Daily gospel

Father Csaba’s reflection on the gospel Tuesday 8 May 2018…

"it is to your advantage that I go away, for if I do not go away, the Advocate will not come to you” John 16, 5

Our Mother the Church started our preparation for the beautiful feast of Pentecost ! The readings of the mass these days open up for us the beautiful features of the Holy Spirit . In today’s gospel the Holy Spirit  is featured for us as Jesus Christ’s present for us :” if I go I’ll send Him to you !”From a Wonderful Giver of Gifts , a wonderful Gift.I think , that this blessed Gift of Jesus Christ , the blessed “ package” has not been opened by very many of us . We know He exists. perhaps many of us have been confirmed , but somehow He is within us like the unstirred sugar in a teacup. The Holy Spirit is within us but He has not become part of our daily life . How could we open up , stir up  for our lives this precious present giving our lives sweetness ? How could we meet in our everyday lives with the living, personal third part of the Holy Trinity ?

During the first years of the Saint Francis foundation I often said : “Lets ensure a wide space for God’s caring , kind hearted love “, what I meant was that lets dare whole heartedly  to rely on God , lets dare to say yes to all those tasks in His name to which , God’s Holy Spirit calls us. One can only sit securely on a bike whilst it is in motion , because  if our the two wheeled vehicle slows down , stops then we also tip over, fall off the bicycle . We can walk together with the Holy Spirit on the way of active love . Our everyday creative, fast-moving world , making it better and more beautiful , on the way of active love the Holy Spirit will be our partner to motivate, strengthen , help us and if we are partners in the further creation of the world then He will reveal His secrets more and more, before us from day to day. The  timid, stationary spirit incapable to act will topple as it cannot experience the soaring that is given to those who trust in the world forming power of the Holy Spirit. In September 1993 under the ruins of the collapsed communism we were very poor and it looked very bleak from a monastery in ruins ( that was only returned to us ten years later by the Romanian state ) to start a child protection home. Not only were we short on the financial means , but the laws of Romanian state were not ready either to take a step like this. . There was nothing except the hungry , dirty children , but I could sense with incredible force, the power of the Spirit that not only moved me, but took me along the way of serving love . The taking in, accepting one or more dirty children was the triumph of living faith over fear . We were treading on sharp stones but the Holy Spirit guided us not to bash our feet against the stone . It was awesome to see Divine Providence as the protector of the orphans to take care of everything , upon the calling of the Spirit people appeared from nowhere to help us financially , with their work , lives hurrying to the aid of children in trouble . The active love undertaken humbly not only opens a wide space for Divine Providence , but also brings the third person of the Holy Trinity among us. Yes, if you desire to meet with the Holy Spirit set out humbly on the way of merciful love and He will most probably walk by your side .One can soar with the Holy Spirit, but cower frightened, sadly most certainly not! 

With love ,

Father Csaba,

translated by dr k.e.

Two of my colleagues who gave everything for the service of God’s orphans.

Jesus said, 'Now I am going to him who sent me; yet none of you asks me, "Where are you going?" But because I have said these things to you, sorrow has filled your hearts. Nevertheless, I tell you the truth: it is to your advantage that I go away, for if I do not go away, the Advocate will not come to you; but if I go, I will send him to you. And when he comes, he will prove the world wrong about sin and righteousness and judgement: about sin, because they do not believe in me; about righteousness, because I am going to the Father and you will see me no longer; about judgement, because the ruler of this world has been condemned.'

John 16:5-11