselves before we will act), and total divine confidence (in setting aside the sins of others and our personal failures that keep us stuck in myopic visions of life). Christ comes through bolted doors again today to ask us to unlock them with a real experience of the Risen Lord in the power of the Spirit.

2. Peace Be With You It is vital to examine our “peace” and see if it truly speaks of the peace of the Upper Room. Substitute “satisfaction” for the word “peace,” and see where our hearts have tried to find consolation this past week. Then substitute the word “fulfillment.” This is the peace that Christ brings through the gifts of the Holy Spirit. Some passing satisfactions are part of life, and we can be grateful for them. When we seek them for their own sake, however, we can easily drown out the life of the Spirit, who comes to bring us deep peace and fulfillment in life. Pentecost must convince us above all about prayer and the order of life that permit us to have constant contact with sources of grace and divine inspiration.

3. Receive the Holy Spirit In the sacrament of penance, we are forgiven our sins through the action of the Holy Spirit, who makes the actions of Christ present through the priest. We believe that mercy founds hope and change in our soul. Why, then, do we not believe that this same grace from the Holy Spirit can make us heroic saints, victorious in trial, patient in difficult relationships and more effective as apostles? Christ assures us that his power will never leave us, so we have no reason to “slip into neutral” after a few bad incidents in our life. Rather, the Holy Spirit’s goal moves us from mercy to transformation into Christ, permitting us spiritually to carry and reveal his wounds to an unbelieving world.

Conversation with Christ: Oh, Jesus, I will trust more in the power of your Holy Spirit to change me than in my own efforts. I will depend on you in that face-to-face encounter I need to have with you every day. Let the sources of divine grace become my true food, and may I move away from feeding my soul on passing pleasures and vain ambitions.

Resolution: This week, I will write down daily all the lights and inspirations of the Holy Spirit I receive, and I will try to act on them with promptness, confidence and generosity.

[Salvation]

Homily of the Day

Come Holy Spirit – NOW!

June 11th, 2011 by Monsignor Dennis Clark, Ph.D.

Acts 2:1-11 / 1 Cor 12:3b-7, 12-13 / Jn 20:19-23

The story of Pentecost is a real stunner!  Jesus’ disciples, who’d been such wimps — fearful, aimless, hanging out in the upper room since Jesus’ Ascension — are suddenly transformed into fearless leaders, for whom nothing seems impossible.

In the past, as we’ve talked about this stunning event, we’ve described it in terms of the arrival, the coming, or the descent of the Spirit, upon the apostles.  That language is really quite unhelpful and deceptive, for it suggests that the Holy Spirit somehow arrived at some place the Spirit hadn’t been before.  And that isn’t true.

Our faith says the Holy Spirit of God is everywhere at all times.  So what did happen?  The Spirit of God didn’t change.  The apostles did.  These men whose hearts were frozen shut for a variety of reasons, finally were able to trust God enough to open their hearts to receive within, the Spirit who had always been there — held somewhat at bay outside.  It was that accepting and receiving and taking in of the Spirit that made all the difference.  And how hard that is to do, in part because we’re not so sure we want that transformation to happen just yet.

Remember how St. Augustine prayed for the grace of conversion during his wild and sinful youth?  “Give me your grace, Lord.  But not yet!”

We celebrate Pentecost because we need to do what the apostles did — and do it now: accept and receive within us the Spirit who has been present to us from the moment of birth.

May God help us to pray “Come Holy Spirit” with hearts that are truly open!  Amen.

[Salvation]

One Bread, One Body

One Bread, One Body

 

<< Sunday, June 12, 2011 >>

Pentecost Saint of the Day

Acts 2:1-11
1 Corinthians 12:3-7, 12-13
View Readings

Psalm 104:1, 24, 29-31, 34
John 20:19-23

FIERY TONGUES

"Tongues as of fire appeared, which parted and came to rest on each of them." —Acts 2:3

 

Can you imagine a big batch of flying, fiery tongues entering the room? Why not a group of flying noses or fiery gall bladders? Why did God send fiery tongues at the first Christian Pentecost?

Fiery tongues are a Jewish tradition associated with the renewal of the covenant. Fire is the most powerful means of purification. So fiery tongues express the covenant with Yahweh to love Him alone with all our hearts — with hearts purely, exclusively committed to Him (see Mt 5:8).

