• Acts 2:1-11. The awesome descent of the Spirit, so that all are caught up in wonder and hear the marvels of God spoken in their own tongues.
• 1 Corinthians 12: 3-7, 12-13. There are different gifts but the same Spirit. In the one Spirit all of us were baptized into one body [and] have been given to drink of the one Spirit.
• John 20: 19-23 Jesus breathed upon the disciples, gathered together in a locked room; he conferred the Holy Spirit and the power of forgiving sin.

Thoughts for your consideration: by John Gonzalez

The message of Pentecost Sunday offers us a curious lesson on the virtue of unity. Whoever attend the Pentecost vigil mass will hear the famous Hebrew account of Babel. In this account God is seemingly nervous of human ambition and He sows chaos by fragmenting the unified human community through the use of different languages. In the first reading for the Sunday Mass however we encounter God unifying the human community by the power of the Holy Spirit through the preaching of the Apostles. Language becomes the instrument that is used to sow division in Babel while for the Apostles language becomes the instrument of unity in preaching to the people of Jerusalem. How are we to understand God’s apparent contradiction during these two historical moments?

In the story of Babel the early Hebrew community tries to explain how the human community eventually migrated everywhere and became such a fragmented group. No social or ecological phenomenon could be explained without God’s intervention so of course in trying to respond to this reality they employed God’s divine intervention. Without taking this story as a literal historical account one can reflect on the spiritual lesson that is to be learned here. Of course God does not fear our human capabilities; instead we see what happens when the human community is organized on a project that goes against the will of God.

Babel may or may not have happened, but Babel like moments have happened in our human history where civilizations and societies have developed unifying agendas that goes against the will of God. For a time a particular culture or group may achieve great projects and pursue a policy of dominance based on the achievements. But such power that is wielded outside of the will of God or the Holy Spirit becomes corrupted and divisive. Consider for example the situations of the Athenians and the birth of democratic Greece. This was a noble and virtuous endeavor. The immediate result of this revolutionary achievement was that they were able to organize the Greek peninsula to defend themselves from the overpowering tyranny of the Persian Empire. Yet no sooner had they reached their own moment of power when they began to make plans to overpower others with their perceived supremacy. Their downfall came soon enough with the start of the Peloponnesian war.

St. Paul declares that all our gifts and talents are given to us by the one Spirit. These gifts are not given to us to serve our own interest but to serve the one Body. These gifts that we each have can certainly profit us and our own communities but they are not put to their authentic use if they do not serve the common good of the one Body. If we use these talents toward that purpose then we will achieve an authentic unity where our motivation is for the service of God and all of creation.

The Gospel passage tells us that an essential element of this authentic unity is a spirit of peace. As he shows the wound on his hands and side Jesus keeps offering the disciples this spirit of peace. If you had seen a friend inflicted with terrible and unjust wounds what feelings would surface? Possibly anger and revenge, a desire to see that justice is served perhaps. I would like to assume that is why Jesus keeps enforcing this call to peace. He wants his disciples to witness the truth but to do so through an attitude of peace and compassionate love. Only through a spirit of peace can the disciples begin to approach the wisdom and understanding of God’s plan through the Holy Spirit. In breathing the Holy Spirit to the disciples Jesus’ first instruction is to have them forgive others. In this way they truly become a witness to God’s love.

The readings for Pentecost Sunday invite us to adopt this spirit of peace and forgiveness and to contemplate the authentic unity of the human family. In order to be open to the wisdom of the Holy Spirit we need to recognize the power of that one Great Spirit within each and every one of us.

• Isaiah 8:23 – 9:3. Darkness and gloom give way to light and joy. Great, victorious moments are renewed.
• 1 Corinthians 1:10-13, 17. Divisions should cease, even those in the name of Paul, Cephas, Apollos or Christ. We have all been baptized in the name of the one Lord and Savior, whose cross has become our gospel.
• Matthew 4:12-23. Jesus returns to Galilee to begin his public ministry. Here he calls his first disciples, two sets of brothers who immediately follow him. He proclaims the good news of the kingdom.

