By Fr Antony Christy, SDB –
The Signs: Communion, Commission and Compassion!
The Solemnity of Pentecost – June 9, 2019
Acts 2: 1-11; 1 Corinthians 12: 3a-7, 12-13; John 20: 19-23
The Solemnity of the Pentecost- a day when we have to wish the Church, happy birthday!… and as every birthday is a day of reminder to grow up, to mature.. it is also for the Church today a day of reminder to grow up and mature as the Reign of God, the ultimate purpose of the Community of faith on earth. The Church does not exist for herself, taught Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI, on 19th Feb 2012.
The Vatican Council II instructed us the same truth, while saying the Church exists to proclaim and plant the seeds of the Reign of God. The reminder comes from the first instances of the birth of the Church… the event of the coming of the Spirit. Today for the Church and for every Christian to grow up and mature, the presence of the Spirit is indispensable.
How do we recognise the presence of the Spirit?
There are three signs today suggested by the Liturgy of the Word to ascertain the presence of the Spirit.
1st Sign: COMMUNION (I Reading)
The first sign of the presence of the Spirit is Communion. When they spoke in various tongues, every one understood in their own language. The first gift of the Spirit is the ‘oneness of heart and mind’ that is achieved by the gift of UNDERSTANDING. Where there is division for the sake of ego and personal opinion, where there is manipulation for the sake of having one’s ways, the Spirit is absent! Any division of the hearts of the children of God is created by the evil spirit! Communion, the fruit of Understanding, does not in anyway mean a homogeneous uniformity. It is a divine blending of differences. Yes, the Communion offered by the Spirit is born out of a RESPECT FOR DIFFERENCES which are appreciated as the richness that is so natural in the very creation of God, the differences that are brought in a harmonious symphony by the Spirit.
One who possesses the Spirit of the Lord, uses the gift of UNDERSTANDING that arises from an authentic RESPECT FOR DIFFERENCES, to bring the people of God together, as community of people with one heart and one spirit.
2nd Sign: COMMISSION (II Reading)
The second sign of the Spirit’s presence is Commission. A commissioning which begins with a CALLING… as we are called into one community in the Risen Lord, called to be children of God who call out, ‘Abba Father’. This calling does not end with a domestic understanding of being children cuddling at home, but a call that fills us with the FIRE OF MISSION, for we are not filled with the Spirit of cowardice to fall into fear, but the Spirit of adoption that urges us on to go forward and live a life of witness, that is bold and befitting the one who called us.
One who possesses the Spirit of the Lord, is aware of the CALLING that one has received and is courageous to bear witness to that calling with the FIRE OF THE MISSION, that burns from within as Jeremiah says (Jer 20:9).
3rd Sign: COMPASSION (Gospel)
The third and the most fundamental sign of the presence of the Spirit is COMPASSION, without which the very name ‘Christian’ has no meaning absolutely. Compassion is an active form of LOVE, the only expectation that the Lord has from us – to love each other as the Lord loves us. Love, is not a mere feeling but a feeling with, it is feeling with the other, what the other feels. While speaking of the Early Christians it was said they were of one mind and one heart – that was love. While St. Paul instructs, ‘Rejoice with those who rejoice and mourn with those who mourn’ (Rom 12:15). That is true Christian love, that is the way that the Lord loved us. To love is to LIVE LIKE JESUS. Fundamentally, this is what the Spirit enables us to be – to be like Jesus, to live like Jesus.
Hence, One who possesses the Spirit of the Lord, is filled with LOVE and vows to LIVE LIKE JESUS. The disciples together were called to grow to be like Christ. To grow to be like Christ is to grow in the image of the Lord given by the Spirit. To be disciples of Christ is to grow in the likeness of Christ, to be think like Christ, to speak like Christ, to act like Christ and to decide like Christ in every thing. Those who are in the Christ are a new creation! Those who are in the Spirit are true children of God, empowered to call God, Abba Father!
The coming of the Spirit was a radical change of lifestyle for the disciples and all who believed in Christ. Today, if we are to celebrate this feast with real meaning, there has to be a radical evaluation of our life style – whether we promote communion, accept our commission and burn with compassion! If we do, we are the people of the Spirit.
Come Holy Spirit, Fill us with your Fire!
Fr Antony Christy is a Salesian Priest from 2005, who has a Masters in Philosophy (specialisation in Religion) and a Masters in Theology (Specialisation in Catechetics). He is currently pursuing his doctoral research in Theology at Salesian Pontifical University, Rome. Walking with the Young towards a World of Peace and Dialogue is the passion that fires him.