At the first Christian Pentecost, Jesus' disciples spoke not only in the fiery tongues of the covenant but also in foreign tongues. The disciples spoke in languages they didn't know (Acts 2:4, 6, 8). This was a sign of the reversal of the division from the tower of Babel (see Gn 11:6ff). These foreign tongues were also fiery in that they began to purify us of the pride that divided us.

Peter continued to speak in fiery tongues when he prophesied and preached in the fire of the Spirit so as to lead 3,000 people to the purifying waters of baptism (Acts 2:41). Peter and John spoke in fiery tongues when they healed the man lame from birth (see Acts 3:6ff). Fiery tongues are the way in which the Spirit is renewing the face of the earth (see Ps 104:30).

Do you speak in fiery tongues? Do your words purify, transform, and unify? On this Pentecost, ask for the fiery tongues of the Spirit.

 

Prayer: Father, may I speak in my native fiery tongue and in foreign, fiery tongues. Come, Holy Spirit!

Promise: "Then [Jesus] breathed on them and said: 'Receive the Holy Spirit.' " —Jn 20:22

Praise: Praise the risen Jesus, Whose Spirit renews the face of the earth (Ps 104:30). Come, Holy Spirit! Alleluia!

[Salvation]

Compline -- Night Prayer

Compline (Night Prayer)

---

Introduction

O God, come to my aid.

  O Lord, make haste to help me.

Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit,

  as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be,

  world without end.

Amen. Alleluia.

---

This is an excellent moment for an examination of conscience. In a communal celebration of Compline, one of the penitential acts given in the Missal may be recited.

---

Hymn

Jesu, the world’s redeeming Lord,

The Father’s co-eternal Word,

Of light invisible true Light,

Thine Israel’s Keeper day and night.

Our great Creator and our Guide,

Who times and seasons dost divide,

Refresh at night with quiet rest,

Our limbs by daily toil oppressed.

We pray thee, while we dwell below,

Preserve us from our ghostly foe;

Nor let his wiles victorious be

O’er them that are redeemed by thee.

That while in this frail house of clay

A little longer here we stay,

Our flesh in thee may sweetly sleep,

Our souls with thee their vigils keep.

All praise be thine, O risen Lord,

From death to endless life restored;

All praise to God the Father be,

And Holy Ghost eternally.

---

Psalm 90 (91)
The protection of the Most High

Alleluia. Alleluia. Alleluia.

He who lives under the protection of the Most High

  dwells under the shade of the Almighty.

He will say to the Lord:

  “You are my shelter and my strength,

  my God, in whom I trust.”

For he will free you from the hunter’s snare,

  from the voice of the slanderer.

He will shade you with his wings,

  you will hide underneath his wings.

His faithfulness will be your armour and your shield.

You will not fear the terror of the night,

  nor the arrow that flies by day;

nor the plague that walks in the shadows,

  nor the death that lays waste at noon.

A thousand will fall at your side,

  at your right hand ten thousand will fall,

  but you it will never come near.

You will look with your eyes

  and see the reward of sinners.

For the Lord is your shelter and refuge;

  you have made the Most High your dwelling-place.

Evil will not reach you,

  harm cannot approach your tent;

for he has set his angels to guard you

  and keep you safe in all your ways.

They will carry you in their arms

  in case you hurt your foot on a stone.

You walk on the viper and cobra,

  you will tread on the lion and the serpent.

Because he clung to me, I shall free him:

  I shall lift him up because he knows my name.

He will call upon me and for my part, I will hear him:

  I am with him in his time of trouble.

I shall rescue him and lead him to glory.

I shall fill him with length of days

  and show him my salvation.

Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit,

  as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be,

  world without end.

Amen.

Alleluia. Alleluia. Alleluia.

---

Reading	Apocalypse 22:4-5 ©

They will see the Lord face to face, and his name will be written on their foreheads. It will never be night again and they will not need lamplight or sunlight, because the Lord God will be shining on them. They will reign for ever and ever.

---

Short Responsory

Into your hands, Lord, I commend my spirit, alleluia, alleluia.

– Into your hands, Lord, I commend my spirit, alleluia, alleluia.

You have redeemed us, Lord, God of faithfulness, alleluia, alleluia.

– Into your hands, Lord, I commend my spirit, alleluia, alleluia.

Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit.

– Into your hands, Lord, I commend my spirit, alleluia, alleluia.

