PENTECOST SUNDAY (YEAR A)

First Reading: Acts of the Apostles 2:1-11
Responsorial Psalm: 104:1, 24, 29-30, 31, 34
Second Reading: 1 Corinthians 12:3b-7, 12-13 or Galatians 5:16-25
Gospel Reading: John 20:19-23 or 15:26-27; 16:12-15
Reflection: For nine days after the ascension of Jesus into heaven, the Church has been
praying the Novena for the coming of the Holy Spirit. The Church has joined the first
cenacle of the apostles and never stopped praying, “Come Holy Spirit come.” The Holy
Spirit is the third person of one God. When Jesus was about to ascend into heaven, He
promised his disciples to send them the Holy Spirit. “While meeting with them, he
enjoined them not to depart from Jerusalem, but to wait for “the promise of the Father
about which you have heard me speak; for John baptized with water, but in a few days
you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit,” (Acts 1:4-5). He continued, “But you will
receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you, and you will be my witnesses in
Jerusalem, throughout Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth,” (Acts 1:8). The
Holy Spirit is the gift of God the Father and God the Son to the disciples. The Holy Spirit
is coming into the world to comfort the disciples and to accompany them in their new
ministry of proclaiming the Gospel of Christ to the ends of earth. The Holy Spirit is
coming into the world to set the disciples in the fire of the Gospel. This reality is well
expressed on the Day of Pentecost when the Holy Spirit descended upon the disciples as
we find in today’s First Reading, “And suddenly there came from the sky a noise like a
strong driving wind, and it filled the entire house in which they were. And they were all
filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in different tongues, as the Spirit enabled
them to proclaim.” The coming of the Holy Spirit threw away all fears the disciples had.
It gave them courage to stand up and share the Gospel with all boldness. It gave them the
power of language to communicate the Gospel to people of all languages and cultures.
The Holy Spirit created awe among the people who listened to the Apostles, “Are not all
these people who are speaking Galileans? Then how does each of us hear them in his
native language?” The coming of the Holy Spirit into the world is the renewal of the face
of the earth as today’s Responsorial Psalm states, “Lord, send out your Spirit, and renew
the face of the earth.” It is through the work of the Holy Spirit that the Church has been
able to navigate through all kinds of terrains in history whether they were times of great
darkness and persecutions or times of peace and prosperity. The Church has kept on
motion to our own times. Come Holy Spirit Come! Yes! Amen, Alleluia! Fr. Severine.