I would like to wish you all a happy Pentecost, a time for a new conversion.
A little bit of History. Some of us may know that Pentecost began as a Jewish celebration of the wheat harvest in the late spring. It gradually became customary to celebrate the feast 50 days after the Passover. The Jewish scholars calculated that when their ancestors left Egypt, they arrived at Mount Sinai approximately 50 days later, this gave an additional meaning to the feast. It was there that God gave them the Law and made a covenant with them. “I will be your God and you will be my people.” Pentecost became a time for Jewish people to celebrate the covenant with God which made them God’s chosen people.
Jesus claimed these words from Isaiah as his own mission: ‘The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because He has anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor; He has sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to set at liberty those who are oppressed; to proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord.” By following Jesus and Francis, we are challenged to do the same. What are you called to do? Serve the poor in some way. Bring communion to those who are homebound? Making a phone call to someone who lives alone? It goes on and on the possibilities to Serve, Inspire and to Evangelize.
We must be messengers of joy in every circumstance, striving to bring joy and hope to others with the realization that Christ is present in everyone. (article19)
An example in scripture of what conversion looks like: We hear the story of Lydia and how her experience of listening to the Lord opened her heart, she was moved by grace. She listened to the Lord and responded and asked to be baptized and shared her experience with her household, and they too were baptized. This is the pattern of conversion: God give His grace, we respond, and the result is a powerful transformation. This type of “ongoing conversion” can happen anytime and anywhere.
May we experience the grace of God at Pentecost and all during our lives, and respond to do what is ours to do.
Resources: Little books of the Diocese of Saginaw, Queen of Peace Regional Fraternity and a commentary from scripture The Word Among Us.
May the Lord give you His Peace!