Thoughts for your consideration:

The lectionary readings for this week offer us a message of hope in the midst of major transitions. The first reading by Isaiah tells us about an impending hope and glory that will be brought into a land that is suffering in gloom and anguish. The land is identified as the “district of the gentiles” and the message of hope is that this land will experience a great sense of liberation and enlightenment. Verse 5 tells us how through whom this glorious transition will happen.

For a child shall be born to us… they name him Wonder-Counselor, God-Hero, Father-Forever, Prince of Peace.  

Matthew saw this prophetic quote as the perfect scriptural passage to use as a conclusion to his four chapter introduction. This passage places a prophetic context to the amazing situation that has developed where Jesus will begin his public teaching ministry with the Sermon on the Mount in the gentile land of Galilee. Isaiah speaks of a glorious future transition for the suffering gentile community. For Matthew this transition is a present reality that is being lived out during the time this gospel was written which is approximately in the year 75 CE. In the Gospel reading we have Jesus inviting two sets of brothers to share in his ministry of bringing people back to God. This transition from a dark and gloomy social order to being healers and heralds of peace and justice is personified by Peter, Andrew, James and John taking up the call to follow Christ in proclaiming the kingdom of God in words and actions. These four were the first agents of change towards fulfilling the glorious transition that was foretold by Isaiah and begun through Christ. In Matthew’s account we are simply told that these brothers immediately left what they were doing and followed him.

We know from the rest of the Gospel story that the transition which these early disciples engaged in was not as simple or passive as we are lead to believe in this week’s gospel reading. The disciples faced many trials and tribulations as they carried out their exciting new community life and ministry. These trials included doubt, infighting, disagreements, betrayal, persecution and for many of them death. The message of a future hope does not negate the reality of a present suffering. Transitions are never easy. While our faith offers us a future promise of hope the fact is that our present transitions challenge us in so many ways. Individually many of us face and will continue to face personal experiences of transitions that will take us out of our comfort zone. As a society and as a church we are also aware of the massive transition that we now face that will challenge us in becoming a global family. How will we respond to these challenges?  

In the second reading Paul warns the Corinthian community that their transition into the Christian family cannot emulate the bad characteristic that was very much a part of their social order. Division, rivalries and jealousy are very much part of the human condition but they are not part of the Christian liberating experience. This experience will be marked by unity in serving the gospel message of hope. The disciples and early Christians were offered a glimpse of what is to come while they help transform the social order.

We as individuals and as a society our given a message of hope for a future of justice and peace that is to come. We are called to be agents of hope in this dark and gloomy world of ours. We are agents of change, but this change is not our own. We, like the early disciples, are invited to share in Jesus’ divine mission. This social and personal transformation must not carry the darker elements of our present social order. The Catholic social tradition has continued to offer us Paul’s warning by calling us to live in a spirit of unity that is working together to transform our society towards a “culture of life”.

The first and fundamental step towards this cultural transformation consists in forming consciences with regard to the incomparable and inviolable worth of every human life. –Evangelium Vitae #96

To engage in this liberating mission we have to put off our human proclivity towards our own self-interest. In retaining our self-interest will we inevitably begin to create social divisions that first qualify then discriminate human life. Some of us will discard those who are unborn by defining them outside of human life. Others will define people of a certain ethnic or religious background as second class citizens not fully worthy of the dignity that we recognize in ourselves. And some of us may believe that criminal actions have forfeited the dignity and rights of other s.  These are social tendencies that are simply not consistent with the social vision that Jesus offers. As agents of change we need to be the first defenders of this consistent ethic of life where we protect and defend the dignity and rights of all.

