Discussion Questions

First Reading

Acts 2:1-11

F1. The disciples were just an insignificant group only minutes before, cowering behind locked doors. Suddenly they were filled with power, speaking with great courage and freedom “and in different tongues, as the Spirit enabled them.” Can you explain the birth of the Church in terms of this reading? Was the Church “astounding” on the first Pentecost? How can/could it “astound” today?

F2. Did the Holy Spirit come only once in history, as in the upper room? Or do you see the Holy Spirit as dynamic and constant in all life? How were the disciples different after the Spirit’s arrival? Are you confident that the Spirit is with you? Will the Spirit work through you in some way to change things that need changing: Climate crisis? Hunger? Immigration? Racial bias? Trafficking?

Second Reading

1 Corinthians 12:3b-7, 12-13

S1. Were Vivaldi and Michelango given gifts solely for their own pleasure? “To each individual the manifestation of the Spirit is given for some benefit.” Fot whose benefit were they given? What are your gifts and for what benefit were they given to you and those around you?

S2. St. Alphonsus Rodriguez was a Jesuit Brother (1533-1617) whose job for forty years was doorkeeper of the Jesuit College in Majorca. Would his spiritual gift of service compare to that of St. Francis Xavier, who converted whole countries? How?

Gospel

John 20:19-23; or John 15:26-27; 16:12-15

G1. Jesus “breathed” on them. How does this relate to Genesis 2:7: “God formed man of dust from the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life?” What significance does this have for you? How important is the Holy Spirit in your life?

G2. According to Pope Francis, what is the Paraclete telling the Church today?

Let us go another step. We too are called to testify in the Holy Spirit, to become paracletes, comforters. The Spirit is asking us to embody the comfort he brings.

How can we do this? Not by making great speeches, but by drawing near to others. Not with trite words, but with prayer and closeness. Let us remember that closeness, compassion and tenderness are God’s “trademark,” always. The Paraclete is telling the Church that today is the time for comforting. It is more the time for joyfully proclaiming the Gospel than for combatting paganism. It is the time for bringing the joy of the Risen Lord, not for lamenting the drama of secularization.

It is the time for pouring out love upon the world, yet not embracing worldliness. It is the time for testifying to mercy, more than for inculcating rules and regulations. It is the time of the Paraclete! It is the time of freedom of heart, in the Paraclete.

Pope Francis Pentecost Homily
May 23, 2021
Fourth paragraph

Anne Osdieck
 

**From Saint Louis University