SUNDAY, MAY 19, 2024 | EASTER - Day of Pentecost (B)

Texts

Revised Common Lectionary (5-19-2024: Day of Pentecost)

First Reading Acts 2:1–21

Psalm Psalm 104:24–34, 35b

New Testament Romans 8:22–27

Gospel John 15:26–27, 16:4b–15

Good morning,

Here we are, the celebration of Pentecost is here, the church’s birthday - as it was foretold and expected. Settle in as we will be in the “After Pentecost” season for a while.

Firstly, let’s affirm that it must have been quite the gathering, where it happened -

Revised Common Lectionary (5-19-2024: Day of Pentecost)

5 Now there were devout Jews from every nation under heaven living in Jerusalem. 6 And at this sound the crowd gathered and was bewildered, because each one heard them speaking in the native language of each. 7 Amazed and astonished, they asked, “Are not all these who are speaking Galileans? 8 And how is it that we hear, each of us, in our own native language? 9 Parthians, Medes, Elamites, and residents of Mesopotamia, Judea and Cappadocia, Pontus and Asia, 10 Phrygia and Pamphylia, Egypt and the parts of Libya belonging to Cyrene, and visitors from Rome, both Jews and proselytes, 11 Cretans and Arabs—in our own languages we hear them speaking about God’s deeds of power.”

Some were left wondering and others mocked the whole thing and thought the disciples are filled with new wine. And the first thing Peter says is something like “of course they are not drunk, it’s only 9am in the morning!” Sure, Peter, sure....that is an irrefutable evidence! Because nobody has gotten themselves drunk at 9am before.

But then he gets to the important bit -

Revised Common Lectionary 5-19-2024: Day of Pentecost

No, this is what was spoken through the prophet Joel:

In the last days it will be, God declares,

that I will pour out my Spirit upon all flesh,

and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy,

and your young men shall see visions,

and your old men shall dream dreams.

A grand vision of Holy Spirit for all people, slaves and free, Jewish or not, … for all of you as if he was saying! God doesn’t desire division, God desires that all can become one.

We often think about Pentecost in terms of the miracle of the tongue, but it is also about the ear - If you have done any amount of public speaking, teaching, lecturing, presenting… you know that getting a group of people to listen can be hard, really hard. It can be in that person’s language or even dialect, but it may be still completely lost on them if their mind is elsewhere. Information transfer requires at least two people, really. A good example is the Bible - a good amount of it is speeches recorded and recalled by other people and written down and translated and then it requires us, the readers to comprehend it.

We believe that we are aided in the process by the Holy Spirit and help we need as for the most of us, what we read regularly is NOT thousands and thousands years old and from a vastly different culture. Just like in Pentecost - a miracle of tongue (or word) and ear (or eye).

It is why during our baptismal journey we are called again and again not only to speak, but also listen and comprehend. Probably at least some of us have talked to an evangelizing person that read a few verses there and there, grabbed it like a dog grabs a bone and simply ran with it, not really listening, but rather repeating the same few tired religious tropes over and over again - repent or you will go to Hell; hang out with the right Christians or you will fall and then go to Hell; and so on and so forth. They think they are inspired, but when it doesn’t really connect on the other side, one has to wonder.

I like to believe that some in the crowds thought that the disciples are drunk because they preached with enthusiasm, joy, and compassion that is often hard to find outside of parties and taverns - then or now. They are too joyful, that is suspicious!

This Pentecost, let us not just highlight the various languages we can speak, but also the various ways we can listen to one another, God, and the world. I strongly believe the Holy Spirit is the mediator of it all. To listen and understand is a gift - it is why diversity and inclusion matter, exposing oneself to unfamiliar voices and viewpoints, to allow oneself to be challenged by someone and something new, to approach life with curiosity and openness.

Right now, there are many that seek to restrict voices they don’t like, voices coming from students on campuses calling for an end to war profiteering, located in books of LGBTQIA+ authors that want to be recognized and seen, voices belonging to Native Americans that are oppressed in their own land, voices of employees that are still waiting on the fabled trickle-down as they starve and struggle to pay rent… Suppression of voices is not the Spirit of Pentecost, but rather the work of the Deceiver and Adversary - it is from the evil one, when the truth is suppressed, because the truth has the power to set us free and is not somehow weakened by voices being heard.

It reminds me of the words by the first Czech president Václav Havel expounding on the national motto truth prevails- "Truth and love must prevail over lies and hatred." And in our faith we believe they are going to - for the voice of God’s love and justice through the Holy Spirit cannot be silenced and it empowers us to live it out. The Holy Spirit has been unleashed upon the world and there is no stopping her now! Thanks be to God. Amen.