Pentecost, June 8, 2025

The Spirit of God, which Jesus sent, will teach us, lead us, support us

John 14:15–16, 23–26

“If you love me, you will keep my commandments.

“And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Advocate to be with you always, the Spirit of truth, which the world cannot accept, because it neither sees nor knows it. But you know it, because it remains with you, and will be in you.

*

“Whoever loves me will keep my word, and my Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our dwelling with him.

“Whoever does not love me does not keep my words; yet the word you hear is not mine but that of the Father who sent me.

“I have told you this while I am with you.

“The Advocate, the holy Spirit that the Father will send in my name—he will teach you everything and remind you of all that [I] told you.”

John 14:17–22

* (This is the part of the passage which was excerpted from today’s gospel, but it is so comforting and beautiful that it is included here in its original context, which is Jesus’ farewell to his disciples before his death:)

“I will not leave you orphans; I will come to you.

“In a little while the world will no longer see me, but you will see me, because I live and you will live.

“On that day you will realize that I am in my Father and you are in me and I in you.

“Whoever has my commandments and observes them is the one who loves me. And whoever loves me will be loved by my Father, and I will love him and reveal myself to him.”

Judas, not the Iscariot, said to him, “Master, what has happened that you will reveal yourself to us and not to the world?”

Music Meditations

• Veni Sancte Spiritus--Taize
• Hymn to the Holy Spirit
• Every Time I Hear the Spirit Moving in My Heart (Traditional Black Spiritual) Nat King Cole
• Holy Spirit --Francesca Battistelli (Contemporary Christian music)

Preparation / Centering

If done in a group setting, the prompts are read aloud by the leader; otherwise a silent meditation.

Presence of God:

Spirit of Life, fill my heart with your holy presence. Create in me an awareness of your sustaining presence in my life. Help me to be more open and more receptive to your presence, wherever that leads.

[1-2 minutes of silence]

Freedom:

Spirit of grace and freedom, grant me the grace to have true freedom of spirit. Keep me from being bound by desires and actions that are not good for me or others. Cleanse my heart and soul that I may live joyously in your love.

[1-2 minutes of silence]

Consciousness:

Where am I with the spirit of God in my life? With others in my life? What am I grateful for? Is there something I am sorry for, words or actions that have hurt others, and which I now regret? I take a moment to ask forgiveness of God’s Holy Spirit and of those whom I have hurt. Spirit of God, I give you thanks for your constant love and care for me. Keep me always aware of your presence in my life.

[2-3 minutes of silence]

Opening Prayer

Lord, I often feel my life is shapeless and going nowhere. Thank you for the gift of the great Spirit of God who is by my side, defending me, consoling me and teaching me the ways of love. This is how you work with me Lord. The Holy Spirit does not whisper new tidings in my ear, but rather, reminds me of you, of your life and your words, so that gradually I put on Christ. Help me to learn again what I already know—your love, and how to be love.

Companions for the Journey

From “Living Space”, a service of the Irish Jesuits 2022

Jesus continues his farewell message to his disciples at the Last Supper. Those who really love him are those who carry out the teachings he has given them.

Words alone will not be enough. Where there is real love from the disciple, Jesus will return that love and reveal himself to his disciple. He will do this by coming with his Father to dwell in that person.

Now it is Jude’s turn to ask a question. Jude is called “son of James” and listed among the Twelve in Luke 6:16. He appears again in a list in Acts 1:13 (also by Luke). He is believed to be the ‘Thaddaeus’ of Matthew 10:3 and Mark 3:18.

He wants to know why Jesus only reveals himself to his disciples and not to the world. Jesus is rather elliptical in his reply but basically he is saying that anyone who responds to Jesus with love will certainly experience the love of Jesus (which is always there). The ‘world’ by definition in John’s gospel consists of those who turn their back on Jesus, his message and his love. “He who does not love me does not keep my words.”

Again, Jesus reminds his disciples that everything he passes on to them comes ultimately from the Father and not from him alone. He is the mediator, he is the Way, he is the Word of God. And later, after he has gone, this role will be taken over by the Holy Spirit, the Paraclete.

