From The Bishop

This Sunday (May 24), the Church celebrates the Solemnity of Pentecost. In the Gospel of St. John, Our Lord sends the disciples out into the world and then breathed on them bestowing the gift of the Holy Spirit. The order of these two events is significant. By giving the gift of the Holy Spirit after He has sent forth His disciples, we are reminded that the Holy Spirit is essential for a successful mission. It is only those who share in Christ’s mission that are given the Holy Spirit. On the day of our baptism we began our mission in the Holy Spirit. At Confirmation, the Holy Spirit offered to us seven gifts to assist us in this mission. Our challenge is to use these gifts to transform us so that we can transform the world around us. I pray that the Holy Spirit will allow each of us to renew to our parishes and diocese and world. In today’s Office of Readings, Saint Hilary speaks about the desire for the Holy Spirit. The more we desire the Holy Spirit, the greater His presence in our lives. “This unique gift (Holy Spirit) which is in Christ is offered in its fullness to everyone. It is everywhere available, but it is given to each man in proportion to his readiness to receive it. Its presence is the fuller, the greater a man’s desire to be worthy of it. This gift will remain with us until the end of the world, and will be our comfort in the time of waiting. By the favors it bestows, it is the pledge of our hope for the future, the light of our minds, and the splendor that irradiates our understanding”. Come Holy Spirit.