Sunday May 23 – claretonline

Pentecost Sunday

1. The Spirit of Renewal

2. The Spirit of Unity

3. The Spirit of Courage

Note. We take the readings for Year B as in the new Lectionary edition since 1981. Those who still want to use the old readings may do so. We give only the readings of the Mass of the day itself, as there are many options for the Vigil Mass.

Greeting (see Sequence)

May the Spirit of the Lord
make flexible what is rigid,
kindle what is frigid,
straighten what is wayward.
With his Spirit may the Lord be always with you. R/ And also with you.

Introduction by the Celebrant

1. The Spirit of Renewal

There are days when life looks drab to us, too much like a repetitious, boring routine. Our faith too may impress us as unexciting, monotonous and tiring and cheerless. Today’s feast of Pentecost reminds us: life, especially the life of faith, is marvelous, thanks to the Spirit of Jesus who wants to renew the Church and the whole world as he did on the first Pentecost. Let him bring us to life again with joy and peace and the fire of his love. Let him breathe on us the fresh air of the gospel and the life of Jesus. We ask Jesus here in this Eucharist to pour out on us his invigorating Spirit.

2. The Spirit of Unity

On this beautiful day of Pentecost God lets his Spirit bring together again all that has been divided: our own selves, so often broken and ripped apart, our Church and its communities, nations. The Spirit unites in their diversity masters and servants, rich and poor, free people and those enslaved in any way, citizens and strangers, people of every race and tongue and color. All of us are called to hear in our own language the marvels God is doing among us. Wonder at all this, rejoice and celebrate the feast of the Spirit.

3. The Spirit of Courage

Prudence is a good virtue to have, but a quality that is much rarer is courage: the courage to make a long overdue change, the courage to speak up for the truth when silence can keep you out of trouble, the courage to act according to your conscience, the courage to commit yourself to people when it is much safer not to be involved. Often prudence is cited as a good reason for not being courageous, and that’s bad. Courage and prudence should go hand in hand. The Holy Spirit can bring about the harmony between these two. He gave the apostles and the young Church the courage to risk their lives for the gospel. Today we ask Jesus the Lord to pour out on us his Sprit of courage.

Penitential Act

Too often we have practiced our faith
without enthusiasm, as a set of duties to comply with.
Let us ask the Lord to forgive us.
(pause)
Lord Jesus, without your Spirit
we cannot understand the Good News
of your life and message.
Give us your Spirit of understanding:
Lord, have mercy. R/ Lord, have mercy.

Jesus Christ, without your Spirit
we cannot know the Father
and cannot pray well to him.
Give us your Spirit of wisdom:
Christ, have mercy. R/ Christ, have mercy.

Lord Jesus, without your Spirit
we cannot love one another,
we cannot forgive or encourage each other.
Give us your Spirit of love:
Lord, have mercy. R/ Lord, have mercy.

Lord, heal us with your forgiveness
and let your Spirit of courage and joy lead us
on the road to everlasting life. R/ Amen.

Opening Prayer

Let us pray that God may breathe his Spirit
on us and on the world
(pause)
God, Creator of all that is,
breathe your life-giving Spirit
on us and on our world
to refresh us and make us new and free.
Let him inflame us and our communities
with the fire of your love and freedom
and open for us his treasury of joy and youth,
of wisdom and peace and courage.
When we look back to the past,
may he surprise us with a view of your future.
May he lead us forward to follow in the footsteps
of your Son, Jesus Christ our Lord. R/ Amen.

First Reading: The Spirit Comes as a Mighty Storm

Loud noise, a mighty storm, fire, languages – these symbols, used to describe the first Christian Pentecost, tell us forcefully that here something totally new is happening. God’s Spirit of power is breaking through to bring divided humanity together in a community where there is room for all.

Reading 1: ACTS 2:1-11

When the time for Pentecost was fulfilled,
they were all in one place together.
And suddenly there came from the sky
a noise like a strong driving wind,
and it filled the entire house in which they were.
Then there appeared to them tongues as of fire,
which parted and came to rest on each one of them.
And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit
and began to speak in different tongues,
as the Spirit enabled them to proclaim.

Now there were devout Jews from every nation under heaven staying in Jerusalem.
At this sound, they gathered in a large crowd,
but they were confused
because each one heard them speaking in his own language.
They were astounded, and in amazement they asked,
“Are not all these people who are speaking Galileans?
Then how does each of us hear them in his native language?
We are Parthians, Medes, and Elamites,
inhabitants of Mesopotamia, Judea and Cappadocia,
Pontus and Asia, Phrygia and Pamphylia,
Egypt and the districts of Libya near Cyrene,
as well as travelers from Rome,
both Jews and converts to Judaism, Cretans and Arabs,
yet we hear them speaking in our own tongues
of the mighty acts of God.”

