Ya know, sometimes Jesus says stuff that is difficult.  Like the Gospel appointed for today:  Matthew 10:37-39  (NIV)

“Anyone who loves their father or mother more than me is not worthy of me; anyone who loves their son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me.  Whoever does not take up their cross and follow me is not worthy of me.  Whoever finds their life will lose it, and whoever loses their life for my sake will find it.

Say what?  Whatever does this mean?  You say to me, you say, “But Jesus taught us to love and respect and honor our parents!  It’s even one of the Ten Commandments!”  And I’d say right back to you, “Yep.”

 So what gives with this?   I have to believe that what Jesus is saying to us is this:  If we are going to walk with Jesus, we have a price to pay. Sacrifice and suffering and making difficult choices are part of the journey.

Earlier, Jesus has warned His disciples that He had come to bring a sword of division to Israel. This wasn’t a reference to violence or revolution, but to the separations that the gospel can cause. Those who refuse to accept Christ and his message of love and acceptance will hate and persecute those who believe (John 15:18–21). The division will take place even between immediate family members. Fathers and sons will turn on each other, as well mothers and daughters. The issue will be belief in Jesus Himself. Is He the Messiah, the Son of God? Is what he says right and true and good?  Those who refuse to acknowledge Him will reject those of their own family, who put their faith in Jesus and begin to follow His ways (1 Peter 4:3–4).

Jesus is demanding His rightful place in the hearts of His people.  Us.   We must love Him more than all others and demonstrate that  this is true, especially if we are forced to make a choice. This does not change Scripture’s demand that children honor their parents (Ephesians 6:2) and that parents provide for their children (Ephesians 6:4; 1 Timothy 5:8). Jesus does not say “do not love” those other people—what He says is that we ought to love God more.  And in so loving God more, in following his path, will folks bewilling to lose connection to their family members, friends,  or political party in order to continue to follow Jesus and acknowledge to others that He is the Christ? 

Loving others is the second greatest commandment, but it is behind the first: to love God with everything we have (Matthew 22:34–40). In making this statement, Jesus continues to make the claim that He is God. Love and obedience to Him must come before obedience to any other person or group (Acts 5:29).

And how do we show that love?  That willingness to sacrifice it all for Jesus?  Be merciful.  Be kind.  Show love.  It’s pretty much one of the key recurring factors of Jesus’s ministry.  Love God.  Love people.  Love God.  Love people.

Jesus tells us in John 13:34-35, “A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another: just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another.  By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.”    How do we show that love?  Again, Jesus tell us, and again, very specifically in Matthew 25:35-45:   For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in,  I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.’   “Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink?  When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you?  When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?’  “The King will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.’  “Then he will say to those on his left, ‘Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels.  For I was hungry and you gave me nothing to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me nothing to drink,  I was a stranger and you did not invite me in, I needed clothes and you did not clothe me, I was sick and in prison and you did not look after me.’   “They also will answer, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or needing clothes or sick or in prison, and did not help you?’

45 “He will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for me.’

The least of these….who then, are ‘the least of these’ in today’s society?   Probably those who make many of us uncomfortable.  The homeless?  People who are of a different color?  Sexual orientation?  Gender identity? Ethnicity? Who are “the least of these” to you? 

Throughout his ministry, Jesus showed that he did, indeed, love everyone, even to the point of dying for their sins, but you know,  he went out of his way to intentionally help specific groups of people — the alienated, mistreated, and those facing injustice. 

We as Christians must recognize that our society today is filled with numerous groups and communities facing systemic oppression, and we must act. We must be willing to admit and address the complex realities within our world that create such problems, and avoid the spiritual laziness that tempts us to rely on generic excuses and solutions.  Loving as Jesus loved us is hard.   Loving Jesus more than anything and anyone is harder.

Christians do a disservice to the gospel message by removing the cultural context from Jesus’s ministry and watering down his message to one of religious platitudes. We like to generalize the words of Jesus and transform his life into a one-size-fits-all model that can apply to all of humanity.  He intentionally, purposefully, and passionately addressed very specific causes. He radically addressed the diverse and complicated conflicts of the time and shattered the status quo.  Are we, as Christians, not called to do the same?  By addressing racism, immigration, gender equality, gender expression, and a litany of other issues, we are following in the steps of Jesus.

Justice.  Mercy.  Kindness.  Love God.  Love people.

Amen.

