Homily for May 31, 2009

Father Tom’s Homily
Pentecost Sunday
May 31, 2009

The typical image of Pentecost in religious art shows the disciples gathered in quiet prayer with the look of great peace on their faces. Over the heads of each one there is a tongue of fire. Such a scene of piety and tranquility.
The story told by Luke in our first reading presents a different kind of scene.

The disciples were gathered in the upper room in quiet prayer. Then they were on their feet looking concerned about the great noise of a driving wind that shook the room. Their clothes, the hair on their heads and their beards were whipping about from the strong wind filling the room. The wind was strong enough that some were bowled over by it.
It was so noisy that many covered their ears. And in the midst of the wind and racket, fire was flashing around the room.
It was so frightening that some sought shelter under a table or curled up in a corner.

But then, a calm came over them as the wind and the noise receded. It reminded them of the time they were caught in a fierce storm on the Sea of Galilee.
The wind was howling and their boat was tossed about by the angry sea. And they were terrified as the boat began to fill with water. Then Jesus spoke to the screaming gale and the white-capped waves and the wind and the sea became calm.

Here in the upper room a similar peace followed the fierce wind storm. The streaks of fire became flickers of flame over the head of each one. But they were out of breath from the scare, their hearts throbbing and their clothes and hair askew, a look of bewilderment on their faces.
It was quite an experience - this coming of the Spirit that Jesus had promised to send them. It was a fair warning that the promised Spirit was not a quiet, polite, amiable guest. Rather the Spirit would most likely upset the calm of their lives.
Indeed the Pentecost Spirit was/is an agitator, some would say a troublemaker.

An example of the troublesome nature of the Spirit’s work can be noted in gifts that it gives us. In his letter to the Church at Corinth, Paul lists several gifts of the Spirit.
One of them is prophecy. Prophecy is speaking God’s truth in times of falsehood and confusion. It is bringing God’s light into darkened times.
The tongues of fire in the Pentecost story are a good symbol of prophecy. The prophet does not sing lullabies. The prophet often disturbs the peace.
The prophets of history have not been welcomed. They have usually been ignored or violently opposed because they were thought to be troublemakers. Some were imprisoned, tortured and even killed.

One example of a Spirit-filled agitator was Archbishop Oscar Romero of El Salvador. He and many other Salvadoran prophets of his time were speaking of justice, peace and hope in a time of great injustice, violence and despair. And they were killed for upsetting the good order of things.
Blame the disturbance of good order on the Holy Spirit.

Paul says that we depend on the Holy Spirit for all spiritual work, even praying. This is certainly true when we carry on gospel work. We need the Holy Spirit to awaken us with wind and noise and fire and show us what we are to do.

As we call to mind that first Pentecost in today’s first reading, we are warned about what might happen if the Spirit takes hold of us.
We might want to avoid the company of this troubling, pushy Spirit who will likely disturb our peaceful lives.

We begin by asking the Spirit for a certain madness to invite him/her into our lives. The work of Spirit-filled people is to build the kingdom of God – a place of justice, peace and hope.