---

Canticle	Nunc Dimittis

Keep us safe, Lord, while we are awake, and guard us as we sleep, so that we can keep watch with Christ and rest in peace. Alleluia.

Now, Master, you let your servant go in peace.

  You have fulfilled your promise.

My own eyes have seen your salvation,

  which you have prepared in the sight of all peoples.

A light to bring the Gentiles from darkness;

  the glory of your people Israel.

Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit,

  as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be,

  world without end.

Amen.

Keep us safe, Lord, while we are awake, and guard us as we sleep, so that we can keep watch with Christ and rest in peace. Alleluia.

---

Let us pray.

Today we have celebrated the mystery of the Lord’s resurrection, and so now we humbly ask you, Lord, that we may rest in your peace, far from all harm, and rise rejoicing and giving praise to you.

Through Christ our Lord, Amen.

---

May the almighty Lord grant us a quiet night and a perfect end.

AMEN

---

	Regina Caeli

Queen of Heaven, be joyful,

  Alleluia.

You who were worthy to bear him.

  Alleluia.

He has risen, as he promised.

  Alleluia.

Pray for us to God.

  Alleluia.

Regina caeli laetare, Alleluia,

Quia quem meruisti portare, Alleluia,

Resurrexit sicut dixit, Alleluia.

Ora pro nobis Deum. Alleluia.

[Salvation]

Pentecost

Pentecost

Pentecost - Duccio di Buoninsegna (1308) Tempera on wood
Museo dell'Opera del Duomo, Siena

Spiritus Dómini replévit orbem terrárum, et hoc quod continet ómnia sciéntiam habet vocis, Alleluia.

The Spirit of the Lord fills the whole world, and holds all things together and knows every word spoken by man, Alleluia.

(Wisdom 1:7 - Entrance Antiphon for Mass for Pentecost. )

---

Catechism & Reflection of Blessed Pope John XXIII - Mass Readings - Hymns - The Seven Gifts & Twelve Fruits of the Holy Spirit

Family Celebration of Pentecost page - Pentecost Prayer page -- Novena to the Holy Spirit Brochure-- Links to June 4, 2006 Pentecost Page on the Vatican Website -- Pentecost, Regina Caeli Message, May 23, 2010 Links to the Vatican

 

The Church celebrates Pentecost (so called because it is fifty days after Easter Day) as the day on which the Holy Spirit descended upon the apostles, gathered in an upper room with Mary, mother of Jesus, "as a mighty, rushing wind", fulfilling Jesus' promise when he "breathed on them", as recorded in John's Gospel (chapter 20).

This event, which marks the beginning of the Church, is recorded in the book of Acts of the Apostles, chapter 2. The 14th century Siennese painting by Duccio (above) illustrates the moment when the Bible says the Spirit descended upon the gathering of Christians in the form of tongues of fire. The liturgical color for Pentecost is red, a reminder of the flames that "rested on them". Another symbol for the Holy Spirit is the dove, usually emmitting golden rays of light.

The Holy Spirit gave the apostles gifts of grace through which they would undertake the evangelical mission of the Church. On the day of Pentecost, the apostles were given the miraculous "gift of tongues" -- so that everyone from every country understood the Christians inspired message of salvation as if the they were hearing it in their own languages. Thousands were converted by the preaching of Peter and the other apostles.

Called Whitsunday (white Sunday) in England, for the white garments worn by confirmands (candidates for Confirmation), Pentecost, or the Feast of Weeks, originated as a Jewish festival fifty days (seven weeks) after Passover.

The Solemnity of Pentecost ends the Easter season. After Pentecost, the Easter candle is kept in the baptistery or near the baptismal font, and is lighted only for a baptism. For centuries, the Sundays of the Catholic Church year between Pentecost and Advent were numbered as "after Pentecost". Since the Second Vatican Council, this period is called "Ordinary Time" (the first period of Ordinary Time is that between the Epiphany and Lent). Three Solemnities are celebrated in the weeks immediately following Pentecost: Trinity Sunday, Corpus Christi (The Body and Blood of Christ) and the Sacred Heart of Jesus.

Pentecost
from the Catechism of the Catholic Church

731 On the day of Pentecost when the seven weeks of Easter had come to an end, Christ's Passover is fulfilled in the outpouring of the Holy Spirit, manifested, given, and communicated as a Divine Person: of His fullness, Christ, the Lord, pours out the Spirit in abundance.

