Most Rev. Joseph C. Bambera, D.D., J.C.L.
Bishop of Scranton
HOMILY
Adult Confirmation – Pentecost Sunday – June 12, 2011
“No one can say: ‘Jesus is Lord,’ except in the Holy Spirit.”
We proclaim Jesus as Lord in this liturgy today because the Holy Spirit has been poured forth upon us at Pentecost and has called us into being as the People of God. What a splendid day to gather with so many of you who pray for a deeper experience of the Spirit through the reception of the Sacrament of Confirmation.
To appreciate what you will experience in the celebration of the Sacrament of Confirmation, it would be well for us to reflect upon what we celebrate on this great feast of Pentecost.
The Feast of Pentecost is often referred to as the birthday of the Church – a good description – but a description that’s limited because we so often think of Church as we know it today.
When Pentecost happened and the Church was born, there was no Church as we know it today. There was no papacy. Yes, there was a leader, a fisherman named Peter, who was somewhat impetuous and who often said things that he regretted. There was no St. Peter’s Square, no Vatican, no encyclicals, no canon law, no great cathedrals. And yet, on Pentecost the Church came into being.
But how? How did the Church come about? Very simply, Pentecost reminds us that when the Spirit came, the Spirit fell upon a PEOPLE – fishermen; tax collectors; housewives; poor, marginal people. And the presumption was that each one upon whom the Spirit descended had been given gifts to use for the spread of the message of Jesus.
Today’s gospel, the first appearance of the Risen Jesus before his disciples on Easter night is John’s version of the Pentecost event. In “breathing” the Holy Spirit upon them, Jesus imitates God’s act of creation in Genesis when he breathed life into Adam. In the Resurrection, the Spirit re-creates Jesus’ band of disciples into the new Israel; the peace of understanding, enthusiasm and joy shatters all barriers among them to make of them a community of hope and forgiveness.
Appealing for unity in the badly-splintered Corinthian community, St. Paul, in today’s second reading reminds the Corinthians of the presence of the Holy Spirit in their midst, which brings together the different charisms each possesses for the good of the whole community and the glory of God. There are many gifts but one and the same Spirit. We are all baptized into one body – and together we are the Body of Christ.
These readings, taken together, reveal to us the heart of the Church – the People of God – wounded and broken, yet recreated and gifted through the Spirit and called to use their gifts for the sake of the Kingdom of God.
And that is what we celebrate this afternoon: the challenge given to all of us who gather in worship to remember who we are because of our Baptism – children of God, redeemed by Christ and challenged to walk in his ways. … In short, an understanding of Baptism is key to an understanding of Confirmation. The two sacraments are intimately linked together.
Those of you who are preparing to receive the sacrament of Confirmation are called not simply to remember your Baptism – an event which for most of us took place when we were too young to comprehend what was taking place – but to also affirm ON YOUR OWN – in this sacramental celebration – the promises made on your behalf by your parents and godparents.
And what is it that you affirm today in the sacrament of Confirmation – what was promised on your behalf at your Baptism? In addition to the ritual – the pouring of water and the words of faith that accompany that action: “I baptize you in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,” – Baptism conveys three very important realities that we are all called to affirm and embrace. Baptism is an initiation into the people of God; it is a call to discipleship and it is a commissioning.
Baptism is the first of the sacraments of initiation – a process that is completed through the reception of the sacraments of Eucharist and Confirmation. Beginning with Baptism, we enter into a faith family – a community of believers – in and through which Christ is present and we are empowered to live lives of holiness.
Secondly, Baptism is a call to discipleship – a call to live as a child of God, to embrace a lifestyle rooted in Gospel values, and to proclaim in all aspects of our lives our faith in Jesus Christ – even at the risk of being countercultural.
Finally, Baptism is a commissioning – a commissioning to ministry and service in the Church. We have been baptized and confirmed for a reason, for a cause: to do the work of Jesus in our world today.
Thus, the greatest thing any of us can ever do in life with all that we have been given by God is to live out our Baptism: to love generously, to forgive often, to treat with compassion, to respect and treasure all of life, and to witness to the world our faith in Jesus Christ by how we live and all that we do. The Pentecost event and the reception of the sacrament of Confirmation make all of this possible.
For all of the potential and hope that resides within each of us as God’s People and particularly within those of you who will receive the outpouring of the Holy Spirit in Confirmation, we should remind ourselves that it really matters very little what we do in life as much as who we are and who we become as members of the Church and followers of Jesus. This challenge is not old fashioned or out of date. On the contrary, it is the surest way to discovering happiness, meaning and purpose in your lives that you will ever find.
Pentecost was a moment of profound realization and transformation for the community of disciples. The faith they had received, the wonders they had witnessed and the Word that they had heard came together in a new understanding, clarity and unity that gave them the courage to begin the work Jesus had entrusted to them. In Jesus’ “breathing” upon them the new life of the Spirit, the community of the resurrection – the Church – took flight. That same Spirit continues to “blow” through today’s Church to give life and direction to our dreams, our mission and our ministry.
Centuries ago, Saint Teresa of Avila shared these thoughts: “Christ has no body on earth but yours; no hands but yours; no feet but yours. Yours are the eyes through which he looks compassion on this world. Yours are the feet with which he is to go about doing good. Yours are the hands with which he blesses all the world.”
My friends, may we open our lives to the Spirit. May we allow the Spirit to mold our hearts into the heart of Jesus and to bind us together as God’s people. And where ever we are taken on the journey of life, may we BE the Church of Jesus – the visible sign of God’s love and presence in the world today.