“Receive the Holy Spirit. Whose sins you forgive are forgiven them, and whose sins you retain are retained.” Today’s last line of the Gospel reminds us that the sacrament of reconciliation provided by the priest was instituted by Christ when he sent the Holy Spirit to be with the apostles. It is a reminder of Christ’s love for us in that our transgressions can be forgiven. It is a wonderful feeling when we hear the priest say your sins are forgiven.
We also heard in Acts today that the Spirit is given to the disciples. They immediately went and preached in a variety of languages, so those who were gathered in Jerusalem for the feast of Pentecost could understand them. We share Pentecost with Judaism. The Jewish feast of Pentecost is to celebrate the wheat harvest. It was traditionally one of three pilgrimage festivals. For Christians, this occurs 50 days after Easter. We celebrate the beginning of the church by the gift of the Holy Spirit.
This same Holy Spirit should also dwell within each and every one of us. This Spirit is freely offered to us at baptism and confirmation. Our faith teaches us that through reason, we can discern the voice of the Spirit within us.
The next lines of the Gospel we read probably resonates more with us today than the reception of the Holy Spirit. The following two verses are “Thomas, called Didymus, one of the Twelve, was not with them when Jesus came. So the other disciples said to him, “We have seen the Lord.” But he said to them, “Unless I see the mark of the nails in his hands and put my finger into the nail marks and put my hand into his side, I will not believe.”
How many of us have had the same feelings, especially with the ongoing issues in our church and our country today? We cannot bring ourselves to believe that the Spirit lives within us. We see instances like what happened in Minneapolis and the sexual abuse issues within the church and think there is no Spirit in play.
What we hear informs us that we are all part of a bigger problem that can only be resolved if we make sure that we put a divide between races, the sexes, and any other labels we think we need to segregate. This goes against what the Spirit did for the disciples. It allowed them to bring together people of all races even though they were what most of us would consider uneducated, simple men. The leader who was chosen by Christ, Peter, was a mere fisherman, as were many of the other disciples. The learned men of the time were caught off guard not only by Jesus but by these actions of the Spirit, which were carried out through the disciples.
Are we too busy today listening to the supposed learned people who seem to be trying to place us in individual groups to fight one another? We not only see this in the culture of today, but we see it within our church. The groups are many but include race, sex, conservative, liberal, progressive, traditionalist. These labels do nothing to bring us together as the disciples brought those who had made their pilgrimage to Jerusalem together.
When we receive the Holy Spirit in our hearts and mind, we are called to be different people. We are called to look at everyone in the same light, as a child of God. When we can look at others in this way, we find more in common with those we meet. This would be different than how the world around us calls us to see others.
The supposed learned class calls us to place people in different groups to separate and divide us. The Spirit calls us to see all around us in the same light. We are called not to see their differences but to see their similarities with us. It does not matter if they are a different religion, race, economic status, sex, democrat, republican, or any of the other groups we are asked to use to separate people.
The disciples went out after receiving the Holy Spirit and preached the same message to all people, in languages which they could understand. They taught them all at the same time in the same area. This was a surprise to the authorities of the day, and they were caught off guard so that many of the pilgrims began to follow the disciples of Christ. There was no coercion or special offer given to them, just the same promise that we are called to today. Live as Christ teaches to gain eternal life.
This teaching was done universally, therefore, catholic. No matter our differences, we all feel this call at one time or another. We think we are called to do certain things as God wants us to follow a particular path. As St. Paul reminds the Corinthians today

There are different kinds of spiritual gifts but the same Spirit;
there are different forms of service but the same Lord;
there are different workings but the same God
who produces all of them in everyone.
To each individual the manifestation of the Spirit
is given for some benefit.
These different gifts given us by the Spirit allow some to be doctors, some to be priests, some to be police officers, plumbers, and all other professions. These different professions are all supposed to be practiced for the good of others. While we may earn our livings practicing these professions, the heart we are called to use in them should show to those we see that we are Christians.
This gift of the Holy Spirit, which we receive at no cost to us, is supposed to completely change our outlook on how life is to be led. By the same token, we are given the option to reject this Spirit. While we probably know some folks who have seemingly ignored this Spirit we are called to see them and treat them in the same way we are called to treat those who have accepted the Spirit.
The incident in Minneapolis that has led to all the protests and unrest in Minneapolis and around the country is an example of some folks not following the Spirit’s guidance. The officers in question seem to have perpetrated a criminal act in how they treated the person in their custody. This is only an example of an extreme lack of compassion for others, even when there is a confrontation.
We are called to act in a different way, which is what the peaceful protests would like to remind us. When we listen to the Spirit in our heart first and then transfer that to our mind to form our actions, we learn the right way to treat others. Receiving the Spirit with only our mind will lead us to try and treat others as Christ would like us to. It generally does not allow us to continue to do this during times of stress, as our mind will usually go to the easiest way to get out of the stressful situation.
When we receive the Spirit not only with our mind but with our heart as well, we now have the strength even during times of stress to treat others as Christ would treat them. While I am still guilty at times of only using the Spirit from the mind, I continue to work on making the Spirit work through my heart to my mind. It leads to a more peaceful situation for me, even during times of extreme stress. So as a community, let us begin to use the Spirit, which God has provided to each of us freely, starting through our heart to guide our minds.Come, Holy Spirit, fill the hearts of your faithful.
And kindle in them the fire of your love. Send forth your Spirit and they shall be created. And you will renew the face of the earth.