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Gospel: John 14: 15-26

Jesus said to his disciples:
“If you love me, you will keep my commandments.
And I will ask the Father,
and he will give you another Advocate to be with you always.

“Whoever loves me will keep my word,
and my Father will love him,
and we will come to him and make our dwelling with him.
Those who do not love me do not keep my words;
yet the word you hear is not mine
but that of the Father who sent me.

“I have told you this while I am with you.
The Advocate, the Holy Spirit whom the Father will send in my name,
will teach you everything
and remind you of all that I told you.”

The Gospel of the Lord.

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One day, a little boy asked his father, “Dad, where can I find God? I’ve looked everywhere – under my bed, in my closet, in my desk at school – I can’t find him.”

So, the father told his son a tale, “My boy,” he said, “one day the devil was speaking with his helpers.” He asked them, “Where can we hide God?”

One of the helpers replied, “Let’s hide God on the highest mountain!”

Another replied, “Let’s hide God at the bottom of the see.”

A third said, “No, let’s hide God within each person. They will never look for him there.”

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Today we celebrate the Feast of Pentecost when the Holy Spirit descended upon the Apostles like a gusty wind with tongues of fire.

The Spirit energized their lives – and their mission – forever.

Prior to Pentecost, the Apostles were timid and afraid. The fact that Jesus was raised from the dead and appeared to them multiple times was not enough. 

At first, they remained hidden in an upper room in Jerusalem, fearful that the same crowds who wanted Jesus crucified would also want them dead.

Even after they re-entered Jerusalem, Peter tried returning to his former way of life. Remember his discouraging words to his friends: “I’m going fishing.” 

Not, “Jesus has been raised from the dead!” But, “I’m going fishing…back to the shores of Galilee…back to my former way of life, as if this all never happened.”

Peter needed Pentecost. He needed the Holy Spirit.

Once the Spirit descended upon him and the others, their reluctance was transformed into commitment. Boldly, they went out to convert the world.

This abrupt change in Peter’s behavior becomes one of the earliest arguments for the proof of the resurrection. How else can you explain his immediate transformation unless he saw the Risen Christ and was filled with the Holy Spirit?

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We can make a similar argument about Saint Paul. 

Prior to his conversion, Paul persecuted Christians. He jailed them, beat them, and even had them killed. Suddenly the Risen Christ appears to him, and Paul’s life is changed forever. He’s baptized, filled with the Holy Spirit, and then sent out on mission.

Throughout his ministry, Paul was beaten, imprisoned, shipwrecked, abandoned, and left for dead. Still, he never gave up. He never retreated. Even in the midst of great suffering and pain, he persevered. 

Paul was filled with the Holy Spirit.

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So, how can you tell when someone is filled with the Holy Spirit like Peter or Paul? What might we see when we peer within?

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Anyone filled with the Spirit has a particular trait:

Enthusiasm.

Enthusiasm comes from the Greek, “en theos,” meaning, “God within.”

Those filled with the Spirit are enthusiastic about their faith; you can see God working clearly through them and with them.

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Last week, for example, at the 10 am Mass, Sara brought together our youth and adult choirs. Together, they sang a song that she and Joe Lesky wrote for my installation as pastor called, “A Hundredfold.” 

This time they sang it in honor of my 7^th anniversary as a priest.

After Communion, I sat and listened.

Tears began welling up in my eyes as I heard our children, the Day by Day Singers, belt out every note; they were few in number, but their voices filled the church. They sang from their souls. 

They were full of enthusiasm about that song and its meaning. They were filled with the Holy Spirit.

I didn’t even have to look. 

I could imagine the smile on Sara’s face; her arms moving intentionally back and forth as she directed the song, while Joe Lesky sat at the piano, passionately playing each key.

Everyone in that choir had a heart filled with joy. 

They were enthusiastic about their worship. Like Peter and Paul, they were filled with the Holy Spirit.

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When have I felt enthusiastic about my faith? Or about this parish? Or about God? 

When you do, you know the Spirit is working.

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“Where can we hide God?” the devil asked his helpers.

“On the highest mountain!” … “At the bottom of the sea!”

“No, let’s hide God within each person. They’ll never look for him there.”

Or will we? 

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Image credits: (1) Redeeming God (2) St. Paul Center (3) QuoteFancy

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Gospel: John 21: 15 – 19

After Jesus had revealed himself to his disciples and eaten breakfast with them,
he said to Simon Peter,
“Simon, son of John, do you love me more than these?”
Simon Peter answered him, “Yes, Lord, you know that I love you.”
Jesus said to him, “Feed my lambs.”
He then said to Simon Peter a second time,
“Simon, son of John, do you love me?”
Simon Peter answered him, “Yes, Lord, you know that I love you.”
He said to him, “Tend my sheep.”
He said to him the third time,
“Simon, son of John, do you love me?”
Peter was distressed that he had said to him a third time,
“Do you love me?” and he said to him,
“Lord, you know everything; you know that I love you.”
Jesus said to him, “Feed my sheep.
Amen, amen, I say to you, when you were younger,
you used to dress yourself and go where you wanted;
but when you grow old, you will stretch out your hands,
and someone else will dress you
and lead you where you do not want to go.”
He said this signifying by what kind of death he would glorify God.
And when he had said this, he said to him, “Follow me.”