1076 The Church was made manifest to the world on the day of Pentecost by the outpouring of the Holy Spirit. The gift of the Spirit ushers in a new era in the "dispensation of the mystery" -- the Age of the Church, during which Christ manifests, makes present, and communicates His work of salvation through the Liturgy of His Church, "until He comes." In this age of the Church Christ now lives and acts in and with His Church, in a new way appropriate to this new age. He acts through the Sacraments in what the common Tradition of the East and the West calls "the sacramental economy"; this is the communication (or "dispensation") of the fruits of Christ's Paschal mystery in the celebration of the Church's "sacramental" Liturgy.

See Catechism Chapter 3, "I believe in the Holy Spirit" (§§683- 747)

Reflection of Pope John XXIII on Pentecost

At the Feast of Pentecost I take the sacred Book in my hands and turn eagerly to the first page of the Old Testament, and then to the first page of the New.The first page of the Old Testament describes the creation of the world, saying that "the Spirit of God was moving on the waters". This refers to the whole universe, the seas and land masses, the animal, vegetable and mineral kingdoms: a triple realm, a manifold order; and it refers also to the governments of men, of races, peoples and tribes, inspired and moved by energies common to all mankind, and to the history of humanity slowly evolving through the centuries according to a Divine plan.

All nature, then, belongs to the temporal order, but always in the sight of God and subject to his power.

And now we turn to the first page of the Gospel, the New Testament, which begins with the sound of an angel's voice: "Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favour with God...You will bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus."

With this announcement to Mary there begins the epic of Redemption, which has Christ for its all-radiant Sun, the source of divine life and sanctifying grace.

The Hymns of Pentecost

Veni Sancte Spiritus - Veni Creator Spiritus

Come, Holy Spirit - Come, Holy Ghost, Creator blest

The Latin hymn, Veni Sancte Spiritus (Come, Holy Spirit) is the "Sequence" (the hymn before the Gospel) for Pentecost Sunday. The words of this hymn are attributed to Pope Innocent III (c. 1160-1216). Either the original Latin chant or the English version may be sung before Gospel on Pentecost.

The even more ancient hymn, Veni Creator Spiritus (Come Holy Ghost, Creator blest) is frequently sung on Pentecost. The verses are ascribed to Rabanus Maurus (776-856), and were set to a chant tune. These Latin verses have been translated into English verse in various versions, including the familiar hymn, "Come Holy Ghost, Creator blest", a 19th century rendering by Edward Caswall (1814-1878), who also did a translation of the Veni Sancte Spiritus. ("Ghost" is another English word for "Spirit", stemming from the German "geist", while "spirit" is from the Latin.)

When a Latin hymn is translated, it is usually done in metrical form so that it can be set to music; thus although the translations are not literal (or word-for-word), and the rhythm may not be precisely the same, the translator aims to maintain both the essential meaning and poetic verse-form of the original.

The text of both Pentecost hymns, in Latin and English, appears below. (Note: The Adoremus Hymnal gives the Edward Caswall translation and Samuel Webbe tune for Veni Sancte Spiritus (p 444); and the Veni Creator Spiritus in both Latin and English versions (pp 441, 442-443).

Veni Creator Spiritus Veni, Creator Spiritus, Mentes tuorum visita; Implesuperna graatia Quae tu creasti pectora. Qui diceris Paraclitus, Donum Dei altissimi, Fons vivus, ignis caritas, Et spiritalis unctio. Tu septiformis munere, Dextræ Dei tu digitus, Tu rite promissum Patris, Sermone ditans guttura. Accende lumen sensibus, Infunde amorum cordibus, Infirma nostri corporis Virtute firmans perpeti. Hostem repellas longius, Pacemque dones protinus; Ductore sic te prævio, Vitemus omne noxium. Per te sciamus da Patrem, Noscamus atque Filium, Te utriusque Spiritum Credamus omni tempore. Deo Patri sit gloria, Et Filio, quia mortuis, Surrexit ac Paraclito, In sæculorum sæcula. Amen Attributed to Romanus Mauros

