Come Holy Spirit
“Come, Holy Spirit, come!” So begins the Sequence we hear at Mass on Pentecost Sunday invoking the Spirit to come upon us and refresh our weary hearts.
A Sequence is a rare occurrence in the liturgy. It is sung routinely only twice a year, on Easter Sunday and on Pentecost Sunday. The Sequence, a special type of hymn, is linked to the Gospel Acclamation of the day and has been in use since the 13th century. It builds upon the verse of the Acclamation and serves to extend the Alleluia. Historically it was sung just before the final Alleluia but in the modern format of the liturgy, the Sequence proceeds the Alleluia thus now provides a moment of contemplative meditation on the mystery of the day (something emphasised by the seated congregation who only stand at the completion of the Sequence to welcome the Gospel.)
In Rome at the Pantheon this moment is marked by the release of thousands of red rose petals scattered from the oculus by some of the city’s firemen. The petals symbolise the descent of the Holy Spirit and are rather more gentle and fragrant than the tongues of fire we hear about in the Acts of the Apostles. The contrasting images of the flame and the petals, however, serve the scene well. On the one hand, the Spirit is sent from God to light in us the fire of his love so that we may burn with desire to bear witness to Christ across all the nations and defend the faith in the face of adversity. On the other hand, the gentle flutter of the petals as they fall over the congregation emphasises that the Spirit rains down upon us as a gift which invites communion with God and that it is not forced upon us. We are free to hold out our hand and capture the petals and allow them (the Holy Spirit) to transform us and bind us to Jesus, or we might choose rather to brush them from our heads and shoulders and walk away cold and unchanged.
What is clear from the abundance of petals is that the Spirit falls on every one of us regardless of culture, class, or age. The Holy Spirit is sent to unify the world and tear down barriers between people, binding them by the same profession of the triune God. The Church is a house in which every person can find a place. From her inception the Church speaks all languages and lives among all people in the most diverse social contexts. Pentecost, therefore, brings about unity and understanding where division and alienation dwelt before.
Just as the Apostles were sent out at Pentecost, to take the fire of the Spirit to the far corners of the world, we too are called to go out and proclaim the Good News to all creation. So let us pray together as one voice: "Come, Holy Spirit, fill the hearts of your faithful and kindle in them the fire of your love. Amen.”