Times have moved on but the Passionist community has never lost sight of this noble cause to unify the human community through the strategies employed by Bl. Domenic Berberi, CP. Our Church continues to be engaged in further developing its Ecumenical dialogues. But in these days of globalization we have moved further in approaching our relationships with people outside of our Christian faith. Through Pope John Paul II our Catholic Church has officially engaged in interfaith dialogues to bring the truth of unity too all of God’s people.

The Passionists serves the Church in this purpose as well. Today we have the wonderful ministries of Fr. Thomas P. Bonacci, C.P. who is the Interfaith Peace Project’s Executive Director. Tom offers friendly and hospitable programs to help participants cope with inherited stereotypes, innocent misunderstandings, embarrassing questions or general knowledge of the many faith traditions of humankind.

The Interfaith Peace Project seeks to strengthen the community’s religious and spiritual life, and encourage spiritual values and ethical principles. They reach out to all religions of the community, and embrace the American tradition of religious diversity that creates a fertile opportunity for dialogue, understanding, cooperation and peace. The intended outcome is to encourage understanding, respect and connection for participants in all our projects, therefore advancing peace. Respect for differences begins with dialogue, promotes understanding and cooperation, and leads to peaceful co-existence.

The Interfaith Peace Project is helping our world find peace in the midst of conflict and division through prayer, study and reflection. In these days we recognize division and conflict with respect to our Catholic/Christian relationship with the Islamic community. Fr. Tom offers the following insights with respect to our approach in having fruitful and much needed dialogue with the members of the Muslim faith and the question of Park51 Islamic Cultural Center.

DIALOGUE WITH MUSLIMS: A reflection by Fr. Tom Bonacci, CP

The events of the past several days and weeks are no less than heartbreaking and alarming.  The association of Islam with violence and human insensitivity is both dangerous and insensitive.  It is quite important for reasonable people to understand religions as such are abstractions.  What we meet in the religious “other” be they Muslim or Christian is not a religion but a “person” of faith, a particular, living human being.  We cannot meet one another if we label one another with labels based on fears, stereotypes, and prejudices.

We must realize, in the current situation, it is almost impossible to engage Muslims in dialogue without the great question looming in the background, “Is Islam a religion of violence?”  Participants in this dialogue should be aware of what motivates the dialogue.  Participants must be open to hearing the other person without defensive or offensive postures.

The “violent verses” found in the Qur’an invite Christians to examine in a fair and honest way the “violent texts” in the Bible.  Together participants in dialogue might explore how violent attitudes can corrupt authentic readings and understandings of their respective Scriptures, beliefs, and teachings.

Participants in the dialogue must examine their own hearts to discover whether or not they harbor unfair attitudes, hostilities, or fears.  If so, one should engage in educational opportunities, personal spiritual direction, sincere reflection, and honest research before engaging in deeper dialogue.

Finally, Muslims, like peoples of other faith traditions, are human beings worthy of respect whose dignity must be recognized.

This is a tragic moment in our histories as religious peoples.  It is also a great opportunity to move forward as the virtues found in our Sacred Writings, the examples found in our great leaders, and the wisdom found in our peoples can contribute to the well-being of all peoples.  Muslims and Christians must be aware of their mutual responsibility to foster peace in the world.  Each must claim the authenticity of their respective traditions as they serve the family of humankind.  These troubled times call for remarkable courage and courageous example so our words of peace may become deeds of justice in the world.

It is my opinion, and I suggest it cautiously, the killing fields must become centers of interfaith justice and peace.  We need to stand together as people of faith exemplifying the power of faith as an important catalyst for forging peace.

• Acts 2:1-11. The Awesome descent of the Spirit, so that all are caught up in wonder and hear the marvels of God spoken in their own tongue.
• 1 Corinthian 12:3-7, 12-13. There are different gifts but the same Spirit. In the one Spirit all of us were baptized into one body [and] have been given to drink of the one Spirit.
• John 20:19-23. Jesus breathed upon the disciples, gathered together in a locked room; he conferred the Holy Spirit and the power of forgiving sin.