The word ‘paraclete’ (parakletes) has many meanings. It can mean a defense lawyer in a court of law, who stands beside the defendant and supports him in making his case. It means any person who stands by you and gives you support and comfort. (See 2 Corinthians 1:3-7 where, in one brief paragraph, the word parakletes in various forms is used 7 or 8 times in the sense of ‘comfort’ and ‘support’). The Spirit will play that role in the Church after Jesus has returned to his Father. And he continues in that role still.

His role is to help the disciples keep in mind all that Jesus has told them. He is the inner voice of God who will lead those who listen to the fullness of truth (something which no one possesses at any given time). He will help them to understand the full meaning of Christ for them and for the world. The Spirit will show them that Christ is the fulfilment of the Scriptures, will help them understand ever more deeply the meaning of Jesus’ life, his actions, his ‘signs’.

All this the disciples barely understand at this stage and it is a process that continues on into our own day.

Weekly Memorization

Taken from the gospel for today’s session…

The Advocate, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you everything and remind you of all that I have told you.

Living the Good News

What action can you take in the next week as a response to today’s reading and discussion?

Keep a private journal of your prayer/actions responses this week. Feel free to use the personal reflection questions or the meditations which follow:

Reflection Questions

• How do you feel about fire?
  How do you feel about a mighty wind?
  How are wind and fire both frightening and liberating?
• Has there ever been a time in your life when you felt guided by a power greater than yourself?
• Are there any decisions you are wrestling with right now which might need the guidance of the Spirit?
• What are some of the ways in which the Holy Spirit (the Spirit of Jesus which he left us) is at work in the world and in my individual life?
• Do I sense the active Spirit of God in my life?
  Do I see a spark of the Divine in those I meet ?
  Do I really believe and live as though the Spirit of God is among us?
• Do I trust the Spirit (Sophia, Ruach) to blow where she will, or do I have preconceived notions of how the Spirit works in our Church and in our lives?
  In other words, am I willing to entertain another point of view about “being Church”, or am I a little afraid of change?
  Do I worry about members of the Church “going astray”?
  Do worry about any friends or family going astray?
• Are there any current practices (not theology, but disciplines or practices) which I wish the Church would change?
  Which ones are under current debate?
  What do I want to see the Church retain?
• Do I see the Holy Spirit working in our local synodal processes?
  Do I have hope for the Spirit’s influence in the synodal process for the whole Church?
• Do I see diversity in our church or in society as a positive thing or as a threat?
• How do we take the feast of Pentecost from the biblical text to the context of our own lives, of the life of the Church, of the life of the world?
  What concrete actions may I take?
  What attitudinal changes may I make?
• From John Harrington S.J., in America magazine:
  Do you ever pray to the Holy Spirit for guidance in your life and in the life of the church? Do you think of the Holy Spirit as your advocate?
  How do you discern whether something is from the Holy Spirit?
  What developments in church life over the years have most surprised you? Do you regard them as from the Holy Spirit? Why?
• From Jude Siciliano, O.P., in First Impressions 2022:
  The disciples’ history is one of failure and dispersion. But with the gift of the Spirit they will be formed into a church that will leave their confined quarters and go to proclaim the risen Christ they have personally experienced. On this feast of the enlivening and invigorating Spirit we ask ourselves:
  With the new breath of Jesus’ Spirit how are we responding to his mandate to go and be his witnesses?
  Are we forgiving our enemies, feeding the hungry, clothing the naked, welcoming the stranger?

Meditations

A Meditation in the Franciscan Style/Action:

How do I respond, in concrete actions, to the challenge expressed below? How do I take on the burden of the times? How do I, or can I, make the Spirit matter?

We need to be on fire again, for our hope is no longer an easy hope. We live in a culture of despair within which Pentecost can no longer be taken for granted. Hence we must take upon ourselves the burden of the times and refuse to make the Holy Spirit a piece of private property but a spirit that matters.

—Mary Jo Leddy (Quoted by Ronald Rolheiser in, The Holy Longing: The Search for a Christian Spirituality, page 43.)

A Meditation in the Ignatian Style/Imagination:

Read Acts of the Apostles 2:1-11.

