Acts 16:11-15
Psalm 149
John 15:26-16:4
Dear friends, as we are gradually approaching the Feast of Pentecost, the Gospel readings will be focusing on the third Person of the Blessed Trinity, the Holy Spirit. The Lord Jesus requests that the disciples should be open to accept the Holy Spirit and be his witnesses. The Holy Spirit has been a companion, and at work in the lives of the disciples as well as the early followers. In
today's first reading, Paul, led by the Holy Spirit preaches the gospel to a group of woman in Philippi. One of them, Lydia, responded to Paul’s preaching of the gospel, and she and her household were baptized. She immediately offered Paul hospitality. ‘If you really thing me a true believer, come and stay with us’. Having received the gift of the gospel from Paul, she immediately offered him a gift in return, the gift of hospitality. Having been graced by the Lord through Paul, she graced Paul by her offer of a place to stay. We have all been graced in various ways by the Lord, how have we responded to this free gift. The first reading this morning suggests that the appropriate response to the experience of being graced, is to grace others in return. Having received from the Lord, we give from what we have received. St John, at the beginning of his gospel declares that from the Lord’s fullness we have all received, grace upon grace. Affirming this, Jesus had once told his apostles, 'you receive without charge, give without charge.' We should always look for ways to grace others as we have been graced, to bless others as we have been blessed. Lydia knew what this meant, so in response, she concretely showed hospitality to Paul. With our disposition, the Lord's Spirit will also direct and make clear to us what it might mean for us concretely to give from what we have received.
In the gospel reading today, Jesus refers to people who will kill his disciples while thinking and believing that they are doing a holy duty for God. It is hard to imagine, almost unthinkable that people would be thinking they are doing God’s holy duty by killing others. Yet, we know from our own times and experiences that there are such people around us who think like that. Even Saint Paul, while still a zealous Pharisee, prior to his meeting with Christ and his necessary conversion, approved the killing of Stephen, the first Christian martyr, because he believed that the stoning of Stephen to dead was what God would have wanted. He killed Christians thinking he was doing a great service to God. He said of himself that he persecuted the church of God, and he did so thinking he was doing God’s will. His meeting with the risen Lord led him to preach the same gospel of the risen Lord that he had once persecuted. This is what we find Paul doing in the city of Philippi in today’s first reading. This gospel that he preached was a gospel of life and of love. As Paul says in his letter to the Romans, ‘bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse them… Do not repay anyone evil for evil… overcome evil with good’. In the gospel reading, Jesus promises to send the Advocate, the Holy Spirit, the Spirit of truth to his disciples and he declares that the Holy Spirit will witness to him, and will empower his disciples to be his witnesses too. The Holy Spirit is the Spirit of God’s love for Jesus, and the Spirit of Jesus’ love for us. The Holy Spirit empowers us to love others with the love of God and in that way, to witness to Jesus. The Holy Spirit is at work in our lives, he helps us to love others with the love of Jesus, the love of God, a love that brings life and light to others, rather than terminate their lives. This is the Christian understanding of doing a holy duty for God.
Again, in the gospel reading this morning, Jesus expresses his great concern, lest the faith of his disciples might be shaken. He shows them an awareness of rejection and suffering which are likely to come their way, in the form of hostilities, persecutions and sufferings geared towards undermining and testing their faith in him. The words of Jesus to his disciples can speak to our own experiences and situations. Our own faith can be shaken by various experiences, by friends, by people who are even closest to us. Some personal sufferings, the efforts of others to undermine our faith, the failures of people of faith in whom we have trusted, the disappointments by our leaders: all of these experiences and many others can contribute to our faith being shaken. But, let us fear not because in the gospel reading, Jesus promises to send his disciples, and that includes all of us, the Advocate, the Paraclete, the Holy Spirit, to strength and confirm us in our faith when that faith risks being shaken to the core. The Spirit, according to the gospel reading, will help us to continue witnessing to the Lord against the suffering, persecutions, rejection and hostilities that we are facing, and will face. The Spirit will be the Lord’s strength in our weakness, light in our darkness, encouragement in our despairing and disappointing situations. According to our first reading, the Spirit empowered Paul to witness in Philippi. The people, to whom he gave the gospel, like the woman, Lydia, gave the gospel back to him in the form of an offer of hospitality. When we allow the Spirit to witness through us, we too will receive the gospel back from others in one shape or form. Now, here is a question that we all must sincerely answer: As we are gradually approaching the descent of the Holy Spirit, are we ready to allow him to witness in us and make us witnesses too?
-PadreCharlesLwanga
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