Pentecost Sunday "Receive the Holy Spirit" ENTRANCE ANTIPHON The Spirit of the Lord fills the whole world. It holds all things together and knows every word spoken by man, alleluia. Introduction On this Feast Day of Pentecost we celebrate the descent of the Holy Spirit on the disciples. We also celebrate the birthday of the Church. It is the coming of the Holy Spirit that makes the reality of the Church possible. The Church continues to exist because of the presence and action of the Spirit in us. PENITENTIAL RITE Let us today become aware of the presence and action of the Holy Spirit in us, around us and among us. We shall open our hearts to His grace of repentance and reconciliation in order to experience him at this Eucharist. Glory to God in the highest, and peace to his people on earth. Lord God, heavenly King, almighty God and Father, we worship you, we give you thanks, we praise you for your glory. Lord, Jesus Christ, only Son of the Father, Lord God, Lamb of God, you take away the sin of the world: have mercy on us; you are seated at the right hand of the Father, receive our prayer. For you alone are the Holy One, you alone are the Lord, you alone are the Most High, Jesus Christ, with the Holy Spirit, in the glory of God the Father. Amen. Opening Prayer Let us pray. God our Father, let the Spirit you sent on your Church to begin the teaching of the gospel continue to work in the world through the hearts of all who believe. We ask this… FIRST READING (The Holy Spirit came upon the apostles who were praying and united them as one body and emboldened them to proclaim the good news.) A reading from the Acts of the Apostles (2:1-11) When the day of Pentecost had come, they were all together in one place. And suddenly a sound came from heaven like the rush of a mighty wind, and it filled all the house where they were sitting. And there appeared to them tongues as of fire, distributed and resting on each one of them. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance. Now there were dwelling in Jerusalem Jews, devout men from every nation under heaven. And at this sound the multitude came together, and they were bewildered, because each one heard them speaking in his own language. And they were amazed and wondered, saying, “Are not all these who are speaking Galileans? And how is it that we hear, each of us in his own native language? Parthians and Medes and Elamites and residents of Meso-potamia, Judea and Cappadocia, Pontus and Asia, Phrygia and Pamphylia, Egypt and the parts of Libya belonging to Cyrene, and visitors from Rome, both Jews and proselytes, Cretans and Arabians we hear them telling in our own tongues the mighty works of God.” This is the Word of the Lord PSALM (103) Response: Send forth your spirit, O Lord, and renew the face of the earth. Bless the Lord, my soul! Lord God, how great you are. How many are your works, O Lord! The earth is full of your riches. You take back your spirit, they die, returning to the dust from which they came. You send forth your Spirit, they are created; and you renew the face of the earth. May the glory of the Lord last for ever! May the Lord rejoice in his works! May my thoughts be pleasing to him. I find my joy in the Lord. SECOND READING (The Holy Spirit strengthens our conviction that Jesus is Lord. And by the same Spirit we are all baptized into one body – the Church.) A reading from the First Letter of St Paul to the Corinthians  (12:3-7, 12-13) No one can say “Jesus is Lord” except by the Holy Spirit. Now there are varieties of gifts, but the same Spirit; and there are varieties of service, but the same Lord; and there are varieties of working, but it is the same God who inspires them all in everyone. To each is given the manifestation of the Spirit for the common good. For just as the body is one and has many members, and all the members of the body, though many, are one body, so it is with Christ. For by one Spirit we were all baptized into one body – Jews or Greeks, slaves or free – and all were made to drink of one Spirit. This is the Word of the Lord ACCLAMATION Alleluia, alleluia! Come, Holy Spirit, fill the hearts of your faithful, and kindle in them the fire of your love. Alleluia! GOSPEL (The Risen Christ appeared to the disciples and gave them the Holy Spirit, empowering them to forgive sins and to preach the good news.) A reading from the Holy Gospel according to St John (20:19-23) On the evening of that day, the first day of the week, the doors being shut where the disciples were, for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood among them and said to them, “Peace be with you.” When he had said this, he showed them his hands and his side. Then the disciples were glad when they saw the Lord. Jesus said to them again, “Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, even so I send you.” And when he had said this, he breathed on them, and said to them, “Receive, the Holy Spirit. If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven; if you retain the sins of any, they are retained.” This is the Gospel of the Lord (Homily) I believe in God, the Father Almighty, Creator of heaven and earth. I believe in Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord. He was conceived by the power of the Holy Spirit and born of the Virgin Mary. He suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died, and was buried. He descended to the dead. On the third day he rose again. He ascended into heaven, and is seated at the right hand of the Father. He will come again to judge the living and the dead. I believe in the Holy Spirit, the holy catholic Church, the communion of saints, the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body, and the life everlasting. Amen. PRAYER OF THE FAITHFUL Cel: Today as we celebrate the coming of the Holy Spirit upon the apostles, let us pray for the gifts of the Spirit in our own lives so that our faith in Jesus our Lord may be strengthened and that we may proclaim his Good News with courage and conviction: Response: O Holy Spirit, fill us with your gifts. 