Pentecost – The Feast of Human Dignity
 

“But the Advocate, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and remind you of everything I have told you. Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give it to you. Let not your hearts be troubled, and do not be afraid.”

John 16:7
 

“I tell you the truth: it is good for you that I am going away. For if I do not go away, the Advocate will not come to you; but if I go, I will send him to you.”

This year we celebrate Pentecost in June. One of my pupils once asked: ‘What on earth is the Holy Spirit? Who is that supposed to be?’ Be honest: do you really understand much about Pentecost? Perhaps the verses quoted from the Gospel of John will help you understand.

Jesus speaks of his departure (his death), and as a comfort he promises the Holy Spirit as a Helper (John 14:26), whose coming is to be better for his disciples – that is, for us – than his own remaining (John 16:7). This is difficult to understand and leaves his disciples – as well as us today – somewhat at a loss.

Allow me to try to open up a horizon of understanding with the help of the visual arts. The painting ‘First Steps’ by Vincent van Gogh (1890) depicts a farming family in the garden. The mother stands behind her young daughter, whom she is about to let go. The girl is taking her first steps towards her father. The farmer has paused his work – he has laid down his spade; a wheelbarrow stands to one side behind him – and has knelt on the ground. With his arms wide open, he looks at his daughter and seems to be calling: Come!

Jesus leaves us so that we may take his place on earth. He lets us go (like the mother letting go of her child in the picture) so that we may walk towards the Father on our own. Jesus departs because he does not want admirers, but needs people who will continue his mission in the world, who will follow his path on their own journey through life: the path of love, of peace, of orientation towards communion with God.

Every year, the Eastern European aid organisation Renovabis encourages parishes to hold a Pentecost Novena between Ascension Day and Pentecost. These nine days of prayer are meant to make us aware that the Spirit of God is at work in us and through us. We are invited to ask for this Holy Spirit, so that the world may be renewed and our lives transformed. This year’s theme for the Pentecost Novena is: ‘Full of Dignity’. Just as the child in the picture gains a special dignity by taking its first steps as an upright human being, so too are we Christians endowed with God’s dignity by walking in the footsteps of Jesus.

In the current global situation, human dignity is being trampled underfoot in many places. Those who grant human dignity to others, especially their opponents, show themselves worthy of being human themselves. It is not revenge, self-righteousness, wealth or power that lead to the Kingdom of God, but living, seeing and walking one’s own path with the attitude of Jesus – true to Jesus’ words: “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me” (Mark 8:34).

So this June, I invite you to pray for God’s Holy Spirit in your life.

Barbara Heitfeld