TONGUES OF THE HOLY SPIRIT

Meditation for the Solemnity of Pentecost

(Acts 2:1-11; 1Cor 12:3-7, 12-13; Jn 20:19-23)

“Pentecost” is derived from the Greek work, Pentēkostē, which means fiftieth. The Israelites celebrated the feast of Pentecost to mark 50 days after the Passover. This 50 days was remarkable because it was then the people of Israel arrived Mount Sinai, where they received the Law of Moses (Ex 34:28). Originally this feast was marked as a ‘Harvest Feat’, which falls 50 days after Passover, and was called Shavu`ot. It was sometimes called ‘Festival of Weeks’, referring to the seven weeks since Passover (Cf. Lev 23:15-16; Ex 23:14-16). At this feast the people offer to God the first fruits of their harvest. In the New Testament, Easter fulfills the Passover of old. And the Holy Spirit descended on the disciples 50 days after the Easter, which we celebrate today. The coming of the Holy Spirit inaugurates the ‘new law’, bearing the ‘First fruits’ of the spirit for those who believe. Thus, the fruits of the Holy Spirit becomes our ‘harvest’. “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control.” (Gal 5:22).

From the readings of today, let us meditate how Holy Spirit descended the disciples while they were together behind closed doors. The Gospel narrated how Jesus appeared to them in the room where they shut themselves up for fear of the Jews. He said to them, “Receive the Holy Spirit...” And on Pentecost day, the Holy came upon them, manifesting His divine presence on them. By resting upon them in tongues of fire, once again the divine has taken His abode on the human! And the Holy Spirit led them out of their self-enclosure to encounter the people with the gospel message.

The Holy Spirit warmed their heart, melted away their fear and led them from the closed doors of fear to the open ground of witnessing for Jesus Christ. The received the first fruits of the spirit, who led them from the closed doors of self-made life, away from the barricades of culture to a deeper appreciation of diversity in unity. “And they were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance.” The Holy Spirit leads us forward to ‘hear’ each other’s language, i.e. to have a deeper understanding and appreciation of one another. Many people are suffering, abandoned, marginalized or persecuted because no one ‘hears’ or ‘understands’ their language. We need the Holy Spirit to melt away the barriers that separate us from one another, for the One Spirit speaks our different tongues.

Come Holy Spirit; ‘speak my language’ that I may ‘speak the language’ of others. Amen.

 

Fr Jude Chinwenwa Nwachukwu, C.Ss.R
Saints Peter & Paul Catholic Church,
Tedi-Muwo, Lagos.
Sunday May 23^rd, 2021.
Solemnity of Pentecost
www.nwachinwe.blogspot.com

THE AMOUR OF TRUTH

Meditation for Wednesday of the 7th Week of Easter 

What can we achieve with disunity? Even the little we might achieve cannot be enjoyed in disunity. Individuals, families and society at large need peace and unity in order for them to develop and progress. Jesus prayed, "Holy Father, keep them in your name, which you have given me, that they may be one, even as we are one." Jesus guarded his disciples from the evil one, who comes to scatter and destroy. 

Peace and unity come as answered prayer; they gifts from above. An enduring peace and unity come as our sharing in the Trinitarian life through Jesus Christ. This is such unity that the devil cannot penetrate. St Paul warned the Ephesians to be on the look out for wolves that come to destroy and scatter the sheep. How can we dispose ourselves to shelded against such wolves and remain united? 

Jesus prays, "Sanctify them in truth; your word is truth." We cannot compromise truth in order to achieve peace and unity. Every genuine and lasting unity feeds on truth! It is our armour against the wolves of disunity. And the truth of God takes flesh in Jesus, who is the word of God among us. Therefore, the truth of every situation is that which can be reference to Jesus Christ, and can bring those who accept it to associate with Jesus. He says, "And for their sake I consecrate myself, that they also may be consecrated in truth." Amen.

Fr Jude Chinwenwa Nwachukwu, C.Ss.R

Corpus Christi Catholic Church, 

Egbin, Ikorodu, Lagos. 

Wednesday May 19th, 2021.

www.nwachinwe.blogspot.com

Rendering Accounts

It is quite obvious that there is a time we have to give account of our works and life. We are called to be responsible in the use of the graces and talents we have, and the wealth we possess. So a time comes when we must explain ourselves, silently or verbally, before God and man, how we lived out our lives in view of our responsibilities towards them.

Jesus lift up His eyes to heaven and said,  "Father, the hour has come; glorify your Son that the Son may glorify you." By this gesture,  Jesus rendered back to the Father all that was entrusted to Him. "I glorified you on earth, having accomplished the work which you gave me to do." In Jesus' address to the Father,  we see how prayer summons us to account to God by rendering to Him, through Jesus Christ, all that was entrusted to us. "I am praying for them...for those whom you have given me, for they are yours; all mine are yours, and yours are mine, and I am glorified in them."

On the other hand, we give account to others, as St Paul did at Ephesus. The account of the goods we possess, which we render on earth, comes as 'witnessing'. "You yourselves know how I lived among you all the time...how I did not shrink from declaring to you anything that was profitable..." St Paul accounted how he testified of the repentance to God and of faith in our Lord Jesus Christ. 

Therefore, when we render account of our life of faith in the form of witnessing, we connect the faithful to the 'glory of Christ', which is readily available in prayer. Hence, in prayer we enjoy the twofold rendering of accounts to God in glory, and witnessing before men. Amen. 

Fr Jude Chinwenwa Nwachukwu, C.Ss.R

Corpus Christi Catholic Church, 

Egbin, Ikorodu, Lagos. 

Tuesday May 18th, 2021.

www.nwachinwe.blogspot.com