Come, Holy Ghost, Creator blest Come, Holy Ghost, Creator blest, Vouchsafe within our souls to rest; Come with Thy grace and heavenly aid And fill the souls which Thou hast made. O Comforter, to Thee we cry, To Thee, the Gift of God Most High, The font of life, and fire of love, And sweet anointing from above. The sevenfold gifts of grace are Thine, O finger of the hand Divine, True promise of the Father, Thou, Who dost the tongue with speech endow. Thy light to every thought impart And shed Thy love in every heart; The weakness of our mortal state With deathless might invigorate. Drive far away our wily Foe, And Thine abiding peace bestow; If Thou be our protecting Guide, No evil can our steps betide. Through Thee may we the Father learn, And know the Son, and Thee discern, Who art of both; and thus adore In perfect faith forevermore. Praise we the Father and the Son And Holy Spirit, Three in One; And may the Son on us bestow The gifts that from the Spirit flow. Amen Translation: Edward Caswall

Veni Sancte Spiritus Veni, Sancte Spiritus, et emítte caélitus lucis tuae rádium. Veni, pater páuperum, veni, dator múnerum, veni, lumen córdium. Consolator óptime, dulcis hospes animae. dulce refrigerium. In labóre réquies, in aestu tempéries, in fletu solácium. O lux beatíssima, reple cordis íntima tuórum fidélium. Sine tuo númine, nihil est in hómine, nihil est innoxium. Lava quod est sórdidum, riga quod est áridum, sana quod est sáucium. Flecte quod est rígidum, fove quod est frigidum, rege quod est devium. Da tuis fidélibus, in te confidéntibus, sacrum septenárium. Da virtútis méritum da salútis éxitum, da perénne gáudium. Amen. Alleluia - Attributed to Pope Leo III

Come, Holy Spirit Come, Holy Spirit, come! And from Thy celestial home Shed a ray of light divine! Come Father of the poor! Come source of all our store! Come within our bosoms shine! Thou, of comforters the best; Thou, the soul's most welcome guest; Sweet refreshment here below; In our labor, rest most sweet; Grateful coolness in the heat, Solace in the midst of woe. O most blessed Light divine Shine within these hearts of Thine. And our inmost being fill! Where you are not, man has naught, Nothing good in deed or thought, Nothing free from taint of ill. Heal our wounds, our strength renew; On our dryness pour Thy dew; Wash the stains of guilt away: Bend the stubborn heart and will; Melt the frozen, warm the chill; Guide the steps that go astray. On the faithful who adore And confess you, evermore In your sev'nfold gift descend; Give them virtue's sure reward; Give them Thy salvation, Lord; Give them joys that never end. Amen. Alleluia

Scripture readings for Pentecost

Vigil
First Reading:
Genesis 11:1-9

Now the whole earth had one language and few words. And as men migrated from the east, they found a plain in the land of Shinar and settled there. And they said to one another, "Come, let us make bricks, and burn them thoroughly." And they had brick for stone, and bitumen for mortar. Then they said, "Come, let us build ourselves a city, and a tower with its top in the heavens, and let us make a name for ourselves, lest we be scattered abroad upon the face of the whole earth. " And the Lord came down to see the city and the tower, which the sons of men had built. And the Lord said, "Behold, they are one people, and they have all one language; and this is only the beginning of what they will do; and nothing that they propose to do will now be impossible for them. Come, let us go down, and there confuse their language, that they may not understand one another's speech." So the Lord scattered them abroad from there over the face of all the earth, and they left off building the city. Therefore its name was called Babel, because there the Lord confused the language of all the earth; and from there the Lord scattered them abroad over the face of all the earth.

or
Exodus 19:3-8a, 16-20b

And Moses went up to God, and the Lord called to him out of the mountain, saying, "Thus you shall say to the house of Jacob, and tell the people of Israel: You have seen what I did to the Egyptians, and how I bore you on eagles' wings and brought you to myself. Now therefore, if you will obey my voice and keep my covenant, you shall be my own possession among all peoples; for all the earth is mine, and you shall be to me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation. These are the words which you shall speak to the children of Israel."

So Moses came and called the elders of the people, and set before them all these words which the Lord had commanded him. And all the people answered together and said, "All that the Lord has spoken we will do." And Moses reported the words of the people to the Lord.

