WEBVTT 00:00:02.509 --> 00:00:08.269 I congratulate you on this feast day. Notice 00:00:08.269 --> 00:00:10.630 how the epistle started, the reading from Acts. 00:00:10.769 --> 00:00:15.570 It said, when the feast of Pentecost had fully 00:00:15.570 --> 00:00:20.629 come, fully come. In other words, it was a process. 00:00:20.690 --> 00:00:23.429 It was a time of preparation. It wasn't just 00:00:23.429 --> 00:00:29.550 a one -day thing. Exactly for us. We've been 00:00:29.550 --> 00:00:32.850 celebrating in the Paschal season, as I remarked 00:00:32.850 --> 00:00:37.630 last week, all the way through these 50 days. 00:00:39.130 --> 00:00:43.049 Pentecost is 50. This is the fullness. This is 00:00:43.049 --> 00:00:46.450 the day in which the feast has fully come, brothers 00:00:46.450 --> 00:00:48.929 and sisters. Now, what does that mean for us? 00:00:49.090 --> 00:00:52.130 Well, we're going to hear, we're going to pray, 00:00:52.310 --> 00:00:55.429 we're going to participate at the end of the 00:00:55.429 --> 00:00:59.469 Divine Liturgy in three. magnificent, and yes, 00:00:59.630 --> 00:01:05.870 long prayers during which we kneel for the first 00:01:05.870 --> 00:01:09.769 time since Holy Week because we've been celebrating 00:01:09.769 --> 00:01:13.349 the resurrection. So we stand, we rise, we lift 00:01:13.349 --> 00:01:17.409 up. But today, at the end of the liturgy, Vespers, 00:01:17.409 --> 00:01:20.269 which should be later in the day, but we're all 00:01:20.269 --> 00:01:26.950 here, so let's just do it. We will kneel. before 00:01:26.950 --> 00:01:31.010 God. And you hear these magnificent prayers. 00:01:31.329 --> 00:01:33.450 That's the sermon you're going to get today. 00:01:33.950 --> 00:01:37.329 All I want to do right now is to congratulate 00:01:37.329 --> 00:01:45.290 you. I want to affirm and that we have celebrated 00:01:45.290 --> 00:01:52.069 together Lent and Holy Week and Pascha and here 00:01:52.069 --> 00:01:56.689 we are on this incredible Day in which we celebrate 00:01:56.689 --> 00:02:01.069 something. Fresco's right there. Which you heard 00:02:01.069 --> 00:02:05.790 about in Acts. That changes everything about 00:02:05.790 --> 00:02:09.969 human nature. It makes us free. The gift of the 00:02:09.969 --> 00:02:14.250 Holy Spirit. Reveals Christ to us. Not as information. 00:02:15.810 --> 00:02:19.169 Like okay we know that Jesus is the son of God. 00:02:19.469 --> 00:02:22.229 We know that he is begotten from the father. 00:02:22.550 --> 00:02:26.120 And that he was born of a virgin. That's important. 00:02:26.780 --> 00:02:30.460 That's crucial for us. But in the first instance, 00:02:30.719 --> 00:02:34.099 what is it that the Holy Spirit reveals to us? 00:02:34.199 --> 00:02:40.680 That Jesus is Lord. And we can't say that without 00:02:40.680 --> 00:02:43.699 the Holy Spirit. And when we say Jesus is Lord, 00:02:43.819 --> 00:02:46.919 I don't mean just sort of casually throw that 00:02:46.919 --> 00:02:49.900 off. But in the scriptural language, to say someone 00:02:49.900 --> 00:02:55.039 is Lord means that absolute fidelity. To that 00:02:55.039 --> 00:03:03.159 person. Love, honor, respect, service, and sacrifice. 00:03:04.120 --> 00:03:06.979 We can't do that with Jesus without the Holy 00:03:06.979 --> 00:03:10.680 Spirit. And what does Jesus give to us? Again, 00:03:10.879 --> 00:03:15.259 it's not information, but he shows us who his 00:03:15.259 --> 00:03:19.439 Father is, without which we cannot be free. So 00:03:19.439 --> 00:03:22.379 this day, yes, we celebrate the Trinity. It's 00:03:22.379 --> 00:03:26.020 called Troits, a Trinity, that the Holy Spirit 00:03:26.020 --> 00:03:32.580 brings us to Christ, and Christ shows us the 00:03:32.580 --> 00:03:36.919 Father how, his love. Last night at the vigil, 00:03:37.039 --> 00:03:40.400 and I wish you were all there with us in San 00:03:40.400 --> 00:03:44.500 Francisco, but you had the vigil here. I see 00:03:44.500 --> 00:03:47.289 that the attendance was... Kind of on the low 00:03:47.289 --> 00:03:51.610 side, but what you missed was this. At Vespers, 00:03:51.669 --> 00:03:55.969 the clergy come out, bless the wheat, wine, and 00:03:55.969 --> 00:03:59.169 oil, and all that, and then, for the first time 00:03:59.169 --> 00:04:02.650 since Holy Week, you hear the reader say, cast 00:04:02.650 --> 00:04:05.069 me not away from thy presence, take not thy Holy 00:04:05.069 --> 00:04:07.889 Spirit from me, and the choir and the entire 00:04:07.889 --> 00:04:12.189 congregation sings, O Heavenly King, the Comforter, 00:04:12.229 --> 00:04:15.710 the Spirit of Truth, and in this moment, we are... 00:04:15.960 --> 00:04:20.879 inspired we are united and we are comforted by 00:04:20.879 --> 00:04:25.279 the spirit himself and the joy of all those voices 00:04:25.279 --> 00:04:28.459 hundreds of people singing together that simple 00:04:28.459 --> 00:04:33.959 hymn which is given to us as the beginning of 00:04:33.959 --> 