331. Pentecost and how it relates to today

Be forewarned, this is a religiously entrenched entry, but it is about living together mutually respecting each others differences and similarities.

Today in the calendar of the Church, the Feast of Pentecost is celebrated, marking the 50th day past Easter, and according to Scripture and tradition, the date of the founding of the Church as it was on this day that the Holy Spirit, the third entity in the Holy Trinity was sent down by Jesus upon his disciples. Pentecost, like many other Christian celebrations, finds its roots in other older tradition, that of the Jews, marking the giving of the Law on Mount Sinai on the 50th day after their departure from Egypt. There is something called shavout, which I will admit I do not understand which is analogous to Pentecost. And, it is likely the Jewish feast is itself based on some older tradition. There really is nothing new under the sun.

But I like Pentecost for other reasons. I am a fan of the Arthurian Romances, the stories handed down over the years pertaining to a semi-mythical leader from 5th century Britain - King Arthur, the Knights of the Round Table, and especially Prince Merlin, who was said to have been born upon the Autumnal Equinox, as was I. King Arthur's annual big backyard party, complete with fatted calves, lots of wine, jousting tournaments, and the eventual search for the Questing Beast and the Holy Grail, was held each Pentecost. It was on the Feast of Pentecost, or Whitsunday as it is called in old Britain, that Arthur held a Plenary Court inviting all the knights and ladies, kings and princes, and other petty officers from throughout the land to his court. There they could visit, catch up on old news, find out who is a new father or mother, and learn any other news from both the neighboring kingdoms as well as the foreigners across the Channel or the Irish Sea.

But there is another even more important reason I like Pentecost, and one which is important in today's multicultural, multiracial world - the readings assigned to it in the Lectionary, the Church's three year cycle of Bible readings.

This morning I attended the 8:30 AM mass at Holy Family. Arriving about 8:00, there were great clouds and strong winds, appropriate weather for today's first reading taken from the Book of Acts.

Acts 2: 1-11
When the day of Pentecost had come, they were all together in one place. And suddenly a sound came from heaven like the rush of a mighty wind, and it filled all the house where they were sitting. And there appeared to them tongues as of fire, distributed and resting on each one of them. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance.

Now there were dwelling in Jerusalem Jews, devout men from every nation under heaven. And at this sound the multitude came together, and they were bewildered, because each one heard them speaking in his own language. And they were amazed and wondered, saying, "Are not all these who are speaking Galileans? And how is it that we hear, each of us in his own native language? Parthians and Medes and Elamites and residents of Mesopotamia, Judea and Cappadocia, Pontus and Asia, Phrygia and Pamphylia, Egypt and the parts of Libya belonging to Cyrene, and visitors from Rome, both Jews and proselytes, Cretans and Arabians, we hear them telling in our own tongues the mighty works of God."

My point here is this. Even 2000 years ago, men (and women, even though they aren't mentioned) of different cultures, races, and ethnicities found themselves living, working, playing, and probably procreating with each other on a regular basis. They spoke different languages, they lived by different codes and mores, they followed different leaders, and they ate different foods. But, on this occasion at Jerusalem as the Holy Spirit descended upon this motley crew of seemingly different people, the Spirit didn't divide them into groups of white or black or brown or yellow, or of rich or poor, or of gay or straight, or of men or women, or of Obama-followers and Hillary-followers, or Democrats or Republican or Libertarians, or even of blog-readers and blog non-readers. The God of Abraham and Isaac and David and Isaiah and of Jesus and Matthew and Mark and Luke and John, and even of Paul (about whom I have reservations) - this God draws no lines in the sand. We are all one people, the people of God. Paul himself makes this argument to the people of Christ about 20 years after Jesus' death writing in the Book of Galatians, at Chapter 3, Verses 28 and 29:

There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free person, there is not male and female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus. And if you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham's descendant, heirs according to the promise.

I don't really like quoting Paul a lot. I complain often that the Christianity preached by some modern-day right-wing Christian people is too based in some of the prejudices of Paul and not based enough in the simple words of Jesus Christ, who reduced all of the law (which is to say all of the Old and New Testaments) into Two Great Commandments, first to love God, and then to love each other.

It is this very simple theology, whether one wants to call it Christianity or any other name, that assures me that my very liberal beliefs about people, my acceptance of others from different races, cultures, socio-economic backgrounds, religions, and even political philosophies, puts me clearly on the right side of God. I believe that.

And in these closing days of this year's presidential Primary season, when I hear code words on talk radio here and there, when I see cartoons depicting one or the other candidate with exaggerated features, or when I get emails questioning someone about their ties to Muslims while simultaneously attacking the same person over the views of their very Protestant (former) pastor who served in both the United States Marines and the U. S. Navy, it is in these times I am thankful that the words from the Book of Acts tells us the Holy Spirit doesn't discriminate. Perhaps, to be good Christians, or more broadly, to be good people, we shouldn't either.