|
First
Reading
|
Psalm |
Epistle |
Gospel |
| Numbers 11:24–30 |
Psalm 104:25–35, 37b |
Acts 2:1–21 |
John 20:19–23 |
Different folks are moved by different strokes. The lesson in Acts where many of the disciples are in a very public place and surrounded by a crowd of other people is a quite different experience than the lesson in the Gospel of John where a small group of disciples were commissioned in a secluded, private room. Nonetheless the outcome was the same. The Holy Spirit energized and transformed reluctant and discouraged followers of Jesus into forming the body we call the church.
Some of us can pinpoint exactly when we felt the finger of the Holy Spirit reached out and touched us. Others of us don’t define God as calling us in an identifiable event. Rather we become aware of God’s presence and perceive it like a developing and maturing relationship that becomes a part of us. Hindsight tells us God was working in our past even if we don’t remember the initial encounter.
I wonder if the celebration of Pentecost itself is not reminding us that God uses many languages and communicates in numerous ways. There is no official divine way of communicating, which is why talking about a definitive call of God can be very tricky. God has given us freedom to choose. Some of our choices many be wise, others foolish. Instead of believing God’s call as determining our paths, perhaps it is helpful to understand God as affirming our choices when we decide to be on the side of life. If we choose to be a teacher, God says fine, be a conscientious teacher. If we choose to be an attorney, God says great, you are called to be an honest attorney. If we choose to be a home health aid, God says wonderful, be a kind and proficient one. One culture, one profession, one particular choice is not necessarily holier than another. God desires to support all that is gracious in our varied lives. Incidentally, that is why I worry about parishes that brag about how many people they have sent into the ordained ministry, or how many PhD’s they have on the vestry. (I believe I recall that years ago one parish used to list in their bulletin how many of their parishioners were elected to congress. I wonder if they do that any more.) For God doesn’t value one vocation above others, anymore than God values Christians who speak French greater than those who speak Spanish. God is pleased with all those who proclaim the Good News in whatever occupation, culture, or social setting they are in.
Pentecost invites us to notice the signs of God happening around us whatever and wherever they may be. A public nuisance draws attention to oneself. But a public witness to the Gospel directs attention to the larger works of God. That is the reason the gift of Pentecost was not focused on the disciples’ newfound proficiency in foreign languages if indeed they were actual foreign languages. Such proficiency was merely a tool to help the disciples become aware that God understood and spoke in languages and cultural situations unfamiliar to them.
In our age, to talk about a universal Gospel mission to all people has an undertone of the bitterness of imperialism. Yet the first Pentecost of the church was directed towards an active understanding and acceptance of other cultures. Pentecost never encourages us to use one certain language. In the creed when we describe the church as catholic, or universal, it is in the sense of being an all-encompassing fellowship. Whatever language is used, the Gospel is able to communicate the love and grace of God. God in speaking through the many languages of Pentecost is affirming a full and abundant life, a renewed humanity, and a universal grace for all people of the globe.
Pentecost puts us on notice that God already speaks in voices we do not yet understand. What might be considered strange and foreign to us is not foreign or strange to God. The Holy Spirit spirals in wider and wider circles. To some extant the languages of the Holy Spirit are like the many forms of art. Much of what today we would consider great masterpieces, be it from composers, writers, painters, sculptors, or architects, were outright ridiculed, rejected or severely criticized when they were initially performed or presented to the world. Both discipleship and art requires working at understanding, not simply feeding the same diet to our preconceptions.
Today we also acknowledge what our larger culture calls Mothers Day. Mothers comes in all shapes and sizes, and often we have or have had several people in our lives who in effect have served to nurture and in some way given a gift of life to us. That is why Mothers day is not about biology or genealogy, it is about honoring those who help us to grow and been midwives of hope and encouragement in our journey on this earth. In similar fashion, Pentecost is not about learning linguistics, as helpful and interesting that may be; Pentecost is about gaining understanding and finding courage to sing with our voice God’s song of grace to others.
And I offer this to you in the name of the Living God, Amen.