1. For Pope Benedict XVI and all the leaders of the Church that they may be blessed with the gifts of fortitude and spirit of service. 2. For the civic leaders of the world, especially those of our country, that they may be blessed with the gifts of peace and justice. 3. For the families that the parents and children may be blessed with the gifts of forgiveness and reconciliation. 4. For the consecrated persons that they may be blessed with the gifts of charity and humility. Cel: O Holy Spirit of God, as you strengthened and comforted the first apostles, we ask you today to come upon us and strengthen our weak faith and help us to be effective witnesses to Christ and his gospel. We ask this… Prayer over the gifts Lord, may the Spirit you promised lead us into all truth and reveal to us the full meaning of this sacrifice. Grant this… PREFACE (28) Father, all-powerful and ever-living God, we do well always and everywhere to give you thanks. Today you sent the Holy Spirit on those marked out to be your children by sharing the life of your only Son, and so you brought the paschal mystery to its completion. Today we celebrate the great beginning of your Church when the Holy Spirit made known to all people the one true God, and created from the many languages of man one voice to profess one faith. The joy of the resurrection renews the whole world, while the choirs of heaven sing for ever to your glory: All: Holy, hoy, holy… Communion antiphon They were all filled with the Holy Spirit, and they spoke of the great things God had done, alleluia. Prayer after communion Father, may the food we receive in the eucharist help our eternal redemption. Keep within us the vigour of your Spirit and protect the gifts you have given to your Church. We ask this… Liturgy and Life St Augustine tells us about Pentecost: “Keep this day with joy, celebrate it in freedom of spirit, for in you is being fulfilled what was foreshadowed in those days when the Holy Spirit came.” Today as we look into ourselves, to our right and left, the people around us and in the Church we notice God’s will and his plan for the entire universe is gradually unfolding itself to achieve its clearest and complete fulfilment! The readings of today want to communicate this message to us. The Pentecost scene portrayed by Luke in the Acts of the Apostles is full of bizarre events and drama. There is a sound, a mighty wind, tongues of fire, strange languages. The scene that John describes of the coming of the Spirit in the gospel reading is very calm and mild. There is a gentle breathing upon the apostles accompanied by plain and intelligible words spoken by Jesus. Luke describes the Church taking shape as like wind blowing, fire burning, a new language being spoken that speaks directly to the heart. But John who in his simple, quiet way conveys the coming of the Spirit in a more understandable and reasonable words says: “Jesus breathed on them and said to them: ‘Receive the Holy Spirit. Whose sins you forgive, are forgiven…’” John presents plainly what Luke had portrayed so dramatically. The wind, the fire and the tongues are pointing to a revolution and a total change of the world order through forgiveness. The arrival of the Holy Spirit is the beginning of the forgiveness of sin. The Church is born to ensure forgiveness of sin for all people. The Church through the working of the Holy Spirit in her various sacraments makes available for the whole human race the grace of salvation merited by Christ. When the Crucified and Risen Lord appeared to his disciples, his message was that of forgiveness and not of accusation for their denials, betrayals etc. For the disciples, Jesus’ return was not a judgement hour, but an experience of God’s forgiving love, reconciliation and a fresh relationship... an experience of new life and resurrection. Affirming this Jesus greeted them “Peace be with you”. It is like Abel returning to Cain as Cain’s blessing and forgiveness. It is like Joseph in Egypt offering love and forgiveness to his brothers who plotted to kill him. Forgiveness is the colour and character of the Church. We are here not to condemn or judge our offenders, but to forgive and offer forgiveness of God. Peace is the gift of the Risen Lord and this is the gift the Church offers to the people of our time. God’s plan for the world is hastened when we truly represent this image of the Church in our families and with our neighbours. May the Holy Spirit fill our hearts today with the gift of his peace that we truly manifest the true nature of the Church to the people of today. May 2008          READINGS OF THE WEEK          (Psalter Week 2) 12 Mon (W) Jas 1:1-11; Ps 119:67, 68, 71, 72, 75, 76; Mk 8:11-13 13 Tue (W) Jas 1:12-18; Ps 94:12-13a, 14-15, 18-19; Mk 8:14-21 14 Wed (W) Acts 1:15-17, 20-26; Ps 113:1-2, 3-4, 5-6, 7-8; Jn 15:9-17 15 Thu (W) Jas 2:1-9; Ps 34:2-3, 4-5, 6-7; Mk 8:27-33 16 Fri (W) Jas 2:14-24, 26; Ps 112:1-2, 3-4, 5-6; Mk 8:34 – 9:1 17 Sat (W) Jas 3:1-10; Ps 12:2-3, 4-5, 7-8; Mk 9:2-13