Daily Retreat 05/11/08
2008 May 11 SUN: PENTECOST S
Vigil: Gn 11: 1-9 or Ex 19: 3-8a. 16-20b or Ez 37: 1-4 or Jl 3: 1-5/ Ps 103(104): 1-2. 24. 35. 27-28. 29. 30/ Rom 8: 22-27/ Jn 7: 37-39.
Day: Acts 2: 1-11/ Ps 103(104): 1. 24. 29-30. 31. 34/ 1 Cor 12: 3b-7. 12-13/ Sequence Veni Sancte Spiritus/ Jn 20: 19-23
From today’s readings: “When the time for Pentecost was fulfilled, they were all in one place together.... Lord, send out Your Spirit, and renew the face of the earth.... No one can say, ‘Jesus is Lord,’ except by the Holy Spirit.... Receive the Holy Spirit...”
Confirmation
The Latin roots of the word “confirmation” mean “to make strong.” On the feast of Pentecost, the Holy Spirit was sent down upon the disciples to make their faith strong, and so that occasion marked the first celebration of the sacrament of Confirmation.
And how their faith was strengthened indeed! Instead of hiding behind closed doors, they all went forth to spread the good news of Christ’s Resurrection and His abiding presence in their lives - and so zealous were they, that 3000 were baptized into the faith that day, filling the new Church with the blessing of so many new members!
And yet, strength is to no avail without the commitment to use it wisely and diligently! Having been strengthened in their faith, the disciples could have chosen to keep their strength and blessings to themselves, to “play it safe,” to just stay with the status quo, or maybe form a committee to consider the pros and cons of different evangelization strategies.
All of us Christians who have received the sacrament of Confirmation have now been strengthened in our faith - we, no less than the first disciples, have been given the gift of the Holy Spirit. What do you and I do with our strength of faith? Do we zealously go out to the whole world to proclaim our faith in deed and in word, and thus lead many others to God? Too often, perhaps, we’ve failed to apply our strength of faith for its proper use and instead, complacently kept our faith and blessings to ourselves. Celebrating today the feast of Pentecost, we certainly can get fired up by the example of the first disciples to realize how thoroughly God strengthens our faith so that we can pass it on!
Vigil: Gn 11: 1-9 or Ex 19: 3-8a. 16-20b or Ez 37: 1-4 or Jl 3: 1-5/ Ps 103(104): 1-2. 24. 35. 27-28. 29. 30/ Rom 8: 22-27/ Jn 7: 37-39.
Day: Acts 2: 1-11/ Ps 103(104): 1. 24. 29-30. 31. 34/ 1 Cor 12: 3b-7. 12-13/ Sequence Veni Sancte Spiritus/ Jn 20: 19-23
From today’s readings: “When the time for Pentecost was fulfilled, they were all in one place together.... Lord, send out Your Spirit, and renew the face of the earth.... No one can say, ‘Jesus is Lord,’ except by the Holy Spirit.... Receive the Holy Spirit...”
Confirmation
The Latin roots of the word “confirmation” mean “to make strong.” On the feast of Pentecost, the Holy Spirit was sent down upon the disciples to make their faith strong, and so that occasion marked the first celebration of the sacrament of Confirmation.
And how their faith was strengthened indeed! Instead of hiding behind closed doors, they all went forth to spread the good news of Christ’s Resurrection and His abiding presence in their lives - and so zealous were they, that 3000 were baptized into the faith that day, filling the new Church with the blessing of so many new members!
And yet, strength is to no avail without the commitment to use it wisely and diligently! Having been strengthened in their faith, the disciples could have chosen to keep their strength and blessings to themselves, to “play it safe,” to just stay with the status quo, or maybe form a committee to consider the pros and cons of different evangelization strategies.
All of us Christians who have received the sacrament of Confirmation have now been strengthened in our faith - we, no less than the first disciples, have been given the gift of the Holy Spirit. What do you and I do with our strength of faith? Do we zealously go out to the whole world to proclaim our faith in deed and in word, and thus lead many others to God? Too often, perhaps, we’ve failed to apply our strength of faith for its proper use and instead, complacently kept our faith and blessings to ourselves. Celebrating today the feast of Pentecost, we certainly can get fired up by the example of the first disciples to realize how thoroughly God strengthens our faith so that we can pass it on!
posted by FrPitstick | 5/09/2008
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