Pentecost is one of my favorite celebrations in the Church because it is a scene of such great triumph and transformation, which continues to this very day.
Just over a decade ago, I was baptized and confirmed, receiving the Holy Spirit as I was brought into communion with the Catholic Church. I believe strongly in the power of what happened that day and the real effect it has had on my soul.
Though it was at the Easter Vigil that I was baptized and received into the Church, Pentecost has always felt more appropriate for reflecting on the great gift that we are given in the Holy Spirit. Before a deep conversion of faith, we can feel very much like the apostles as they huddled in the Upper Room, unsure what to make of things they had witnessed and what the future might hold. We might say, “Jesus lived so long ago, but He’s not here now and we don’t know when He’ll return. How can we follow someone who isn’t even here?”
We must remember Christ’s words to the apostles before He ascended into heaven. “He said to them, ‘It is not for you to know times or seasons which the Father has fixed by His own authority. But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria and to the end of the earth.’” (Acts 1:7-8)
Jesus was not speaking just to the apostles, but, through the divine inspiration of Scripture, He was speaking to us as well. The Holy Spirit is given to us just as it was given to Mary and the apostles at Pentecost, though perhaps not always with the same flare as a mighty rush of wind. We, too, are given the power to witness to Christ “to the end of the earth.”
To understand the transforming ability of the Holy Spirit on our lives, we must only look at the example of St. Peter.
Throughout the four gospels, Peter was enthusiastic in following the Lord, but also rash and cowardly as well. He stepped out of the boat to walk on water when called by Christ in the storm, but then he gave heed to the winds and began to fear and sink into the sea. After witnessing the Transfiguration, he became confused and didn’t know what to say, rambling unproductively about making booths. And shortly after declaring at the Last Supper that he would die for Jesus, he then denied three times even knowing Him.
At Caesarea Philippi, he spoke with conviction in declaring Jesus’ divinity, but it’s easy to speak boldly when surrounded by friends and like-minded believers. Peter had belief and inner conviction, but he often struggled to hold to those convictions when challenged by the world.
All of that was changed with the descent of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost.
Immediately upon receiving the Holy Spirit, Peter stands up and delivers a powerhouse homily on the witnessed Resurrection of Christ, and as a result we are told that 3,000 people were converted on that single day. This is a far cry from his stumbling words after the Transfiguration.
Reading about Peter in the Acts of the Apostles is a true inspiration, as he delivers bold and unwavering speeches, faces threats of death and persecution, and weathers beatings and imprisonment.
As the world now watches Peter’s successor, Pope Leo XIV, we can see the Holy Spirit still at work on a global scale. During the homily of his inaugural Mass, Pope Leo spoke about the working of the Holy Spirit during the conclave which elected him as pontiff. He talked about how the Spirit “was able to bring us into harmony, like musical instruments, so that our heartstrings could vibrate in a single melody.”
The Spirit stirred the hearts of many as Pope Leo appeared on the balcony and sang the Regina Caeli in Latin, starting his pontificate by beautifully and humbly honoring Our Lady.
I have followed very little of the reporting on the former Cardinal Robert Prevost, because I am more interested in the words and actions of now-Pope Leo XIV. I am fascinated to see how the Holy Spirit will work in him and through him, guiding the universal Church and shepherding souls.
All of us are called to invite the Holy Spirit into our souls, transforming us into a closer likeness to Christ. Like St. Peter, like Pope Leo, let us step out boldly and speak God’s truth to the world, regardless of hostilities or judgments that we might face. Let us be witnesses of God’s love, seeking unity with our brothers and sisters, but a unity always based on sanctifying souls. And as the apostles sat with Our Lady waiting for Pentecost, as Pope Leo sang her praises as one of his first actions, let us always remember that
Mary, as spouse of the Holy Spirit, is always our greatest advocate and loving mother.
Come Holy Spirit and fill the hearts of the faithful.
Kathryn Evans Heim is an author, wife and mother living outside Salisbury, where she gardens, raises chickens, experiments with cooking and reads too many books. Find her work at www.evanswriting.com.