Dear Brothers and Sisters,
The Lord gives us a wonderful word today to help us to convert. What does it mean to convert? To turn around, to realize that God is here and he loves us very much. Do you believe this? I hope so. The psalm helps me a lot today. It says: let all the people praise you! Here in front of you are all the people and they still do not have a king, why? Because you are your own king and you do everything according to your own way of thinking. You imagine your life the way you think it should be. Today we hear that God is the one who should be praised by everyone, by all his people.
There is a Hebrew story about two angels walking of floating in heaven and they met one another. Even though they were naked there was no concupiscence of the eyes or the flesh since they were already in the presence of God. One asked the other if he knew where the glory of God was since he had not found it. The other angel said, the glory of God is in the blessing! When you see everyone here praising God, you can also bless him. How I wish we could live like that.
The Lord gives us these words to express his love concretely in the Eucharist. Jesus says in the gospel says, “I am going away, and I will come back to you.” Today Christ returns to your side in this Eucharist. He makes himself present in this Eucharist. Do you believe it? He will come to this table, this altar and when he comes will he bring you corrections, judgments, reprimands, revenge because you have been mean? Not at all! He will bring you love. He will say, my peace I leave with you, my peace I give to you. This is true peace. It is not to be high or to experience a spiritual nirvana; we are not Buddhists. We are not called to escape from our reality. A Christian can’t find peace outside of his reality; he can only find it in his reality by living what God has given him.
The world’s idea of peace means having no problems, living comfortably, without suffering and financial problems. The world says that there are three things in life you need: health, money and love. You can keep them; those three things are worthless. Maybe they are good for grandma. For me, I need the Lord. I don’t want health, nor money, not love, unless it is the love of God. Give me the love of God and I will be happy and at peace. Go ahead, go get your money, your health and those that say they love you. They don’t love you; they only use you. Go ahead and let’s see if you are happy. Only the Lord brings us peace.
What is the peace of Christ? It is something revolutionary. It is the grace of the Holy Spirit. The peace of Christ is the cross of Christ; this is revolutionary. When you enter the cross, you will experience peace. You will experience the love of the Risen Lord, overcoming death. What is the cross that God has allowed in your life. Perhaps an injustice that you suffered. It is never, never our sins. You cannot say that your cross is your pride. Otherwise, if you convert your cross will disappear and a true cross never disappears. If your cross is poverty, even when you have money, it is still your cross. If your cross is your mother or father, even when she passes away, she will still be your cross.
In the midst of economic difficulties or old age or sickness, Christ comes to give you peace so you will not be intimidated. When you are intimidated or troubled you are not able to be at peace. When I confess, I find peace in Jesus Christ. When a brother or sister gives me a word that helps me, I can rest, I can say, Lord, I am in your hands. Do whatever you think is best for me. I know that you will get me out of this one, and he gets you out.
Don’t be afraid to proclaim the word of God. Announce what he did in your life. This is why the Lord return today; this is the good news of the gospel today. Christ comes to say to us, whoever loves me will keep my word. What does it mean to keep his word? When we keep something, it is to use it later. Many people save clothes and boots, and that storage room is full of junk that no one ever uses. To use it later, we are invited to keep it, to save it. Mary kept all these things and pondered them in her heart. She guarded those words she received so that at key moments of her life the Holy Spirit would remind her of all that was said to her. You may not need this word today, but he will remind you when you need it. The Holy Spirit dwells in you since your baptism. He does not only come at Pentecost; he is with you always.
There was a lady who celebrated the Pentecost vigil with us one year and we are were very happy and felt his presence. And this woman said I feel this heat that ran up my back, from my bottom. The priest had to tell her that it was not the Holy Spirit, it was menopause. What do you think the Holy Spirit is like? It is not like spiritual marijuana. It is something very concrete. He reminds us of a word when we need it. When your husband does an injustice to you or when your wife gives you a sarcastic look. He reminds you to love as Christ has loved you. He reminds you to forgive because you are no better than him. When your son started taking drugs or when you lost you job, he reminds you that God will provide. The Holy Spirit will draw out that word for you.
To keep the word means to keep extra oil and not be like the foolish virgins in that parable where only the wise virgins brought extra oil. It was needed so the torches could shed light in the procession from the groom’s home to the home of the bride’s family where the wedding would take place. If there was no oil, they would have to walk in darkness in the middle of the night, which in those times would be very dangerous. You need to be wise and prudent also to keep extra oil so that in the time of darkness you will have light. To guard the word is to keep the oil; it is to be wise. To have a word for the day of your death or for a test that comes up in your old age or when you have a debilitating sickness or when an injustice is done to you or when a woman starts calling you on a regular basis, even though you are a seminarian or a priest.
To have the Holy Spirit is to have the help of a brother, who helps you to be a Christian. It is something very concrete, to feel loved by God and to fight with Christ. He is the one who gives you peace. He gives you love and creates communion among us. We see this in the first reading which tells us about some divisions that took place in the early communities of the early Church. Some laws or decisions had to be made to end the disagreements when those involved were not able to love. What word do they need to remember when that happened? Love one another as I have loved you. When you are not able to love and you think you have to be a super-Christian who is going to save everyone and do everything right and you quote the law believing that when you fulfill the law then you will have faith. I tell you, no! The law is to love, not to put a burden on anyone as the apostles decided in the first reading.
Don’t put a burden on the others. Don’t impose a burden on your spouse or your children. Let them do what they want to do, within reason, and be sure to welcome them with open arms when they want to return to home. A loving parent gives them freedom, which is the greatest gift God has given you. Allow them to be free and even to leave the home like the prodigal son. Remember you have the Holy Spirit to help you and a Father who loves you and wants to make you happy. If today you are not happy, ask the Lord to grant you the full happiness of being a Christian.