In today`s reading we learn two very important things for all of us who are Christians. The first one is about the sin, and the fact the sin has no power upon us if we are washed with the blood of Jesus through our faith. That does not mean that we are now sinless and that we will never sin again. But it means that God does not see us anymore as sinful and God sees us through His Son Jesus Christ who died for us. Those things many Christians nowadays do not understand. Being forgiven does not mean that we will never sin again. We have sinful nature which we inherited from Adam. But we, who are saved also have the forgiveness of our sins which was gifted as a free gift from Jesus. As we read in Romans 5:12-15 through one man the sin had entered the world. And that man was Adam. We all, a human creatures inherited this sin and our nature became sinful. And since the sin was an obstacle and barrier between God and man there was a necessity for something to happen in order to break this barrier. Centuries after Adam brought the sin into this material world, God gave Moses the Law. And again, there were many centuries needed to let people aware that the Law cannot be fulfilled and that every single person is a sinner and should be always separated from God. Unfortunately it seems that even today in some Christian denominations people do not believe in this gift and are trying to earn their own salvation. They do not feel secure in mercy which God promised but they are trying to be very pious and through religious rituals try to earn forgiveness of their sins. They light candles, incense, they donate money to the church, give charity, pray a lot and pray rosaries etc. I must say that all of these things are good but they should be result of being saved. Not to do all those things aiming to earn what cannot be earned and it is precious and uncountable gift of God`s eternal mercy and gift of salvation. And then God decided to send into the world our Savior, Jesus Christ. The only man who was sinful, the only man who was able to put away the sin of humankind. And as the sin step into the world through one man (Adam), also the sin stepped out from this world through one man (Jesus). And this is how it happened, we are now able to have a close relationship with God, not because of our own deeds or merits but because we believe in Jesus and through that faith and love God sees us sinless, free from sins and saved. This is why we know we are saved by grace. This is how great is God`s grace and mercy.

The second thing that we learnt today is that we should not be afraid. Even though it could sometimes be very difficult. People usually tend to believe their own feelings and thoughts. When we think that something negative is going to happen we often lack the faith in God and we lack the awareness that everything is happening with the will of God. If we have problems at work, or bad communication with our colleagues, financial problems, health issues or even emotional problems with our loving partner or our marriage seems to be broken. We should raise awareness that there are no coincidences in our life and that everything can be a new lesson or a new door that needs to be closed for another door and another possibilities to be opened. What we read today is from Matthew 10:29-31 – `Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? Yet not one of them will fall to the ground outside your Father’s care. And even the very hairs of your head are all numbered. So don’t be afraid; you are worth more than many sparrows.` This sentence is so amazing and so full of hope. God is aware even how many hairs we have. And he cares literally about all the things about us even some of them that we are not conscious. Our God is awesome. In our God we have forgiveness of sins, a loving relationship and he cares about us. My prayer today is that you all could feel such a great love and security in God. Amen.

Matthew 9:36 =  

“He had compassion on them because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd.” 

“When he looked out over the crowds, his heart broke. So confused and aimless they were, like sheep with no shepherd. “What a huge harvest!” He said to his disciples. “How few workers! On your knees and pray for the harvest hands.” (The Message) 

One of my favorite Saturday afternoon things to do during the Spring and Summer is to escape to the nearby park and just vegetate. Do not get me wrong, I like to mostly listen to the sounds of nature and to watch folks try their hand at fishing in the man-made pond which is usually freshly stocked just as the hint of Spring is beginning.  I often get a kick out of watching newly hatched ducks or geese waddling around the lake just before they take their very first dip in the water.  They are helpless and they are seemingly without someone to lead them; that is until Momma squawks that familiar sound that tells that little one to get themselves back in line so as not wonder off.   

All too often, we find ourselves on that path of self-discovery and control.  We think that we got all the answers and can make it just fine without an “adult” assuring us or comforting us to get back in line.   

Ever since I can remember, and for no apparent reason, I found myself being harassed and bullied.  On more than one occasion, the thought of suicide crept into my mind and found a quick exit, too.  There was a whole lot going on at home that I was afraid to talk to anyone about and I always felt as if the guys who were teasing and bullying me with their harsh remarks at school somehow knew because their comments were always right on point.  I had no one to confide in or to talk to and I felt extremely helpless.  I was lost and clearly, I was harassed for different reasons no matter where I went.  My dad, who by the time I was in high school had been separated from my mom for several years and when I would visit him mostly after school, I was harassed to behave in a way that I really was not wanting to. When I was at home, my stepfather seemed to pick up on where my father left off and so I was once again forced to do things that clearly were not in my way of thinking or living.   

When I went to church, the folks who were sent to minister to me had great difficulty addressing the issue because they “did not have any children and didn’t understand.”  So, for several years, I was a misguided teenager who was lost and always lived a life of fear, and no one honestly knew this to be the case.  I tried to tell my mom, but she was so in love with her new husband that I felt like an afterthought even when she told me that she wished I wasn’t born.  I know that she said this in anger, but it stung deeply and painfully.   

As my life would continue, the right people eventually started to come into my life, and I was able to find my place.  Oddly enough and with a great deal of my own questioning, I was brought to the Lord and shown where He would eventually call me to serve Him.  Who was I that He would choose me and want to use me…but why, when, where, and how?  Even I knew that I was on the outskirts of what He was looking for.  I could never fit in to the mold of what He was looking for as a “fisher of men”.  I hated fishing and I do not like seafood, so we had a problem.  But then I was introduced to prayer and shown the way to look deep into myself and find what it was that was keeping me from stepping out of the margins, those areas where I felt helpless.  I was taken back to the Old Testament and to the very short look into the life of Jabez (1 Chron. 4:9-12), “bless me and enlarge my territory (border).  Jabez wanted to be liberated from the consequences of his birth, like I did, and he was relentless in his prayer to God in faith believing that one day God would hear and answer his prayer.  I cannot begin to tell you the number of times I (we) have become frustrated with waiting for God to answer my (our) prayers, to take me out of a bad situation and help me to see the truth waiting for me.  Sometimes the trust was already revealed to me amid that struggle, and I was just too stubborn to see what He was trying to show me. But doesn’t this speak to us all?   

