Pentecost Sunday C - Mass during the Day

Published on 7 June 2025 at 13:07

Dear brothers and sisters, may the peace of the Lord be with you all. The great feast of Pentecost—the birthday of the Church—when the Holy Spirit was poured out upon the disciples, transforming frightened men into bold witnesses of Christ’s love and truth, has finally arrived. We’ve been journeying towards this day, as the culmination of all the redemptive marvels the Lord has accomplished for us through his suffering, beginning with Ash Wednesday, and we pulled through, by his grace.

In the Gospel, Jesus breathes the Holy Spirit upon His apostles, empowering them to forgive sins and to continue His mission. Today’s readings remind us not only of the historical day of Pentecost but also of the ongoing work of the Holy Spirit in our lives and in our world, especially as we navigate the complexities of the modern age.

In our world today, we live in an era of astonishing technological advancement. We have instant communication, artificial intelligence, social media, and endless sources of information at our fingertips. Yet, these technological marvels have also fostered a sense of self-sufficiency—sometimes to the point where many believe they no longer need God. We have seen the erosion of faith in our schools, in our cultures, and even within ourselves, where the divine seems distant or irrelevant amid the noise of progress.

But the Holy Spirit comes to challenge this self-reliance. Just as the Spirit descended upon the apostles and filled them with courage, understanding, and the power to proclaim the Gospel in diverse languages, so too does the Spirit seek to realign our spiritual vision today. The Spirit invites us to see beyond the superficial and the material, to seek the "things above" where Christ is seated at the right hand of God (Colossians 3:1).

The first reading from Acts 2 vividly displays how the Holy Spirit unites people from all nations—Parthians, Medes, Egyptians, Romans, and others—each hearing the disciples proclaim God's mighty acts in their own language. This diversity is a sign of the Spirit’s universal mission. It reminds us that the Spirit’s work transcends cultural, racial, and national boundaries. It calls us to recognize the Spirit’s presence in every person, especially those who may be different from us or marginalized in society. God desires to sanctify all of us, since we are all his precious children, and sometimes, that’s difficult to see.

In the second reading, St. Paul emphasizes that all spiritual gifts come from one Spirit, and that we are all baptized into one body through that Spirit. No matter our background—Jew or Greek, slave or free—we are united by the same Spirit. This unity is the antidote to the fragmentation and division that often threaten our communities and our world. The Spirit empowers us to be instruments of reconciliation, love, and understanding.

In the Gospel, Jesus breathes the Holy Spirit upon His disciples, giving them the authority to forgive sins. This act of breathing is profoundly symbolic: just as God breathed life into Adam, so now Jesus breathes new life into His followers through the Holy Spirit. It is this same Spirit that helps us to forgive one another, to seek reconciliation, and to align our lives with God's will.

However, this requires a spirit of conversion—a turning back to the Lord. We must acknowledge our need for forgiveness through the sacrament of reconciliation, where the Spirit works to heal our wounds and purify our hearts. As we receive God's mercy, we are called to live out that mercy, sharing it with others – “Be merciful, just as your Heavenly Father is merciful.” This was one of Jesus’ most important commands.

Ultimately, the Holy Spirit guides us toward our ultimate goal: heaven. It is through His grace that we can fulfill God's will in our lives, becoming saints who love God and neighbor, and who one day enjoy eternal happiness with Him.

In conclusion, dear brothers and sisters, let us open our hearts anew to the Holy Spirit by invoking the aid of his pure Spouse, the Queen of Heaven, our Most Holy and Blessed Mother Mary. Let us pray for the courage to be witnesses in this modern age as she was a witness two-thousand years ago. May she continue to pray for us so that the Holy Spirit realigns our vision, strengthens our resolve, and fills us with the joy of service and sacrifice. And may we always remember and believe that, just as the Spirit was poured out on the apostles, so too is He poured out upon us today, calling us to be signs of hope and unity in our divided world.

May the Mother of our Lord guide you, may she bless you and may she invoke him to send the Holy Spirit upon you today with this special blessing I impart to you: in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen. Go in peace to love and serve the Lord who has loved us from all eternity. Amen.


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