Today the Church celebrates the Memorial of the Immaculate Heart of Mary. The closing prayer in today’s Liturgy of the Hours offers, “Father, you prepared the heart of the Virgin Mary to be a fitting home for your Holy Spirit. By her prayers, may we become a worthy temple of your glory.” There’s something to contemplate. Are we mindful that we are called to be temples where the Holy Spirit dwells? Are we mindful of the implications of living a life worthy of that indwelling? …. and a whole lot more packed into that short closing prayer.
I thought it might be helpful to provide some background on the symbolism/meaning of Scripture’s use of “temple” and “indwelling” of the Holy Spirit. Continue reading
In our Pentecost Sunday gospel, as noted in yesterday’s post, to the disciples gathered in the Upper Room on that first Easter evening Jesus first words were: “Peace be with you.” His second words were: “As the Father has sent me, so I send you.” His thirds words were “Receive the Holy Spirit.” What had been promised in many ways in John 13-17, is now fulfilled in the giving of the Spirit. It also marks a turning point in salvation history as a fulfillment of the prophets, not just that the Messiah would come, but that the Messiah would begin the eschaton, the final era when the Kingdom of God would become manifest – and the future become present.
Ever since the shift to daylight savings began my “inner alarm clock” wakes me up somewhere between 3:00 and 3:30 am. I am used to early rising, but really. And yes, naps are required at point(s) during the day. I was chatting about this yesterday with a friend who remarked, “You know, my 90 year-old aunt has the same problem…” Yikes! My new measure is one of even-more-senior citizens? Oh well, I am still young at heart. 
This weekend I was in the back of the church and saw that the Lenten Giving Tree was still up, with unclaimed tags dangling on the barren branches. Apparently, it has been weeks since I have been in the back of the church. My world has gotten so much smaller. I wondered what else was back there as a reminder of a time before pandemic. There were copies of the bulletin for the Fourth Sunday of Lent. And here we are now at the Fourth Sunday of Easter. Things change. It is inevitable. It is the way of things. 
friarmusings 