Just a few days ago, I was reading leisurely a book by Henri Nouwen, “The Way of the Heart”, ‘The Spirituality of the Desert Fathers and Mothers’. The final paragraph of the book speaks well to our role as ministers in reaching those in the harvest and in the margins and beyond. 

“The prayer of the heart is indeed the way of the purity of heart that gives us eyes to see the reality of our existence. This purity of heart allows us to see more clearly, not only our own needy, distorted, and anxious self but also the caring face of our compassionate God.  When that vision remains clear and sharp, it will be possible to move into the midst of a tumultuous world with a heart at rest.  It is this restful heart that will attract those who are groping to find their way through life.  When we have found our rest in God, we can do nothing other than minister.  God’s rest will be visible wherever we go and whoever we meet.  And before we speak any words, the Spirit of God, praying in us, will, make his presence known and gather people into a new body, the body of Christ himself.” 

May the Spirit of Almighty God move and have His being in our lives today and always.  God bless you. 

Well y’all….  I have a confession to make.  Much to my chagrin and dismay, and to my husband’s shock, I confess to being less than perfect.   You know how I talk about showing love all the time?  In a lot of ways, I’m preaching to myself.  Loving is HARD.  I find myself making snarky comments, cracking on folks, getting angry at people who don’t share my views (really they should know better, but still,) and not being as loving as I should be.  For example, one of my dearest friends sent me a message this week telling me about one of his (former?) friends who cracked hard on one of his posts.  I really wanted to hit the woman with my snark gun, bless her heart.  Sigh…..  In cases like this, I have to remind myself that there is not ONE person on this planet who God doesn’t love.  I need to do better.   SO much better.  This is why we say we PRACTICE our faith, coz we never, ever, get it right or master those commands Jesus gave us.  So practice we must.

What has brought this on, you ask?  Well, lemme put on my mitre (pointy bishop hat) and I’ll tell ya.

Today is a great Feast Day in the life of the liturgical church throughout Christendom:  The Solemnity of Corpus Christi.  This day is celebrated in recognition of the Eucharist, and everything the Eucharist is and means.  Today we celebrate, literally, the Body of Christ.  We all know that the Eucharist was instituted by Christ at the Last Supper.  We all know that we, as Catholics, believe that the bread and the wine become the body and blood of Our Lord.  We all know that our Protestant brothers and sisters believe that the bread and the wine are symbolic of the body and blood of our Lord.  We all know that wars have been fought over these two basic, yet entirely different, beliefs.  We also know that from many, if not most, of the liturgical pulpits in the world, today the Word will be proclaimed concerning the Eucharist. 

Today, however, I would like to put a different spin on Corpus Christi.  I would like for us to leave the upper room of Christ and the disciples, and jump ahead a few years to Corinth, and to listen to what the Apostle Paul has to say about “the body of Christ” in his first letter to the Corinthians:

12 For as the body is one and has many members, but all the members of that one body, being many, are one body, so also is Christ. 13 For by one Spirit we were all baptized into one body—whether Jews or Greeks, whether slaves or free—and have all been made to drink into[c] one Spirit. 14 For in fact the body is not one member but many. 

We, the Church, we, the people of God, we, those of us who confess Christ as our Lord, puny imperfect people that we are, WE are the body of Christ.  Some of us dress funny.  Some of us talk funny.  Some of us have emotional issues.  Some of us just have issues.  But we, ALL of us, together, make up the body of Christ.  Warts and all.  Some of us are wildly and multiply talented.  Some of us are incredibly intelligent.  Some of us have been blessed with physical beauty.  Some of us have been blessed with spiritual beauty. Some of us have none of those things.    Be we, ALL of us together, make up the body of Christ.

Because we are all of us different, it can be said that we make up different parts of the body of Christ.  We each of us have different gifts.  Some make up the head, some the heart.  Others are the feet and the hands of the body of Christ.  Granted there are parts of the body of Christ that we would rather keep hidden, under wraps (oh I want to be snarky here…  I’m really trying, y’all.)  But are these parts any less important?  Do these parts not serve a major and important function in the working of the body?  I believe that they do.

My point, here, folks, if I haven’t made it already is simply this:  WE, all of us, make up the body of Christ.  What one person brings to the table may not be of particular interest or value to another person, but there is someone at that table who needs just that.  Perhaps we feel that this person or that person isn’t quite what we would like to see in our church, or in our family, or in our lives, but to someone, somewhere, that person is exactly who is needed.  The very person whom we consider to be “less than worthy” to represent Christ and His church may just be the exact one who is needed in certain situations.

