June 4-5, 2022

There were two different homilies from Msgr. this weekend, one for the Anniversary Mass at 4:00, and one for the 11:00 Mass with the celebration of Confirmation.

Pentecost 2022

Be Careful What You Ask For!

Confirmation Within Mass

Msgr Thomas Gervasio

The Holy Spirit is rather mysterious to us. Perhaps this is because in our human language and experience, we do not relate readily to a “spirit” as we do to the idea of a “father” and a “son.” St. John Paul II referred to the Holy Spirit as the “hidden God” who was manifest at times in various symbolic ways…a dove, wind, and tongues of fire. This is how the Spirit is depicted in our Christian art. Yet, however mysterious, we should never forget the important role and power of the Holy Spirit in Church and in our personal life.

Pentecost invites us to contemplate this presence and power. Today we join the entire Church in crying out: Veni Sancte Spiritus—Come, Holy Spirit! It is a cry that comes from the heart of Christ who promised the apostles at the Last Supper: “I will pray the Father, and he will give you another Counselor to be with you forever.” (Jn 14: 15-16)

Come, Holy Spirit! Do we really understand what we ask when we say those words? Ah! Be careful what you ask for! At Pentecost, the Holy Spirit came in wind and fire! To possess the Holy Spirit is to be on fire, which is a say, to possess an ardent love, a passion, a zeal for the faith. Jesus said that he came “to cast fire upon the earth.” (Lk 12:49)

On Pentecost the Holy Spirit transformed the disciples. Fear became courage and trepidation turned to zeal. No longer turned in on themselves, they set out on mission.

Can we say the Holy Spirit has done the same for us? What is our level of courage and zeal, our sense of mission? Pope Benedict suggested that we might fear being scorched by the Holy Spirit, in the sense that we prefer to stay just as we are and content to do the bare minimum. Certainly, we want to follow Christ, but we are afraid of the consequences involved. Pope Francis warns us not to be become armchair Christians…Christians stuck half-way.

How appropriate that today we rejoice with five candidates who will complete their Christian initiation by being sealed with the gift of the Holy Spirit in the Sacrament of Confirmation, the same Spirit that came upon the disciples at Pentecost. DOMINIC BAZANKA, ERICA MEDINA, JIMITRI GEORGE, CHRISTINA BELLINO, & JAYDEN WILLIAMS. During this Mass we also celebrate the first Holy Communion of KECHUKWU & NGOZI ON- YENWE & JIMITRI GEORGE. We thank their families, catechists and sponsors who have guided them to this important day in their spiritual life.

Come, Holy Spirit is a bold prayer.

Within a culture that is increasingly skeptical and secular, a culture beset by so many problems, our temptation is to shut-down or draw back. But this is precisely the time we need the fire power of the Holy Spirit. May we never fear to be scorched by that fire, never content with the bare minimum but become more prayerful, more loving, and generous, more forgiving, and more vocal about the truth and beauty of our faith.

On this Birthday of the Church, let’s turn to Jesus in prayer:

Lord Jesus, what incredible riches you have given us in your Holy Spirit! I need for nothing, for divine power, the Paraclete, is at my side, no matter what challenges I may face. I beg you, prepare my heart for a new outpouring of the Holy Spirit that will give me wisdom when I speak, Enlighten my mind, and enflame my heart to understand and treasure more and more all the gifts you have given to me. Amen! Alleluia! [Fr. George Montague, S.M.]

Pentecost, Anniversary Mass

“The Scorching of Christian Marriage”

Msgr. Thomas Gervasio

We tend to speak of marriage so often in comical ways. For instance:

Matilda was arrested for shoplifting. When she appeared in court the judge asked her, “What did you steal?” “A can of peaches,” she replied. “Why did you do it?” the judge asked. “I really don’t know,” she said, “Just hungry, I guess.” “Tell me,” the judge said, “how many peaches were in the can?” “Six,” she replied. The judge said, “I will then have you serve six days in jail.” Before the judge could actually pronounce sentence, Matilda’s husband spoke up: “Your Honor, she forgot to tell you, she also stole a can of peas!”

Then there was the husband who asked his wife, “Why do you keep reading our marriage license? She answered, I’m looking for the expiration date!”

Marriage jokes are endless. And yet we know that marriage is a vocation that is solemn and most serious. On this Solemnity of Pentecost our parish seeks to highlight it and honor couples who have lived it with love and fidelity over the years.

Strange as it may seem, I see a marvelous connection between Pentecost and matrimony.

The Acts of the Apostles tells us that where there were divisions, estrangement, and the inability to understand one another, the Holy Spirit, coming in wind and fire, the Holy Spirit created unity and understanding. The Lord and Giver of life transformed the disciples. They could not remain the same. They were transformed. Fear turned into courage. Doubts and uncertainty and insecurity were overcome by confident faith. The disciples were no longer closed in on themselves but knew they had a mission to accomplish!

Isn’t this what happens to a man and woman who receive grace, the life of the Holy Spirit in Holy Matrimony? Isn’t this what happens in those who allow themselves to be touched—to be transformed— by the fire of the Holy Spirit? Is one ever the same after being married?

Through the “yes” pronounced in marriage, two separate lives, two unique personalities, with two distinct histories are joined in one covenant of life and love.

A married couple, disciples, can follow the path our culture takes and that will certainly have its effects, but a couple, disciples, can also take the path of faith, the task of being on a mission, the task of being a witness to the Lord. When the path of faith is taken, we can see the evidence, the signs of the Spirit at work. St. Paul calls them the fruits of the Spirit: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control.

Do we see these every day? Are they evident daily in married life? Surely, with our weaknesses and foibles, we are not always “up to par.” The journey of discipleship and marriage surely has its share of twists and turns.

Yet today we honour those couples who made a loving and faithful “yes” to one another and who mark special milestones on that journey. Today we celebrate what the Holy Spirit has accomplished in them.

May every day be a Pentecost. Never quench that that fire of the Holy Spirit. Light and re-light the flame of love which is the presence and power of the Holy Spirit.

Our sentiments for our anniversary couples (and indeed for every disciple) find beautiful expression in the closing words of the Pentecost Sequence:

“Come, Holy Spirit, come!...
On the faithful who adore and confess you,
evermore in your sevenfold gift descend;
give them virtue's sure reward;
give them your salvation, Lord;
give them joys that never end."