Our Role Is To Be The Alter Christus

𝐉𝐔𝐍𝐄 𝟖, 𝟐𝟎𝟐𝟓: 𝐏𝐄𝐍𝐓𝐄𝐂𝐎𝐒𝐓 𝐒𝐔𝐍𝐃𝐀𝐘

𝟏𝐬𝐭 𝐑𝐞𝐚𝐝𝐢𝐧𝐠: 𝐀𝐜 𝟐:𝟏-𝟏𝟏

𝐑𝐞𝐬𝐩𝐨𝐧𝐬𝐨𝐫𝐢𝐚𝐥 𝐏𝐬𝐚𝐥𝐦: 𝐏𝐬𝐚 𝟏𝟎𝟒:𝟏, 𝟐𝟒, 𝟐𝟗-𝟑𝟏, 𝟑𝟒 “𝐋𝐨𝐫𝐝, 𝐬𝐞𝐧𝐝 𝐨𝐮𝐭 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐒𝐩𝐢𝐫𝐢𝐭, 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐫𝐞𝐧𝐞𝐰 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐟𝐚𝐜𝐞 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐭𝐡.”

𝟐𝐧𝐝 𝐑𝐞𝐚𝐝𝐢𝐧𝐠: 𝟏 𝐂𝐨𝐫 𝟏𝟐:𝟑-𝟕, 𝟏𝟐-𝟏𝟑

𝐆𝐎𝐒𝐏𝐄𝐋: 𝐉𝐍 𝟐𝟎:𝟏𝟗-𝟐𝟑

𝑲𝒆𝒚 𝑽𝒆𝒓𝒔𝒆: “𝑹𝒆𝒄𝒆𝒊𝒗𝒆 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝑯𝒐𝒍𝒚 𝑺𝒑𝒊𝒓𝒊𝒕.” (𝒗.22) 

         For us to fully understand the significance of the Feast of Pentecost that we are celebrating today we need to go back in time to the history and traditions that the Catholic Church have been observing through the centuries since Jesus Christ instituted the Church.

         And to really appreciate what Pentecost means, it is not enough to know that the Feast of Pentecost was the beginning of the Christian Church. What is important is we should also familiarize ourselves why the Church in its Commandments of the Church made the observance of Sundays and Holy Days to be the number one commandment.

         This was because the early Christians kept a great number of festivals to keep alive the memory of certain events or benefits received from God as these events are celebrated. These feasts were instituted so that the events they commemorate might be remembered for all time.

         There are seven feasts that the Church has religiously celebrated through the years. These are: 1) 𝘊𝘩𝘳𝘪𝘴𝘵𝘮𝘢𝘴, (2) 𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘊𝘪𝘳𝘤𝘶𝘮𝘤𝘪𝘴𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘓𝘰𝘳𝘥 (𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘩𝘢𝘴 𝘣𝘦𝘦𝘯 𝘤𝘩𝘢𝘯𝘨𝘦𝘥 𝘴𝘪𝘯𝘤𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘯 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘪𝘴 𝘯𝘰𝘸 𝘤𝘦𝘭𝘦𝘣𝘳𝘢𝘵𝘦𝘥 𝘢𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘍𝘦𝘢𝘴𝘵 𝘰𝘧 𝘔𝘢𝘳𝘺, 𝘔𝘰𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘰𝘧 𝘎𝘰𝘥), (3) 𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘌𝘱𝘪𝘱𝘩𝘢𝘯𝘺, (4) 𝘌𝘢𝘴𝘵𝘦𝘳, (5) 𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘈𝘴𝘤𝘦𝘯𝘴𝘪𝘰𝘯, (6) 𝘗𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘦𝘤𝘰𝘴𝘵 𝘢𝘯𝘥, (7) 𝘊𝘰𝘳𝘱𝘶𝘴 𝘊𝘩𝘳𝘪𝘴𝘵𝘪. The Nativity of the Lord, Resurrection and the coming of the Holy Spirit or the Feast of Pentecost are events of primary importance, and these are celebrated with peculiar solemnity.

         There were some popular views before that the Last Supper should be commemorated as the beginning of the Church because it was here when Christ instituted the Holy Eucharist to become the body of the Church and this view was also theologically correct.

