Cycle C - Year I:

19 May 2013 - Solemnity of Pentecost

(Liturgical color: Red)

John 20:19-23

The Holy Spirit empowers the Church!

Today is the Solemnity of Pentecost. It comes fifty days after the Resurrection of our Lord; hence, it is called Pentecost.

After Jesus ascended into heaven, he sends the Holy Spirit to sustain and empower the disciples and the new Church in their mission to evangelize the world. In the first Pentecost, the apostles received the Holy Spirit to mark the official start of their mission. So Pentecost Sunday celebrates the great beginning of the Church. Thus, today is a great feast and it is the birthday of the Catholic Church.

On the first Pentecost Jesus empowered the disciples with the gift that is the Holy Spirit in order to do their mission. So also today we are empowered by the same Holy Spirit to continue the Church's missionary work, to face the challenges of our time, especially in matters of faith and morality, and the preservation and defense of human life.

The presence of the Holy Spirit in the Church is our assurance that her missionary work is not simply a human endeavor but in reality the continuation of Jesus' saving mission, and so therefore the work of God himself. So that when we feel overwhelmed by personal trials, like when we sometimes struggle to pray because of so many distractions, or at times when we want to pray but seem not to have the words to express ourselves, it is the Holy Spirit that links us to God and interprets our desire before Him. In the words of Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI, "it is the Holy Spirit who helps our inability, who enlightens our minds and warms our hearts, guiding us as we turn to God."

In Holy Mass let us pray that the Holy Spirit showers us with his gifts (of wisdom, understanding, counsel, fortitude, knowledge, piety, and fear of the Lord) to keep us unwavering in our faith and remain committed to all the teachings of the Church handed down from the first apostles to the bishops and to the present Pope Francis. Let us make use of these gifts to build up and strengthen the Church as the Body of Christ through constant personal prayers and acts of Christian charity. Because it is through prayers that the Holy Spirit works best in our humanity, strengthening our weakness to transform us from men of material realities to men and women filled with the Spirit of our Lord Jesus Christ.

A blessed Pentecost Sunday to all. And thank you for a moment with God.

Deo Optimo Maximo!