RECEIVE THE HOLY SPIRIT! Today (8-6-2025) is the second Sunday of the month. It is also the fiftieth day after the resurrection of the Lord. In Roman Catholic worship, today is dedicated to celebrating the Solemnity of Pentecost. You may call it the descent of the Holy Spirit, the third Glorious mystery of the Holy Rosary, the fulfilment of the promise of the Father or the birthday of the Church. With today's celebration, we bring to a close the Season of Easter, and we continue the liturgical year with Ordinary Time 2. You may ask these questions: • What is Pentecost? • Why Pentecost? • The message of Pentecost? a. In ancient Israel, there were three major festivals to which every Jewish male living within twenty miles of Jerusalem was legally bound to participate: Unleavened Bread, Tabernacles, and Harvest Festival. • UNLEAVENED BREAD This is the most important of all Jewish festivals. It is also known as Passover. It celebrates the departure of the Jewish people from Egypt (Exodus 12-15) as well as the beginning of a new planting season. • TABERNACLES This feast was celebrated on the 15th day of the 7th month of the year. It lasted for 7 days. It recalls the work of God in the life of the Hebrews in the desert. It is also known as Sukkoth (a Hebrew word for booths or tents). In the Old Testament, God, through Moses, commanded the Hebrews to live in tents for 7 days (Leviticus 23:42), and this tradition continues to this day. The observance of this feast is recorded in Exodus 23:16, 34:22, Numbers 29:12-40, Deuteronomy 16:13-15, Ezra 3:4, and Nehemiah 8:13-18. • HARVEST FESTIVAL This is also known as feast of harvest, first fruits, or feast of weeks. It is the second greatest feast of the Israelites. Traditionally, it is a joyous time of giving thanks and presenting offerings for the new grain of the summer wheat harvest. Initially, this was not part of Israel's celebration. It was only adopted after settling on the land of Canaan. Later, the Jews associated this feast with the remembrance of God’s covenants with Noah after the flood (Genesis 9:13) and with Moses at Mount Sinai (Exodus 19:1-6). This feast was celebrated on the 50th day after Passover. The Greek rendition of this festival (feast of harvest) is πεντηκοστη (pentekoste) which simply means fiftieth (50th). It is from this Greek word that we derive the English word Pentecost. In Judaism, Pentecost was initially an agricultural festival. In fact, it had nothing to do with the Holy Spirit. In Christianity, this feast assumed a much bigger dimension, in that it was not just limited to agriculture, but it came to mean the fulfillment of the Father’s promise, the outpouring of the Holy Spirit, the descent of the third Person of the Holy Trinity. b. The first reading (Acts 2:1-11) relates to us the first ever Pentecost experience. It tells us that what we are celebrating today isn't a figment of someone's imagination. It did happen. The Holy Spirit descended. People felt the power of the Holy Spirit. The question is, how did it happen? • There was a gathering in a place with all present. What does this suggest? Unity! Peter, James, Mary, etc. The Holy Spirit is a Spirit of unity. He is a Spirit that binds. The Spirit is a Spirit of oneness. If this is the case, then we should be united. How united are we? • The people came together for prayer. We can conclude that they also had a novena. They prepared their hearts to receive the Holy Spirit. Let me ask, did you make it for the novena? Why could you not make it? What is the impact of the novena on your life? How do you expect to receive the Holy Spirit without preparation? Pentecost Sunday is an invitation to a life of prayer. It is a call to go on your knees and pray. Ask the Holy Spirit to sanctify you. Pray for the grace of favour, the grace of peace. Again, pray for your wife, husband, child(ren), friends, etc. • Each person received the gift of the Holy Spirit. There is no evidence of someone who never received a gift. Today, this same Holy Spirit will descend upon us as He did to the people of old. I have this for you: God has given you a gift. We have different gifts as people of faith. Don't compare your gifts with others. Don't hide your gift. Exercise your gift with love, humility, and patience. Use your gift to build the Church, nation, and family. Nobody can destroy your gift, but you alone. In essence, what you have is God's gift to you. What you do with what you have is your gift to God. I ask: How are you using your gift? • The descent of the Holy Spirit had a great impact on humanity. Right after this experience, Peter would go out to preach and win over 3000 souls for Jesus. This is the birthday of the Church. I ask, how many soul(s) have you led to Jesus? How many soul(s) have stopped coming to Church because of you? As a Priest, how many soul(s) have I won for the Lord? Am I bringing others to God? Am I driving people away? Pentecost Sunday is a call to bring the Word of God to the hearts of people. It is an invitation to a life of witnessing to Jesus. It is a call to make the Lord known to humanity. This is a beautiful gift you can give to the Church as she celebrates the anniversary of her birth. If 12 men could do this, then we, with a greater number, should do better. • It's unfortunate to hear some people say that there is no Spirit in the Roman Catholic Church. Sadly, some Catholics believe this. I ask, how can a 5 year old Church compete with a Church which is over 2000 years? The Spirit was in the Church, the Spirit is in the Church, and the Spirit will forever be in the Church. If the Spirit is in the Church, then it means that the Spirit is in you. • The Spirit of God is a Spirit of holiness. For this reason, you can't receive that which is holy when you have that which is unholy in you. I humbly suggest that you go for Confession. Take this seriously. Go and be cleansed of sin in order to receive the Holy Spirit. The Lord is waiting for you at the confessional. c. The message of Pentecost is summarized below: • Be holy as the Spirit of God is holy. • The Holy Spirit is in the Church. • The Holy Spirit is in you. • Activate the Holy Spirit. • Evangelize. • Be led by the Holy Spirit. PLEASE NOTE: In the early part of 2018, Pope Francis decreed that the Memorial of the Blessed Virgin Mary, Mother of the Church (Mater Ecclesiae), be celebrated on the Monday immediately after Pentecost. This means that tomorrow (9th June), the Memorial of the Blessed Virgin Mary, Mother of the Church will be celebrated in every Roman Catholic Church throughout the world. Please make it for Holy Mass. Come Holy Spirit.....🌿