The Gospel of the Lord.

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It’s time to be reconciled. Jesus has been raised from the dead. Now he’s appearing to Simon Peter, who denied him three times during his darkest hour. 

It’s only fair to ask Peter, “Simon, son of John, do you love me?”

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A repentant Peter responds the only way a Christian can, “Lord, Lord, you know everything; you know that I love you.”

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“Lord, Lord,” Peter says.

In Latin, “Domine, Domine.”

It’s from the Latin word, Domine, that we get the English word, dominate. 

It’s a beautiful play on words: 

Lord, Lord…Domine, Domine…dominate.

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To “dominate” means to have a commanding influence; to be the central figure; or primary force behind action. 

It’s not something we’d ordinarily say to someone, “dominate.” But what Peter is saying to Jesus is that he has become the central figure – or commanding influence – in Peter’s life.

Peter will prove this while he preaches to the nations for the next thirty years, and finally as he dies upon a cross in Rome, much like his Lord.

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Perhaps we could ask ourselves the same question: Is the Lord the very center of my life? Or are there others competing for my affection?

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“Lord, Lord, you know everything; you know that I love you.”

You are the center of my life. 

May we all repeat Peter’s words, not only with our lips, but also with our lives.

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Image credits: (1) Subsplash (2) The Sacred Page, WordPress (3) Christianity. Why did Jesus ask Peter if he loved him?

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Acts: 22:30 – 23: 11.

Wishing to determine the truth
about why Paul was being accused by the Jews,
the commander freed him
and ordered the chief priests and the whole Sanhedrin to convene.
Then he brought Paul down and made him stand before them.

Paul was aware that some were Sadducees and some Pharisees,
so he called out before the Sanhedrin,
“My brothers, I am a Pharisee, the son of Pharisees;
I am on trial for hope in the resurrection of the dead.”
When he said this,
a dispute broke out between the Pharisees and Sadducees,
and the group became divided.
For the Sadducees say that there is no resurrection
or angels or spirits,
while the Pharisees acknowledge all three.
A great uproar occurred,
and some scribes belonging to the Pharisee party
stood up and sharply argued,
“We find nothing wrong with this man.
Suppose a spirit or an angel has spoken to him?”
The dispute was so serious that the commander,
afraid that Paul would be torn to pieces by them,
ordered his troops to go down and rescue Paul from their midst
and take him into the compound.
The following night the Lord stood by him and said, “Take courage.
For just as you have borne witness to my cause in Jerusalem,
so you must also bear witness in Rome.”

The Word of the Lord.

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“God, what is your will for me?”

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It’s a question all of us have asked at one point or another.

I’m sure we never ask it hoping that the answer involves pain or suffering. Rather, an open door; freedom; opportunity; or an exciting experience.

None of these – freedom, opportunity, or excitement – await Saint Paul. 

He’s just been put on trial, severely lashed, and thrown back into prison. Half-dead, he sits and wonders, “God, what is your will for me?”

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Anyone would’ve hoped for an open door or relief from pain and suffering.

But mysteriously, the Lord appears to Paul and says, “Take courage. For just as you have borne witness to my cause in Jerusalem, so you must also bear witness in Rome.”

That will be Paul’s next – and final – stop. 

After faithfully proclaiming the Gospel, Paul will be put to death.

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What this passage tells us is as haunting as what it does not tell us. 

It does not tell us why God allowed Paul to suffer so much; nor does it explain our own suffering.

But it does tell us that the Lord appeared to Paul; that Paul did God’s will; and through it all, Jesus was with him.

“Take courage,” the Lord says. I am with you.

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What can Paul’s life and ministry say to us? That, at times, God allows pain and suffering to enter our lives. But not without grace. 

As Paul himself wrote, “No trial has come to you but what is human. God is faithful and will not let you be tried beyond your strength; but with the trial he will also provide a way out, so that you may be able to bear it” (1 Corinthians 10:13).

Paul bore his cross faithfully. His way out – his reward – was the resurrection.

May he pray for us that we, too, may do the Lord’s will, which ultimately leads to life in abundance. 

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Image credits: (1) DT Life Coach, Dr. David Turpen (2) The Plot against Paul: Reading Acts, WordPress (3) St. Paul Center