Happy Birthday, Christians. Today, the Feast of the Pentecost, is the birthday of the Church. So, Happy Birthday to all you baptized members. May the coming year bring us closer to the Lord and to each other, and in doing so enable us to offer brighter light and stronger salt in our troubled world.
Fr. Paul Scalia has recently written that the Pentecostal event was a reparative antidote to the fractionalization that had occurred at the Tower of Babel. As recorded in Genesis man’s hubris then resulted in the division of one language into many so that communication and community among men were no longer impossible. Contrariwise, when the apostles received the Holy Spirit they addressed the multilingual multitude within their hearing in one language but were understood by all. The seeds of comprehension had been planted as had the seeds of unity. Comprehension and unity: two foundational Pentecostal gifts!
When the Holy Spirit descended on the apostles as they gathered for that Pentecost it is significant that it ‘inspired’ them as a group. While the gift of faith maybe received individually it is to be guarded, treasured and nurtured corporately. We are individual souls, to be sure, but as St. Paul reminds us we are members of one body, the Mystical Body of Christ. When Jesus speaks of the Spirit in John’s Gospel he speaks of ‘Spirit and Truth’. One Spirit radiates one Truth. While faith may manifest itself in many ways it is itself integral. Because of its integrity faith is necessarily unifying.
And, faith fosters comprehension. Fides quaerens intellectum. It is appropriate to remind ourselves of this dictum of St. Anselm in the twelfth century. Ours is not a choice between ‘rationalism’ and ‘fideism’. Rather, faith seeks understanding and, finding it, transforms it into response. Response is ministry and – St. Paul again – there are different forms of ministry prompted by the response to faith.
We at the National Catholic Community Foundation recognize philanthropy as one such form of ministry. Since our inception over twenty years ago we have accommodated the philanthropic endeavors of donors from all fifty states in the country and we consider ourselves blessed to be able to provide this service. On this Feast of Pentecost we celebrate the gifts of unity and comprehension we share with all who aspire to advance the Kingdom.