Responsorial Psalm: Ps 104:1, 24, 29-30, 31, 34

R. (cf. 30) Lord, send out your Spirit, and renew the face of the earth.
or:
R. Alleluia.
Bless the LORD, O my soul!
O LORD, my God, you are great indeed!
How manifold are your works, O LORD!
the earth is full of your creatures;
R. Lord, send out your Spirit, and renew the face of the earth.
or:
R. Alleluia.
May the glory of the LORD endure forever;
may the LORD be glad in his works!
Pleasing to him be my theme;
I will be glad in the LORD.
R. Lord, send out your Spirit, and renew the face of the earth.
or:
R. Alleluia.
If you take away their breath, they perish
and return to their dust.
When you send forth your spirit, they are created,
and you renew the face of the earth.
R. Lord, send out your Spirit, and renew the face of the earth.
or:
R. Alleluia.

Second Reading: Let the Holy Spirit Guide Us

If we are guided by the Spirit, we die with Jesus to sin, we live for love and joy and all that is good.

Reading 2: 1 COR 12:3B-7, 12-13

Brothers and sisters:
No one can say, “Jesus is Lord,” except by the Holy Spirit.

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.

As a body is one though it has many parts,
and all the parts of the body, though many, are one body,
so also Christ.
For in one Spirit we were all baptized into one body,
whether Jews or Greeks, slaves or free persons,
and we were all given to drink of one Spirit.

or GAL 5:16-25

Brothers and sisters, live by the Spirit
and you will certainly not gratify the desire of the flesh.
For the flesh has desires against the Spirit,
and the Spirit against the flesh;
these are opposed to each other,
so that you may not do what you want.
But if you are guided by the Spirit, you are not under the law.
Now the works of the flesh are obvious:
immorality, impurity, lust, idolatry,
sorcery, hatreds, rivalry, jealousy,
outbursts of fury, acts of selfishness,
dissensions, factions, occasions of envy,
drinking bouts, orgies, and the like.
I warn you, as I warned you before,
that those who do such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.
In contrast, the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace,
patience, kindness, generosity,
faithfulness, gentleness, self-control.
Against such there is no law.
Now those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified their flesh
with its passions and desires.
If we live in the Spirit, let us also follow the Spirit.

Sequence

Veni, Sancte Spiritus

Come, Holy Spirit, come!
And from your celestial home
Shed a ray of light divine!
Come, Father of the poor!
Come, source of all our store!
Come, within our bosoms shine.
You, of comforters the best;
You, the soul’s most welcome guest;
Sweet refreshment here below;
In our labor, rest most sweet;
Grateful coolness in the heat;
Solace in the midst of woe.
O most blessed Light divine,
Shine within these hearts of yours,
And our inmost being fill!
Where you are not, we have naught,
Nothing good in deed or thought,
Nothing free from taint of ill.
Heal our wounds, our strength renew;
On our dryness pour your dew;
Wash the stains of guilt away:
Bend the stubborn heart and will;
Melt the frozen, warm the chill;
Guide the steps that go astray.
On the faithful, who adore
And confess you, evermore
In your sevenfold gift descend;
Give them virtue’s sure reward;
Give them your salvation, Lord;
Give them joys that never end. Amen.
Alleluia.

Alleluia

R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Come, Holy Spirit, fill the hearts of your faithful
and kindle in them the fire of your love.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.

Note. If there are people present from different language groups, perhaps a representative of each language could read a few verses of the gospel. In this way the universality of Jesus’ message is symbolized.

Gospel: The Spirit Leads to the Complete Truth

The Holy Spirit will make Christians throughout the ages discover the meaning of the words spoken by God’s living Word, Jesus.

Gospel: JN 15:26-27; 16:12-15

Jesus said to his disciples:
“When the Advocate comes whom I will send you from the Father,
the Spirit of truth that proceeds from the Father,
he will testify to me.
And you also testify,
because you have been with me from the beginning.

“I have much more to tell you, but you cannot bear it now.
But when he comes, the Spirit of truth,
he will guide you to all truth.
He will not speak on his own,
but he will speak what he hears,
and will declare to you the things that are coming.
He will glorify me,
because he will take from what is mine and declare it to you.
Everything that the Father has is mine;
for this reason I told you that he will take from what is mine
and declare it to you.”

Intercessions

Let us pray that today the Spirit may come for a new Pentecost in the Church and in the world. Let us say: