Pentecost celebrates the gift of the Holy Spirit. It is the longest season of the church year, beginning 50 days after Easter, as spring softly turns into summer. Pentecost embodies a sense
of growth, of slow and deliberate movement, of journey. It is
a time to look within, to find and deepen our spirituality; but
mere contemplative reflection is not enough. The Archbishop
of Canterbury Rowan Williams believes that Pentecost is a
“moment when the friends of Jesus discover that they can communicate to all sorts of people they never thought that
they would be speaking to… They can actually build bridges
with strangers…”
We do not have to cloister ourselves away from the rest of
the world to find a deeper spirituality. We should not think
of spiritual growth as another obligation. Rather our spirituality should be woven intricately into the fabric of our daily lives.
The early disciples were charged by Jesus to “make disciples
of all nations.” We also must reach out to make connections
with others. This past winter our community worked together
to help shelter the homeless. We did build bridges with strangers.
As we reached out to those in need, we made connections and were transformed as the Holy Spirit worked through us.
According to Rowan Williams, “It is the Holy Spirit that brings communion relationship between Christian believers.”
In her poem When Death Comes, the contemporary poet
Mary Oliver has a similar message:
When it’s over, I want to say all my life
I was a bride married to amazement.
I was the bridegroom, taking the world into my arms.
…
I don’t want to end up simply having visited the world.
In the months ahead, embrace the unfamiliar. Marry yourself
to amazement. Take the world into your arms. Do more than
visit the world.
Kaye Dutrow