There has been much made of certain politicians being excluded from receiving communion because of their political beliefs.  Who are we, as clergy, to deny anyone the Body of Christ?   I would ask these folks, ‘Did Jesus not sit down and break bread with Judas?’  Who are we to judge who is worthy, if we, all of us, are a part of the body of Christ? 

In the words of John D Whitney, SJ:

“I want to write a longer piece about those bishops who seek to keep some from the table of Christ, but for now I will say this: it is not your table (nor mine). Bishops, priests, etc. are neither the hosts nor the bouncers nor the ones who wrote the guest list. The Eucharist is the resurrected body of Christ given for the life of the world. Jesus Christ is the one who invites the guests (‘all you who labor’); he is the host of those who come; he is the setter of the table; and he is the feast which is shared (‘Take this, all of you. . .this is my body, this is my blood’). We are guests at the meal, and sometimes (by his calling) servers. So stay in your lane, please. The wait staff doesn’t get to exclude those who want to come. If you don’t like the company Christ calls (and, admittedly, it is a rag tag bunch of sinners, one and all), it’s you who need to leave the table, not them.”

Along those lines, of course, members of our church, or any church, are not allowed to receive communion in the Roman Church at all, regardless of whether or not we are Christians.  Can you imagine Jesus saying to anyone, “You’re not a member of the club.  No communion for you.”  This is one of the many reasons why we practice an open table at the Eucharist.  Believers welcome.  

So, that drag queen you’re hating on?  That transman or transwoman?  That politician?  That bigot down the street?  That news anchor?  Yep.  God loves ‘em.  They are part of the body of Christ.

The music artist, John Michael Talbot, sums it up nicely:

One bread, one body, one Lord of all, one cup of blessing which we bless.

And we, though many, throughout the earth, we are one body in this one Lord.

Gentile or Jew, woman or man, no more.   Many the gifts, many the works, one in the Lord of all.

Grain for the fields, scattered and grown, gathered to one, for all.

One bread, one body, one Lord of all, one cup of blessing which we bless.  And we, though many, throughout the earth, we are one body in this one Lord.

As we go along in our daily lives, let us remember the lessons of today, this Feast of Corpus Christi, that we all of us make up the One Bread, the One Body, the One Cup, that is the Body of Christ.  Amen.

There are a few things about which I could not be more certain:  Scott loves me truly, madly, deeply (I really like that song.)  My Daddy was the wisest man on the planet.  My Momma was the bestest woman to ever draw breath.  Jesus loves me and my salvation is secure. 

And, conversely, there are things in life that I will never, never fully grasp.  Like, why do some people think it’s OK to wear stripes and plaid together?  Pi or upper-level mathematics?  How things travel a zillion miles a minute in space?  Why chocolate isn’t its own food group?

And  then, there’s the Holy Trinity.  The Holy Trinity is a mystery that we will never fully understand; never even come close to understanding.  We believe that the God of the Bible is one God. God has one essence – one substance. In other words, one “stuffness.” However, God exists in three Persons: the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.  Each Person in the Trinity (or the Godhead) is fully God and fully a Person. They are equally eternal, powerful, sovereign, and worthy of worship. But they are one God.

Got that?  Me, neither, but it is central to our faith. 

Many theologians and holy men and women of God have attempted to explain just how this Trinity Thing works.  One God, Three Persons.  Three in one and one in three.  They have, of course, failed.  It has been said that if you try to explain the Trinity, you will lose your mind. But if you deny it, you will lose your soul.  There are several popular analogies often used to explain the Trinity, but, they don’t work and in reality are heresies.   (Uh oh!)  Here they are:

God is like water. Now, we know that water can be in three different forms:  Liquid, Ice, and Vapor.  But this doesn’t work and this particular heresy is called “modalism.”  Modalism expresses the belief that God is not, in fact three separate persons, but one God expressed in three different forms.  Now, if this were the case, then and the Trinity really is like water, then the story of Jesus (the Son) praying to the Father all those times in the Bible, is just Jesus talking to Himself.  This belief denies something central to God that makes Him God. So comparing God to water isn’t really as helpful as one might think.

It’s also been said that The Trinity is like a man:  A father, who is a son, who is a husband.  Nope.  Same as modalism.  Won’t work.

