Pentecost
H. Francisco J. Posada, L.C.
In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
Christ, our King, Thy Kingdom come!
Preparatory prayer (to put me in the presence of God)
Thank you, Lord, for the gift of your Spirit that gives me peace for my life, the joy to share you and the mission so that I can help my brothers and sisters to find you. I thank you for all that you give me; continue to grant me your grace to love you more and to be able to communicate the joy of your love.
Gospel of the day (to guide your meditation)
From the Holy Gospel according to John 20:19-23
When the doors of the house where the disciples were staying were locked for fear of the Jews, Jesus stood in their midst and said to them, “Peace be with you. When he had said this, he showed them his hands and his side. When the disciples saw the Lord, they were filled with joy.
Again Jesus said to them, “Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, even so I send you”. When he had said this, he breathed on them and said to them, “Receive the Holy Spirit. Those whose sins you forgive will be forgiven, and those whose sins you do not forgive will be forgiven.
Word of the Lord.
Meditate on what God tells you in the Gospel
Peace is one of the things most sought after by all people since the beginning of time and surely until the end. It is something that is not easily obtained, and if we do not have it we are afraid, we do not feel secure. Today Christ shows us the way to have this peace that does not end, that fills us completely, He gives it to us. We can find ourselves like his disciples who were very afraid and closed themselves in. Faced with this attitude of those who once followed him, Christ wants to help them and invites them to enter the house where they were, because he does not burst into our lives in a violent way, but gives us the freedom to say yes or no to him. Let us open our hearts to Christ so that He may give us the peace that only He can give.
After having seen the risen Lord, but still bearing the wounds of his suffering, the disciples realize that there is no pain that cannot be «resurrected». Christ has conquered death and with it all suffering and pain, through his passion. This good news fills us with joy, because trusting in the Lord gives us the grace to overcome every difficulty, thanks to him. In our life there are not only difficulties that can be touched, there are also invisible difficulties, that is sin. Christ in his life helped people who were sick and also those who carried the burden of sin. He does not keep this power for Himself alone, but shares it with His church so that everyone can experience this divine love that always forgives, up to seventy times seven times.
The Risen Christ extends to us the mission of God which consists in communicating his merciful love to all men. To fulfill this mission He needs us and if we give Him our yes, He will be able to do great things with us; with the gift of the Holy Spirit we can do everything especially to show people the love that never ends. Although not all of us can forgive sins, like priests, the Lord calls us to help him proclaim the immense love of a God infinitely in love with the men and women of today.
«The story of the disciples, which seemed to have come to an end, is ultimately renewed by the youthfulness of the Spirit: those young people who, possessed by uncertainty, thought they had reached the end, were transformed by a joy that made them be reborn. The Holy Spirit did this. The Spirit is not, as it might seem, something abstract; he is the most concrete person, the one closest to us, who changes our lives. How does he do this? Let us look at the apostles. The Spirit did not make their lives easier, He did not perform spectacular miracles, He did not eliminate problems and adversaries, but the Spirit brought to the lives of the disciples a harmony that they lacked, because He is harmony. Harmony within man. The disciples needed to be changed inside, in their hearts. Their story tells us that even seeing the Risen One is not enough if one does not receive Him in one's heart. It does no good to know that the Risen One is alive if we do not live as risen. And it is the Spirit that makes Jesus alive and reborn in us, that resurrects us from within. That is why Jesus, meeting the disciples, repeats: “Peace be with you” and gives them the Spirit. Peace does not consist in solving external problems - God does not remove tribulations and persecutions from his own - but in receiving the Holy Spirit. In that consists peace, that peace given to the apostles, that peace which does not liberate from problems but in problems, is offered to each one of us.»
(Homily of H.H. Francis, June 9, 2019).
Dialogue with Christ
This is the most important part of your prayer, prepare yourself to talk with much love with the One who loves you.
Purpose
Propose a personal one. The one that involves the most love in response to the Beloved... or, if you believe that this is what God is asking of you, live what is suggested below.
To share with someone who God is for me.
Farewell
We thank You, Lord, for all Your benefits, You who live and reign forever and ever.
Amen.
Christ, our King!
Thy Kingdom come!
Most prudent Virgin, Mary, Mother of the Church.
Pray for us.
In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
