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The Towers of Babel (Genesis 11) brought division, they began to speak in many different languages and couldn’t understand each other. Flash forward to the day of Pentecost when the apostles received the Holy Spirit and began to speak in tongues and people of all languages understood what they were saying. You see the Holy Spirit is the voice of Truth and Truth is universal. On that day the 3,000 people were converted and the Catholic Church was born and so today we celebrate our Birthday (Happy Birthday everyone!).
Today, after a long period of uncertainty and some fear, the doors of the Churches in Miami were opened! We all applauded in the beginning out of pure joy. I looked around to see the faces of the Body of Christ mostly covered by the masks but I could still see them in their eyes. So many things going through my mind. I could relate to the apostles on that day of Pentecost in a new way. After being stuck in the upper room, they received freedom through the HS yet still having so many questions, seeing the world in such need of guidance but I was reminded that the same Spirit they received on that day is the one that abides in each and every one of us!
The Spirit that is the love between the Father and the Son made incarnate. The Sprit which the Catechism of the Catholic Church describes as the Spirit of Truth, the one that reveals God, the one that heals, restores and is the breath of God. The Spirit that helps us to hear the word of God. This Spirit who filled the apostles and worked through them to cure the sick, make the blind see, forgave sins and so much more! The problem that I see is that often times we forget the power of the Holy Spirit and we don’t pray or ask him to come!
I am blessed to have grown up in a family that always taught me the importance of praying for a daily outpouring of the Holy Spirit through three simple words “COME HOLY SPIRIT”. To stir up the graces from our Baptism. I also had the blessing of seeing miracles happen before my eyes! You know like the miracles that occur in the New Testament, well they still happen today! The blind start seeing, the deaf start hearing, I even saw people who had been paralyzed just get up and start walking in Jesus’ name all because people were open to being the Lord’s instrument. Indeed, we will receive POWER when the Holy Spirit comes upon us and we will be his witnesses around the world (Acts 1:8)! The question is, are we open to receive and be led by the Spirit? Are we open to see if we are being a good witness?
The world is going through a lot! Suffering in our homes, personal lives, mourning the loss of a friend, a worldwide pandemic and having to witness horrible injustice due to racism. It is reminding me of the time of the Tower of Babel, the division, people trying to do things without God. I ask that we learn from this. The Holy Spirit is the Spirit of Truth that wants to speak to our hearts. The Holy Spirit will teach us how to pray, how to love and how to find freedom! The Holy Spirit wants to unite us, he desires to help us truly understand each other by the Spirit that abides in each of us! The Holy Spirit was sent to guide, strengthen, encourage, forgive, heal, and restore. What do you need the Holy Spirit to do for you today? I invite you to be bold, to be specific in your prayer. Speak to Him ask him to come! He has so many gifts to give us, primarily he wants to remind us that we are loved and we belong to Father, Son and Holy Spirit. He wants to heal our wounds and as we prepare to start the month of June (the Month of the Sacred Heart) he wants to help us unite our hearts to Christ’s most Sacred Heart. Come Holy Spirit, this world is in need of a renewal. We call upon you, help us to be your witnesses, help us to love and through this love renew the face of the Earth!
“Come Holy Spirit, Fill the
hearts of your faithful and kindle
In them the fire of your love, Send
Forth your Spirit and they shall be
Created. And You shall renew
The face of the Earth. O, God,
Who by the light of the Holy Spirit,
Did instruct the hearts of the faithful,
Grant that by the same Holy Spirit we
May be truly wise and ever enjoy His
Consolations, through Christ our Lord.”
Amen