Then there is the age-old story-legend-myth of St. Patrick using the shamrock.  Or the more modernized versions using an egg or an apple.  The shamrock has 3 leaves to make one whole plant, the yolk, shell, and white make up one egg, or the peel, flesh, and core of an apple make up one fruit.  Umm…no.  Won’t work, because any of these three things that make up one thing will not stand on their own to be a complete thing?  Know what I mean?  The egg yolk, shamrock leaf, and apple peel don’t make one complete whole.  And this particular heresy is called Partialism.  Sigh……

Moving on…

The sun has been used to explain the Trinity.  This example says that the Father is like the sun. The Son is like the light rays that visibly reveal the sun, as Jesus is the visible image of the invisible God.  The Holy Spirit is like the heat that emanates from the sun, unseen yet powerful and effective in making the sun felt.  This makes sense, right???  Nope. Sorry.  This explanation is fatally flawed in that is describes the Son and Spirit as creations of the Father. This is the error of Arianism (not to be confused with Aryanism, which is also bad).  In Arianism, the Son is not eternally equal with the Father, but was the Father’s first and best creation. This would make Jesus something less than fully God.  This little gem of heresy is called Subordinationism and was first espoused by Arius who lived in the late 200s/early 300s, and whose modern-day followers are now known as  Jehovah’s Witnesses.

A couple more illustrations of the Trinity that aren’t quite so bad, but aren’t great either are these:

American Christian pastor, speaker, author, and widely syndicated radio and television broadcaster in the United States, Tony Evans, has said that the pretzel is a good illustration because it consists of one piece of dough with three holes. Take away any one of the holes and the pretzel isn’t really a pretzel anymore. (According to some people, the pretzel was actually invented in Europe several hundred years ago by a monk who wanted to illustrate the Trinity to the children of his village, so he took some dough, looped into the familiar three-hour shape, based it, and gave it to the children as an edible object lesson.)

Or this from noted scientist Dr. Henry Morris. He notes that the entire universe is trinitarian by design. The universe consists of three things: matter, space, and time. Take away any one of those three and the universe would cease to exist. But each one of those is itself a trinity.

Matter = mass + energy + motion

Space = length + height + breadth

Time = past + present + future

Are we having fun yet?  No?  OK, I’ll bring this to a close.  In so doing I’m gonna end where I started. The Trinity is a doctrine that all Christians believe but no one really understands. That much should be clear from this message. If you try to explain the Trinity, you will lose your mind. But if you deny it, you will lose your soul.

Someone asked Daniel Webster, who happened to be a fervent Christian, “How can a man of your intellect believe in the Trinity?” He said, “I do not pretend fully to understand the arithmetic of heaven now,” he replied. How kewl is that little phrase???  “The arithmetic of heaven.”

The Trinity should cause us to bow in humble adoration before a God who is greater than our minds could ever comprehend.

Today, the Feast of the Holy Trinity, we rejoice that we have a Triune God who has provided for a Trinitarian salvation. When we were lost in sin, our God acted in every Person of his being to save us. The Father gave the Son, the Son offered himself on the Cross, and the Holy Spirit brought us to Jesus. We were so lost that it took every member of the Godhead to save us.

In 1774 a man named Ignaz Franz wrote a hymn of praise to the Trinity: Holy God, We Praise Your Name. This is the fourth verse:

“Holy Father, Holy Son, Holy Spirit, Three we name you;

While in essence only one, undivided God we claim you.

Then, adoring, bend the knee, and confess the mystery.”

Let us pray.

Holy God, above us, among us, within us: we rejoice this day that while you might have chosen to be unknown to us, you have revealed yourself in many ways. Each encounter with you calls us to return blessings with worship, compassion, and service. As we worship you today, we do so in gratitude for all your parental care for us through your creation.  As we worship you today , we do so because, in love, you gave us Christ, that through him we might find eternal life. As we worship you today  your Spirit leads your church to reach out in compassion, mercy, and grace to all your children everywhere. In gratitude, we celebrate you, three and yet one. Amen.

