The Nazareth Page  - A gospel meditation for your home

May 24, 2026 – Pentecost Sunday  - John 20:19-23

REFLECTION QUESTIONS:
Download this simple process to Prepare for Sunday using the Observe, Judge, Act Method

One of my earliest memories was when I went outside on a cold day in northern Indiana and saw my breath. I initially thought it was smoke, but after mentioning this to my mom, she informed my it was just my breath. Eventually I learned about water vapor and the process of water changing to ice, and the mystery of it all was set aside. But one lasting result was the matter of breathing. I came to know that it was necessary in keeping me alive. Especially during a time when while playing football and I received a body blow to my stomach, and the wind was knocked out of me. For a moment, I was really frightened.

Today we recall the time when Jesus, having risen from the dead, breathed on his disciples and informed them that with that gesture he was releasing God’s Spirit into them. God’s presence and God’s life-giving power would be in them directing their future.  

Now, here we are, two thousand years later and the presence of God’s Spirit in us is still there. But does it matter to us? Do we even think about this? Here’s a suggestion. Take a breath, slowly and intentionally. Place your hand in front of your face and feel your breath against your hand. Then give thanks to God for sustaining your life in that moment.

Next, ask yourself if you have even felt God’s presence in you or around you?

Catholic theologians and writers have often commented that the Holy Spirit, given to us sacramentally and spiritually, is often the forgotten member of the Holy Trinity. The Spirit is part of the Creed and in the Sign of the Cross, but otherwise, unacknowledged.

Important, it is in the presence of the Holy Spirit that God now lives in us. God’s Spirit energizes every move we make, every new idea we have and every good deed we do. In fact, God’s Spirit is always with us, not as a disinterested bystander, but actively in all that we do.

Sadly, most attempts at portraying this divine presence imaginatively in art or music fail to do justice to this presence. In the church of my youth, there was a wonderful stain glass window that portrayed God the Father sitting next to God the Son with the Holy Spirit flying above them in the form of a dove. A bird! How does that suggest any importance to the role of the Spirit in our lives? I would not wait for the church to change what I consider a diminishment to the Holy Spirit’s role in history or in our personal lives. But maybe we can, starting with our own awareness of God’s Spirit in us.

David M. Thomas, PhD