The Great and Holy Feast of Pentecost
Let us spiritually extol the grace of the Holy Spirit in spiritual hymns, since
spiritual grace has on this day shown upon us from heaven. Though our words are
too weak to express adequately the greatness of this grace, we shall praise its
power and activity to the extent of our abilities; for the Holy Spirit probes
all things, even the depths of divinity.
We are celebrating the day of Pentecost, the day of the Descent of the Holy
Spirit to the Apostles, the day of the hope of perfection, the end of expectation,
the longing for salvation, the fulfillment of prayer and the image of patience.
Today the Spirit Who acted to scatter the nations in the time of Heber has
formed tongues of fire among the Apostles. His action of old led to the
confusion of the nations, in order to restrain the will of man from its
brazenness and consequent chastisement; on this occasion, however, amidst fiery
tongues, the deeds wrought by the activity of the Holy Spirit served to
preserve us as recipients of preaching, in fulfillment of the will of God.
In the beginning the Spirit of God moved over the water, and later, in the time
of Christ, the same Holy Spirit of God rested upon him . Then He moved, and now
He rested, as being one in essence, equal in honor, ever-existent and unoriginate
together with the Father and the Son.
He Who by the flight of a dove over the waters of the Flood heralded fair
weather to Noah, the same Holy Spirit, by the sight of a dove at the waters of
the Jordan, showed the world the Sonship of Him Who was baptized. Moreover, the
Lord had a terrifying answer for those who dared to utter blasphemy against the
Holy Spirit:
“Whoever speaks blasphemy against the Holy Spirit, it shall not be forgiven
him, neither in this world, neither in the world to come.”
David, declaring his desire for this Holy Spirit, prayed to God, saying: “Cast
me not away from Thy presence, O Lord; and take not Thy Holy Spirit from me.”
As is well known, where He is absent, every sort of corruption sets in. Thus,
the Spirit of the Lord departed from Saul, and an evil spirit entered into him,
wherefore David said,
“Take not Thy Holy Spirit from me.”
This same Holy Spirit sanctified the prophets, instructed the apostles and
empowered the martyrs. This same Holy Spirit consecrated Isaiah, taught
Ezekiel and revealed the resurrection of the dead. As he says,
“The hand of the Lord was upon me, and carried me out in the spirit of the
Lord.”
This same Holy Spirit chose Jeremiah from his mother’s womb, and raised up
Daniel to deliver Susanna. As it is written,
“God raised up by the Holy Spirit a young youth, whose name was Daniel.”
David so loved the presence of this same Holy Spirit that he prayed to God,
saving,
“Thy Holy Spirit shall lead me in the land of uprightness.”
This same Holy Spirit of God came to dwell in the holy Virgin Mary, embracing
her with the communion of the Divine Word at the good pleasure of the Father,
and making her the Theotokos. Elizabeth, being filled with this same Holy
Spirit, understood that the Lord had come to her by means of the Virgin;
wherefore she said,
“And whence is this to me, that the Mother of my Lord should come to me?”
Zachariah, the father of John, was filled with the same Holy Spirit, whereby he
declared that the son born to him would be the prophet and forerunner of the
King Who was to come. John himself was also filled with the same Holy Spirit;
the eyes of his intellect were given light, and he beheld the heavens opened,
and the Holy Spirit hovering over Him Who was being baptized, Him Who baptized
with the Spirit and fire.
By the action of the same Holy Spirit, the Lord Himself, when He was giving His
Apostles His teaching in detail and strengthening their minds for the time of
His Passion, said to them:
“If I go not away, the Comforter will not come unto you.”
Moreover, revealing to them the Spirit’s consubstantial power, He said:
“When the Holy Spirit is come, Which proceedeth from the Father, He will guide
you into all truth.”
The holy Apostles waited expectantly for the coming of the power of this same
Holy Spirit; they waited together to be clothed with power from on high,
according to the commandment of the Lord, Who had said:
“Tarry ye in the city of Jerusalem, until ye be endued with power from on high;
for, behold, I shall send the promise of My Father upon you.”
And, as it is written,
“when the day of Pentecost was fully come, all the holy Apostles were assembled
with one accord in one place, and the Paraclete was sent to them under the
appearance of tongues of fire.”
Having received the abundant promise of the Father and the Holy Spirit, they
were strengthened, and they manifested Him Who was sent to them, His grace and
His power. The martyr and protodeacon Stephen, filled with the same Holy
Spirit, Whom he received by the laying-on of hands of the Apostles, did great
wonders and miracles among the people. Being full of the Holy Spirit, he saw
the doors of heaven opened and the Only-begotten Son and Word of God standing
in the flesh at the right hand of the power of God. Filled with this same Holy
Spirit, Paul became the preacher of divine mysteries. As Ananias said to him:
“The Lord, even the Savior, hath sent me to thee, that thou mightest receive
thy sight, and be filled with the Holy Spirit.”
And Paul afterwards said with assurance:
“And I think also that I have the Spirit of God.”
The same Holy Spirit came to Cornelius and those that were to be baptized with
him, and each of them spoke in his own tongue and magnified God. This same Holy
Spirit came upon the Ethiopian eunuch after he went down into the water [of
baptism], and he was filled with joy, and he went on his way rejoicing.
This is the same Holy Spirit Who preached by the prophets, Who gave
understanding to the apostles, Who spoke to men. He was given to them by the
Lord, and all their adversaries were not able to gainsay or resist Him. For, as
the Lord said,
“It is not ye that speak, but the Spirit of your Father Which speaketh in you.”
