A Church is born

The plan of salvation brought to us by Jesus Christ, which will still go on till the end of time, was given its finishing touches by God on the day of Pentecost, which occurred just five weeks after the Resurrection of Our Lord.

God had been gradually giving shape to creation from the beginning of time up until the birth of Christ in Bethlehem, of his death on the Cross in the outskirts of Jerusalem, and finally of his resurrection on Easter Sunday.

The Church, to which we justly refer today as the Mystical Body of Christ, was in a sense already complete and fully formed. But it still needed a 'soul' in order to start functioning as a living reality. That soul is the Holy Spirit.

That is why we can rightfully affirm that the Church of Christ was truly 'born' on the day of Pentecost. St John anticipates this all-important event in his own Gospel where we read that Jesus, after his resurrection, appeared to his disciples and said to them: "As the Father has sent me, so I send you". And after breathing on them he said: "Receive the Holy Spirit!"

St Luke then picks up the same subject in the Book of Acts and tells us: "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 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."

The rest is Church history, starting from the extraordinary events narrated in the Acts of the Apostles attributed to St Luke and all through the history of Christianity to our own day. That was the work of the Holy Spirit which, one might say, has truly become the real protagonist throughout the entire history of salvation which will go on to the end of time.

As Christians we are, all of us without exception, called to play our part in the drama that is still being performed in our own lives in the world and in the Church. We too have received the Holy Spirit on the day of our own Baptism, an all important event which was 'confirmed' when we received the sacrament of Confirmation. We were all present, one might say, together with the Apostles on that day of Pentecost. And like the twelve Apostles we are called to give witness to God's presence in the world and to His saving power till the end of time.

Addressing his people on the day of Pentecost, St John Chrysostom, one of the greatest among the Church Fathers, puts it this way: "You are not only free, but also holy. Not only holy, but also just. Not only just, but also holy. Not only sons, but also heirs. Not only heirs, but also brothers of Christ. Not only brothers of Christ but also joint heirs. Not only joint heirs but also members. Not only members but also the temples of God. Not only temples, but also the instruments of the Spirit."

Are we being moved by the Holy Spirit in all we do? To what extent are we reflecting the light of the Spirit on the world around us, a world which is truly a marvel of God's creation, but which is not reflecting brightly enough God's own light?

Love is God's greatest gift, for it is through love that we have been redeemed by Jesus Christ. And so the question comes up instantly in my mind: Am I a bright enough mirror which can forcefully reflect God's love on all around me? What can I do to allow the Holy Spirit shine more brightly and move more forcefully the hearts of my fellow men to become, each in his own way, more authentic followers of Jesus Christ?