“And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in different tongues, as the Spirit enabled them to proclaim.”

 

“And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit
and began to speak in different tongues,
as the Spirit enabled them to proclaim.” Acts 2:3-4

This is a reflection I submitted to my Lay Carmelite Community for the Feast of Pentecost: Today we celebrate the feast of Pentecost, considered the birthday of the Church. It’s when Holy Spirit descended upon the Apostles and they were filled with the power of the Holy Spirit to go and proclaim the gospel of Jesus Christ to the whole world. It is through the Holy Spirit that these men, once afraid to go beyond the upper room for fear of the Jews, were able to go in the whole world and proclaim Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior.

Each one of us, at the time of our confirmations, received the same Holy Spirit that the Apostles did. We, too, are called to go and proclaim our faith to others with the same courage the Apostles did on that first Pentecost. Through our Lay Carmelite community, through our families, and through the people we encounter, either at work or our day-to-day activity, we are called to share our faith in Jesus Christ and to bring others into relationship with Christ in His Holy Catholic Church.

In the gospel of John chapter 20, vs 21, we hear Jesus say, “As the Father has sent me, so I send you." Jesus is sending each one of us into the world to bring others to knowledge of His love for all, and that salvation comes through faith in Him and His Catholic Church. 

Let us continue to bring Jesus to all we meet in our lives and pray for those who may find it hard to embrace this faith we love so much.

Praise be Jesus Christ, now and forever.

"Simon, son of John, do you love me?"

 

Scripture readings for this reflection can be found at Friday of the Seventh Week of Easter | USCCB

In our gospel for today we hear the familiar story of the Risen Lord at the seashore with Peter and the other apostles. As we recall, Peter, the night Jesus was arrested, denied the Lord three times, as Jesus had predicted during the Last Supper. Peter ran off to be by himself once he realized His betrayal of His Lord and Master.

Now, here he is facing Jesus, the one he denied. Yet, the Lord still loves Peter. The Lord see that Peter was regretful of his betrayal, and Jesus forgives him. To counter the three denials of Peter, Jesus asks, “"Simon, son of John, do you love me?" Jesus then invites Peter to “feed my sheep.” The Lord, during this encounter with Peter, was showing to Peter his love and forgiveness. Peter was indeed forgiven for the betrayal of Jesus during the time leading up to the Lord’s crucifixion.

Peter would go on, as the first Pope, with the help of the other apostles, to bring the Good News of salvation throughout the world.

On Pentecost, just 10 days after the Lord Ascended to heaven, the Apostles would receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. Still frighted in the upper room for fear of the Jews, the disciples receive the gifts of the Holy Spirt and boldly go to proclaim that salvation can be found in Jesus Christ.

The love Jesus has towards Peter is the same love he has towards all of us. Peter deeply regretted denying Jesus. We, when we sin, in effect, are denying Jesus. We then can turn back to Jesus in the Sacrament of Confession and receive forgiveness of our sins. In confession, Jesus asks us, “Do you love me?” Then, we, like Peter, tell Jesus, “Lord, you know that I love you.” We will then be forgiven for our sins and then we are able to go into the world to bring the Good News of Jesus Christ to all.

Let us seek out Jesus and his love in confession and receive him frequently in Holy Communion. It is then that we, like the apostles, can go into the world to share our faith in the Risen Lord.

Amen, amen, I say to you, whatever you ask the Father in my name he will give you.

 

Scripture readings can be found at Friday of the Sixth Week of Easter | USCCB

In our gospel for today we are assured by the Lord that we can turn to him in all our needs. Being a follower of Jesus Christ is not always easy since most people we know may not understand our love and devotion to Jesus Christ. Being a follower of Jesus Christ has always been counter cultural. We are attempting to live out the love of God as taught by Jesus Christ. We are called as Christians to put Jesus as the center of all who we are and to live a life dedicated to the love of God and love of neighbor. This has never been easy. But it’s our call as Christians to do so.

There will always be some suffering associated with being a Christian due to others not understanding our motives in following Jesus Christ. But the inner peace we receive because of being His follower is the gift we receive from Him. The Lord mentions in the gospel today of the world rejoicing while we weep and mourn. The reason for this is that the way of the world is that of sinfulness and self-centeredness. They have no concept of who Jesus is. They are only interested in their own self-satisfaction and personal pleasures.

We, as Catholic Christians, see the world in a more spiritual way. Those who live by worldly desires are only interested in the here and now. But we are called to live out our lives with our eyes towards heaven as our final reward. We, as Christians, are called to love God with our whole mind, heart and soul, and love others as we love ourselves. By doing so, we will move beyond whatever pain or hurt that we may be struggling with in this world and receive the peace that can come only from the Lord Jesus.

In our first reading from Acts, we hear the Lord tell Paul, "Do not be afraid. Go on speaking, and do not be silent, for I am with you.” As we go through our days, let us continue to speak of God’s love for all people, for He is always with us.