Daily Reflection:
Sunday, May 31, 2020
Dear Parishioners, this Reflection is my homily for today’s Mass for the Feast of Pentecost.
--Fr.Mike
We are mindful that it was the gift of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost that took a frightened band of people to leave their false security of hiding behind locked doors and instead leap to the rooftops, and eventually journey to the ends of the known world at that time, to proclaim Jesus and His message of salvation, a message that boldly proclaimed that our God is a God of all people, not just some, but of all.
Fear and selfishness were transformed by the Spirit into courage and sacrificial love.
That same Spirit given to the Apostles and Disciples has been given to us.
This Spirit comes rushing upon us especially in moments of great difficulty, during times of great need…during times like this, this present moment of the pandemic.
We pray, on this Pentecost, that we embrace fully the Spirit that rushes upon us.
Our circumstances are different. We are called to shelter in place, not out of fear, but out of a sense of duty for the common good, to help maintain a safe and healthy environment for ourselves and for others.
We are called to slowly leave our places of shelter and to re-engage with our society, and our economy.
The courage and sacrificial love we are called to have and to use is to move slowly and wisely in that re-engagement, relying upon Wisdom, one of the seven gifts of the Holy Spirit, by trusting in science, trusting in the expertise of people whose goal is to care for society over the long haul, not for quick, unsure results and immediate gratification.
So my homily today is a prayer:
Send us your Spirit, O God, that we might live as courageous people, committed to sacrificial love, committed to the common good, placing ourselves in service to all of humanity.
We cannot touch now, we cannot clasp hands, but with your Spirit, we can embrace each other with our eyes, with our words, and with the deeds we do…
As we love, may our love become ever more sacrificial…
When we grieve, come to us with tenderness and strength; and help us to share that tenderness and that strength with all who are grieving…
As we come face to face with the challenges of this pandemic, when we are asked to go the extra mile in service for the common good, fill us with the Spirit of your Love…
When our world view is bleak, and we walk with sadness written on our soul, when we have days when everything seems to go wrong, help us to surrender to you, and to trust that you will bring us out of darkness into your glorious light…
When anxiety and concern fill us, when restlessness or boredom hold sway over us, when the distress seems too much, fill us with the Spirit of your Love…
When another person, either near or far, needs a simple gesture of thoughtfulness, when a good word can help heal a wound, give us the wisdom to say and do what will help…
As we celebrate your presence in the goodness of others, as our hearts are touched by the thousands of people who serve our world and our society, who are giving of themselves to bring healing to our world, may we pray for them and may your Spirit humble us to listen to their words of advice and direction.
Come, Holy Spirit, enter our lives.
Help us to always realize that we are part of something and someone greater than ourselves.
Help us to be faithful to our responsibilities and duties as members of the Body of Christ, and as members of the human family.
With your help, and our efforts, may healing and peace come to this Global Village that we call Earth.
Come, Holy Spirit! Come, Holy Spirit! Come, Holy Spirit!
