Pentecost 2024
Fr. Mark Gatto
Preached: May 19, 2024
Someone told me a story recently. His grandmother is in a nursing home and he had not seen her for many months. He was feeling guilty about this and kept delaying going to visit because he felt bad. Finally, he went to see her, as he got to the door he was expecting a look of disapproval or snide remark. Instead, she greeted him with sincere warmth, “How lovely to see you.” There was no resentment, no “where have you been?” In that forgiving gesture, he felt peace in his whole being.
Forgiveness has the power to set each other free and bring peace.
After the death and resurrection of Jesus, in John’s Gospel we see the Risen Lord Jesus enter the room where the disciples are staying. His first words are “Peace be with you.” They really needed peace. They were lost, fearful, sad, grieving, uncertain about the future. Jesus brings peace. In fact, any room that Jesus enters, he brings peace. It might be the room of our hearts, it might room of a church like this where we are gathered. “Peace be with you.”
This is the mission of the church as the body of Christ. We should bring peace wherever we go. We are to be an instrument of peace in our world, in our families, in our communities. Our world is desperately in need of peace. We see it in our news everyday, in Gaza and the Middle East, in the Ukraine, in Sudan, and so many others places of our world. We see the need for peace in so many of our families and even in our churches.
The rooms you enter, do people experience a word and feeling of peace? When you enter your home, when you enter your place of work or study. Do you bring that word of Jesus into those rooms? “Peace be with you.” Do others experience peace when they encounter you? Your mission is to be an instrument of peace, this is the sign that the Holy Spirit is at work in and through you.
The Holy Spirit is at work when unity is being created. We see the first Pentecost, the sign of the Holy Spirit was the unity of the disciples despite their differences. Coming from nations all across the world, speaking different languages, yet united. Our Catholic Church is truly a world church today. Seen even in our parish where we come from every continent on the planet and speak many languages, yet form one church in faith.
After Jesus spoke that word of peace to his disciples, he sends them out with the power to forgive. “Receive the Holy Spirit. If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven them.” Forgiveness is a powerful spiritual force that opens the door to peace. In our world the problem is the constant cycle of violence. One side does something, so the other side says that have to react. So, the violence continues endlessly. Only forgiveness has the power to end the cycle of violence and give peace an opportunity to exist.
When Jesus enters a room he brings peace. Each of us are sent out by Jesus with the power of the Holy Spirit to bring peace into the rooms we enter. The spiritual power we have to bring peace is forgiveness. Go out and bring forgiveness, be instruments of peace. Wherever you go, let others experience the words of Jesus touching them, “Peace be with you.”
