Gospel: (John 20: 19-23)
On the evening of that first day of the week, when the doors were locked, where the
disciples were, for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood in their midst and said to them, “Peace be with you.” When he had said this to them, he showed them his hands and his side. The disciples rejoiced when they saw the Lord. Jesus said to them again, “Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, so I send you.” And when he had said this, he breathed on them and said to them, “Receive the Holy Spirit. Whose sins you forgive are forgiven them, and whose sins you retain are retained.”
Vincentian Reflection:
Pentecost brings Jesus’ ministry to a focus: we are sent to continue Jesus’ ministry,
armed with the Holy Spirit and specific instructions as to what we are to do: forgive.
By his ascending into heaven and sending the Holy Spirit Christ makes his mission our mission. It is a great miracle that God chooses to make us real participants in God’s plan of salvation and sharers in God’s divine life. To forgive doesn’t mean to forget; it means to restore love. This is the ministry for which the Spirit empowers us, and this is how we can live in peace.
(Living Liturgy, p.150)
