Dear Brothers and Sisters,
I was saddened to see the news of the sudden death of Prince and especially to hear that probably his death was due to an overdose of pain killers. The most distressing part of it was that no one knew he had a problem. He was always concerned with eating well, not drinking or doing drugs, and even helped those who had addiction problems; he often paid for their rehab programs. What a pity that he was not able to share his struggles with someone or with a small community.
Today we celebrate the Solemnity of Pentecost, which is the birth of the Church. She gives us the possibility of being united with one another despite our age, ethnic background, hobbies or level of education. The Holy Spirit makes us one, and is an image of what the Church should be for us, and for all the nations. We all need the Church or a community where I can be myself and can speak the truth about my life. Everyone needs this, especially a priest. He is a man also, and has difficulties like everyone else. Unfortunately, it does not seem that Prince had this.
Luke says in the first reading (Luke 2: 1-11) they all met again in a house; probably the upper room where they had the last supper when suddenly what sounded like a violent wind filled the entire house where they were sitting. And there appeared to them tongues of fire that separated and came to rest on the head of each one of them. I never thought about this before: the Spirit, the tongue of fire, came upon each one of them. Christ became man for all of us, but the Holy Spirit descends on each of the apostles, and also on us. And because of this they were able to speak, and to converse in many languages that they did not know, and be understood.
Pope Emeritus Benedict said that when a church or a community limits itself to its own way of thinking and acting then it is far from the Holy Spirit. Unity in the Church is not uniformity, like American shopping malls from Alaska to Alabama; they’re all the same. Unity in the Church is something different; it connects us in our diversity, and overcomes all the natural barriers. Everyone can understand the message in his/her own language. It is something very beautiful, and many Christians have never seen this.
The Church is born universal, Catholic. On its first day the twelve speak in the languages of the world. The Church is not a federation of local churches; first there is the universal Church, and then the local, the particular Churches, are born, and are part of the universal one.
The Holy Spirit is an icon of the Church. It comes to unite all men as one and it does this by fire. Origen, one of the Fathers of the Church, has a saying of Jesus not recorded in the gospels: whoever is near me is near the fire. It is a fire that purifies us and cleanses us, and changes us. Many are afraid of this fire and want to stay as they are. They have the logic of having and not of self-gift; they are afraid of demands, but they forget that by giving ourselves we find ourselves.
The greatness of man depends on our ability to share, to be small and part of something greater. This is what makes one great! Many refuse this gift. Let us ask the Holy Spirit to set us on fire and teach us not to be afraid, and to experience the community of the Church, which we will hear more about over the next two weeks.