St. Paul’s Church in
Bergen, Jersey City NJ
May 19, 2013
Year C: The Day of
Pentecost
Acts 2:1-21
Psalm 104: 25-35, 37
Romans 8:14-17
John 14: 8-17, 25-27
The Holy Spirit, Fiery and Comforting
Happy
Pentecost!
Pentecost
is a very big day in the church. In fact, Pentecost is the feast second in
importance only to Easter.
Pentecost,
fifty days after Easter, is the day we remember and celebrate the gift of the
Holy Spirit to the disciples in Jerusalem some two thousand years ago.
Pentecost
is the day that we remember and celebrate the gift of the Holy Spirit to
Christians throughout the ages.
Pentecost
is the day that we remember and celebrate the gift of the Holy Spirit to us here today.
And,
actually, the Feast of Pentecost has its roots in the Old Testament, so it’s much
older than Christianity. It was and still is a feast celebrated by Jews fifty
days after the great feast of Passover.
Pentecost
began as a harvest festival – a time when the Jewish people would offer some of
their crops – offer their best - their “first fruits” - in thanksgiving to
God.
Later,
it lost most of its agricultural meaning and instead became a day to remember
and celebrate the gift of the Law to Moses.
So,
it’s not clear what exactly was being celebrated on that Pentecost in Jerusalem
back two thousand years ago. But, as we heard in today’s reading from the Acts
of the Apostles, whatever they were celebrating had attracted Jews from all
around the known world and it had also attracted the little group of Jesus’
followers.
At
the start of the Pentecost story in Acts, the author gives an important detail.
The disciples “were all together in one place.”
Now,
on the one hand this could mean that the disciples were all together in the
house having a happy Pentecost party.
But,
that doesn’t seem likely.
Instead,
it seems like the disciples who had recently been through so much – Jesus’
death, resurrection and ascension – were frightened and lost without their
leader, their teacher, their friend – frightened and lost without Jesus. So, on
that great feast they were all together in a house in Jerusalem, frightened and
lost.
And
then, suddenly, everything changed.
We’re
told there was a loud sound from heaven like a rushing wind – a loud sound that
filled their house.
“Divided
tongues, as of fire appeared among them, and a tongue rested on each of them.”
And,
somehow, the disciples were able to speak in many different languages. The
disciples were able to tell the whole world the Good News of Jesus. And the
Church was born.
Because
of that description of “divided tongues, as of fire” it’s the custom to wear
red on Pentecost. It’s been the custom that red is the color of the Holy
Spirit.
Back
on that day in Jerusalem two thousand years ago, the Holy Spirit really was red
– really was fiery – burning away the fear and doubt of the disciples,
purifying them so that they could be courageous witnesses of Jesus, inspiring
them to love their neighbors, fortifying them to begin the work of building the
Church.
And
the Holy Spirit is still fiery, burning away our fear and doubt, purifying us
to be courageous witnesses of Jesus, inspiring us to love our neighbors,
fortifying us to build up the Church.
It
may not have been quite as dramatic as what happened two thousand years ago in
Jerusalem, but I bet many of us have experienced this fiery red Holy Spirit.
I
bet many of us have experienced the Holy Spirit on fire in and around us,
transforming our lives.
I’ve
experienced that fiery Holy Spirit a few times in my life. Most recently, it
was the fiery Holy Spirit that somehow managed to get St. Paul’s and Sue and me
back together again.
As
Pauline and the vestry and some of you know, it took some doing to make this
happen. From the start it felt right to me – it felt like I had been ordained
to be your rector – but there were plenty of obstacles and twists and turns
along the way.
Yet,
each time we reached what looked like a roadblock, it felt to me like the Holy
Spirit just burned on through, inspiring us and inspiring the bishop and others
at the diocese to figure out a way forward.
And,
actually, the fiery red Holy Spirit visits St. Paul’s on a regular basis.
Last
Sunday I mentioned how much I love the Exchange of Peace here. And, tell me,
doesn’t that feel a lot like Pentecost every week? All of us – from around the
corner and around the world – all of us – whether we grew up in these pews or
just arrived at St. Paul’s a few weeks ago – all of us – whether we’re lifelong
Episcopalians or we don’t even know how to spell “Episcopalian” – all of us –
reach out and offer God’s peace and God’s love to one another.
The
fiery Holy Spirit visits this place all the time.
But,
that’s not the only way we experience the power and love of the Holy Spirit.
The
Holy Spirit is not always fiery. The Holy Spirit can also be comforting. And
here at St. Paul’s, the Holy Spirit also comes in… blue. Just look at the
beautiful window behind you. And the comforting blue Holy Spirit represented by
that window really is here – really is with us – all the time.
We
hear about the comforting Holy Spirit in today’s gospel lesson.
Once
again we’re back at the Last Supper – back in the “Farewell Discourse” when
Jesus is trying – one last time - to teach his disciples what’s most important.
Jesus
tells them that he is going to ask God the Father to send an Advocate to be
with them – to be with us – forever. And Jesus says that we are going to have a
very personal, even intimate, relationship with this Advocate – with the Holy Spirit.
Jesus
says that we know the Holy Spirit because the Holy Spirit abides with us. We know the Holy Spirit because the Holy Spirit is in us.
This
is another dimension to the Holy Spirit. Yes the Holy Spirit can be fiery,
nearly knocking us over with power, transforming our lives, sending us off in
totally unexpected directions, or bringing us safely home.
But,
the Holy Spirit can also be comforting, living among and within us all the
time. And here at St. Paul’s that beautiful round window up there behind you
can remind us that the comforting blue Holy Spirit. is with us always.
We
experience the comforting Holy Spirit when we admit wrongdoing and ask
forgiveness from a family member, a friend, a coworker or a classmate.
We
experience the comforting Holy Spirit when we let go of a grudge or resentment,
when we offer forgiveness to those who wrong us or hurt us.
We
experience the comforting Holy Spirit when we lose a job, or suffer a broken
relationship, or face an illness, or lose the one we loved most in the world,
and somehow we’re able to move forward reassembling the pieces of our life –
not the same as it was before and with gaps that can never be filled – but,
still, life and love.
Some
of you know that at certain times the sunlight streams through that blue Holy
Spirit window up there, coating our church in beautiful blue. I love that. And
for me that blue glow symbolizes how the Holy Spirit coats us in love and
comfort.
So,
today we celebrate Pentecost, fifty days after Easter, the day we remember and
celebrate the gift of the Holy Spirit to the disciples in Jerusalem back some
two thousand years ago.
Today
we celebrate Pentecost. We celebrate the gift of the fiery red Holy Spirit
burning away fear and doubt, purifying, inspiring and fortifying the early
disciples – and us.
Today
we celebrate Pentecost. We celebrate the gift of the comforting blue Holy
Spirit abiding with the first disciples – abiding
in us – living in us – always.
And,
like our Jewish brothers and sisters, on Pentecost and every day may we give
thanks to God by offering our best –
by offering our “first fruits.”
Amen.
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