There is something different at Mass on Pentecost. After the second reading, and before we sing the Alleluia for the Gospel reading, we first sing together a special prayer hymn called the Pentecost Sequence. Unfortunately, we usually sing a version of it these days, but if your parish uses missalettes, the original hymn should be found there with the readings. This Sequence is a prayer to the Holy Spirit. It begins by picturing us separated spatially from God: Come, Holy Spirit … from your celestial home. Jesus had told his disciples, as he prepared them for his death, that he would not leave them orphans. The Spirit is his gift to them and us, we who are pilgrims on our journeys through life to eternity. The Pentecost Sequence names this accompanying Spirit as ray of light divine, Father of the poor, source of all we have, our best comforter, our soul’s guest, sweet refreshment, rest most sweet, coolness in the heat, solace in the midst of woe. Which of those descriptions fits a spiritual need of yours right now? The sequence also asks the Spirit to heal our wounds, renew our strength, pour dew on our dryness, bend our stubborn hearts, and bring us to salvation and joys that never end. This prayer hymn has been part of our Catholic Pentecost Mass for centuries. It is a prayer for spiritual lives in the real world, and so it has persisted. “As the Father has sent me, so I send you,” Jesus said to his apostles in today’s Gospel; “receive the Holy Spirit.” Pentecost asks us to renew our commitment also to be sent. Perhaps we really ought to sing this prayer hymn at the end of Mass as we leave our churches to begin another day in missionary territory!
— Blog by Sister Mary Garascia
The post May 24, Pentecost, Sent Forth: a Sunday Scriptures blog first appeared on Sisters of the Precious Blood.