Imagine that you are one of those disciples in the upper room. How do you react to the noise of a strong wind and then tongues of fire? What are the expressions on the faces of the others there with you? How does it feel to speak in a strange tongue? Do you actually feel the energy of the Spirit entering you? When the people, alerted by the commotion, gather around, do you wish for a little more time to be with this new experience? What actually, are you saying to thee people who gather? What is your purpose? After the excitement has died down and you are once again alone with your fellow disciples, how do you process this experience? Have you ever experienced a time when you were able to reach a group of people and convey an important truth to them? What was the message or insight you were trying to impart? How did it feel to be so empowered? Did you feel exhilaration, pride, humility, fear, or awe? Take some time to pray to the Spirit, not only for yourself, but to ask for gifts and the strength to allow you to make a difference in the world. Exactly what difference would you like to make? What message of Jesus is important enough to you that you would expend the energy and take the risk to share it?

A Meditation in the Franciscan Style/Action:

Read Isaiah 61:

The Spirit of the Lord is upon me. Because he has anointed me To bring good news to the poor He has sent me to bring release to the Captives And recovery of sight to the blind, To let the oppressed go free, To proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.

Imagine that this is actually you speaking. In what ways have you lived out your promise as one anointed for God’s purposes? What events in your own life or in the world writ large, have interfered with your mission? In what ways have you expected world leaders, church leaders, rich and influential people do the heavy lifting, in fact to do all the lifting? Pick one phrase and during this week, remember and live out just one way you can cooperate with the Spirit of God.

A Meditation in the Ignatian Style/Imagination:

Read Acts 15:1-2, 22-29

Imagine that you are there in Jerusalem with the various disciples as they meet. Are you against relaxing the rules of Mosaic practice or for retaining them? What are the advantages and disadvantages of each position? As you listed to the outcome of the heated discussion, are you aware of the Spirit’s role in the decision? Are you glad or unhappy about the outcome? If you are glad, how will you implement the new rules without insulting those who followed the old rules? If you are unhappy, how are you going to adjust to the decision? Now “fast forward” to modern times, to Vatican II. Were there decisions taken at that council which changed the Church? Do you think it was for better or worse? How do you deal with adapting to the ever-disciplines within our evolving Church?

A Meditation in the Dominican Style/Asking Questions:

Psalm 104

Praise the Lord, my soul.

Lord my God, you are very great; you are clothed with splendor and majesty.

The Lord wraps himself in light as with a garment; he stretches out the heavens like a tent and lays the beams of his upper chambers on their waters. He makes the clouds his chariot and rides on the wings of the wind. He makes winds his messengers, flames of fire his servants.

He set the earth on its foundations; it can never be moved. You covered it with the watery depths as with a garment; the waters stood above the mountains. But at your rebuke the waters fled, at the sound of your thunder they took to flight; they flowed over the mountains, they went down into the valleys, to the place you assigned for them. You set a boundary they cannot cross; never again will they cover the earth.

He makes springs pour water into the ravines; it flows between the mountains. They give water to all the beasts of the field; the wild donkeys quench their thirst. The birds of the sky nest by the waters; they sing among the branches. He waters the mountains from his upper chambers; the land is satisfied by the fruit of his work. He makes grass grow for the cattle, and plants for people to cultivate— bringing forth food from the earth: wine that gladdens human hearts, oil to make their faces shine, and bread that sustains their hearts. The trees of the Lord are well watered, the cedars of Lebanon that he planted. There the birds make their nests; the stork has its home in the junipers. The high mountains belong to the wild goats; the crags are a refuge for the hyrax.

He made the moon to mark the seasons, and the sun knows when to go down. You bring darkness, it becomes night, and all the beasts of the forest prowl. The lions roar for their prey and seek their food from God. The sun rises, and they steal away; they return and lie down in their dens. Then people go out to their work, to their labor until evening.

How many are your works, Lord! In wisdom you made them all; the earth is full of your creatures. There is the sea, vast and spacious, teeming with creatures beyond number— living things both large and small. There the ships go to and fro, and Leviathan, which you formed to frolic there.

All creatures look to you to give them their food at the proper time. When you give it to them, they gather it up; when you open your hand, they are satisfied with good things. When you hide your face, they are terrified; when you take away their breath, they die and return to the dust. When you send your Spirit, they are created, and you renew the face of the ground.