 Thoughts for your Consideration:

This week is Pentecost Sunday. The lectionary readings focus on the awesome power of the Holy Spirit as it descends upon the disciples and as it is expressed by members of the early Christian community. In the Acts of the Apostles the event is described in the midst of powerful and richly symbolic natural events. The manifestation of the Holy Spirit produces great confusion among the Jewish bystanders who happen to witness this event; some are curiously impressed while many scoff at what they perceive as an apparent drunken stupor.  Peter is left defending himself and his colleagues from this accusation by suggesting that it is too early in the day to be drunk and then he places this confusing event within the context of the prophetic tradition by citing the words of the prophet Joel. The conclusion of this citation ends with a salvific message for all of God’s people, “and it shall be that everyone shall be saved who calls on the name of the Lord.”

In his letter to the Corinthians St. Paul describes the great gifts of the Spirit that is shared to the various members of the early church. St. Paul makes a very clear point in highlighting the supreme unity of the One Spirit in the midst of this great diversity of gifts and talents that emanate from it. St. Paul cannot seem to emphasize this point enough. It is suggested in scripture commentaries that the Corinthian church had begun to establish ethnic and social discrimination in its early community. In this passage St. Paul needs to emphasize the unity that exists between the Jews and Greeks as well as the free people and the slaves. In the Gospel reading Jesus prepares his disciples for this event by establishing a culture of peace on them. He keeps emphasizing that they be at peace before they receive the Spirit.

While the first reading describes the event of Pentecost the next two readings remind us that the great and awesome gifts of the Spirit can only serve the mission of promoting unity and it can only be received and utilized through a culture of peace.      

Many of us who are Catholics have gone through the Sacrament of Confirmation. For many of us the wondrous natural events that we read about in Acts did not accompany our own reception of this Sacrament. We may end up spiritualizing this sacramental event or dismissing it altogether. I have come to admire a medieval Catholic theological formula that helps explain our own growth into the gifts of the Holy Spirit and our own orientation towards the supreme good that is God.

Medieval theologians like St. Thomas Aquinas believed that we have an aspect of God within each and every one of us, this divine spark was called synderesis. It was thought (and continues to be studied in contemporary moral theology) that an essence towards the orientation towards God was built within our own DNA structure. This element is what allowed us to believe that some actions and judgments were self-evident in all of humanity. Through synderesis all humanity had deep within themselves an orientation on what was called the first principles of the natural order. The general concepts that most codified laws including the Ten Commandments had, such as regulating against murder and thievery and promoting values of charity and mutual respect, emanate from some kind of self-evident principles that come to us directly from the divine source. Our own American Declaration of Independence suggest three self-evident principles of life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness, if these principles are self-evident then they are known to us through the divine knowledge of the good that we have through synderesis.

But synderesis is only one habit within our conscience that judges for us the actions we must take. Our actions towards the good are often clouded by our own self-interest and passions. Thus we require the Holy Spirit to make its impression felt on us so that we can awaken the divine spark within each of us and recognize that divine essence in all others. To do the supreme good (rather than our own good) we must allow the Holy Spirit to affect us. As a sacrament Confirmation offers us the grace to receive the power that will awaken the divine spark in us. The power of the Holy Spirit will then give strength to our own existing orientation to do the supreme good. It will also awaken in us the particular gifts that we are given to fulfill the supreme good. While Confirmation grants us the moment to allow ourselves to be open to this reception we must always pray that the Holy Spirit continue to nurture us with this grace since our other social and personal distractions will continue to cloud our judgments.

Keep in mind however that this can only happen within the context of a couple necessary dispositions. First, we must be aligned under a spirit and culture of peace. Second we must only use these gifts to build up the Kingdom of God in unity and without imposing any barriers of discrimination to the love that we are all entitled to. We all already exist within the supreme unity and orientation to God. We all share a supreme equality with each other through the divine dignity that exists in our very nature. In the spirit of peace and unity let us be receptive to the power of the Holy Spirit in awakening this orientation to do the supreme good and to live in harmony with each other.