If you go back and read the Old Testament, you will discover that Pentecost was one of the Jewish feast days. Only they didn’t call it Pentecost. That’s the Greek name. The Jews called it the Feast of Harvest or the Feast of Weeks. When the day of Pentecost arrived, they were all together in one place. And suddenly there came from heaven a sound like a mighty rushing wind, and it filled the entire house where they were sitting. And divided tongues as of fire appeared to them and rested on each one of them. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit gave them utterance. Now there were dwelling in Jerusalem Jews, devout men from every nation under heaven. And at this sound the multitude came together, and they were bewildered, because each one was hearing them speak in his own language. And they were amazed and astonished, saying, “Are not all these who are speaking Galileans? And how is it that we hear, each of us in his own native language? Parthians and Medes and Elamites and residents of Mesopotamia, Judea and Cappadocia, Pontus and Asia, Phrygia and Pamphylia, Egypt and the parts of Libya belonging to Cyrene, and visitors from Rome, both Jews and proselytes, Cretans and Arabians–we hear them telling in our own tongues the mighty works of God.” And all were amazed and perplexed, saying to one another, “What does this mean?” But others mocking said, “They are filled with new wine.” (Acts 2:1-13). Pentecost was the celebration of the beginning of the early weeks of harvest. In Palestine, there were two harvests each year. The early harvest came during the months of May and June; the final harvest came in the Fall. Pentecost was the celebration of the beginning of the early wheat harvest, which meant that Pentecost always fell sometime during the middle of the month of May or sometimes in early June. There were several festivals, celebrations, or observances that took place before Pentecost. There was Passover, there was Unleavened Bread, and there was the Feast of Firstfruits. The Feast of Firstfruits was the celebration of the beginning of the barley harvest. Here’s the way you figured out the date of Pentecost. According to the Old Testament, you would go to the day of the celebration of Firstfruits, and beginning with that day, you would count off 50 days. The fiftieth day would be the Day of Pentecost. So Firstfruits is the beginning of the barley harvest and Pentecost is the celebration of the beginning of the wheat harvest. Since it was always 50 days after Firstfruits, and since 50 days equals seven weeks, it always came a “week of weeks” later. Therefore, they either called it the Feast of Harvest or the Feast of Weeks. Modern Christians observe Pentecost as a holiday, not to celebrate a wheat harvest, but to remember when the Holy Spirit invaded the Church in Acts 2. On Pentecost Sunday, the Holy Spirit filled the Church with power and added 3,000 new believers. The account in Act 2 reports that, after Jesus ascended into heaven, Jesus’ followers were gathered together for the Feast of Harvest (aka Pentecost), and the Holy Spirit “filled the whole house where they were sitting” (Acts 2:2). “All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit enabled them” (Acts 2:4). This strange occurrence drew a large crowd, and Peter stood up to speak to them about repentance and the gospel of Christ (Acts 2:14). By the end of the day that the Holy Spirit came, the Church grew by 3,000 people (Acts 2:41). This is why Christians still celebrate Pentecost. The Holy Spirit was prophesied in the Old Testament and promised by Jesus.  Jesus promised the Holy Spirit in John 14:26, who would be the Helper for his people. “But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, He will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all that I said to you.” This New Testament event is also significant because it fulfills an Old Testament prophecy in Joel 2:28-29: “And afterward, I will pour out my Spirit on all people. Your sons and daughters will prophesy, your old men will dream dreams, your young men will see visions. Even on my servants, both men and women, I will pour out my Spirit in those days.”

Today we celebrate the most important day of the year.  Wait, lemme try again.  TODAY WE CELEBRATE THE MOST IMPORTANT DAY OF THE YEAR!!!! 

Yeah, that’s better.  And no, it’s not any day that you or I think is the most important day of the year.    I’m gonna give you a couple of hints coz I’m a nice guy like that.  It’s not Christmas.  It’s not Easter.  It’s MORE important than either of those days.

“What?” you say to me, mystified.  “What could be more important than celebrating our Lord’s birth?”   Meh.  Without celebrating today’s importance, Jesus’s birth is no more important than any other baby born at any time in history.

“What?” you say to me, getting a bit hot under the collar.  “What could be more important than celebrating the Lord’s resurrection, when He died for us all and rose again, saving us all?”  Meh.  Without celebrating today’s importance, Jesus’s resurrection is no more important than that of  those folks Elijah and Elisha raised, or Lazarus of Bethany, or the widow of Nain’s son, or Jairus’s daughter, or Tabitha, or any and all of  those other folks who made an encore appearance when Jesus rose from the dead on Easter.   “But, but, but…….” you say.  OK, calm down….lemme finish.   Yeah, it was a pretty great thing that Lazarus was resurrected, as well as those other folks who popped out of their tombs when Jesus did, but super important???  Not so much.

And I can hear you going all “Michael what are you talking about.  So….  Imma tell ya.  All those resurrected folks?  Lazarus and all the others included?  THEY DIED AGAIN and stayed that way.  They all got  up and did whatever it was that newly un-unalived people do, and then, when it was time, they died.  Again. 

However, Jesus?  He did not.  He.  Did.  Not.  We read what happened in the Book of Luke  (Luke 24:51) and in Acts (Acts 1:1-9)  In a nutshell, Jesus kinda levitates and then levitates a bunch more and soon He’s levitated himself so high that He is surrounded by the clouds and goes out of sight.    Gone.  Ascended into Heaven.  Not Dead.

 St. Augustine, the great fifth century theologian, called the ascension the most important Christian festival of the year, more important than Christmas, more important than Pentecost, even more important than Easter. (See, told ya.  It’s not just me!) For the ascension reminds us just how high Jesus was raised, and what that means.  Aquinas states:

‘This is that festival which confirms the grace of all the festivals together, without which the profitableness of every festival would have perished. For unless the Saviour had ascended into heaven, his Nativity would have come to nothing…and his Passion would have borne no fruit for us, and his most holy Resurrection would have been useless.’

What Saint Augustine says here resonates with the passage in Ephesians 4:10, where Saint Paul says that ‘He who descended is he who also ascended far above all the heavens, that he might fill all things’ – i.e.; that by ascending into Heaven, and taking our human nature up with Him into the heavenly places, He completed the process of redemption by reclaiming His place as rightful sovereign of the universe, so that He might be present to us in a different way. If He had not so returned, the process would not have been completed, and as Jesus said in John 16:7, ‘it is to your advantage that I go away, for if I do not go away, the Counselor will not come to you; but if I go, I will send him to you’.

