Endings and Beginnings

Endings and Beginnings

Gospel for the Feast of Pentecost: John 20.10-23

Where does the time go? It seems that we had just begun the Easter season and here we are at the end- the glorious feast of Pentecost!

The time has surely slipped by. If you have been a follower of this blog, you'll have noticed the gap- my last post was May 5th! I have to admit that the beautiful change in the season, and all the work on the acreage has kept me away from writing, but certainly not from reflecting. The groaning of creation as we have finally ended winter's cold heralds rebirth and recreation.

And so it was with the Apostles. Huddled in the upper room and shivering from the cold of despair and hopelessness, their Lord comes to them! He "stood among them" offering his peace- the peace the world cannot give. 

He breathes upon them the breath of new life. The breath of the Holy Spirit.

Fear ends. Hope springs forth. And the Church begins!!

We celebrate we prayer, praise and song, calling for an end to our own despair and hopelessness, as we call on the Holy Spirit to "renew the face of the earth."

It is a new beginning for us. "As the Father has sent me, so I send you."

As parents, teachers, and communities of faith, we are summoned by Christ to end our isolation and selfishness, and enter into a new life of community and self-giving. Above all, we are to share our faith with all, especially our children.

Let us begin today, modeling for others the joy and peace that comes from a life in the Trinity. Let us work for justice and peace in our homes and in our world. For as the Holy Spirit set upon the apostles, so we through our baptism have inherited a new life.

Let us begin, with the power of the Spirit, to "renew the face of the earth".

Ending this blog, and beginning a new one in the fall.

Thanks to all who have read and commented on my blog for the past couple of years. I hope it has helped to deepen your life in Christ as we reflected together on the Sunday Gospels, and how it impacts our daily lives. 

Come September I will be starting a new blog with a new theme. I'm calling it "Growing Forward" which was the theme  Alberta Catholic School Trustees' Catholic Education Symposium this year. I have written a document on the symposium for them, but I would like to use the blog to expand on some of the key issues in Catholic education, and on Catholic educational leadership in particular. The address will be mikemarien@blogspot.com. Hope you can join in the conversation, and share the blogspot with others who would be interested in imagining the future of Catholic education in Alberta.

Blessings and Peace

Michael