c29Last Pentecost ~ November 25, 2007 ~ A sermon preached by The Rev’d Erl G. Purnell at Old St. Andrew’s Church, Bloomfield, CT
Jeremiah 23.1-6; Psalm 46; Colossians 1.11-20; Luke 23.35-43
Do you remember where you were on May 27th? It was a Sunday. It was also the fiftieth day after Easter. May 27th was Pentecost Sunday in 2007.
Pentecost. This is the festival that celebrates the “birth of the church” through the power of the Holy Spirit. Pentecost means the fiftieth day. In the old Jewish tradition, a harvest festival was held on the fiftieth day following the Passover. After Jesus was killed, his friends were at the festival of Pentecost in Jerusalem. Suddenly a sound like the rushing of wind came upon them and filled the house they were in. Just as suddenly, or so the story goes, something like tongues of fire appeared over each of their heads. The wind and the fire were understood to fulfill the words of the prophet Joel (2.28-29):
Then afterward I will pour out my spirit on all flesh;
your sons and your daughters shall prophesy,
your old men shall dream dreams,
and your young men shall see visions.
Even on the male and female slaves,
in those days, I will pour out my spirit.
This episode empowered Jesus’ disciples to proclaim the Good News about the risen Christ. So, they all went into the streets of Jerusalem and started talking about Jesus, but strangely, in all different languages so everyone who was there could understand what was being said. The scriptural rendition of that particular Pentecost reported quite a sensation among the thousands who were there and so, ever since, Pentecost has been marked as the birth of the Church.
So, why in the world am I talking about the Day of Pentecost when today is the Last Sunday in the season following Pentecost and next Sunday is Advent?
In the Christian calendar, we actually celebrate two births. The birth of the Church and the birth of Jesus. The former cannot come without the latter. As the season of Pentecost ends, we begin to anticipate the birth of Jesus. Curiously, we wait twenty-five days—one half the time from Easter to Pentecost—for the nativity. Today—Last Pentecost—is kind of a hinge day. It’s the day we look back from whence we’ve come just as we look forward to where we’re going.
With the establishment of the Church, the entire Jesus story changed. It shifted from Jesus’ real life in real time to a remembered life gone bye. As I’ve said many, many times, the story of Jesus—and the story of the Church—are not pure history remembered. What we have now are remnants of facts woven into and amidst the faith and liturgy of those Jewish people who were so deeply touched by “their” Jesus, how he lived his life, and the effect he had on them.
What may have happened on the Pentecost after Jesus’ crucifixion is less important than what the images depicted in the story mean. Was there really a rushing wind? Did tongues of fire really alight on the heads of the disciples? Could they really speak many different languages that afternoon? Maybe. Maybe not. But, the message the writers wanted to convey was clear: the Good News is available to all peoples and here it is.
With Pentecost, we learn that the experience of Jesus needs be a universal experience. What a joy to know that the spirit of God—the Holy Spirit—is present to all people everywhere and for ever! Pentecost is meant to inspire the followers of Jesus—and those who later come to know him—to live in a very bold and particular way. The Church is not about belief. The Church is about living life with generosity, compassion, forgiveness, justice and love. And isn’t that what we’ve tried to be about since May 27th?
So too, what actually happened at the birth of Jesus—whenever and wherever that may have been—is far less important than what Luke (and Matthew) wants us to understand through the brilliant images—of angels, shepherds, the manger, the Star—images that wash across the canvas of his gospel. What the gospellers are saying is that the presence of Jesus in the world is significant. Jesus matters. Pay attention.
As we enter Advent once more, we awaken to the awareness of Jesus’ impending birth and all that that can and does mean. In the spirit of our recent studies about how Buddhist practices can make us better Christians, this is a time to heighten your consciousness in the present moment, this moment of waiting and anticipation. Listen to your own breathing as you meditate on the very first breaths a child takes. Can you let go of your anxiety and the stress from the commercial onslaught, and replace it with a knowing in your heart that all is well, that you are well? Can you meditate on what it means to you that Jesus comes into the world?
Next Sunday Advent begins. We go into the darkest weeks of the year. We let go of the fall and begin to live into the winter. The coming season is a season of self-reflection. We have so much going on around this parish from now until Christmas, won’t you please use the next four weeks well. Perhaps begin the celebration of Jesus’ birth by giving gifts to the children at Ècole le Bon Samaritain and supporting the Bloomfield family we’ll adopt for Christmas; by coming to the Christmas Boutique next weekend and joining our Community Crèche Carol Sing on December 16th; in your worship, at the Lessons & Carols Service on the 23rd, and, of course, at our Christmas Eve Service … which, I’ve noticed, is once again this year on December 24th.
Amen.
Copyright © 2007. Erl G. Purnell
All rights reserved.
