HOMILY for PENTECOST SUNDAY May 23, 2021

 HOMILY for PENTECOST SUNDAY     May 23, 2021

          HAPPY PENTECOST!!!     In our first reading today the Holy Spirit appears as a “strong, driving, wind”.   Certainly, we in Texas know about strong, driving winds – in tornadoes and hurricanes.   We have at least seen the videos of trees swaying violently in the wind, of debris flying through the air, of transformers exploding in a shower of sparks, of great old trees uprooted and pushed over, of all sorts of wind damage.

          And it is true that the Holy Spirit is strong, and can push us, and humble and awe us with the Holy Spirit’s power.

          There are times we most desperately need the power of the Holy Spirit.  For over the last year we have witnessed storms of protest and civil unrest: over demands for racial justice, over police brutality, and the riots in January in the nation’s capital.   And there is also the pervasive threat of the covid pandemic.   In the face of these threats and upheavals and dangers we have lived through the last year and more, we need the power and guidance of the Holy Spirit.

          But there is another side of the Holy Spirit that we need now as well, and perhaps even more than the Holy Spirits’ power:  and that is the Holy Spirit’s comfort.  For the Holy Spirit is not only a mighty, irresistible wind, but also the refreshing coolness of a gentle breeze on a hot, sultry day.   The Holy Spirit’s POWER is balanced and accompanied by COMFORT. 

          Indeed, one of the titles of the Holy Spirit is “Comforter”.   And having lived through a dangerous and difficult year, we need the comfort and consolation of the Holy Spirit.

          In one translation of the Sequence for Pentecost, the Holy Spirit is described thus: “Come, within our bosoms shine. / You, of comforters the best; / You, the soul’s most welcome guest;/  Sweet refreshment here below;/  In our labor, rest most sweet; / Grateful coolness in the heat; /  Solace in the midst of woe.”

          “Solace in the midst of woe.”  Have we not experienced enough of woe this last year?

          For me personally that solace often comes in the form of a new perspective.  When I have run into a difficult or intractable problem; maybe in dealing with an employee of the parish who is not performing their job satisfactorily; or disagreement with a brother Paulist priest;  or even with a Bishop or diocesan official who I find difficult and disagreeable and wrong; or even with a parishioner who constantly complains and criticizes and questions everything, (of course not any like that is this parish), or any kind of problem, and I become worried and frustrated and upset, when finally I remember to take the problem to prayer, and hand the problem over to the Holy Spirit, most of the time it is as if the fog lifts, and I see clearly again; I remember that it is Christ’s Church, not mine; that the Lord is in charge, not me; and I become less tense, less tight, and can breathe more easily again.   “Solace in the midst of woe.”

          We need the working of the Holy Spirit in our lives to make our lives worth living.  As we heard in the Second Reading today: “the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control.”        We can all use more of these gifts.

          The Holy Spirit is strong, powerful, forceful:  but also comforting, consoling, refreshing.

          The Holy Spirit lifts up our spirits, fills us with hope, and peace, and love.   Truly the Holy Spirit is a most wonderful gift.  Happy Pentecost!!!