| Today we continue with the the Holy Spirit's part in the fellowship of the church. The Church's first relation to the Holy Spirit is the epiklesis, the persevering invocation of the Spirit, with the plea for its coming. This goes along with our opening of ourselves to the coming of its energies into our common and our our personal life. And so when we say "Come, Holy Spirit" in the context of the weekly Eucharistic prayer, we are "making a plea" that the the Spirit will come and shape us and make us the ones that we are - followers of Jesus. Yes, they may be sung or spoken as part of the rest of the "words" of the Eucharistic liturgy, but they are not merely words. They are among us as our desires of our hearts for the wholeness of God's presence that makes from a gathering of ordinary people - a gathering of saints whose lives are to be knit together by this power for life. With this simple plea, the world is tipped upside down because we each become connected to the other - no matter who that other may be. There is in that wonderful "coming" a life full of surprises and joy. Connection: When we pray, we pray with the expectation that our God is present in the midst of the prayers of the people. So, to call forth this power is a vulnerable action. We are saying - bring it on, O God, bring on your Reign. Bring on your Reign and the power of the wind of life that is able to build a life together when could not see how life would make itself available to us. Amen. |
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