6th Week of Easter : Tuesday 19th May 2020

In our onging reading of the Acts of the Apostles today, we learn of the evangelization of Philippi, of the imprisonment of Paul and Silas as a consequence, and their miraculous release. But more important in our text today is the story of the jail warden’s conversion and his baptism together with his whole household, a story that fits well within the Easter season when we welcome the newly baptized into the Church. Our Gospel again focuses our attention on Jesus’ promise to send the Holy Spirit – the Church’s way of helping us to prepare for the celebration of the Feast of Pentecost.

Today’s passage assures us that Jesus’ Spirit will remain with us to guide us to face the challenges of being a Christian in the World. While the World convicted Jesus, the lives of the disciples, as directed by the Spirit, will reveal by their truthfuness, justice, and goodness that Jesus was indeed from above and that it is the World that stands condemned for refusing to accept Jesus for who he was. When we live in the Spirit of Jesus, our lives should reflect to the while world the Gospel that he preached and the love which he practiced. As we prepare for the great celebration of Pentecost, let us pray for an outpouring of the Spirit upon us and the Church, that the Lord may continue to be revealed through the way in which we live our lives.

Send forth Your Spirit, O Lord, that the face of the earth be renewed.