This Holy Spirit also ordains priests, consecrates churches, purifies altars,
perfects sacrifices and cleanses people of their sins. This Holy Spirit abides
with the godly, refines the righteous and guides kings. This same Holy Spirit
preserved the soul of Simeon, lengthening the time of his life and reversing
the rules of death, until the day when he beheld Him Who is the Redeemer of
life and death; for it had been promised unto him by the Holy Spirit, that he
should not see death before he had seen the Lord’s Christ.
It was the same Holy Spirit Who gave strength to Elijah, and Whose power Elisha
desired when he asked of Elijah:
“Let there be, I pray thee, a double portion of thy spirit upon me.”
This Holy Spirit enlightens souls and sanctifies bodies. It was the same Holy
Spirit Who descended upon the Apostles and filled them with divine wisdom.
Having received His gifts, they were all filled with the knowledge of God; not
only were they given divine knowledge, but also spiritual gifts.
Simon Magus, being a stranger to the Holy Spirit, fell to his perdition. As
Peter said to Simon:
“Thy money perish with thee, because thou hast desired to purchase the
priceless grace of the Holy Spirit with money.”
Therefore, beloved, let us strive to keep our bodies uncorrupted; for one who
has acquired a new body, which is a temple of the Holy Spirit, has become a
true victor over the devil. What the Spirit of God has said, may it be done
unto me.
Moreover, Joseph, strengthened by this same Holy Spirit, desired not that his
body be defiled by the vile deeds of this life; for he knew that the Spirit
does not abide in a body that has commerce with sin; therefore, he attained a
royal rank. This Spirit enlightened Bezaleel, so that he fashioned the
tabernacle with all beauty and skill. Joshua the son of Nun, possessing the
same Spirit, became a faithful heir to Moses and obtained the inheritance of
the Promised Land for his people. As God said to Moses:
“Take to thyself Joshua the son of Nun, a man who has the Spirit of God in
him.”
This is the Spirit of Whom the Lord, when He breathed upon His disciples after
His Resurrection from the dead on the third day, said:
“Receive ye the Holy Spirit.”
And again, it is the same Spirit Who has vouchsafed to give eternal life to the
faithful after the general resurrection from the dead. As it is written:
“Thou wilt send forth Thy Spirit, and they shall be created; and Thou shalt
renew the face of the earth.”
Many are the gifts of the Holy Spirit; many and all-powerful are His gifts.
As it says in a certain place: By the Word of the Lord were the heavens
established, and all the might of them by the Spirit of His mouth. And Isaiah
says:
“The Spirit of God shall rest upon him, the spirit of wisdom and understanding,
the spirit of counsel and strength, the spirit of knowledge and godliness.”
And Paul adds,
“The Spirit of adoption and of grace.”
He Who is equally ever-existent, and equally unoriginate, and Who shares the
throne and the honor of God, His Son and Word, called this Spirit the Spirit
Who is our Comforter. David calls Him the Holy Spirit, since the Holy Spirit is
sent by holiness; the governing Spirit, since He has dominion over all, because
all things came from Him and are kept in existence by Him; and the good Spirit,
since salvation and all kinds of goodness are from Him.
And what does Isaiah call Him? The Spirit of God, because He proceeds from God
the Father; thus does God Himself speak of the Spirit of God as proceeding, in
the words, Which proceedeth from the Father. Isaiah further calls Him the
Spirit of wisdom and understanding, because all wisdom and good understanding
have been given through Him; and the Spirit of counsel and strength, because He
is able to bring to pass that which is desired; and also the Spirit of
knowledge and godliness. Ezekiel, a man of the spirit, says:
“And I will give you a new heart and a new Spirit.”
He is one in essence, one in principle and one in counsel with the Father and
the Son. Wouldst thou believe? Listen to what the Scriptures say of Him:
“When He prepared the heaven, I was present with Him.”
The prophet further says:
“The Lord, and His Spirit hath sent me.”
Lest anyone think, from what was said, that this new Spirit would come from any
creatures living or yet to come, or from any other person, He says:
“And I will put My Spirit in you;”
inasmuch as He said,
“A new Spirit.”
In the Acts of the holy Apostles, this was expressed in commandments:
“The Holy Spirit said, ‘Separate me Barnabas and Saul for the work whereunto I
have called them.’”
And again,
“It seemed good to the Holy Spirit, and to us;”
even as it had been said,
“I will put My Spirit in you.”
Would you demonstrate that this was indeed His coming, as was foretold in
parables, and that it was His grace acting upon the holy Apostles? Will you
believe what was said? Listen to St. John the Evangelist, who says:
“The Holy Spirit was not yet given, because that Jesus was not yet glorified.”
Paul called this Spirit the Spirit of adoption and the Spirit of grace,
inasmuch as in the waters of the baptismal font men are born again of water and
the Spirit, and we receive the adoption of sons. In the same way, the Lord said
to Nicodemus:
“Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the
kingdom of God.”
Thus, the Holy Spirit is the Spirit of sonship and the Spirit of grace; for
grace and truth came by Jesus Christ, through the Holy Spirit, for those who
have been born by the power of God.
Moreover, the Spirit is called the Comforter, because He is also our advocate
with the Father. And not only is He with the Father, but He is always with us
also as a gift.
“And I will pray the Father, and He shall give you another Comforter, that He
may abide with you forever,”
comforting your hearts and making them steadfast in divine patience and trust
in Christ. Whereas the holy Apostles received this testament after Christ’s
holy Rising from the dead, and were sent forth to teach and to baptize in the
name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and whereas we have
already been vouchsafed this true washing by the Holy Spirit, let us strive to
keep our souls and our bodies undefiled as we glorify the Most holy and
consubstantial Trinity, the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, now and
ever and unto the ages of ages. Amen
(source)
Through the prayers of our Holy Fathers, Lord Jesus
Christ our God, have mercy on us and save us! Amen!
