Pope Francis – Pentecost Homily

The Holy Spirit Brings New Life And Unity

Below is the English translation of Pope Francis’ homily at Mass on the Solemnity of Pentecost which was celebrated this morning at St. Peter’s Square.

Dear Brothers and Sisters,
Today we contemplate and re-live in the liturgy the outpouring of the Holy Spirit sent out by the increased Christ upon his Church; an occasion of grace which filled the Upper Room in Jerusalem then spread out throughout the world.

Exactly what occurred on that day, so distant from us and yet so close as to touch the very depths of our hearts? Luke offers us the answer in the passage of the Acts of the Apostles which we have heard (2:1 -11). The evangelist brings us back to Jerusalem, to the Upper Room where the apostles were collected. The first element which draws our attention is the sound which unexpectedly originated from heaven like the rush of a violent wind, and filled your house; then the tongues as of fire which divided and came to rest on each of the apostles. Noise and tongues of fire: these are clear, concrete indications which touch the apostles not only from without however also within: deep in their minds and hearts. As a result, all of them were filled of the Holy Spirit, who unleashed his irresistible power with incredible effects: they all began to speak in different languages, as the Spirit offered them capability. A completely unanticipated scene opens up before our eyes: a fantastic group gathers, astonished due to the fact that every one heard the apostles speaking in his own language. They all experience something brand-new, something which had never taken place before: We hear them, each of us, speaking our own language. And what is it that they are they discussing? Gods deeds of power.

In the light of this passage from Acts, I would including to reflect on 3 words linked to the working of the Holy Spirit: goal, freshness and harmony.

1. Newness always makes us a bit fearful, since we feel more protected if we have everything under control, if we are the ones who construct, program and plan our lives in accordance with our own ideas, our own comfort, our own choices. When it comes to God, this is likewise the case. Typically we follow him, we accept him, but just up to a specific point. It is tough to desert ourselves to him with total depend on, permitting the Holy Spirit to be the soul and guide of our lives in our every choice. We fear that God could force us to strike out on new courses and leave behind our all too slim, closed and selfish horizons in order to become vulnerable to his own.

   Throughout the history of salvation, whenever God reveals himself, he brings freshness and modification, and demands our full count on: Noah, mocked by all, constructs an ark and is saved; Abram leaves his land with only a guarantee in hand; Moses stands up to the might of Pharaoh and leads his individuals to freedom; the apostles, huddled fearfully in the Upper Room, go forth with courage to proclaim the Gospel. This is not a concern of novelty for novelty’s sake, the search for something new to alleviate our dullness, as is so typically the case in our own day.

   The newness which God brings into our life is something that in fact brings fulfilment, that provides true happiness, real peacefulness, due to the fact that God likes us and needs only our good. Let us ask ourselves: Are we open to Gods surprises? Or are we closed and afraid before the freshness of the Holy Spirit? Do we have the courage to strike out along the new courses which Gods newness sets before us, or do we resist, barricaded in short-term structures which have lost their capability for openness to what is new?

2. A second thought: the Holy Spirit would appear to create disorder in the Church, since he brings the range of charisms and gifts; yet all this, by his working, is a terrific source of wide range, for the Holy Spirit is the Spirit of unity, which does not indicate uniformity, however which leads every little thing back to harmony. In the Church, it is the Holy Spirit who produces consistency.

   Among Fathers of the Church there’s an expression which I love: the Holy Spirit himself is consistency Ipse harmonia est. Just the Spirit can awaken range, multiplicity and plurality, while at the same time building unity. Below too, when we are the ones who attempt to produce variety and close ourselves up in exactly what makes us various other and different, we bring department.

   When we are the ones who wish to develop unity in accordance with our human strategies, we wind up producing uniformity, standardization. However if instead we let ourselves be guided by the Spirit, selection, richness and diversity never ever become a source of conflict, due to the fact that he impels us to experience range within the communion of the Church.

   Journeying together in the Church, under the support of her priests who have a special charism and ministry, is a sign of the working of the Holy Spirit. Having a sense of the Church is something fundamental for every Christian, every neighbourhood and every movement. It is the Church which brings Christ to me, and me to Christ; parallel journeys threaten! When we venture past the Church’s teaching and community, and do not stay in them, we are not one with the God of Jesus Christ (cf. 2 Jn 9). So let us ask ourselves: Am I open to the harmony of the Holy Spirit, conquering every form of exclusivity? Do I let myself be led by him, staying in the Church and with the Church?

3. A last point. The older theologians made use of to state that the soul is a kind of sailboat, the Holy Spirit is the wind which fills its sails and drives it forward, and the gusts of wind are the gifts of the Spirit. Lacking his impulse and his grace, we do not go forward. The Holy Spirit draws us into the secret of the living God and conserves us from the hazard of a Church which is self-referential and Gnostic, closed in on herself; he impels us to open the doors and leave to bear and announce witness to the good news of the Gospel, to connect the joy of faith, the encounter with Christ.

   The Holy Spirit is the soul of goal. The occasions that occurred in Jerusalem nearly two thousand years back are not something far removed from us; they are events which impact us and become a lived experience in each of us. The Pentecost of the Upper Room in Jerusalem is the start, a beginning which withstands. The Holy Spirit is the supreme present of the risen Christ to his apostles, yet he desires that present to reach everybody.

   As we heard in the Gospel, Jesus says: I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Advocate to remain with you forever (Jn 14:16). It is the Paraclete Spirit, the Comforter, who gives us the courage to take to the streets of the world, bringing the Gospel! The Holy Spirit makes us planning to the horizon and drive us to the really outskirts of presence in order to proclaim life in Jesus Christ. Let us ask ourselves: do we often stay surrounded ourselves, on our team, or do we let the Holy Spirit open us to objective?

Today’s liturgy is a wonderful prayer which the Church, in union with Jesus, raises up to the Father, asking him to renew the outpouring of the Holy Spirit. May each of us, and every team and motion, in the harmony of the Church, cry out to the Father and implore this gift. Today too, as at her beginnings, the Church, in union with Mary, cries out: Veni, Sancte Spiritus! Come Holy Spirit, fill the hearts of your faithful, and kindle in them the fire of your love! Amen.