Homily for Pentecost Sunday
Fr. Albert
St. Peter Catholic Church, New Iberia
Unity. Do we have unity in our families? Our Parish? Our Country? What about in our faith? Is our Church unified? Perhaps it is worth asking, what “unity” means anyway? In a sense, we could say that these questions run throughout all human history. Trade, politics, warfare… these and more are responses to the question of unity, to the question of how we will go about existing in the same world.
Sometimes we can avoid the issue by simply avoiding the same space. Two points on a graph, two people in the world. As long as they’re in different places, there’s nothing to do. At other times, we have to use the same space, but we have another dimension at our service, time. We can utilize the same space and resources, but avoid one another through effective timing. This sidesteps the question of unity because it preserves our isolation, our illusion of personal freedom.
For the wise, however, time and space are not means of evasion, but tools for a more perfect intersection. Just as an architect can place dots and lines on a graph to produce great beauty, so the great architects of culture can help us to live and move in this world with harmony and beauty. That harmony, that coordination… that is something we can call unity.
And the dynamics of time and space are something that all of us understand intuitively. What we often fail to grasp, however, is that there is yet another dimension to our interactions. Unlike dots and lines on graphs, our lives intersect with one another not only in time and space, but also in the realm of the personal. Consider two people in the same room at the same time. Perhaps they want to make a trade, but they do not speak the same language. Now this intersection of humanity, this interaction is made difficult. If the barrier is serious enough, the two people may as well be a thousand miles and 100 years apart. To find unity in humanity, we not only have to account for time and space, but also for the realm of the personal, which includes language, emotion, attitudes, and most of all the spirituality.
Actually, it would be more accurate to call this extra dimension the spiritual dimension. In fact, all spiritual realities are ultimately personal realities. There is no such thing as an impersonal spiritual realm like the “force” from Star Wars. There is no such thing as an unattached spiritual energy. Everything spiritual is either a person, or the quality of a person. Angels, Demons, God… all personal. Grace is a spiritual reality, but grace doesn’t exist by itself, it is something that only exists in and with a person.
And that is why perfect unity among human beings is ultimately a spiritual unity – because all human beings are persons; They are both spiritual and physical. Look throughout history and you will find this rings true. Every human endeavor to create harmony and unity among mankind has failed eventually. Every empire, every country, and even every family. Sooner or later, there are enough people who disagree on the very definition of good, so it becomes impossible to work together to accomplish anything good.
Tonight/Last night’s reading from Genesis makes this clear to us with the tower of Babel. Humanity, full of itself, full of arrogance and pride, thinks that goodness is to make themselves famous with a tower. They work together for a while, but they have lost sight of the true good of God himself. This will not bring them eternal life; The only unity they will find in the end is a unity of eternal death. So, God intervenes and scatters their languages. This confusion becomes a sign, a reminder of how a false, manmade unity will get us nowhere.
But, we have come upon Pentecost. As the Acts of the Apostles tell us, when the disciples receive the Holy Spirit, they completely clear this hurdle. All understand in their native language. The message should be clear. The power of mankind, the efforts of mere human beings to reach unity and greatness are doomed to fail. Only by the power of God, by the power of the Holy Spirit can a lasting unity be reached.
And think about it. Over 2000 years, across every country, every language, the Christian faith has created a unity unimaginable for any worldly empire. This unity extends even beyond death as we see in the communion of saints. We can and do still interact with the Christian heroes who have gone before us.
So, do we have unity in our families, parishes, and country? Across the world? The answer to that question comes from the answer to this question: does your family, your parish, your country respond to the Holy Spirit? Is it guided by the transcendent love of God? Or by some other motive?
That kind of unity is personal and spiritual as well as physical. Sadly, that means there is nothing we can do if a person chooses to reject the Holy Spirit. A family member, parishioner, fellow citizen – their unity with us will remain imperfect and incomplete as long as they have not accepted this great unifier. If you stop to consider how few people are serious about the guidance of the Holy Spirit, it will leave you with a rather grim outlook.
But a grim outlook is not the end! It’s a call to humility, a call to action. How, how do we work to improve real unity with family, friends, and even within the visible Church? Prayer, honesty, and courageous faith.
Pray for guidance often. Pray for others to be open to the Holy Spirit. Don’t just stick to a few memorized prayers, but dig deeper into the world of Christian meditation and contemplation. Learn how to spend time listening to the Spirit of God, especially in silence.
Honesty. It’s easy to avoid a conflict by being ambiguous or by dodging certain subjects. When Peter receives the Holy Spirit, he does not mince words, he does not flatter his audience. He outright accuses them of killing Jesus because it is true. If we want real unity, the spiritual and personal unity that can only come from God, we must be honest about our differences, honest about our sins, and honest about what it will take to do the right thing, even when very difficult.
Courageous Faith. Faith takes many forms but, in this case, I mean faith in the Spirit’s guidance. If you pray regularly and are sincere, you have no reason to fear evangelization. Often enough, other people simply misunderstand what we are saying and miss our message – it is the natural limitation of human language. But the Holy Spirit can bridge that gap just as he bridges the gap between different languages. Speak with confidence, humility, and faith; Trust that Spirit of God will help the right people hear and understand the right thing. Then, leave the results to him.
So, are we united? Are we faithful to the Holy Spirit? Are we faithful to his guidance through the Magisterium of the Church? Pray. Be honest. Have Faith.
Come, Holy Spirit, come and fill the hearts of your faithful. Kindle in them the fire of your love.
