Reflection on Pentecost Sunday

On Memorial Day, I watched the National Memorial Day celebration on television. It was a lovely tribute to those who have put themselves on the front line to protect our freedom to be the kind of country our forefathers established. At the end, they sang “God Bless America,” and I found myself close to tears thinking about what is happening in our country today. In my opinion, we have lost our moral compass. The inscription on the Statue of Liberty reads, “Give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to breathe free, the wretched refuse of your teeming shore. these, the homeless, tempest-tost to me, I lift my lamp beside the golden door.”

What has happened to that ideal?

In creating the universe, or universes, as the case may be, God unleashed the power of love. It is as though God could no longer contain love in God’s self but had to share it in some way. God breathed life, love-energy into the world. In the origins of the word “spirit,” it is synonymous with breath, with breathing. The Holy Spirit, whom we celebrate today, is the personification of that love. Why is it that money makes the world go around rather than love? Has the Spirit taken a hiatus? No – God has demonstrated unconditional love for all creation over and over. We are just not listening.

Everything and everyone thrive on love so why are we so reluctant to share it? 

In our fast-paced world, we have lost the time, space and quiet needed to reflect on what is truly important in life. Many people have no access to nature and the beauty of our world. They cannot even see the stars at night because of city lights. How can wage earners, who hold down two or three jobs in order to survive, find time to be quiet and reflect.? The many inventions and gadgets that are supposed to make our lives easier sometimes make it more complicated. More and more beckons: more money, bigger homes, the latest style in clothes, the latest model car, the latest  in technological equipment, more drugs to deaden the pain, more, more, more. How much more is too much?  

Underneath all the chaos, the Spirit is at work. If it were not so, we would have no reason to hope. In the creation story, we have the image of the Spirit breathing over the waters: “In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. Now the  earth  was formless and empty, darkness was over the surface of the deep, and  the Spirit of God was hovering over the waters.”

In a primitive way, it is an expression of God’s loving presence and action in the world.

Jesus, knowing the grief and fear his close followers were experiencing at the end of his life, assures them that they will not be alone: “If I do not go, the advocate will not come to you. But if  I go, I will send him to you and when he does  come, he will convict the world of sin and righteousness.”

Today, we celebrate the birthday of the Church with the coming of the Holy Spirit on all the disciples of Jesus who were present on that occasion: “They were in one place together. And suddenly there came from the sky a noise like a strong driving wind and it filled the entire house in which  they were. Then there appeared to them tongues of fire, which parted  and came to rest on each one of them. And they were all filled with the  Holy Spirit and began to speak in different tongues as the Holy Spirit enabled them.”

Imagine what that must have been like. Whatever form the Holy Spirit took, it had to be an incredible experience for them. I have never been a part of the Charismatic Movement nor had an experience of the Holy Spirit making his presence known in a physical way, but I suspect that is a powerful moment for those who have. In a less dramatic way, I have certainly experienced the work of the Spirit in my own life on many occasions. What else could have moved me from “if I were a boy, I would be a priest, but I will never be a nun” to joining the Sisters of Loretto two years later.

“From our simple beginnings on the Kentucky frontier in 1812 up to the present we, as Sisters of Loretto, share in that mysterious yet pragmatic gift of the Holy Spirit which quietly and decisively brought Loretto into being and keeps it alive today.”

If we could stand outside our world and look at it from another perspective, we would see layers. On top we would see chaos  –  wars. greed, power struggles, racism, climate change and much more. It weighs us down and hangs heavy over us, and it is all true But look at the layers underneath. If I gave you 60 seconds to come up with 10 people who are good, loving and looking out for one another, you could do it. They aren’t perfect, they sometimes fall short but they keep working at it. The love is there, flowing like an underground  stream and it gives us hope.

I hope this doesn’t come across as ”Pollyanna.” There is plenty of good out there – we just have to look for it. God’s dream for us hasn’t died. We have reason to hope. Perhaps we just need to follow that old adage, “As you wander on through life, whatever be your goal, keep your eye upon the doughnut, not upon the hole.”