• Nehemiah 8:2-6, 8-10. Ezra reads and explains the Torah to all the people. While the people were weeping, he told them that “rejoicing in the Lord must be your strength!”
• 1 Corinthian 12: 12-30. Just as the body is one, but has many members… so it is with Christ. Each member has need of the other, each with different gifts.
• Luke 1:1-4; 4:14-21. Luke introduces his gospel and then concludes his solemn introduction with Jesus’ initial preaching at Nazareth, a summary of his entire ministry.

Thoughts for your consideration: by John Gonzalez

In the second reading the theme of unity in the midst of diversity is again offered to us by St. Paul the Apostle. This theme surfaces fairly regularly with St. Paul who tries to challenge his gentile community on the absolute oneness of God, Christ and the Spirit to a pluralistic society. But if we look at the first reading and the introduction of the Gospel of Luke we also find these two writers discussing the theme of interpretation.

Christians have one common Bible with a number of different versions. But if we look at how the Sacred Scriptures have been interpreted to offer a position on any social issue we can see a variety of positions used to promote a political or social agenda. The issue of slavery in the United States points out that fact very well where both the abolitionist and the slaveholding community used the Bible to defend both positions. In the current culture war that is debating economic globalization, climate change and humanitarian intervention we see the same thing happening. Whether people are using the Bible, the Quran or the Torah any faith-based group can come up with any number of positions with regards to these issues using their own Sacred texts to defend these positions.

Both Ezra and Luke are dealing with tensions of interpretation. They both come out of a tradition build on the Spirit of unity but fractured by social violence. For Ezra the Hebrew community has just returned from their exile in Babylon and is trying to again make sense of their post-exilic identity. For Luke’s early Christians that Apostolic community has brought the salvific message of Christ throughout the Roman Empire but after the persecution of the Apostles Luke is struggling to maintain this unified tradition and for that purpose he has written this Gospel account.  In both cases they are struggling to offer a common understanding so that the Word can take root in all of us with our different experiences, talents and personalities while maintaining its authentic singular message that is based on God’s love and common relationship with us all.

For us Catholics the Church is the institution from which we continue to comprehend the challenging Word of God in the context of our ever changing world. While the Church continues to pronounce on issues of faith and dogma the Church also addresses new social issues that had never surfaced in the ancient world. It is the duty of our Church to offer its guidance based on its reflection on revelation and tradition to help develop us into a community that can respond to social issues that confront us. In this manner the Church has made its position felt on economic globalization in the Papal Encyclical Caritas in Veritate. The Pope has also offered a teaching on the issue of climate change in his recent World Day of Peace Message. With the great catastrophe that affected Haiti last week the United States Catholic Conference of Bishops has also offered its social position to protect in any way the devastated Haitian community by asking us to donate at the Sunday Mass and by advocating to the President to grant Haitians in the United States temporary protected status. These are social issues and they are not of themselves dogmatic objects of revealed faith such as our belief in the Resurrection or in the mystery of the Eucharist but they are themselves social doctrines that are related to the faith and morals of our revealed tradition.

As American we are fond of saying that people have a right to their opinion and of course they are. Even in our own Catholic Church we also assent to this individual right insofar as our God given conscience is regarded as a prominent vehicle from which we come to discern the decisions we must make. But let us keep in mind the struggle that Paul reminds us of whereby our individual parts must ultimately serve one body. If one part suffers, all the parts suffer with it; if one part is honored; all the parts share its joy.  

