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Gospel Reading for May 24, 2026 – John : 19-23
SUSTAINS LIFE
Pentecost Sunday
On the evening of that first day of the week, when the doors were locked, where the disciples were, for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood in their midst and said to them, “Peace be with you.” When he had said this, he showed them his hands and his side. The disciples rejoiced when they saw the Lord. Jesus said to them again, “Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, so I send you.” And when he had said this, he breathed on them and said to them, “Receive the Holy Spirit. Whose sins you forgive are forgiven them, and whose sins you retain are retained.”
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After Jesus ascended to the Father, the apostles returned to the upper room to pray together with Mother Mary and the other women disciples while waiting for the coming of the Holy Spirit, just as Jesus had instructed them (Acts 1:4–5).
Without the Holy Spirit, it would have been very difficult for the faith to remain alive after Jesus ascended to the Father. Without the Holy Spirit, how could the apostles have overcome the many challenges they faced as they began the mission Christ entrusted to them? Indeed, without the Holy Spirit, it would be impossible to continue Christ’s salvific mission to the whole world.
The Holy Spirit is like the electricity a lamp needs in order to shine, or like the wind that propels a sailboat toward its destination. Yet, unlike electricity or wind, the Holy Spirit is not merely a force or source of power. The Holy Spirit is God—the Third Person of the Holy Trinity—who SUSTAINS LIFE and bestows upon us the gifts of Wisdom, Understanding, Counsel, Fortitude, Knowledge, Piety, and Fear of the Lord, together with all the graces we need to remain faithful to God and to live according to his image and likeness.
How blessed we are that the Holy Spirit continues to remain with us even to this very day!
Come, Holy Spirit, we need you!