On the morning of the third day there were thunders and lightnings, and a thick cloud upon the mountain, and a very loud trumpet blast, so that all the people who were in the camp trembled. Then Moses brought the people out of the camp to meet God; and they took their stand at the foot of the mountain. And Mount Sinai was wrapped in smoke, because the Lord descended upon it in fire; and the smoke of it went up like the smoke of a kiln, and the whole mountain quaked greatly. And as the sound of the trumpet grew louder and louder, Moses spoke, and God answered him in thunder. And the Lord came down upon Mount Sinai, to the top of the mountain; and the Lord called Moses to the top of the mountain, and Moses went up.

or
Ezekiel 37:1-14

The hand of the Lord was upon me, and he brought me out by the Spirit of the Lord, and set me down in the midst of the valley; it was full of bones. And he led me round among them; and behold, there were very many upon the valley; and lo, they were very dry. And he said to me, "Son of man, can these bones live?" And I answered, "O Lord God, thou knowest." Again he said to me, "Prophesy to these bones, and say to them, O dry bones, hear the word of the Lord. Thus says the Lord God to these bones: Behold, I will cause breath to enter you, and you shall live. And I will lay sinews upon you, and will cause flesh to come upon you, and cover you with skin, and put breath in you, and you shall live; and you shall know that I am the Lord."

So I prophesied as I was commanded; and as I prophesied, there was a noise, and behold, a rattling; and the bones came together, bone to its bone. And as I looked, there were sinews on them, and flesh had come upon them, and skin had covered them; but there was no breath in them. Then he said to me, "Prophesy to the breath, prophesy, son of man, and say to the breath, Thus says the Lord God: Come from the four winds, O breath, and breathe upon these slain, that they may live." So I prophesied as he commanded me, and the breath came into them, and they lived, and stood upon their feet, an exceedingly great host.

Then he said to me, "Son of man, these bones are the whole house of Israel. Behold, they say, 'Our bones are dried up, and our hope is lost; we are clean cut off.' Therefore prophesy, and say to them, Thus says the Lord God: Behold, I will open your graves, and raise you from your graves, O my people; and I will bring you home into the land of Israel. And you shall know that I am the Lord, when I open your graves, and raise you from your graves, O my people. And I will put my Spirit within you, and you shall live, and I will place you in your own land; then you shall know that I, the Lord, have spoken, and I have done it, says the Lord."

or
Joel 3:1-5

The word of the Lord that came to Joel, the son of Pethuel: Hear this, you aged men, give ear, all inhabitants of the land! Has such a thing happened in your days, or in the days of your fathers? Tell your children of it, and let your children tell their children, and their children another generation. What the cutting locust left, the swarming locust has eaten. What the swarming locust left, the hopping locust has eaten, and what the hopping locust left, the destroying locust has eaten. Awake, you drunkards, and weep; and wail, all you drinkers of wine, because of the sweet wine, for it is cut off from your mouth.

Second Reading:
Romans 8:22-27

We know that the whole creation has been groaning in travail together until now; and not only the creation, but we ourselves, who have the first fruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait for adoption as sons, the redemption of our bodies. For in this hope we were saved. Now hope that is seen is not hope. For who hopes for what he sees? But if we hope for what we do not see, we wait for it with patience.

Likewise the Spirit helps us in our weakness; for we do not know how to pray as we ought, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with sighs too deep for words. And he who searches the hearts of men knows what is the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for the saints according to the will of God.

Gospel Reading:
John 7:37-39

On the last day of the feast, the great day, Jesus stood up and proclaimed, "If any one thirst, let him come to me and drink. He who believes in me, as the scripture has said, 'Out of his heart shall flow rivers of living water.'" Now this he said about the Spirit, which those who believed in him were to receive; for as yet the Spirit had not been given, because Jesus was not yet glorified.

Pentecost Day
First Reading:

Acts 2: 1-11 [Year A,B,C]
When the day of Pentecost had come, they were all together in one place. And suddenly a sound came from heaven like the rush of a mighty wind, and it filled all the house where they were sitting. And there appeared to them tongues as of fire, distributed and resting on each one of them. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance.

Now there were dwelling in Jerusalem Jews, devout men from every nation under heaven. And at this sound the multitude came together, and they were bewildered, because each one heard them speaking in his own language. And they were amazed and wondered, saying, "Are not all these who are speaking Galileans? And how is it that we hear, each of us in his own native language? Parthians and Medes and Elamites and residents of Mesopotamia, Judea and Cappadocia, Pontus and Asia, Phrygia and Pamphylia, Egypt and the parts of Libya belonging to Cyrene, and visitors from Rome, both Jews and proselytes, Cretans and Arabians, we hear them telling in our own tongues the mighty works of God."

Second Reading:
1 Corinthians 12:3b-7, 12-13 [Year A,B,C]
No one can say "Jesus is Lord" except by the Holy Spirit.