00:04:37.279 almost every service we ever do and every prayer 00:04:37.279 --> 00:04:40.680 we ever do even on our own that speaks to us 00:04:40.680 --> 00:04:47.909 of God's revelation to the human heart Notice, 00:04:47.909 --> 00:04:55.550 dear brothers and sisters, after communion, what 00:04:55.550 --> 00:05:01.810 do we say? We have seen the true light. We have 00:05:01.810 --> 00:05:05.709 received the heavenly spirit. So this is a feast 00:05:05.709 --> 00:05:09.569 not about information about God. It's a feast 00:05:09.569 --> 00:05:15.750 of integration and communion with God. Can we 00:05:15.750 --> 00:05:19.449 sing we have seen the true light? Jesus said 00:05:19.449 --> 00:05:22.170 it. You heard the gospel today. The light of 00:05:22.170 --> 00:05:25.449 the world. He who has me does not walk in darkness, 00:05:25.509 --> 00:05:28.730 but as the light of life. Can we say honestly, 00:05:29.050 --> 00:05:34.110 authentically, after communion, those words, 00:05:34.250 --> 00:05:38.670 do they ring true for us personally? And if they 00:05:38.670 --> 00:05:41.810 don't, then we're going to fall on our knees 00:05:41.810 --> 00:05:46.879 today at the Vespers. to pray that they are authentic, 00:05:47.300 --> 00:05:51.639 that they are true, that we have seen the true 00:05:51.639 --> 00:05:54.680 light who is Christ. We have received the heavenly 00:05:54.680 --> 00:06:00.100 spirit who unites us to the Father. Now we can 00:06:00.100 --> 00:06:04.680 speak about deification and theosis, becoming 00:06:04.680 --> 00:06:08.079 united to God, sharing in the uncreated light. 00:06:10.079 --> 00:06:12.860 And whoever you've met in your life, whatever 00:06:12.860 --> 00:06:16.769 holy person, you have met, whatever you've read, 00:06:16.910 --> 00:06:20.149 however you've been inspired, the very first 00:06:20.149 --> 00:06:25.930 steps of deification, theosis, to be like God. 00:06:26.009 --> 00:06:29.389 We are his image and his likeness. That should 00:06:29.389 --> 00:06:35.430 not be a surprise. To be like God means we start 00:06:35.430 --> 00:06:38.389 with the simplest thing possible. The simplest 00:06:38.389 --> 00:06:44.699 things. To love God with all our soul, all our 00:06:44.699 --> 00:06:47.839 mind, all our strength, to love our neighbor 00:06:47.839 --> 00:06:53.819 as ourself. There's a hungry person out there, 00:06:53.959 --> 00:06:58.980 a poor person, a lonely person, someone who needs 00:06:58.980 --> 00:07:02.480 shoes and clothes. Can you be like God to them 00:07:02.480 --> 00:07:06.680 today? Can you be the revelation of God's love 00:07:06.680 --> 00:07:10.379 to one of those persons today? Can you be the 00:07:10.379 --> 00:07:13.310 revelation of love to your neighbor? the person 00:07:13.310 --> 00:07:17.129 you're next to today, to be kind, loving, merciful, 00:07:17.470 --> 00:07:21.649 generous, giving. These are all gifts from God. 00:07:21.730 --> 00:07:24.250 Brothers and sisters, you don't have to generate 00:07:24.250 --> 00:07:28.050 them on your own. If we are like God, by the 00:07:28.050 --> 00:07:32.910 Spirit of God, the riches of his love will come 00:07:32.910 --> 00:07:41.089 to you. Finally, Finally, knowing that our lives 00:07:41.089 --> 00:07:44.209 with Pentecost are under sort of, let's say, 00:07:44.290 --> 00:07:47.089 not the life of the world, but under new management. 00:07:47.670 --> 00:07:50.949 That's the Holy Spirit. When we cooperate with 00:07:50.949 --> 00:07:57.209 his will, which is about our attitudes, our desires, 00:07:57.389 --> 00:08:01.970 our thoughts, when we cooperate, the more spiritual 00:08:01.970 --> 00:08:07.209 grace we experience. And we begin to really want. 00:08:07.740 --> 00:08:14.019 What God wants. That's he wants us. And it's 00:08:14.019 --> 00:08:16.839 surprising to see this happening in yourself. 00:08:17.120 --> 00:08:21.379 And it's a delight. And it's a joy. And we see 00:08:21.379 --> 00:08:25.040 that he has a better plan for us than anything 00:08:25.040 --> 00:08:27.939 we may have imagined. And our prayers become 00:08:27.939 --> 00:08:31.959 less concerned with managing our outer circumstances, 00:08:32.320 --> 00:08:35.500 our worries, our concerns in this world. which 00:08:35.500 --> 00:08:38.100 are important, but they become more concerned 00:08:38.100 --> 00:08:42.840 with managing our inner condition to his satisfaction. 00:08:43.220 --> 00:08:47.559 Those are the prayers that he will answer. Those 00:08:47.559 --> 00:08:52.340 are the prayers he will answer first. When we 00:08:52.340 --> 00:08:56.340 say thy kingdom come, thy will be done on earth, 00:08:56.539 --> 00:09:02.320 meaning my life, as it is in heaven, this is 00:09:02.320 --> 00:09:07.179 what the Holy Spirit gives us today. To our Lord, 00:09:07.299 --> 00:09:13.820 who sends us the Spirit from his Father to dwell 00:09:13.820 --> 00:09:17.399 in our hearts, to him be glory now and ever, 00:09:17.440 --> 00:09:18.379 through ages of ages.