(Audio recorded live, 8 June 2025)

Readings:

Acts 2:1-11; Ps. 104; 1 Cor. 12:3b-7, 12-13; Jn. 20:19-23

Today, on this fiftieth day after Easter, we celebrate the Solemnity of Pentecost, the birth of the Church. Pentecost is a feast of great unity: Unity in faith, unity in Spirit, unity in message. Let us take a closer look at how the Lord gathers his elect.

Last week, when we celebrated Jesus’ Ascension into heaven, we heard him say, “I am sending the promise of my Father upon you; but stay in the city until you are clothed with power from on high” (Lk. 24:49). So, the disciples continued to gather in the Upper Room and pray. Ten days later when the disciples were gathered together, there came a sound from heaven like a strong driving wind, which filled the entire house and tongues as of fire appeared, parted, and came to rest on each one of them. We might recall the words of St. John the Baptist who said, “I am baptizing you with water, but one mightier than I is coming…He will baptize you with the holy Spirit and fire” (Lk. 3:16). The tongue-shape represents the various languages that the apostles will speak to the people gathering. You see, the disciples were not the only ones who heard this sound from heaven. There were people from all over the world present in Jerusalem—people who spoke different languages—and they all came together to investigate this noise.

We might remember how God confused the languages of the people at the tower of Babel (See Gn. 11:1-9). The problem with Babel was that the people sought to make a name for themselves, to glorify themselves, rather than God. And so, God confuses their language and scatters them all over the world. If only they had focused their efforts on worshipping the One True God, perhaps we would still enjoy the unity of a common tongue. Nevertheless, St. Luke tells us the disciples were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak with diverse tongues. He then lists all the peoples who are able to understand the preaching of the apostles—a total of fifteen unique dialects. Truly this was a miracle, and a point of unity for all those who could hear.

The gift of tongues would remain with the early Church throughout the first century. St. Paul refers to having received the gift of tongues himself in his first letter to the Corinthians (1 Cor. 14:18), where he also says, “To each individual the manifestation of the Spirit is given for some benefit” (1 Cor. 12:7). Perhaps that benefit may be for our own growth in the spiritual life, perhaps it is for the sake of helping others grow. The latter seemed to be the case for the apostles as they began preaching the Good News of Jesus Christ throughout the land.

In his Pentecost Sermon, St. Peter describes what happened to Jesus and provides the people with a remedy, namely, to repent and be baptized for the forgiveness of their sins. The apostles were baptized with the Spirit and fire so that they could set the world on fire for Jesus. They did so through their witness, their preaching, and their unity. St. Luke tells us, “The community of believers was of one heart and mind, and no one claimed that any of his possessions was his own, but they had everything in common” (Acts 4:32). Such was “The Way” in those days.

Has “The Way” changed? We gather together with one heart and mind, and our support of the parish ensures that the sacramental life continues to sanctify. We share in the one faith, the one Spirit, the one message of Christ. Even though we may sometimes struggle to know how to pray as we ought, as St. Paul says, “the Spirit himself intercedes for us with inexpressible groaning” (Rm. 8:26). We continue to battle the effects of sin, and the temptations of the Devil, which seek to destroy our unity. Yet, the Church remains the most ancient source of sanctification in the world today. Just by being here, we are being made holy.

This year is the 1700th anniversary of the Council of Nicaea, the first Ecumenical Council in the Church. It was at Nicaea that 318 of the Church’s Fathers affirmed our faith in the Triune God, that Christ is truly human and truly God, and that salvation comes through Jesus Christ, according to the Scriptures and under the guidance of the Holy Spirit. It just so happens that this year Easter fell on the same day in the Roman Church as in the Eastern Orthodox Churches. Pope Leo encourages dialogue between the two churches to find a way to unite this principle celebration of the Church. The two Churches follow different calendars, and the debate about what day Easter should be celebrated is nothing new, in fact, it is as ancient as the Council of Nicaea. Nicaea decreed that the Roman practice should be observed throughout the Church, namely, that Easter should be celebrated the same Sunday throughout the world, an issue that the Second Vatican Council also expressed a desire to renew throughout the Churches. Pope Leo said, “Through theological dialogue and with the help of God, we will gain a better understanding of the mystery that unites us. By celebrating together this Nicene faith and by proclaiming it together, we will also advance towards the restoration of full communion among us” (Address of the Holy Father to Participants in the Symposium “Nicaea and the Church of the Third Millennium: Towards Catholic-Orthodox Unity” Held at the Pontifical University of Saint Thomas Aquinas). Let us pray that the Lord may unite the East and the West for a common celebration of the Lord’s resurrection, giving greater missionary force to the preaching of “the name of Jesus and the salvation born of faith in the saving truth of the Gospel.”

While we can acknowledge our unity in faith, Spirit, and preaching, we also acknowledge that our world is very much broken. It is very much in need of this same preaching. We may not have the gift of tongues as they did in the first century, but we have the deposit of what they said in the New Testament, we have the writings of the Early Fathers, and we have the sacraments, which nourish us daily. As the apostles were given a message to preach the Good News, so too are we commissioned to join in the mission of Christ, who gives us a share in the ministry through baptism. How are we witnessing to the one faith, the one Spirit, the one message?

“Now to him who is able to accomplish far more than all we ask or imagine, by the power at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus to all generations, forever and ever. Amen” (Ep. 3:20-21).