May the glory of the Lord endure forever; may the Lord rejoice in his works— he who looks at the earth, and it trembles, who touches the mountains, and they smoke.

I will sing to the Lord all my life; I will sing praise to my God as long as I live. May my meditation be pleasing to him, as I rejoice in the Lord. But may sinners vanish from the earth and the wicked be no more.

Praise the Lord, my soul.

Praise the Lord.

I pray Psalm 104, examining more fully what I mean in each line that I pray.

How does my soul bless the Lord? In what ways is God truly great? I name some of God’s works that are wonderful and plentiful. What creatures, in particular, are a manifestation of God’s love and power? Does our very breathing depend on the Spirit? How is the Spirit made manifest in nature? Creation, humanity? In me? In what way would I understand the glory of the Lord? What, in particular would I like the Lord to be glad about? What might the Lord NOT be glad about? How can I please the Lord? Is this my life’s work, or is my life’s work something else entirely?

Literary Reflection:

This glorious Italian sonnet by the poet and mystic Gerard Manley Hopkins. S.J., reveals the closeness of God to all creation, and reaffirms Hopkin’s trust, that despite the attempts of humanity to besmirch its beauty and integrity, creation is sustained by the presence of the Spirit of God:

“God’s Grandeur”

The world is charged with the grandeur of God. It will flame out, like shining from shook foil; It gathers to a greatness, like the ooze of oil Crushed. Why do men then now not reck his rod? Generations have trod, have trod, have trod; And all is seared with trade; bleared, smeared with toil; And wears man’s smudge and shares man’s smell: the soil Is bare now, nor can foot feel, being shod.

And for all this, nature is never spent; There lives the dearest freshness deep down things; And though the last lights off the black West went Oh, morning, at the brown brink eastward, springs— Because the Holy Ghost over the bent World broods with warm breast and with ah! bright wings.

Literary Reflection:

It is trust in the Spirit of goodness and love that sustains people in their darkest hours. It is in times of uncertainty, even religious uncertainty that we are called to acknowledge our radical dependence on God, and our belief that Jesus really has send his Spirit to walk in our midst. The following poem reflects the sense that the Spirit of God, Jesus’ Spirit, is with us always:

“In Whom We Live and Move and Have Our Being”

Birds afloat in air’s current, sacred breath? No, not breath of God, it seems, but God the air enveloping the whole globe of being. It’s we who breathe, in, out, in, the sacred, leaves astir, our wings rising, ruffled—but only the saints take flight. We cower in cliff-crevice or edge out gingerly on branches close to the nest. The wind marks the passage of holy ones riding that ocean of air. Slowly their wake reaches us, rocks us. But storm or still numb or poised in attention, we inhale, exhale, inhale encompassed, encompassed.

—Denise Levertov, from Sands of the Well

Literary Reflection:

What does this poem by Denise Levertov say about trust in the Spirit of God?

“The Avowal”

As swimmers dare
to lie face to the sky
and water bears them;
as hawks rest upon air
and air sustains them,
so would I learn to attain
freefall, and float
into Creator Spirit’s deep embrace,
knowing no effort earns
that all-surrounding grace.

Literary Reflection:

This beautiful profound little poem, “Primary Wonder”, by Denise Levertov (1923–1997), reminds us what is important when we get overshadowed by life’s little problems. When she became present to the mystery, experienced that joyful cosmic stillness within, she realized her life, and all of creation was sustained by the Creator. Life’s problems receded, became insignificant when presented with such primary wonder.
—Commentary by Philip Goldberg

“Primary Wonder”

Days pass when I forget the mystery. Problems insoluble and problems offering their own ignored solutions jostle for my attention, they crowd its antechamber along with a host of diversions, my courtiers, wearing their colored clothes; caps and bells. And then once more the quiet mystery is present to me, the throng’s clamor recedes: the mystery that there is anything, anything at all, let alone cosmos, joy, memory, everything, rather than void: and that, 0 Lord, Creator, Hallowed one, You still, hour by hour sustain it.

Closing Prayer

From Jan Berry, A Pentecostal prayer in “Liiving Pulpit”, April-June 2004:

Exuberant Spirit of God Flame Wind Speech. Burn, breathe, speak in us Fill your world with justice and joy.