The Richness of the Spirit
Pentecost
“Then there appeared to them tongues as of fire, which parted and came to rest on each one of them..” Acts 2:3-4
Students, and most adults recalling their school days, are familiar with the phrase “compare and contrast” that shows up from time to time on tests. Today we hear two different accounts of the giving of the Holy Spirit to the church. Let’s contrast, then compare. Luke’s account from Acts is filled with arresting details: the mighty wind from heaven, the tongues of flame, the miracle of different languages. John’s account seems timid: fearful disciples, the wounded Christ, the expelling of breath from his risen body, not from the sky. Our literal, modern minds wonder which way it happened; our noisy culture probably makes us prefer the former. But if we compare the two, we find that the dazzling richness of the Spirit fills both accounts, for it is the very breath of the risen Christ, ascended to the sky in Luke, that appears to his disciples in John and sends his followers forth to carry on his mission of forgiving sin and proclaiming the mighty acts of God.
Copyright © J. S. Paluch Co.
Readings of the Week
Monday: Gn 3:9-15, 20 or Acts 1:12-14; s 87:1-3, 5-7; Jn 19:25-34
Tuesday: 2 Pt 3:12-15a, 17-18; Ps 90:2-4, 10, 14, 16; Mk 12:13-17
Wednesday: 2 Tm 1:1-3, 6-12; Ps 123:1b-2; Mk 12:18-27
Thursday: 2 Tm 2:8-15; Ps 25:4-5ab, 8-10, 14; Mk 12:28-34
Friday: 2 Tm 3:10-17; Ps 119:157, 160, 161, 165, 166, 168; 1-6; Mk 12:35-37
Saturday: 2 Tm 4:1-8; Ps 71:8-9, 14-15ab, 16-17, 22; Mk 12:38-44
Sunday: Ex 34:4b-6, 8-9; Dn 3:52-55; 2 Cor 13:11-13; Jn 3:16-18