At every Mass, at the conclusion of the Eucharistic Prayer, the priest prays:

“Through Him, and with Him, and in Him, O God, almighty Father, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, all glory and honor is yours, forever and ever.”

This is called a doxology—a specific type of prayer that gives praise to God. Its three parts—through, with, and in—correspond to the three movements of the Paschal Mystery: the Resurrection, the Ascension, and Pentecost.

Through the Resurrection, God the Father raised Jesus from the dead, opening for us the way to salvation.

With the Ascension into heaven, Jesus gives us the mission to be His continual presence in the world as His Body, the Church.

In Pentecost, we receive the Holy Spirit so that we can carry out this mission. We are equipped with gifts meant to build up the Kingdom of God on earth.

This is the dynamic movement of the Trinity—Father, Son, and Holy Spirit—working together in perfect unity for our salvation.

1. Through Him, the love of God the Father is revealed as He resurrects Jesus from the dead.
2. With Him, divine power is given. Jesus takes his seat at the right hand of the Father to intercede for us.
3. In Him, the Holy Spirit proceeds from the Father and the Son, descending upon us the Church to dwell in us and direct our mission.

Pentecost ties it all together. Today we are reminded that the Christian life is about participating through, with, and in the life of God. This is how we live in an ongoing relationship with the Trinity, which is necessary and essential for salvation and the continual transformation of the world.

That is why the baptism of John the Baptist was not enough. He baptized with water but looked forward to the one who would baptize with the Holy Spirit.

How is the Holy Spirit received? Acts of the Apostles highlights the reception of the Holy Spirit as two moments, first through baptism, then through the laying on of hands by the apostles. They must go personally to each new community to ensure they know about the Holy Spirit, and that the Spirit has been received.

Last week, we heard one of these moments: Paul traveled to Ephesus, where he found some disciples and asked, “Did you receive the Holy Spirit when you became believers?” They replied, “We have never even heard that there is a Holy Spirit.” Paul then laid hands on them, and the Spirit came upon them.

The physical laying on of hands is important. Paul can’t just write a letter to them with instructions on how to pray to receive the Holy Spirit on their own. He cannot pray for them from afar that they might receive it. He cannot do a “how to” tutorial video, send it as a text, or order it on Amazon with a two-day delivery. The Holy Spirit can only be given and received by a physical interaction within the context of a community united in prayer.

What does this imply?

1. First: We cannot grow in the spiritual life alone. Faith, knowing and trusting God, can only happen in community. The presence of the Holy Spirit necessarily gives birth to the Church. I think that is one of the reasons we have this sudden trend of young people either returning to the Church, or turning to her for the first time. In a time when you can be part of so many communities, in person or on line, in a time where technology allows us to be more connected than ever before, in a time where there are no consequences to declaring yourself a non-believer, many are realizing there is something about gathering in a community of faith, particularly in the Catholic Church, that can’t be found elsewhere.
2. Second: The power of the Holy Spirit is communicated from one person to another. Becoming a Christian cannot happen outside the community. You can’t be a “lone-ranger” Christian. For starters, you need someone else to baptize you, you cannot do it yourself. Same is true for all other sacraments. As a priest, I cannot confess to myself, though that would be very convenient. I too need to hear those beautiful words of mercy and love, “I absolve you from your sins,” from someone else. Participating in the life of God always means that we depend on other members of the body of Christ, for where two or three are gathered in the name of Jesus, through him, with him, and in him, there he is in our midst.
3. Third: The Holy Spirit heals, unites, and restores peace. This strengthens my will and gives me the freedom to choose love. That is where confirmation comes in, it is me making the conscious decision to say: yes, I accept the gift of faith I received at Baptism, I want to now share in the life of God in a deeper mature way. The communal ritual that is part of Confirmation; the laying on of hands and the anointing with oil, communicate being sealed with the Holy Spirit. This means being commissioned, being equipped, being made free to be at the service of the community.

Baptism and confirmation in community, that is how one receives the Holy Spirit. And then, the People of God must be continually consecrated by the Holy Spirit again, and again, and again, in the Eucharist. Then we must keep opening ourselves—again and again—to the Spirit’s guidance throughout life in prayer. That means praying for the gifts of the Holy Spirit, not because we don’t have them, if you are baptized and confirmed, they are there, but because I need to make a daily choice to dispose my heart be being led by them.

St. Paul exhorts Timothy to “fan into flame the gift of God.” These gifts are meant to be embodied. They are not abstract ideas. In the gospel Jesus gives the Spirit by breathing on the disciples. This is a clear reference to how God breathed life into Adam in Genesis 2. Just as God breathed life into Adam, Jesus breathes the Spirit into the Church—creating a new humanity.

What Jesus is teaching us is that receiving the Holy Spirit does not mean escaping the world. It means being empowered to live in the world, through our bodies, with others, and in the world, and we have received the spiritual gifts necessary to do so within the mess and struggles of real life.

Family, today we renew our relationship with the Holy Spirit. Pray for the renewal of your faith. If you have lost motivation, if you are going through spiritual dryness, ask the Holy Spirit to renew your heart, that is God’s specialty. If you are discouraged because of the way your life seems to be going right now, if things seem out of order and you cannot seem to overcome certain sins, ask the Holy Spirit to bring order out of chaos, that is God’s specialty.

We also renew our relationship with one another. Take time to affirm the gifts of the Spirit in others. Paul says: There are different kinds of gifts, but the same Spirit; different forms of service, but the same Lord. Pentecost challenges us to see others—first and foremost—as bearers of spiritual gifts. If we did that, how could we ever disrespect or exclude anyone?Paul also reminds us: In one Spirit we were all baptized into one Body—Jews or Greeks, slaves or free. The Spirit breaks down divisions—cultural, class, and gender. This is critical in a polarized culture.

We also renew our commitment to the community. Take the risk of service. The gifts of the Holy Spirit are meant to build up the community, so the way to discover your gifts is by putting yourself out there. One of the reasons I believe we have a vocation crisis in the Church is because many of our teens have not been given the opportunity to place themselves in service to the community. That is why I am pushing for more young altar servers, more opportunities for our youth to serve. We must give our youth the opportunity to discover their gifts by serving. I am currently praying about reworking the youth ministry and formation program for both parishes, more on that soon.

         And finally, work for unity. Jesus’ final prayer is a prayer for unity. The gift of tongues at Pentecost has often been seen as a reversal of Babel (Genesis 11). There, God scattered the human family by confusing their language to slow the spread of sin. Though we’re made for unity, we often live divided. The language of the Holy Spirit speaks directly to the human heart, it is universal. The Spirit restores what sin scattered – through the Holy Spirit we can actually have unity in diversity. Pentecost challenges us to overcome division, have open dialogue, and rediscover our shared calling: to live as one human family—the image of God as a communion of persons.

Pentecost is here. The time of renewal has come. Let us live through Him, with Him, and in Him—in the unity of the Holy Spirit—for the glory of God and the salvation of the world.