It is often forgotten that Pentecost is first of all a Jewish feast, actually a harvest festival. That sense of “in gathering” is also a theme of our Christian Pentecost, as we see the beginning of the church. By the time of Jesus, Shavuot—to give it its Hebrew name—also marked the giving of the Law on Mount Sinai. This also fits our Christian Shavuot as long as we recall that Law, Torah, meant instruction and indeed a whole way of life under God’s grace and guidance. It was always interior and the descent of the Holy Spirit takes this inner reality to new levels.

Prayer

Send, O Father, the Holy Spirit of your Son into our lives and communities. May the joy we know in the Spirit help us to be joyful bearers of the Good News to our contemporaries.  Through Christ our Lord. Amen.

K O’Mahony OSA