The gospel writer Luke is renowned as a careful historian. When he recorded the birth of Jesus he rooted the event in its historical setting within the Roman Empire. He continues that same preciseness at the end of our Lord’s earthly ministry by recalling the place of the Ascension – at Bethany. He dates the event – 40 days after the resurrection on Easter Day. He emphases the presence of eyewitnesses – the Ascension took place he writes “before their very eyes” (Acts 1:9). Yes, the Ascension was a real event of history.

Some people are puzzled as to why Jesus waited around on Earth 40 days after his resurrection, but that period is no accident, and Jesus had things to do.

Jesus had endured the Devil’s temptation for 40 days in the wilderness at the beginning of his public ministry, but now the tables were turned. In the period after Jesus’ resurrection, He triumphantly paraded his victory over the Satan. During this time, the conqueror of death displayed his supremacy before his faithful followers so that they might share in the joy of his victory. But there was another reason. Those 40 days of his appearing after the resurrection were of immense value to the believers for they established the reality of his lordship. A single sighting of the risen Christ may have been open to question, but his continuous encounters with the disciples would remove the doubts of the most skeptical among them and assure them of his power and authority.

The resurrection of Jesus marked the ending of a chapter in his earthly life. Things could never be the same again and it was essential that there should be a clear-cut event to bring the chapter to a close. It’s true that Jesus was making a series of appearances to his followers, but they couldn’t go on forever.

It would have been odd if Jesus’ post-resurrection appearances had grown fewer until finally they just stopped – that would only cause confusion and even loss of faith. No, there had to be a single, miraculous occurrence, separating the time when the Jesus of Earth would become the Christ of heaven. The Ascension was the only fitting conclusion to the life of Jesus on Earth.

Luke tells us of the disciples with their eyes straining to catch the last glimpse of the cloud bearing up their Lord. But then they were quickly brought back to earth. It would seem that with their eyes heavenward they didn’t notice the two heavenly beings that slipped quietly alongside them until they spoke: “Men of Galilee, why do you stand looking unto heaven?,” as if to remind the disciples of the work that they had been given to do.  The angels, for angels they were, had to tell the disciples to get to business.

And so it is with us.  Ascension Day reminds us of the Mystery of Faith: “Christ has died, Christ is risen, Christ will come again.”

Christ will come again.  And as we await the “coming again” of Christ, we, like the disciples, have a job to do, business to attend to.  Although we live in the time between Jesus’ Ascension and his coming again, we have something to do now.   In Matthew 28:18-20, Jesus says, “Go to the people of all nations and make them my disciples. Baptize them in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit,  and teach them to do everything I have told you. I will be with you always, even until the end of the world.”

Where do we start?   Jesus has the answer for that, too.  In John 13 Jesus says to us, “ But I am giving you a new commandment. You must love each other, just as I have loved you.  If you love each other, everyone will know that you are my disciples.”  We are to continue to change the world in the work that Jesus has given us to do by helping others to see Jesus through and in us, by showing that love that he demonstrated, by bringing that love to everyone.

Jesus told us to love everyone.  Love.  Everyone.  Period.   Not just those whose politics are the same as ours.  Not only those whose religion is the same as ours, not only those whose lifestyles are the same as ours.  Love.  Everyone.  Period. 

We would all of us do well to pray:

“Lord, make me an instrument of thy peace.
Where there is hatred, let me sow love;
Where there is injury, pardon;
Where there is doubt, faith;
Where there is despair, hope;
Where there is darkness, light;
Where there is sadness, joy.

Love.  Everyone.  Period.

Come Lord Jesus. 

Amen.

In the ✠ Name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.

Amen.

When Dominicans prepare to preach on the Holy Gospel, we are encouraged to meditate and “feed” off of the scripture through an ancient method called “lectio divina” which emphasizes reflection and interaction with the text. We might also employ other tools and exercises to capture the Spirit. A teacher of mine during formation noted the importance of taking a moment to think about which version of God is most notable in the reading. We ought to think about who takes the forefront of our minds when we listen to the Word of the Lord. Is it God the Father as the Creator? Is it the passion and merciful love of the Son? Maybe Christ the Liberator and Redeemer of the world?

When I reflect on today’s Gospel from St. John, I am mostly attuned to the Holy Spirit as the great Advocate (also known as the Paraclete). No, not just because Jesus explicitly refers to this, but because we vividly see the works of the Spirit in this way.

Recall that Jesus was preparing to depart from our earthly realm, and he was very aware that his disciples would be stricken with grief and fear of what was to come. To assuage their anxieties, Jesus made a promise to them that he would never abandon them. He pledged to send them the Holy Spirit, the Advocate, who would provide them with guidance and fortify their faith. This assurance of the Holy Spirit’s presence is a fundamental tenet of our catholic faith, and serves as a reminder of the Almighty God’s tender and merciful love for us.

In this very short excerpt, we also glance into the symbiotic inner workings of the Holy Trinity at play here. We see here that if you love the Son, the Son will ask the Father, and the Father will pour out His Spirit upon you. But there is a conditional that is important to highlight here. The Son will only ask the Father “if you love [him] and keep [his] commandments”. We must remember when we are called to hold up our end of the deal before we hastily petition for favors.