         The Feast of Pentecost, however, marked the beginning of the Church because it was on this day when Jesus Christ gave the Holy Spirit to the Apostles in the Upper Room. And it was also on this day when the Apostles and the other disciples received the empowerment that would embolden them to preach the Gospel of Christ throughout the world.

         For us now to find a connection with what happened on the Feast of Pentecost at the Upper Room, let us look at the signs that accompanied the descent of the Holy Spirit that was symbolical of the Spirit’s action – the rush of wind can be equated with the strengthening of our will, the fire illumines our minds and gives us the capacity to understand, and the gift of tongues should not be looked as simply a gift that allows us to utter words but the gift of tongues means the power of speech that would allow us to preach the Gospel to all nations.

         Soon after the Holy Spirit descended on the Apostles, they began to proclaim that Jesus was truly the Son of God based on the command of Christ (𝑴𝒌 16:15; 𝑴𝒂𝒕𝒕 28:18-20) which led to the establishment of Christian communities in many places.

         This too is what must happen to us as the new disciples who profess our loyalty to Christ. Jesus knew that his Apostles would need the power of the Holy Spirit to carry out his mission and the Holy Spirit knows this too and this is the reason why the Spirit of God continues to manifest its presence today among those who believe that Jesus is Lord.

         Just as Jesus was anointed with the Spirit at the beginning of his ministry, so we too would need the anointing of the Holy Spirit to bring Christ to the ends of the earth. Our Catechism teaches us that the Holy Spirit is given to all who are baptized in Jesus Christ to enable us to live a new way of life – a life filled with love, peace, joy, and righteousness (𝑹𝒐𝒎 14:17). The Holy Spirit fills our hearts with the love of God (𝑹𝒐𝒎 5:7), and he gives us the strength and courage we need to live as faith-filled disciples of the Lord Jesus that we need to share with others.

         The Spirit helps us in our weakness (𝑹𝒐𝒎 8:26) and enables us to grow in spiritual freedom – freedom from doubt, fear, and from slavery to our unruly desires (2 𝑪𝒐𝒓 3:17; 𝑹𝒐𝒎 8:21). The Spirit instructs us in the ways of God and guides us in living according to God’s Will. The Spirit is the source and giver of all holiness. And Isaiah prophesied about the seven-fold gifts that the Spirit would give: wisdom, understanding, counsel, fortitude, knowledge, piety, and fear of the Lord (𝑰𝒔𝒂 11:2).

         Thus, the gift of Pentecost – the outpouring of the spiritual gifts and blessings of God – was made possible by the death, resurrection, and ascension of the Lord Jesus. After his resurrection Jesus “breathed” on his disciples and gave them the Holy Spirit.

         Today he breathes on us the same Spirit and with this impartation of a new life we who have received the Holy Spirit have become a new creation as the old is gone and the new has come (2 𝑪𝒐𝒓 5:17) and through this new life God is recreating us for his glory.

         Also today, the Bukas Loob sa Diyos Covenant Community is holding its Life in the Spirit Seminar and as on that day in the Upper Room, Jesus Christ today is also offering each one of the LSS candidates the gift and power of his Holy Spirit because he wants to strengthen our faith, to give us a hope that endures, and a love that will never grow cold. The beauty of it all is that Jesus will not withhold His Spirit to anyone who believe and who will ask in faith.

         Such belief, however, is premised on our subservience to his Holy Will and a life that is anchored on sacrifice and suffering. This last part is what makes people think because most often we want to reap the promise of eternal joy but without the pain and sacrifice attached to it.

         As we celebrate the Feast of Pentecost today, the one thing we need to remember is that Jesus also needs the Church to keep the fire of love burning and we need Jesus because he is the main message of our evangelical work and none other.

         As God sent Jesus to the cross, so Jesus is also sending us now to the ends of the earth and no one can truly understand why unless we come to realize that the relationship between God and Jesus is premised on Jesus’ obedience and love. This is also what is being asked of us, and we can only do this if we have the Holy Spirit in us. (𝘌𝘥 𝘔𝘢𝘭𝘢𝘺 – 𝘑𝘶𝘯𝘦 8, 2025)