7th Sunday of Easter
Acts1:12-14; Ps 27; 1 Peter 4:13-16; Jn 17:1-11
If we go to the arrival area of any bus or train station, or the arrival lounge of an airport, we will feel the air of anticipation, tinged with a bit of anxiety as well. Awaiting the arrival of someone we’re looking forward to meet can evoke within us many thoughts and feelings ranging from anxiety (‘What if the reunion goes badly or the other person is in a bad mood?’) to joyful hope (‘It’s been so long and I’m truly joyful to be able to meet this person again.’) Some even go so far as to say that the feeling of anticipation is a defence mechanism of sorts, preparing ourselves for possible disappointments while keeping the hope always within us.
We’re within this season of anticipation right now, as we celebrated the Ascension some days ago while looking forward to the coming of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost. At the Ascension, we’re sent on mission to bring the Good News to all creation, but like the disciples, we sometimes don’t feel sufficiently prepared for that role. That’s where Pentecost comes to the fore as we’re promised the Advocate, the Comforter, the Holy Spirit who will come to give all the gifts and strength necessary to go on the mission we’ve received. The time between the Ascension and Pentecost is this time of anticipation, a mini-Advent of sorts where we prepare ourselves for the mission that is to come.
Anticipation as preparation for mission is very evident in the apostles joined in constant prayer with our Blessed Mother (1st Reading) – they witnessed the Ascension of the Lord and returned to pray, growing in understanding of what he meant when he spoke about the sending of the Holy Spirit. Anticipation that is bolstered by prayer is one that focuses on preparing our hearts for a privileged encounter with God, and in this case, it is us encountering the Holy Spirit who will strengthen and accompany. This isn’t quite the defence mechanism sort of anticipation more than a positive hopeful preparation that opens us, as a community for greater possibilities that the Holy Spirit brings.
This positive and hopeful preparation lies at the heart of the beautiful prayer that we hear in the Gospel, of Jesus showing a profound closeness with his Father, asking that the fullness of glory may be shown through him. This prayer acknowledges that the glory is to be anticipated, that there’s still the passion and death that is to come before the glorification. It shows a very trusting and hopeful anticipation, trusting because Jesus knows of the absolute love of the Father and hopeful because he is confident of the glorification despite the struggles to come. Our own anticipation of the coming of the Holy Spirit should thus come with this trust and hope, knowing that we too are bound for glory if we keep faith in the Lord.
This trust and hope that underpins our anticipation is very much real. We are comforted by Jesus’s prayer for us, for us to accept and live his teachings as we belong fully to him and the Father. This confidence helps us to stay on track on our mission, to withstand the storms and struggles that we hear in the 2nd Reading, while being grateful to be called Christian. Anticipation ends in the encounter, knowing that the need for trust and hope does not end with the descent of the Holy Spirit, nor does the reception of the Holy Spirit’s gifts means that we sit back and relax. We’re called to live the real lives of joy, hope and trust, sharing this with others, glorifying God with who we are.
Some say that waiting strengthens our faith and desire, so let us ask for the grace to anticipate Pentecost with trust and hope, confident of the Lord’s presence with us as we seek always to do his will.
musings of a brush 