As we navigate the challenges and difficulties of our daily lives, it is not uncommon for our faith to waver or for us to find it hard to keep his commandments. We may experience feelings of isolation and doubt, questioning whether God remains present in our lives. In such moments, however, we can draw solace from Jesus’ promise that the Holy Spirit will abide with us always. By opening ourselves to the Spirit’s guidance and support, we can find reassurance that we are not alone in our struggles. Prayer serves as one means by which we may invite the Holy Spirit into our lives. Through prayer, we create a receptive space within our hearts where the Spirit may dwell. As we offer our prayers, we may ask the Spirit to assist us in making wise choices, to imbue us with fortitude during trials, and to nurture within us a love akin to that of Christ’s. It is through our trust in the Spirit that we may have confidence that our prayers will be answered in ways that are most fitting for us.

Yet another avenue through which we may encounter the Holy Spirit is through the Holy Sacraments. These sacred rituals offer visible and external signs of God’s grace and furnish us with the opportunity to tangibly experience the Spirit’s presence. In the sacrament of Holy Baptism, we are granted the gift of the Holy Spirit and are welcomed as children of God. In the sacrament of Holy Confirmation, we are fortified in our faith and endowed with the Holy Spirit’s blessings. And through the sacrament of the Holy Eucharist, we partake of the true body and blood of Christ, receiving nourishment for our souls and uniting ourselves with our Savior and one another.

And as is timely, I feel it prudent to share one of my favorite prayers to the Holy Spirit that was authored by our dear sister of Dominic, St. Catherine of Siena. “Holy Spirit, come into my heart; draw it to Thee by Thy power, O my God, and grant me charity with filial fear. Preserve me, O ineffable Love, from every evil thought; warm me, inflame me with Thy dear love, and every pain will seem light to me. My Father, my sweet Lord, help me in all my actions.”

The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you always.

Litany to the Holy Spirit

Lord, have mercy on us.

Lord, have mercy on us.

Lord, have mercy on us. God the Father of Heaven,

Have mercy on us.

God the Son, Redeemer of the world,

Have mercy on us.

God the Holy Spirit,

Have mercy on us.

Holy Trinity, One God,

Have mercy on us.

Divine Essence, one true God,

Have mercy on us

Spirit of truth and wisdom,

Have mercy on us

Spirit of holiness and justice,

Have mercy on us

Spirit of understanding and counsel,

Have mercy on us

Spirit of love and joy,

Have mercy on us

Spirit of peace and patience,

Have mercy on us

Spirit of longanimity and meekness,

Have mercy on us

Spirit of benignity and goodness,

Have mercy on us

Love substantial of the Father and the Son,

Have mercy on us

Love and life of saintly souls,

Have mercy on us

Fire ever burning,

Have mercy on us

Living water to quench the thirst of hearts,

Have mercy on us

From all evil,

Deliver us, O Holy Spirit.

From all impurity of soul and body,

Deliver us, O Holy Spirit.

From all gluttony and sensuality,

Deliver us, O Holy Spirit.

From all attachments to the things of the earth,

Deliver us, O Holy Spirit.

From all hypocrisy and pretense,

Deliver us, O Holy Spirit.

From all imperfections and deliberate faults,

Deliver us, O Holy Spirit.

From our own will,

Deliver us, O Holy Spirit.

From slander,

Deliver us, O Holy Spirit.

From deceiving our neighbors,

Deliver us, O Holy Spirit.

From our passions and disorderly appetites,

Deliver us, O Holy Spirit.

From our inattentiveness to Thy holy inspirations,

Deliver us, O Holy Spirit.

From despising little things,

Deliver us, O Holy Spirit.

From debauchery and malice,

Deliver us, O Holy Spirit.

From love of comfort and luxury,

Deliver us, O Holy Spirit.

From wishing to seek or desire anything other than Thee,

Deliver us, O Holy Spirit.

From everything that displeases Thee,

Deliver us, O Holy Spirit.

Most loving Father,

forgive us.

Divine Word,

have pity on us.

Holy and divine Spirit,

leave us not until we are in possession of the Divine Essence, Heaven of heavens.

Lamb of God, Who takest away the sins of the world,

Send us the divine Consoler.

Lamb of God, Who takest away the sins of the world,

Fill us with the gifts of Thy Spirit.

Lamb of God, Who takest away the sins of the world,

Make the fruits of the Holy Spirit increase within us.

V. Come, O Holy Spirit, fill the hearts of Thy faithful,

R. And enkindle in them the fire of Thy love.

V. Send forth Thy Spirit and they shall be created,

R. And Thou shalt renew the face of the earth.

Let Us Pray
God, Who by the light of the Holy Spirit instructed the hearts of the faithful, grant us by the same Spirit to be truly wise and ever to rejoice in His consolation. Through Jesus Christ Our Lord, Amen.