Holy Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint John 15, 26-27; 16, 12-15
Jesus said to his disciples:
“When the Advocate comes whom I will send you from the Father,
the Spirit of truth that proceeds from the Father,
he will testify to me.
And you also testify,
because you have been with me from the beginning.
“I have much more to tell you, but you cannot bear it now.
But when he comes, the Spirit of truth,
he will guide you to all truth.
He will not speak on his own,
but he will speak what he hears,
and will declare to you the things that are coming.
He will glorify me,
because he will take from what is mine and declare it to you.
Everything that the Father has is mine;
for this reason I told you that he will take from what is mine
and declare it to you.”
Pentecost, fifty days later
1. Pentecost. As you well know, there are many things in Catholicism, many terms, taken from Judaism. Jewish people celebrated the feast of Pentecost (a word that comes for Greek and means fiftieth day, that’s to say fifty days after Passover). For Jews this feast is the commemoration of the Law given by God to Moses on Mount Sinai. The tablets of the law were the guide for the life of Jewish people. For Christians, Pentecost means the gift of the Holy Spirit. This is one of the meanings of celebrating Pentecost; it implies that we are no longer under the rule of the Law, but in the life of the Holy Spirit, the third person of the Holy Trinity. That’s why today we ask the Holy Spirit again for the strength to live the life God has given us, breaking every structure that suffocates the spirit.
2. Spirit of Truth. We are called to craft our souls in the grace and presence of the Holy Spirit. It’s the Spirit of Truth who illumines and strengthens us to strive forward in our lives, and it’s living in truth that we show ourselves as God’s children. We must shape our hearts in God, knowing that there are plenty of difficult situations to face in all areas of life, whether physical, emotional, or spiritual. It’s the Holy Spirit who helps us in our own struggles.
3. Father. Take advantage of this day to ask the Holy Spirit to help you meditate on what it means to be a child of God and to be aware that God is your Father, a tender Father of great mercy who constantly seeks to enter into your life. It’s God who goes out to look for you because He loves you so dearly.
Happy and blessed Pentecost! Remember that something good is on the way!
God bless you and be with you in the name of the Father, of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.
