Every Sunday, Bishop Edward Malesic writes a Scripture reflection for the faithful. Follow the bishop on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
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Go back to the Book of Genesis and read the story of the Tower of Babel again (Genesis 11:1-9). That story begins with the people of the earth speaking only one language and they wanted to build a tower “with its top in the heavens.”
One way to read the story is to understand that the people wanted to climb up to Heaven and to be with God; and more truthfully, they wanted to be like God and “make a name for themselves.” So they started to build up to the sky. Yes, we have a natural desire to be with God, but building a huge tower isn’t the way to satisfy this desire. We are humans and nothing we build is tall enough to reach God.
In response, God crushed the tower and confused the languages on the earth — so that such foolishness would not happen again on such a grand scale.
Here is the truth. There is only one way to find God and that is to allow God to come to us. It is not our effort, but God’s effort that brings God to us.
God came to us first as the infant of Bethlehem. But after Jesus ascended into Heaven, he sent the third person of the Trinity to remain with us until he comes again. God sends the Holy Spirit to dwell among us.
You see, we do not need to climb up to Heaven to find God, we only need to search our hearts. God is with us right here and right now.
The Spirit of God resides within us, and in a powerful way, God’s Holy Spirit resides in the Church, the Body of Christ. Pope Saint Leo XIII said, “If Christ is the head of the Church, the Holy Spirit is her soul.”
It is the Holy Spirit that teaches us the truth about Jesus, who he is, and why he came to us. It is the Holy Spirit that gives us the gifts to witness to the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus. It is the Holy Spirit that continues to bring the life-giving presence of Jesus to us in the sacraments. It is the Holy Spirit that causes us to say, “Jesus is Lord.” And it is the Holy Spirit that sustains us in our faith. When we pray, “Come, Holy Spirit”, our prayers are always answered. The Holy Spirit does not disappoint.
Pentecost — that great feast of the Holy Spirit — reverses the confusion of languages that happened when God destroyed the Tower of Babel. Only when God came to us could we speak of one Lord, with one faith, and with one common language — the language of love. That is why all the people were able to understand one another when the Holy Spirit came down upon them in Jerusalem, and they were amazed: “We hear (all these people) speaking in our own tongues of the mighty acts of God.” Everyone understands love. God is love.
It is my prayer that the Holy Spirit will continue to guide, strengthen, and renew us as individuals and, together, as God’s holy Church. With the Holy Spirit abiding with us, we must also speak of the mighty acts of God, no matter if our mother tongue is English, Spanish, Latin, or Swahili. Our actions must always tell others in language that is both simple and profound that God abides with us.
Have a blessed week everyone — may it be Spirit-filled and Spirit-guided.