Pentecost Sunday 23.5.10 Steady progress
Receiving the Holy Spirit can manifest itself in different ways. In the case of the apostles they were filled with great enthusiasm and went out to proclaim the Gospel to a large audience.
It does not follow that each Christian is meant to do that on every Pentecost Sunday.
We are not all called to such a public role, nor does enthusiasm always require such an expression.
It may be the Holy Spirit will come quietly sometimes and work inside a person in a way that is not visible to the public but will be noticed by the person concerned: for example, providing help to overcome a certain addiction; or the grace to forgive someone who has caused offence; or to move the person to greater generosity.
What is required is complete openness to the working of the Spirit so that each of us will respond exactly as He wishes. In this way He is able (as St Paul explains in 1 Corinthians 12-14) to animate the Body of Christ with each member doing whatever is most needed for the good of the whole Body.
Also needed is consistency, so that at all times we are doing whatever is required whether it be public and spectacular, or humble and hidden.
As with ordinary life - where most of what we do is routine, nothing startling - so in the Christian life we are not called everyday to martyrdom or to work miracles, but we are called every day to be kind, charitable, humble, obedient etc.
Steady-as-she-goes is the message. We do not try to set the world on fire but we very likely will do that if we maintain a consistent responsiveness to the workings of the Holy Spirit.
Humility goes without saying. We are not seeking self-aggrandisement. We are not looking for personal glory. It is all for the team, the overall result.
We are careful not to overdo things or let the fire of early enthusiasm burn out too quickly. Sometimes on being converted some disciples throw themselves into everything but after meeting obstacles of some kind will abandon the cause. We have to be stronger than that.
If we hear of certain saints that they did great things and endured heavy penances we may want to do the same things, but what made them saints was not their miracles so much as the fact that they also would have pursued a steady daily course, getting the little things right as well as the big ones.
Even the great saints would have spent much of their time doing ordinary things. They would have got those things right, treating other people well, guarding against anger, jealousy, lust and so on.
These days we often hear of public figures involved in scandals: routinely someone seems to be falling from grace. We are reminded that the interior life of a person does not always match the exterior.
It is much easier to have the outside right than the inside. Anyone can have a wash and put on fresh clothes. But meanwhile the inside can be full of corruption. (cf the Pharisees)
The Holy Spirit will help us achieve the interior holiness which is so necessary for our own good and the life of the Church.
It is easy to be thought good by others; our task is to be as good as people say we are. (Think of all those speeches they will be making at your funeral.)
What makes all this manageable is that we can take small steps. We don’t have to conquer the world in one day, just conquer one or two of our own faults.
The more right we can get our own individual selves the better for the whole Church. Every day let us call on the Holy Spirit to work in us, on us, and through us.
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