Pentecost Sunday (Year C) - 5 June
5th June 2022
Pentecost Sunday (Year C) - 5 June
Birthday of Jesus Christ’s One, Holy, Catholic and Apostolic Church
A reflection on Pentecost by the Venerable Archbishop Fulton J Sheen:
"Until Our Lord sent His Spirit on them fifty days after His Resurrection, the Apostles were like the elements in a chemical laboratory. Science knows up to 100 percent the chemicals which enter into the constitution of a human body; but it cannot make a human being because of its inability to provide the unifying principle, the soul. The Apostles could not give the Church Divine life any more than chemicals could make human life. They needed God’s invisible Divine Spirit to unify their visible human natures.
"Accordingly, ten days after the Ascension, the glorified Saviour in Heaven sent upon them His Spirit, not in the form of a book but as tongues of living fire. As cells in a body form a new human life when God breathes a soul into the embryo, so the Apostles appeared as the visible Body of Christ when the Holy Spirit came to make them one. This Mystical Body or the Church is called in tradition and Scripture the 'whole Christ' or 'the fullness of Christ.'
"The new Body of Christ then appeared publicly before men. Just as the Son of God took upon Himself a human nature from the womb of Mary, overshadowed by the Holy Spirit, so on Pentecost He took a Mystical Body from the womb of humanity, overshadowed by the Holy Spirit. Just as He once taught, governed, and sanctified through His human nature, so now He would continue to teach, to govern, and to sanctify through other human natures united in His Body or Church.
"Because this Body is not physical like a man, but heavenly and spiritual because of the Spirit which made it one, it is called a Mystical Body. As a human body is made up of millions and millions of cells, and yet is one because vivified by one soul, presided over by one visible head, and governed by an invisible mind, so this Body of Christ, though made up of millions and millions of persons who are incorporated into Christ by baptism, is one because vivified by the Holy Spirit of God, and presided over by one visible head and governed by one invisible Mind or Head Who is the Risen Christ.
"The Mystical Body of Christ, therefore, no more stands between Christ and an individual than His physical Body stood between Magdalen and His forgiveness, or His hand stood between the little children and His blessing. It was through His human Body that He came to men in His individual life; it is through His Mystical Body or His Church that He comes to men in His mystical corporate life.
"Christ is living now! He is teaching now, governing now, sanctifying now - as He did in Judea and Galilee. His Mystical Body or the Church existed throughout the Roman Empire before a single one of the Gospels had been written. It was the New Testament that came out of the Church, not the Church which came out of the New Testament. This Body had the four distinctive marks of life; it had unity, because vivified by one Soul, one Spirit, the gift of Pentecost. As unity in doctrine and authority is the centripetal force which keeps the life of the Church one, catholicity is the centrifugal force which enables her to expand and absorb redeemed humanity without distinction of race or colour. The third note of the Church is holiness, which means that it endures on condition that it keep itself healthy, pure, and free from the disease of heresy and schism. This holiness is not in each member but rather the whole church. And because the Holy Spirit is the soul of the Church, it can be the Divine instrument for the sanctification of souls. The sunlight is not polluted because its rays pass through a dirty window; neither do the sacraments lose their power to sanctify because the human instruments of those sacraments may be stained. Finally, there is the work of apostolicity. In biology, all life comes from life. So too the Mystical Body of Christ is apostolic, because historically it took its roots in Christ and not from a man separated by centuries from Him." (Life of Christ)
Prayer to the Holy Spirit by Cardinal Mercier (1851-1926)
O Holy Spirit, beloved of my soul, I adore Thee, I love Thee. Enlighten me, guide me, strengthen me, console me. Tell me what I ought to do and command me to do it. I promise to submit and abide to everything that Thou ask of me and to accept all that Thou allow to happen to me. Just show me what is Thy Holy will. Amen. 💖🙏💐🔥
Pray for the Seven Gifts of the Holy Spirit
Wisdom: We see God at work in our lives and in the world. We see God as our Father, appreciate the dignity of others, and find God in all things.
Understanding: We comprehend how we need to live as followers of Christ. A person with understanding is not confused by the conflicting messages in our culture about the right way to live. This gift perfects our speculative reason in the apprehension of truth. It is the gift whereby self-evident principles are known.
Counsel (Right Judgement): We know the difference between right and wrong, and we choose to do what is right. With this gift we avoid sin and live out the values taught by Jesus.
Fortitude (Courage): We overcome our fear and are willing to take risks as followers of Christ. With this gift we are willing to stand up for what is right in the sight of God, even if it means accepting rejection, verbal abuse and physical harm. This gift allows us the firmness of mind that is required both in doing good and in enduring evil.
Knowledge: We understand the meaning of God. This gift is more than an accumulation of facts.
Piety (Reverence): We have a deep sense of respect for God and the Church. This gift allows us to recognise our total reliance on God and come before Him with humility, trust, and love. At the Holy Spirit’s instigation, we pay worship and duty to God as our Father.
Fear of the Lord (Wonder and Awe): We are aware of the glory and majesty of God. We know that God is the perfection of all we desire: perfect knowledge, goodness, power, and love. It is the fear of separating oneself from God. A filial fear, like a child’s fear of offending his father, rather than a servile fear, that is, a fear of punishment. This gift is the beginning of wisdom as it puts our mindset in correct location with respect of God: we are the finite, dependent creatures, and He is the infinite, all-powerful Creator.