Now there are varieties of gifts, but the same Spirit; and there are varieties of service, but the same Lord; and there are varieties of working, but it is the same God who inspires them all in every one. To each is given the manifestation of the Spirit for the common good.

For just as the body is one and has many members, and all the members of the body, though many, are one body, so it is with Christ. For by one Spirit we were all baptized into one body - Jews or Greeks, slaves or free - and all were made to drink of one Spirit.

or

Galatians 5:16-25 [Year B]

But I say, walk by the Spirit, and do not gratify the desires of the flesh. For the desires of the flesh are against the Spirit, and the desires of the Spirit are against the flesh; for these are opposed to each other, to prevent you from doing what you would. But if you are led by the Spirit you are not under the law. Now the works of the flesh are plain: fornication, impurity, licentiousness, idolatry, sorcery, enmity, strife, jealousy, anger, selfishness, dissension, party spirit, envy, drunkenness, carousing, and the like. I warn you, as I warned you before, that those who do such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God. But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such there is no law. And those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. If we live by the Spirit, let us also walk by the Spirit.

Romans 8:8-17 [Year C]

Those who are in the flesh cannot please God.

But you are not in the flesh, you are in the Spirit, if in fact the Spirit of God dwells in you. Any one who does not have the Spirit of Christ does not belong to him. But if Christ is in you, although your bodies are dead because of sin, your spirits are alive because of righteousness. If the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, he who raised Christ Jesus from the dead will give life to your mortal bodies also through his Spirit which dwells in you.

So then, brethren, we are debtors, not to the flesh, to live according to the flesh-- for if you live according to the flesh you will die, but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body you will live. For all who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God. For you did not receive the spirit of slavery to fall back into fear, but you have received the spirit of sonship. When we cry, “Abba! Father!” it is the Spirit himself bearing witness with our spirit that we are children of God, and if children, then heirs, heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, provided we suffer with him in order that we may also be glorified with him.

Gospel Reading:
John 20:19-23 [Year A,B,C]
On the evening of that day, the first day of the week, the doors being shut where the disciples were, for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood among them and said to them, "Peace be with you." When He had said this, he showed them His hands and His side. Then the disciples were glad when they saw the Lord. Jesus said to them again, "Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, even so I send you." And when He had said this, He breathed on them, and said to them, "Receive the Holy Spirit. If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven; if you retain the sins of any, they are retained."

or

John 15:26-27;16:12-15[Year B]

But when the Counselor comes, whom I shall send to you from the Father, even the Spirit of truth, who proceeds from the Father, he will bear witness to me; and you also are witnesses, because you have been with me from the beginning.

"I have yet many things to say to you, but you cannot bear them now. When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all the truth; for he will not speak on his own authority, but whatever he hears he will speak, and he will declare to you the things that are to come. He will glorify me, for he will take what is mine and declare it to you. All that the Father has is mine; therefore I said that he will take what is mine and declare it to you.

John 14:15-16, 23b-26 [Year C]

"If you love me, you will keep my commandments. And I will pray the Father, and he will give you another Counselor, to be with you for ever.

"If a man loves me, he will keep my word, and my Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our home with him. He who does not love me does not keep my words; and the word which you hear is not mine but the Father's who sent me. "These things I have spoken to you, while I am still with you. But the Counselor, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, he will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you.

(Readings from Revised Standard Version - Catholic edition)

Seven Gifts of the Holy Spirit

Wisdom - Understanding - Counsel
Fortitude - Knowledge - Piety
Fear of the Lord

"There shall come forth a shoot from the stump of Jesse, and a branch shall grow out of his roots. And the Spirit of the Lord shall rest upon him, the Spirit of wisdom and understanding, the Spirit of counsel and might, the Spirit of knowledge and the fear of the Lord. And his delight shall be in the fear of the Lord. " (Isaiah 11:1-3)

The moral life of Christians is sustained by the gifts of the Holy Spirit, according to the Catechism of the Catholic Church. These are permanent dispositions which make man docile in following the promptings of the Holy Spirit (CCC §1830)

 

The Twelve Fruits of the Holy Spirit

Charity - Joy - Peace - Patience - Kindness - Goodness
Generosity - Gentleness - Faithfulness - Modesty - Self-control - Chastity

 

The Catechism tells us that "the fruits of the Spirit are perfections that the Holy Spirit forms in us as the first fruits of eternal glory" (§1832)

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