The Church offers many social teachings and many of us may struggle with some of the Church’s social positions, I know I do. Paul, Ezra and Luke are not calling us to mindless zombies. We are called to embrace our own dignity but at the service of all creation which comes from God. It will be impossible for us who experience our own lives from only one vantage point to be able to see and value the dignity and experiences of all God’s creation. For that reason it is important for us to be challenged by the position of a global Church that happens to share in the experiences of people throughout the world.

In Haiti, one part of the human community is suffering greatly. Our Church has called us to action so that we can respond to the suffering of one of our members. This now is the opportunity for us to embrace the one body and to heal a section that has been devastated.            

• Isaiah 62:1-5. Jerusalem will no longer be desolate and forsaken but will be overflowing with life. The Lord will address her as “My Delight” and her land will be called “Espoused.”
• 1 Corinthians 12:4-11. There are many gifts and ministries, but one and the same Spirit who accomplished each good action in everyone.
• John 2:1-12. The marriage feast of Cana where Jesus works the “first of his signs” and reveals his glory.

Thoughts for your consideration: by John Gonzalez

In the Gospel of John the first action of Jesus’ public ministry is recounted to us as the miracle that took place at the wedding feast in Cana. The account has a number of curious details, such as the odd interaction between Jesus and Mary his mother and the manner in which Jesus reluctantly conducts the miracle of turning the water into wine. But another detail which deserves our contemplative attention is that venue of the wedding itself. Indeed, if you consider the three readings that have been chosen for this Sunday, then this opening act by Jesus reveals a powerful symbol with regards to Jesus’ purpose.

In the realm of social institutions none is prioritized by the Church above the family unit. A marriage is considered the basic building block of society. In these readings however this prominent social unit is used to symbolize a divine relationship. In the mystery of the incarnation, Jesus embodies the intimate marriage of God with humanity. How appropriate for Jesus to begin engaging publicly at a wedding feast, thus placing this mystical marriage in the context of a conventional marriage.

Isaiah reflects on Jerusalem as a bride of the Lord. Paul does not specifically use the image of marriage but he certainly suggests an intimate union that exists with the Trinity (“One Spirit,” “one Lord,” “One God.”) From this intimate Divine union Paul integrates the human community as individuals who share in this mystical union and who obtains a unique gift that comes from the “One Spirit.”  

The readings ask that we contemplate the mystical union of God with humanity within our own social experience of marriage. Begin by considering your own marriage or one that you have experienced through your family and friends. Consider the love, passion and joy that this interaction brings about. Also consider the challenges, sacrifices and anguish that also has been part of this dynamic. Consider how love has both shaped and challenged those unions.

Then, as you hear these readings, consider the love that God has for all humanity. In the story of the life of Christ himself do we not see the joys and happiness that he brings to humanity as well as the suffering and challenge that his life also presents. Love is not only that warm fuzzy feeling that happens when a couple first lays eyes on each other. Love is all that happens when two are engaged in a mystical union. Love can also be that gut wrenching feeling when you feel betrayed or let down by the other. God’s love for humanity was experienced at the Christmas moment when Christ came into this world and was celebrated by Kings and shepherds alike. But Divine love was also experienced when Christ agonized on the Cross feeling betrayed and abandoned by even his closest friends.

As Christians we are called by Christ to live out this union of God and humanity but many times we may not know what this means. To talk about God’s love for us is to talk about a joyous social reality as well as a great social challenge. Those of us who are married may have considered some great and joyful possibilities before we entered into this union and chances are we may have also considered some theoretical challenges without really knowing what they were going to be like. In the end the only thing that could have prepared us for the joy and sufferings of marriage was the experience itself. In becoming a married couple the two individuals allow themselves to be shaped by a union that pushes and pulls them in all directions. If the couple allow themselves to be directed by a holistic love for each other then this union will be a great gift for their marriage and each other. We Christians are also called to engage with the greater society in a similar way. Ultimately, like Christ, we are called to love and serve one another. Perhaps the wisdom we experience from our own marriages can help us as we struggle to engage in this greater union.